Andel has interesting places to visit. Take the Wilhelmina Lock and the grave of Jan Claesen. This walk starts at the lock. There is an impressive memorial commemorating the opening of the lock on August 18, 1904 by Queen Wilhelmina. It is the only impeller lock in the Netherlands with a green gully, meaning that the walls of the lock chamber are lined with grass. The lock itself was built around 1896 and marks the border between North Brabant and Gelderland.

Along the provincial road you walk towards Giessen to walk via Fort Giessen (the southernmost fort of the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie) towards Andel. Once on the Hoge Maasdijk you have a beautiful view of the river. The grave of Jan Claesen can be found in the cemetery near the Romboutstoren in Andel. In the 17th century, Jan Claesen was a trumpeter in the army of Frederick Henry of Orange. After he left military service (because he did not like fighting), he and his wife Katrijn went to give puppet shows in Amsterdam.

The route starts at Golfpark Almkreek and runs along the little river De Alm where rest benches have been placed by artists from the region. The village of Almkerk has wonderful historical stories about the river De Alm, once a wide body of water on which ships sailed. The remains are more reminiscent of a ditch and the descendants of the former sailors now sit on the waterfront fishing. By the way, a nice place for a picnic! Special is cinema Hollywoud, along the provincial road (towards the A27). A cozy movie house where you can order drinks and goodies during the screening. Do you like the outdoors more? Then go for a sporty "walk" at Golfpark Almkreek. During this walk you walk along parts of this golf park. You walk along farm De Koppel which played an important role in World War I (see also our bicycle route Cycling & stories along the line). Along the Woudrichemseweg you pass estate Clootwijck; a location that sells regional products. You walk through the village and via the Broekgraaf and across 't Laagt back to Golfpark Almkreek.

When you walk, you can take your time to discover the world around you. You slow down and encounter the most beautiful things. Be it nature, heritage or the activity on the water or the farmland.

In the Biesbosch Line there is a network of hiking nodes. You can easily map out your own route along the numbered signs and choose the distance that suits you.

In each individual core of the municipality of Altena there is also a mapped out route along the hiking nodes. These are collected in the walking guide that is available free of charge at the VVV Biesboschlinie folder posts or digitally on this page.

The Gijster is one of three reservoirs in the Biesbosch.

Water from the Meuse River is stored here. It is used for drinking water and for industry.

You need experience to sail this route. You will sail much of the route on the Amer River, where you will encounter commercial shipping.

The great thing about this route is that you paddle through narrow creeks just a few miles away, where beavers may cross your path. The water here is so clear that you can see the fish swimming next to your canoe. In the narrowest creeks, it is sometimes navigating over and between logs and overhanging branches. This only adds to the contrast with boating on the river and makes the trip more adventurous.

In the Ditch of St. John you pass under the Little Bridge of St. John. When at the end of WW2 the south of the Netherlands was liberated, but not yet the north, this little bridge played an important role. The occupiers used the bridge to go from south to north, and refugees went south instead. They were helped by the line-crossers who knew the area like the back of their hand.

The resistance intercepted many Germans near the little bridge. The line-crosser Piet van den Hoek (? 2015) from Werkendam was awarded the Willemsorde for his part in the resistance with the Partisans of the Biesbosch unit. A round of Gijster is a route full of contrasts and that is precisely what makes this ride so special.

Note: If you come with your own canoe or sup, please start from the canoe pier in front of the parking lot of Marina Vissershang. No need to climb the stairs.

You can rent a canoe at Jachthaven Van Oversteeg Werkendam or at DOCKS vissershang Hank. Contact the appropriate party for availability and canoe rentals.

The round trip around Almkerk is 12 km of sailing, but if you really don't want to miss anything, take the route to Giessen as well and sail from fort to fort!

The route on the Alm passes notable heritage and lies between Fort Altena and Fort Giessen. At the triangle of waters, near the picturesque village of Uitwijk, you pass an aqueduct. This, now a municipal monument, was built in the 1960s to separate two catchment areas. A boat crossing was installed here, as was also done north of Fort Altena near Uppel. A boat transfer was used to hoist a maintenance boat over the weir. You don't need something like this for your canoe, but it is special to encounter a rare landscape feature like this no less than twice on this trip.

Back to the aqueduct: at this junction it's all about which way you want to go. You lift your canoe into the right channel and continue your route. The route largely follows the Alm River, which branches off from the Waal in Roman times.

Roman artifacts were recovered on the stream ridge. From the Middle Ages on, the Alm was a tributary of the Meuse. Today, the Alm is no longer in direct connection with the major rivers.

You start at Fort Altena and can sail right through the polder to near Fort Giessen. Both forts are part of the New Dutch Waterline; an 85 kilometer long line with 45 forts, 6 fortresses and 2 castles. It is the largest national monument in the Netherlands which also includes Fort Steurgat, Fort Bakkerskil, Slot Loevestein, Fort Vuren and the fortified towns of Woudrichem and Gorinchem.

You are welcome to visit the brasserie on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10:30 am to 5 pm.

Please note that you cannot rent canoes on this route and we unfortunately do not deliver canoes to location. Don't own your own canoe? Then choose a route that starts at a point where you can rent canoes:Jachthaven Van Oversteeg in Werkendam or DOCKS vissershang in Hank. Contact the relevant party for availability and canoe rental.

Overview of all our routes in the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie

A beautiful Sunday morning, beautiful cloudy sky and a nice walk ahead, we are ready for it! From the parking lot at the Janus Baks Bastion we walk along the little harbor and turn left at 62, up the Schapendam, enjoying the Woerkum skyline (the windmill and Martinus church) out of Woudrichem over the Hoge Maasdijk. At the end left again at 67, up the Maasdijk. Tip: descend the dike and walk along the river side, a lot nicer and quieter (you miss 60 but can continue to node 02). We have a view of the river the whole way and see cattle and konik horses paddling on the opposite side (Munnikenland). At 02 we climb the dike again and keep left, on the paved path towards 01. We enjoy beautiful views and the wind in our hair. With some regularity we are passed by Sunday morning platoons, recreational cyclists whom we will probably see again at the next terrace. Arriving at 01, we turn left down the dike and walk toward 28. There we walk straight ahead, keeping the houses to our left. At the top we turn left towards the lock. Please note: here the junction system ends and you have to rely on us further. We follow the bike path until we see the brown referral signs to "De Buurman," which we gladly follow. This restaurant is located near the battery of Poederoijen, a lovely place to give your feet a rest (and yes, the cyclists have landed too!). After this pleasant break we take the same road back. However, now not left towards the provincial road but straight ahead. In the right turn we keep left and take the path of Staatsbosbeheer, called 'Poederoijensehoek' (we are shown the way by 2 deer!). At the end of this path we cross (carefully!) the provincial road and take another path of Staatsbosbeheer, this time called 'Boezem van Brakel'. We keep following this beautiful dike path along streams, nut trees, shelters and the Battery under Brakel until we reach the Waal dike, where we turn left. Now pay attention: we follow this path until the 2nd turn left (bicycle path). We follow that path, at the T - junction we turn right to finally turn right again at the next T - junction. We now walk through the 'Waarden bij Loevestein', between the beautiful cattle and konik horses. Enjoying the scenery, we walk on to the entrance bridge to Loevestein Castle, where we take a break on a terrace and enjoy the atmosphere of yesteryear. Whistling, we walk the last bit to the ferry that takes us back to Woudrichem. For current sailing times, check www.voetveerwoudrichem.nl.
A particularly successful walk through the Line Landscape!

Overview of all our routes in the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie

We leave from the parking lot at Fort Altena. We decide to hike first and then have lunch at the brasserie. The walk starts with a sneaky hidden forest path (just before the bridge to the fort on the left) towards node 26. We cross (carefully!) the road and walk left down the bike path to 77, where we let the traffic rush off us towards 76. On the way we encounter several casemates, one of which, with a steel dome, serves as a bird station. Walking further along the water we see two magnificent watermills (when the sails turn, they are well worth a visit!). At 76 we keep left on the cart track between the fields (the edges are planted in a bird-friendly way). Arriving at the road we cross straight over and turn right onto the loamy path, closely followed by the extremely curious sheep. We stop for a moment at the casemat to read the beautiful poem. We continue up to 74 where we turn left (through the gate) and right again at the end. On our right a little further on we see the care farm's vegetable garden and a long row of hop piles (these hops are the main ingredient of Altena Beer). At the end of the path we turn left over the small bridge and walk between the trees in a straight line towards 72. Here we cross the road and turn left into the driveway and before the fence turn right, across the grass towards 73. This sounds complicated, but it's not too bad! We turn left and walk in a straight line to 71, where we climb left up the Merwededijk. At the top we keep to the right, taking a break on the windy asphalt dike to 57. In the distance we see the tower of the fortified town of Woudrichem and to our left the activity on the river. At 57 we descend outside the dike into the floodplain. Again a beautiful piece of nature reserve managed by Brabants Landschap. Swallows nest in the banks and the kingfisher is also a regular guest in this nature reserve. At 58 we keep right and walk, mostly along the river, towards 68 (we could not find the pole, but it must be near Brasserie Boven de rivieren). Now we have to pay attention: turn right towards the village edge, turn right again (along the dike below) and at 67 turn right for part II of the floodplain. We walk between the cows, along the river. The landscape of yesteryear on our left, ultramodern barges on the river to the right, and in the distance right in front of us the arches of the Merwede Bridge. We keep walking along the river until we reach the never-used, accidentally placed bridge piers. There we turn left toward 66. We leave the thicket behind to turn right on the dike towards 49. Here we turn left down the dike, onto Notenlaan, and then take the 2nd right (footpath between the houses) opposite Herman de Ruij- terweg. We follow this Giethoorn-like path to 45 and turn left towards 44. This is a tricky part and we take care when crossing. On the bike path we turn right towards 41, right again towards 77 and straight on towards 26. We are back where the trip began. We find a nice spot on the terrace at Fort Altena. Cheers!

Overview of all our routes in the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie

We start at Fort Bakkerskil (Kildijk 143 in Nieuwendijk), a unique bed & breakfast with a nice terrace and situated on the edge of National Park De Biesbosch. The fort is part of the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie and a little further on is the Papsluis from 1815, an inlet that could flood the land when threatened.

We walk a short distance over the dike towards 13 to descend (through a gate) towards 15. This walk is part of a route set out by farmers called 'Oostwaardpad'.

A beautiful initiative where proud farmers make their field edges available to hikers. Along the way we also come across reference and information boards. Very handy when we sometimes miss the arrows of the junction network! Having arrived at 15 we turn left in the direction of 11. On the left we see the Papsluis lock. An imposing structure and we can imagine how important this lock was in the strategic plan of the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie. We walk along the small river Bakkerskil, sometimes along a field, sometimes through a small forest.

After 11, we follow the signs to 85, where there is a tow ferry to the other side. Although we stay on this side of the water, we try the ferry to take a few photos. From 85 we walk to 84 (the route can also be extended to 83 here) and keep right towards 10. We enjoy the typical Dutch polder landscape with, depending on the month, views of sugar beets, onions and potatoes. We follow 17. Crossing the fields is quite tough here and there. Heading toward 15, the route is a nice variety of groves and vistas. The shade of the trees provides coolness in summer and makes us curious about the rest. Again we walk in a straight line along arable land, with a right angle turn to the left at the end. After 17 we walk back via 15 and 13 and are back at Fort Bakkerskil where we enjoy a well-deserved cup of coffee and goodies. Have fun!

Dogs are not allowed on this route due to crossing farmland. The summer terrace at Fort Bakkerskil is open all week from May through September from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. for coffee and pastries. From Thursday through Sunday, you can also have lunch there. Please note, in heavy rain, the unpaved paths are muddy. So put on good shoes/boots.

Overview of all our routes in the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie

Cycling & Stories along the Line

You are in the southernmost part of the New Dutch Waterline. Here you will find the largest collection of WW1 shelters in the Netherlands. For a long time, many of these shelters were not visibly present in the landscape. Some even disappeared completely underground. Farmers who wanted to get rid of one of these shelters dug a hole and the stand was dumped in. Others used it as a pigsty or made a flower box out of loose parts.

Around 2009, the shelters, and their historical value, were rediscovered. Erfgoed Altena enthusiastically picked up the project to make the shelters visible. Helped by Arie Schouten of the Menno van Coehoorn Foundation and driven by Kees van Maastrigt (who wrote a book about mobilization in this region), more shelters were discovered which, together with the forts, listening wells, sluices and trenches, formed the WW1 line; a unique way of national defense. Parts of the country could be inundated, or flooded to stop the enemy. In WW1, the Netherlands remained neutral and the army was mobilized but not at war. In WW2, the Netherlands was occupied by the German army for five years.

Want to know more about the New Dutch Waterline?Then visit Fort Giessen and the adjacent education park. Check in advance for current opening hours at www.forten.nl

You can rent a (electric) bicycle from various rental locations. Contact the relevant party for availability and bike rental.

Overview of all our routes in the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie

We put our ear to the ground with excerpt 6 of the audio tour:

Meanwhile ... at the military station ...

The military office in Uitwijk was not the only one in the area. Every village along the line had a military office, employing officials called scribes, who arranged matters for the stationed soldiers, such as leave and pay (salary).

The military office knew which soldier could be found where. Perhaps at a fort, in the barn at the Koppel, in an encampment or even billeted with civilians. Letters from home could be delivered quickly to their destination.

A telegraph operator also always worked at such a military station. With a telegraph, which converted signs into an electric on-off signal, information was sent over long distances without time difference; the telegram.

Not always were such modern techniques used. In every place where a commander was stationed, you would also find a pigeon post. Partly because telephone cables had not yet been installed everywhere, the carrier pigeon was actually a common form of communication. Sending a postcard is something of all times. A week after the start of mobilization, a soldier sent his first postcard home. In telegram style, that is, and he did so in order to put as much information on it as possible.

Oostwaardpad 23 km (can be shortened to 7.5 km, 8.5 km and 15 km detours)

Sometimes you think you know all the places in your own area. How surprising it is then to discover something new! And not just anything, but something you would like to take others to because it has made such an impression on you.

You'll find spots like that along the Oostwaardpad; a hiking trail across farmland in the Oostwaard on the edge of National Park De Biesbosch. The route runs along and across fields and creeks. You walk, marvel and take a ferry across the Bakkerskil.

Each time you walk the trail, the view is different. The fields are still bare, just sown, full of crops or have just been harvested. You see the farmers toiling and plowing.

Enjoy the flora and fauna in the vast landscape and be moved by fairy-tale still lifes you just happen to find yourself in during this hike.

The route on the Oostwaardpad brings tranquility above all. If you want a relaxing walk through a beautiful natural area, then you should really explore this part of the Biesbosch Line.

Sometimes a deer suddenly appears at the edge of a field or a beaver swims in a body of water. Of course, you never know where and when. Nature is unpredictable and unimaginably beautiful. That is what makes the Oostwaard so attractive for peace seekers and nature lovers.

Learn more about the Oostwaard Route, and more routes across farmland, at the Agrarian Nature Association's folder. Keep in mind that the route can be very muddy when it rains a lot.

Overview of all our routes in the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie