Gaasterlân path

Gaasterland, the land on the gaast (sandy elevation), differs greatly from the rest of the Frisian southwest corner. With its gently sloping landscape, which rises more than 10 meters above the surrounding peat area, its cliffs along the IJssemeer and its wealth of forest, it has a character all its own. After the last ice age, a large peat area stretched out on the south side of the then high-lying sand plain, with a core of tough boulder clay underneath. As the sea level rose - the climate warmed and the ice melted - this peat was increasingly affected by the water and washed away in stormy weather. However, the boulder clay resisted and continued to do so after the Zuiderzee was formed. In this way, cliffs or steep coasts arose at three places along the current coast. To the west lies the 10 m high Roode Klif and further east are the Mirnser Klif (5.3 m) and the Oude Mirdumer Klif (7.8 m). The Gaasterland was already inhabited in prehistoric times, as witnessed by a now disappeared hunebed.