The best traffic-free bike rides around Waalwijk

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Interesting combination of the traditional buildings with a new glass addition - quite a contrast, but here well done.

A bit of a desert area, loose sand, but easy to walk on

From the cycle path from Giersbergen to the Rustende Jager the sand dunes are clearly visible. Many unpaved footpaths and MTB routes also lead here.

Fortified town Woudrichem, or Woerkum, as the residents call it, is the only town of the Biesboschlinie. In the 9th century, a market place was created on a riverbank. Today, this is where the Hoogstraat and the Molenstraat intersect. This place is still the heart of the fortified town. Historical context: History Woudrichem is strategically located at the confluence of the Maas and Waal, at the intersection of 3 provinces. The Land van Altena, to which Woudrichem belongs, belonged to the County of Holland from 1322. It was not until 1815 that it was incorporated into the new province of North Brabant. Woudrichem was granted city rights in 1356. In that year, the count's river toll from Niemandsvriend van Sliedrecht was also moved to Woudrichem. A few years later, the town also received fishing rights and flourished. The Martinuskerk and city walls date from this period. In 1420, the toll was moved to Gorinchem. This event, the St. Elizabeth's flood of 1421 and the many military conflicts in which the town was involved due to its location, caused the decline of the town. The many sieges have left their mark on Woerkum. In 1573, the Geuzen set fire to the town. They considered it indefensible. A new city wall was then built, which protected a smaller area than the old city wall had done. This city wall is the fortress wall that still encloses the center. In 1814, Woudrichem became part of the New Dutch Waterline. From that time on, no more building was allowed in the surrounding land. It was not until 1955 that the fortress was closed and new residential areas were built around the town. The historic city center is a protected cityscape. Source: https://biesboschlinie.com/zien-doen/bezichten/woudrichem/

Woudrichem is a tiny old fortified town in the northernmost point of North Brabant, where the rivers Maas and Waal meet. Pass through the city gates and you will be taken back in time by the charm of the town.

The Veense corn mill is still very much alive. The mill is in motion almost every day, and at the bottom of the mill there is a cozy mill shop where the home-made artisanal mill products such as flour, bread and baking mixes are in great demand. ‘Assie draait, issie open’ is the slogan of the miller! Brief history This round stone tower mill was built in 1838 for Willem and Reinier Ambrosius, as a successor to a 16th century wooden post mill. A map from 1798 shows that it stood on the same spot. The mill was built by master carpenter and millwright T.C. Snels from Waalwijk and mason J. Verkuijl from Veen, for the sum of eight thousand guilders and was equipped with two pairs of millstones. The construction took only thirteen weeks, and the stones for the hull were transported by barge over the Maas. In 1924, the Ambrosius miller family emigrated to South Africa and the mill came into the hands of the Van Ballegooijen family, who continued the business. Want to know more? Click through to https://molensheusdenenaltena.nl/de-hoop/ Visit options: Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and otherwise when the sails are turning (almost daily). The mill is closed on Sundays.

Coming from the south on the N267, you will see the red steel monument KUNST on a concrete base before the Heusden bridge. The numbers 1904-1991 have been cast into the concrete in the base. There is also a plaque that states: REMEMBRANCE OF 87 YEARS OF STEEL BRIDGES IN HEUSDEN Historical interpretation: In the context of the Maasmond works, 'De Groote Brug' was built over the Bergsche Maas in Heusden, with the main aim of opening up the Land van Altena. The bridge was opened to traffic on 1 March 1904. The bridge was a riveted truss bridge made of steel profiles. When the Germans invaded our country on 10 May 1940, the bridge was blown up by Dutch soldiers the next morning at 5.30 am to slow down the German advance. The crossing was made for a while by ferry. The bridge was repaired on site and put back into use in March 1941. When the Germans withdrew from the Langstraat to the Land van Altena, the bridge was blown up again by the German Sprengcommando in the night of 4 to 5 November 1944 at 3:45 in the morning. After the war, the bridge was repaired and the wooden road surface was replaced by a concrete one. The bridge was put back into use in February 1947 and remained so until 1989. Around 1980, the bridge appeared to be technically outdated, too narrow for traffic and had too low a clearance. A new concrete cable-stayed bridge was laid next to the old one and put into use in 1989. The old bridge was removed in 1991, sold to Suriname for ƒ1,-, never collected and demolished in 1996. As a reminder, part of the bridge construction has been preserved as a monument. Source https://heusden.nieuws.nl/nieuws/monumenten-in-heusden-monument-bij-heusdense-brug