End the year with a brisk walk or start the new year full of confidence, the Netherlands has plenty of beautiful walking trails. In this blog, each member of the Honeyguide editorial team shares her favourite winter walk with you. So you can get some fresh air during these lockdown holidays (and afterwards).
On Honeyguide you often read about beautiful walking routes. Honeyguide Yalou, for instance, recently wrote about four special walks in the Netherlands. Honeyguide Laura hiked at Radio Kootwijk and also wrote about the white spots in the Netherlands; places where you really are completely offline. And a group of honeyguides went forest bathing on the Utrechtse Heuvelrug earlier this year. Piece by piece walking routes to look up. And the following six are not to be missed:
Honeyguide Femke about Bos Bornia - Driebergen-Rijsenburg, province of Utrecht
My favourite forest is Bornia, in Driebergen-Rijsenburg. Also very suitable for a winter walk. It offers a fantastic variety of deciduous and coniferous trees and stretched views over the beautiful heathland. Sheep have also been released here to manage the land.
Some walking routes even take you past a piece of coniferous forest. It's a little hidden corner, but it looks just like a fairytale forest. So beautiful! Bornia is connected to 3 other forests in the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, making it the second largest nature reserve in the Netherlands. Fat tip, in the very early morning you might see an owl.
Honeyguide Amanda about N70 nature trail - Berg en Dal, province of Gelderland
My favourite winter hike has to be the N70 nature trail in Berg en Dal. That is near my hometown Nijmegen. A beautiful route with lots of height difference, along narrow forest paths and ancient oak trees.
Somehow, I always get lost when I try to follow the coloured posts. This makes me always rediscover this route. Once, we walked a stretch along perhaps the oldest, thickest and tallest tree I have ever seen. You could almost crawl into it, so big. Now I keep trying to find that stretch of route again and again, but to this day I have never succeeded and the location remains a mystery.
Honeyguide Laura about the Poort van Heusden - Heusden, province of North Brabant
Exploring nature: I love it! This year, for instance, I discovered the Gateway of Heusden, better known as the former Land of Ever. When this amusement park went bankrupt in 2007, a large wooded area was left behind. So today, it has been renamed the hiking area the Gate of Heusden.
Upon entering, we were immediately surprised by the avenues of imposing overgrown trees. The now cracked lampposts along the path show that it was once a coming and going of people here. It feels somewhat spooky, especially when you arrive at the pond where an army of stone soldiers has now become far submerged. But that abandoned amusement park feeling has its charm. Most of the park consists of lush nature, old bridges and here and there an overgrown canopy of an old attraction. The well-known castle is still there, too, and in the castle garden you will find the track on which a train used to run.
Honeyguide Sophie about Deventer - Deventer, province of Overijssel
I love old cities with small alleys, old facades and crooked houses. It feels like stepping into another century. When we still lived in Apeldoorn, my boyfriend and I would often go to Deventer to walk around.
Especially during a winter walk, when the houses are decorated with baubles and thousands of lights, it really is a fairytale place. The shops are closed now, of course. But because of this, the city is actually quiet and you can really enjoy the scene. (And when the lockdown is over, this blog about a city break in Deventer is highly recommended!).
Honeyguide Yalou about the Twiske - Oostzaan, province of North Holland
The Twiske nature reserve is just north of Amsterdam, close by for me and yet I had never been there until recently. I heard from my flatmate that it is a popular picnic spot in summer, but also at this time of year the Twiske turns out to be lovely for a winter walk.
Together with a friend, I wandered the footpaths for hours. We got a coffee to go at the harbour and looked out at the fishermen and birds waiting side by side on the lake. 't Twiske is definitely recommended if you want to escape city life for a while. With 650 hectares of meadows, water and forest, home to many waterbirds and Scottish Highlanders, it really should do the trick.
Honeyguide Daphne on walking with the dog - Tilburg, province of North Brabant
My favourite winter walk is through the Reeshofbos in Tilburg, together with my dog Flo. It is a small but nice walking area and dogs are allowed to run free.
I love to start the week with a nice walk. On Monday mornings, it is always fairly quiet with the number of walkers and dogs, so the walk allows you to 'wake up' nicely and take in the beautiful surroundings.
The really happy moments are when the morning sun comes out and when I see Flo running through the leaves. Not to mention the lovely smell of the forest!
What is your favourite route for a long winter walk? Let us know via a message on Instagram or share your hiking snapshot with #heyhoneyguide.
Best wishes,
The Honeyguide team