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Cycling along fortresses and fortified towns

Cycling holiday Dutch waterline

Name: Happy Cycling Holidays
Address: Hengelosestraat 300a, Enschede, Nederland, 7521 AN
Telephone: +31 (0)53 430 34 35
Location: Happy Cycling Holidays

Between Weesp and Gorinchem, you cycle straight through a unique piece of history. From 1815 to 1940, the New Dutch Waterline protected the western part of the Netherlands. In times of threat, a strip of land, sometimes as wide as five kilometers, could be flooded: too shallow for boats, too deep to walk through. Today, that land is thankfully dry, making it perfect for a cycling adventure. » read more about Cycling holiday Dutch waterline

Weesp, Utrecht, Wijk bij Duurstede, Gorinchem, Nieuwkoop
Fortresses and fortified towns
Rivers and nature reserves

GPS APP E-bike Zwaarte zwaarte_1

Cycling holiday
Distance tour
6 days
Individual

from 650 p.p.
excl. additional costs

Prices and dates

from 650 p.p.
excl. additional costs

Prices and dates

Water as an Ally

Floods, dike breaches… for centuries, we’ve battled against water. But at times, that same water became a welcome ally. In 1672, the Disaster Year when “the people were senseless, the government helpless, and the country hopeless”, French troops advanced. By flooding a wide strip of land, we managed to keep them at a safe distance. Just forty centimeters of water was enough: too deep for man and horse to pass through.

Round of Battles

Now, riding your 'steel steed', you’ll set off from Weesp on a six-day journey past impressive forts, strongholds, and batteries. And nothing stands in your way! Weesp already boasts four bastions and several forts nearby. Following the scenic Vecht River, you’ll reach Utrecht and Wijk bij Duurstede. From there, the route takes you to Loevestein Castle and Gorinchem. A foot ferry over the River Lek brings you to Noorden and the wide-open Nieuwkoopse Plassen, before looping back to Weesp.

Loevestein Castle

Jan Klaassen Was Real

Next to the sturdy St. Martin’s Church in Woudrichem stands a statue of this Jan Claesen, trumpet in hand. A little further along, in Andel near the Rombouts Tower, a gravestone claims that the famous Jan Klaassen is buried there, murdered in 1634 by a resident of Breda.

Exceptional Heritage

The New Dutch Waterline is an 85-kilometre-long line of defence stretching from Muiden to the Biesbosch. It includes 45 forts, six fortified towns, two castles, 85 machine gun bunkers, over 700 concrete shelters, and more than 100 sluices and waterworks. It is the largest national heritage site in the Netherlands, so exceptional that in 2021 it was added to UNESCO’s list of protected World Heritage Sites.

Fort Rhijnauwen

The Most Beautiful Light

“When you're out in nature and see something so beautiful it takes your breath away, you simply can’t keep your hands still. you have to paint.” So said the Hague School painter Hendrik Johannes Weissenbruch (1824–1903), who found endless inspiration in naturw, especially in the light.
“Painters can never look at the sky enough,” he often said. “Sky and light are magicians.” It was these very elements that drew painters of his time to the lakes and polders around Noorden. So as you cycle through the landscape, don’t forget to look up.

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Cycling holiday Dutch waterline

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Routes

The waterline is a unique and typically Dutch defence system that made it possible to flood large areas of land. It was too shallow for the enemy to navigate and too deep to wade through. On this cycle tour, you will follow the main water lines and pass many impressive forts. As the forts were not allowed to be built on, nature was given free rein.