The land of fens and vanished stones
Niftrik, Wijchen, Leur
Today’s story takes place in the area just south of the Waal and just north of the Maas. A landscape shaped by these rivers for thousands of years. The water deposited clay, blew sand into dunes and carved out new river branches and creeks. To this day, it remains a land of fens, lakes, streams and cut-off river channels, a landscape always in motion. The water didn’t just bring life, it also played a strategic role. Castles and fortresses rose along the Maas to defend the north of the Netherlands. Lords chose their locations carefully, often on a motte, a man-made mound, allowing them to overlook their land. Religion also left a strong mark for centuries. In the Middle Ages, monasteries and churches followed one another, until the Reformation redrew boundaries and left lasting traces. Today, we search for the vanished stones in the land of the fens. Which castles crumbled into ruins, why did some churches lose their naves, and what happened to the collapsed tower of Hernen? Fun fact for cyclists: many more stones have disappeared from this landscape than you'd think at first glance. A castle once stood in Balgoij, and probably in Leur as well. To the untrained eye, there’s little left to see, but the six-metre-high motte near the old church in Leur reveals that a fortress once stood here. The reasons for the disappearance of these stones are as varied as the buildings themselves. Wars and battles left smouldering ruins. The Reformation made churches and chapels obsolete, leading to decay. Some towers simply collapsed due to old age. And many stones were reused in nearby farms or roads. Time and again, the face of the landscape changed. While the walls crumbled over centuries, the fens remained. Quietly lying here between river dunes and heathlands, together with the ruins and towers, they tell the story of this unique region. This Premium cycling route was compiled by our editor: Désirée van Uffelen.
| Directions | Distance | Total distance | |
|
Start: Maasbandijk , 6606 KB Wijchen | 45.1 KM | |
|
From
80
to
81
|
2397 M | 2.4 KM | |
| Head southeast on Maasbandijk | 4 M | ||
| Make a slight left | 1.3 KM | ||
| Make a slight left onto Maasdijk | 511 M | ||
| Keep right onto Maasdijk | 555 M | ||
| You are now at section 81 | 0 M | ||
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From
81
to
85
|
2601 M | 2.6 KM | |
| Head southeast on Hoeveweg | 1 KM | ||
| Turn left onto Torenstraat | 412 M | ||
| Turn left onto Houtsestraat | 725 M | ||
| Make a slight right to stay on Houtsestraat | 95 M | ||
| Turn right onto Torenstraat | 351 M | ||
| You are now at section 85 | 0 M | ||
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From
85
to
84
|
2022 M | 2 KM | |
| Head southeast on Torenstraat | 1.5 KM | ||
| Turn left onto Graafseweg | 88 M | ||
| Turn right | 353 M | ||
| Turn left onto Boskantse Broekstraat | 100 M | ||
| You are now at section 84 | 0 M | ||
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From
84
to
78
|
1715 M | 1.7 KM | |
| Head northeast on Boskantse Broekstraat | 1.7 KM | ||
| You are now at section 78 | 0 M | ||
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From
78
to
77
|
880 M | 0.9 KM | |
| Head south on Boskant | 614 M | ||
| Turn right onto Zandbergseweg | 266 M | ||
| You are now at section 77 | 0 M | ||
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From
77
to
28
|
1781 M | 1.8 KM | |
| Head southeast on Zandbergseweg | 1.4 KM | ||
| Turn left onto Sint Walrickweg | 344 M | ||
| You are now at section 28 | 0 M | ||
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From
28
to
41
|
1181 M | 1.2 KM | |
| Head east on Loksheuvelseweg | 123 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Loksheuvelseweg | 1.1 KM | ||
| You are now at section 41 | 0 M | ||
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From
41
to
40
|
2930 M | 2.9 KM | |
| Head northeast on Worsumsebroekweg | 1.1 KM | ||
| Turn left onto Hofsteeg | 180 M | ||
| Keep left onto Hofsteeg | 439 M | ||
| Turn left onto Sint Walrickweg | 8 M | ||
| Turn right onto Hofsteeg | 464 M | ||
| Turn right | 308 M | ||
| Continue onto Nijmeegseweg | 282 M | ||
| Continue straight | 170 M | ||
| You are now at section 40 | 0 M | ||
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From
40
to
76
|
1418 M | 1.4 KM | |
| Head north on Staddijk | 39 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Staddijk | 21 M | ||
| Make a slight left | 641 M | ||
| Make a slight right onto Diervoortseweg | 717 M | ||
| You are now at section 76 | 0 M | ||
|
From
76
to
75
|
783 M | 0.8 KM | |
| Head northwest on De Vendam | 64 M | ||
| Make a slight right to stay on De Vendam | 468 M | ||
| Turn left onto Weg ter Horst | 235 M | ||
| Turn right | 16 M | ||
| You are now at section 75 | 0 M | ||
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From
75
to
54
|
1468 M | 1.5 KM | |
| Head northeast | 475 M | ||
| Turn left | 267 M | ||
| Turn right | 544 M | ||
| Make a slight left | 11 M | ||
| Continue onto Oude Teersdijk | 52 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Oude Teersdijk | 27 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Oude Teersdijk | 92 M | ||
| You are now at section 54 | 0 M | ||
|
From
54
to
53
|
1407 M | 1.4 KM | |
| Head northwest on Oude Teersdijk | 1.1 KM | ||
| Turn right onto Weg door de Berendonck | 55 M | ||
| Turn left onto Graafseweg | 60 M | ||
| Turn right onto Nieuweweg | 164 M | ||
| You are now at section 53 | 0 M | ||
|
From
53
to
79
|
1801 M | 1.8 KM | |
| Head southwest on Nieuweweg | 134 M | ||
| Turn left onto Graafseweg | 1.6 KM | ||
| Turn left | 20 M | ||
| You are now at section 79 | 0 M | ||
|
From
79
to
88
|
1915 M | 1.9 KM | |
| Head south | 90 M | ||
| Continue onto Graafseweg | 137 M | ||
| Turn right onto Valendrieseweg | 1.7 KM | ||
| You are now at section 88 | 0 M | ||
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From
88
to
74
|
1347 M | 1.3 KM | |
| Head southwest on Meester van Coothlaan | 110 M | ||
| Turn right onto Oosterweg | 302 M | ||
| Continue onto Elckerlycweg | 158 M | ||
| Turn right onto Meerdreef | 362 M | ||
| Make a slight right | 20 M | ||
| Turn left | 26 M | ||
| Turn left | 369 M | ||
| You are now at section 74 | 0 M | ||
|
From
74
to
66
|
1403 M | 1.4 KM | |
| Head west on Westerdreef | 1.4 KM | ||
| You are now at section 66 | 0 M | ||
|
From
66
to
67
|
3470 M | 3.5 KM | |
| Head north on Westerdreef | 1.2 KM | ||
| Turn left | 35 M | ||
| Turn right onto Hof van Hagevoort | 30 M | ||
| Continue straight | 129 M | ||
| Make a slight left onto Leurseweg | 940 M | ||
| Turn right onto Van Balverenlaan; van Balverenlaan | 1.1 KM | ||
| You are now at section 67 | 0 M | ||
|
From
67
to
68
|
2034 M | 2 KM | |
| Head northwest on Meerenburg | 882 M | ||
| Continue onto Dassenloop | 543 M | ||
| Make a slight left onto Tunnelpad | 350 M | ||
| Make a slight left onto Loffertweg | 128 M | ||
| Turn right onto Dorpsstraat | 131 M | ||
| You are now at section 68 | 0 M | ||
|
From
68
to
71
|
1367 M | 1.4 KM | |
| Head northeast on Dorpsstraat | 714 M | ||
| Keep right onto Dorpsstraat | 113 M | ||
| Continue onto Diepestraat | 13 M | ||
| Turn right onto Stompendijk | 527 M | ||
| You are now at section 71 | 0 M | ||
|
From
71
to
70
|
1906 M | 1.9 KM | |
| Head southwest on Schaarsestraat | 1.9 KM | ||
| You are now at section 70 | 0 M | ||
|
From
70
to
73
|
2613 M | 2.6 KM | |
| Head west on Bergharensestraat | 1.8 KM | ||
| Make a slight left onto Hoefweg | 111 M | ||
| Turn right onto Touwslagersbaan | 316 M | ||
| Turn left onto Hoppenhofstraat | 87 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Hoppenhofstraat | 156 M | ||
| Turn left onto Stadswal | 159 M | ||
| You are now at section 73 | 0 M | ||
|
From
73
to
69
|
1046 M | 1 KM | |
| Head east on Molendijk | 118 M | ||
| Make a slight right onto Ossewaard | 25 M | ||
| Turn left | 903 M | ||
| You are now at section 69 | 0 M | ||
|
From
69
to
87
|
3691 M | 3.7 KM | |
| Head south on Rijswaard | 1.5 KM | ||
| Make a slight right onto Liendensedijk | 2.2 KM | ||
| You are now at section 87 | 0 M | ||
|
From
87
to
86
|
1162 M | 1.2 KM | |
| Head southeast on Maasbandijk | 1.2 KM | ||
| You are now at section 86 | 0 M | ||
|
From
86
to
80
|
811 M | 0.8 KM | |
| Head northeast on Maasbandijk | 792 M | ||
| Make a slight right to stay on Maasbandijk | 15 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Maasbandijk | 4 M | ||
| You are now at section 80 | 0 M |