Hoek van Holland, De Lier, Maassluis

Hook of Holland, today mostly known as a seaside resort, has a lot of history surrounding World War II. In the Dutch Armoured Fortress, the last cabinet meeting was held before the government left for England. Queen Wilhelmina also left from here. She actually wanted to go to Zeeland, but on the orders of the British Admiralty, the British warship set course for Harwich.

Germany built the beach full of bunkers as part of the Atlantic Wall. The Armoured Fortress and bunkers can still be partially visited. Maassluis also suffered from the German occupation. A small fleet of anti-aircraft guns posed a threat to Allied flights. An attempt by the Allies to bomb Maassluis' oil factory went wrong: the bombs landed in the middle of the town, destroying a large part of the old town centre.

This route takes you past these locations and also through the Staelduinse Bos, where quite a few bunkers from that era are still there. You cannot enter the bunkers; they are the breeding and wintering grounds for protected bat species. But it is well worth cycling through this nature reserve.