Jacob van Lennep Route, Part 21 (Dalfsen - Hardenberg)

Van Dedem
On Tuesday, July 15th, Van Lennep and Van Hogendorp plan to visit Baron Van Dedem: the man who commissioned the digging of the Dedemsvaart canal and was responsible for the reclamation of the region. However, he is not at his magnificent Rollecate estate. The house was demolished in 1931 to make way for a road.

Misconduct
That same day, the travelers arrive in Ommerschans. Van Lennep describes in detail the appalling conditions there. Many colonists, for example, are not there voluntarily, as in Frederiksoord , but have been bluntly deported. Among them are a large number of children who are simply forced to work. A harrowing story. Van Lennep and his traveling companion are moved to tears. Geert Mak is also moved when he discusses the appalling conditions and visits the paupers' graves on Balkerweg in the sixth television episode.

Swollen foot
The route takes you through Dedemsvaart, the reclamation village founded on the Dedemsvaart canal. At the end of the day, it turns out that Van Hogendorp's left foot is so swollen that he can't put on a shoe. Walking is not an option. The travelers are given a lift by carriage to Hardenberg, where Van Hogendorp has his foot bandaged by a doctor "(...) who was as fat as six people put together, and who also served as a notary and sheriff."

Just before Rheeze, you cross the Overijsselse Vecht River via a self-service electric ferry. This ferry operates daily from April through October. Outside of these times, you can travel from junction 57 via junction 58 to junction 64.

In-depth sources
-Jakob van Lennep, " The Summer of 1823 ": part 2, chapter 5.
-Geert Mak, The Summer of 1823 as a television series : episode 6.
-Maya Schepers, The Summer of 1823 as a radio series : episode 6.