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
Activity: Sailing