Experience the living bog
Laag Holland is rich in nature. Green meadows criss-crossed by ditches and canals, vast peat meadows and endless water.
Visitors and residents enjoy this special landscape every day. Laag Holland just hasn't always looked like this.
Over the years, the area has been developed mainly by human hands. To make life below sea level liveable, large areas were drained and waterways were dug to drain away the water. Every day, people still work hard to maintain the special nature of Laag Holland. But, where man first fought against the water, it is now the drought that is a problem. In the Ilperveld, you can see for yourself what it means to maintain an important peat meadow area, and the challenges involved. Read the story below during your cycle route and experience the living peat
The Ilperveld is...
Visitors and residents enjoy this special landscape every day. Laag Holland just hasn't always looked like this.
Over the years, the area has been developed mainly by human hands. To make life below sea level liveable, large areas were drained and waterways were dug to drain away the water. Every day, people still work hard to maintain the special nature of Laag Holland. But, where man first fought against the water, it is now the drought that is a problem. In the Ilperveld, you can see for yourself what it means to maintain an important peat meadow area, and the challenges involved. Read the story below during your cycle route and experience the living peat
The Ilperveld is best experienced from the water. It is therefore recommended to combine this cycle route with a boat trip through the Ilperveld. From 1 April to 30 September, on Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays, Landschap Noord-Holland hires out various (whisper) boats, canoes and kayaks from the visitor centre so that you can explore the Ilperveld yourself. They also organise guided boating excursions on Sunday afternoons. Prefer to stay on dry land? Via two footbridges you can walk a short distance into the Ilperveld. One path leads to the bird hide where you can spot many meadow and reed birds and one runs right through the reeds.
This route was developed by Bureau Toerisme Laag Holland, commissioned by the Twiske-Waterland Recreatieschap, the Alkmaarder- en Uitgeestermeer Recreatieschap and the Province of North Holland and is part of the Intergovernmental Programme Vital Countryside.
Take a closer look
You are going to see this
Tram Square bus station
Bus station Tramplein is the bus station near the centre of Purmerend. From this bus station, direct buses go to Amsterdam, De Rijp, de Beemster, Edam and Volendam.
Tram Square bus station
Bus station Tramplein is the bus station near the centre of Purmerend. From this bus station, direct buses go to Amsterdam, De Rijp, de Beemster, Edam and Volendam.
A service counter is also located here os. See below for opening hours.
At the ticket office of this bus station, you can buy the Amsterdam & Region Day ticket. With this ticket you can discover the beaches of Zandvoort, the cheese market in Edam and typical Dutch villages like Volendam with a 24-hour public transport pass. It is a special card valid in metros, trams, buses and trains of GVB, Connexxion, EBS, AllGo, R-net and NS in the Amsterdam metropolitan region. With the purchase of this day ticket, you will receive an accompanying Amsterdam region route map full of useful tips and unmissable highlights.
Picnic site Oudelandsdijkje
On Oudelandsdijkje, just outside Purmerend, there is a lovely picnic spot. Take a break here and enjoy the view over the meadows.
Picnic site Oudelandsdijkje
On the Oudelandsdijkje, just outside Purmerend, there is a lovely picnic spot. Take a break here and enjoy the view over the meadows.
Farm shop Achtervennen
There is nothing nicer than buying the organic products made on the farm directly from the farmer. That's why you can buy fresh milk and cheese at Farm Achtervennen in the farm shop at the front of the farmyard.
Farm shop Achtervennen
There is nothing nicer than buying the organic products made on the farm directly from the farmer. That's why you can buy fresh milk and cheese at Farm Achtervennen in the farm shop at the front of the farmyard.
In the farm shop, you will find two refrigerated vending machines with fresh milk and cheese, where you can get your own farm products and checkout.
Cheese vending machine
Golden wheels are made from the cows' fresh milk, which ripens on the farm into young, young-aged, matured and extra-aged cheese. The different ages are sold per pound and/or kilo in the cheese vending machine. The pieces are vacuum-packed.
Milk tap
Raw milk has a creamier taste than supermarket milk and because it has not been heated (pasteurised), all the good bacteria are still present. To let people in Ilpendam, passers-by and recreationists also enjoy this fresh milk, Achtervennen farm has had a milk tap since June 2021. From the tap, milk is available for €1.25 per litre. Bringing your own bottle is appreciated, but of course these are also available in the shop.
Care farm Ons Verlangen
For some complementary dairy products, the farm cooperates with care farm Ons Verlangen. This is an organic dairy farm in Zunderdorp with cows, goats, horses, pigs, rabbits, chickens and sheep. It also provides care to 40 relief farmers. In the cheese vending machine, you will find their home-made butter, custard, cottage cheese and goat's cheese.
Organic meat
Once in a while, the farm sells home meat packages. This is 5 kilos of organic beef, including minced meat, burgers, sausages, steak, soup meat, sirloin steak and schnitzel. The price of a package is 65 euros. If you want to be kept up to date on sale times, send them an email or keep an eye on their Facebook and Instagram.
The Arms of Ilpendam
For real old-fashioned cosiness, eatery 'Het Wapen van Ilpendam' is the place to be. With hundreds of old photos, plaques and musical instruments on the wall, you will feast your eyes.
The Arms of Ilpendam
For real old-fashioned cosiness, eatery 'Het Wapen van Ilpendam' is the place to be. With hundreds of old photos, plaques and musical instruments on the wall, you will feast your eyes.
From Tuesday to Sunday, you can visit the eatery for a snack, lunch or dinner. The extensive menu means there is something for everyone. Choose a freshly made sandwich, a rich salad, one of their specialities or a snack. So drop by and don't forget to enjoy!
Ferry Ilpendam-Landsmeer
With ferry Ilpendam-Landsmeer, you can cross from Ilpendam to Landsmeer and vice versa 7 days a week.
Ferry Ilpendam-Landsmeer
With ferry Ilpendam-Landsmeer, you can cross from Ilpendam to Landsmeer and vice versa 7 days a week.
Rules ferry Ilpendam-Landsmeer:
- Vehicles up to 5 tonnes
- Crossing is at your own risk
- The passenger always follows the ferryman's instructions
- Extra care when driving up with low bodywork
- Caused damage is at your own risk
- Not permitted for low-coupling trailers, long vans and motorhomes
Picnic site Canal Road
Opposite the ferry on Kanaaldijk in municipality of Landsmeer is a beautiful picnic area. Take a break here and enjoy the view over the Dorre Ilp and the Noordhollandsch Kanaal.
Picnic site Canal Road
Opposite the ferry on Kanaaldijk in municipality of Landsmeer is a beautiful picnic area. Take a break here and enjoy the view over the Dorre Ilp and the Noordhollandsch Kanaal.
Ilperveld visitors' centre
From the visitor centre you can experience the Ilperveld in different ways. In the centre you will find a permanent exhibition about the Ilperveld and what is happening to preserve the area.
Ilperveld visitors' centre
From the visitor centre you can experience the Ilperveld in different ways. In the centre you will find a permanent exhibition about the Ilperveld and what is happening to preserve the area.
Behind the visitor centre, you will find two footpaths that can be walked outside opening hours, one leading to the bird hide where you can spot many meadow and reed birds and one running through the reeds. At the bird-watching hut, bird lovers will be in for a treat. Take a seat in the hut, open one of the hatches and enjoy the most beautiful meadow and reed birds in peace. TIP: Take the tow ferry to the research site of Omhoog met het Veen.
The Ilperveld is best explored from the water. For example, join a boat excursion through the Ilperveld on Sunday afternoons from early April to late September . During this excursion, the boatmen and guides from Landschap Noord-Holland will lovingly take you along the most beautiful spots of the Ilperveld and tell you all about the landscape. Those who want to discover the Ilperveld on their own can hire an electric boat, canoe or rowing boat at the visitor centre from April to September. Floating silently through the water, you will experience the nature reserve in its purest form.
Living peat in the Ilperveld
It may not be immediately visible, but the Ilperveld has suffered a lot for many years. Years ago, the peat meadow area was used for peat extraction and later as a landfill.
Living peat in the Ilperveld
It may not be immediately visible, but the Ilperveld has suffered a lot for many years. Years ago, the peat meadow area was used for peat extraction and later as a landfill.
Much of the peat extraction can still be seen in the landscape. See, for instance, the many reeds. These grow abundantly in the old peat holes. Peat used to be extracted from these ditches and laid out to dry on the peat fields. Because of the high salt content, the peat was not suitable for households. The salt caused the peat to burn very quickly and hard, so it was mainly used by bakers and blacksmiths. Peat from the Ilperveld was also popular in the Baltic states. Traders here traded peat for pottery from the Baltic states.
Even today, the Ilperveld still has its challenges. Landschap Noord-Holland is responsible for managing and maintaining the area, together with 15 farmers. As you can see, the peat meadow area is a swampy landscape. Meadow birds like black-tailed godwit, lapwing and oystercatcher, but also species like the root vole, bittern and butterflies love it. This landscape is rich in plants unique to Europe, such as rare peat mosses, peat heath and forest mushrooms. A lot of maintenance is needed to preserve this landscape. Without maintenance, the peat moor will slowly turn into forest. In some places, this can already be seen. At Zuiderschor, for instance. Here you can easily moor your rented boat at the landing stage and see for yourself what forest growth in the Ilperveld looks like. To keep the ground swampy, Landschap Noord-Holland's metal meadow mills pump water onto the land at a number of places in the area. These pools are also known as 'plas-dras'.
Preserving the Ilperveld is not only important for the meadow birds, there is something else at play. Peatlands store CO2. Dewatered peatlands emit a lot of CO2 and the soil subsides. Living peat can actually capture CO2 and allow the soil to grow again. Drought causes peat to sink as much as one centimetre a year. Besides CO2 emissions, subsidence brings another problem. Consider, for instance, damage to our infrastructure. The soil is subsiding, but our roads and houses are not subsiding with it.
Combating land subsidence is thus very important for the climate and poses a major challenge for nature organisations and governments. One way to combat this phenomenon is to grow new peat. This is easier said than done. After all, peat development requires a lot of water. At first glance, this does not seem to be a problem, everywhere you look in the Ilperveld you see water. Unfortunately, the sensitive organisms that make up living peat require water of a specific quality. Clean water is therefore vital for this area.
Peat, which makes up the soil, was built up over several centuries from plant remains (aquatic plants, reeds or trees). Landschap Noord-Holland conducts research into how to make the peat grow again in all kinds of ways. This also makes the Ilperveld a practical garden for peat growth. On the Bramble you can see beautiful patches of naturally-occurring peat moss. Here you can moor your boat and walk around the island. Gently feel the peat moss (pillows) and experience how much moisture the little plant can retain. The Bramble is a unique piece of Ilperveld. Around 1955, this floating island was not yet on the map. Over the years, it was slowly created by floating pieces of reeds, also known as krach or floating island, which grew together. Just jump carefully and feel the bottom undulate under your feet.
The Ilperveld is a unique area in Europe. Landschap Noord-Holland is doing all it can to preserve this nature reserve for future generations.
For more information on opening hours, visitor centre and bookings, visit www.landschapnoordholland.nl
Hardebol Nature Farm
Run by Landschap Noord-Holland since the mid-2020s, the managing farm.
Hardebol Nature Farm
Run by Landschap Noord-Holland since the mid-2020s, the managing farm.
The shop is a pleasure to manage: the assortment changes with the seasons, making new products available all the time.
The main product is Black-Angus beef, sourced from its own farm. In addition, local producers from the region are given a valuable selling point. These include Dutch chicken, free-range pork from the Beemster, dairy from a fellow farmer and eggs from Cindy's father-in-law's chickens (the chickens are not vaccinated). The shop is also the exclusive selling point of the Croosduijkertje, a genuine Landmeers liqueur. There is also delicious honey from beekeepers from Den Ilp - the bees fly in the Ilperveld and past the farm.
(Christmas) gifts are also provided and Christmas trees and gourmet products are available during the Christmas period.
Farmers in the Ilperveld
Since mid-2020, the Hardebol family has been running Landschap Noord-Holland's managerial farm. Besides the farm, they manage no less than 100 hectares of the Ilperveld.
Farmers in the Ilperveld
Since mid-2020, the Hardebol family has been running Landschap Noord-Holland's managerial farm. Besides the farm, they manage no less than 100 hectares of the Ilperveld.
Landschap Noord-Holland and the nature farm work together a lot and are in daily contact. For example, the Hardebol family takes meadow birds into account by only mowing after the breeding season. There are also areas where the family only mows once the forester has checked that the meadow birds have left. In addition, the nature farm plays an important role in controlling pitrus. This persistent grass species is found in many places in the Ilperveld, but it does not belong here. Pitrus is seen as a major problem for the peat meadow area. This is because grazers do not eat these hard green blades. As a result, pitrus can start to dominate and the openness of the landscape, which meadow birds need, can be lost.
Nature Farm Hardebol contributes to the control of pitrus by producing and spreading rough manure. Pig manure is a combination of reed and cow faeces and is produced in the farm's potting shed. Coarse manure increases the nutrient content of the soil, improving soil life. This attracts many insects, which in turn are important as food for (young) meadow birds and for pollinating flowers. Feel free to walk around the farm and especially take a look in the farm shop full of fun and tasty local products.
More information: Hardebol Nature Farm
Picnic site Dorre Ilp
At the Dorre Ilp, just before the little bridge, there is a lovely picnic area. Feel free to stop here for a break and enjoy the view over the Ilperveld.
Picnic site Dorre Ilp
At the Dorre Ilp, just before the little bridge, there is a lovely picnic area. Feel free to stop here for a break and enjoy the view over the Ilperveld.
Brasserie de Jutter
De Jutter stands for everything you experience on the beautiful island of Texel; Texel cosiness, Texel hospitality, and of course, Texel food.
Brasserie de Jutter
De Jutter stands for everything you experience on the beautiful island of Texel; Texel cosiness, Texel hospitality, and of course, Texel food.
At the Beachcomber you imagine yourself on the island, on a sunny summer day, but also during a winter dark evening. After beachcombing in Weidevenne or Purmerland, everyone is welcome to come here for a hot meal or a refreshing cool Texel beer. The experienced team will do their best to make everyone feel at home. Experience Texel the Purmerland way; come to the Jutter!
Description
Get on your bike and experience the living bog
This cycle route starts in the always lively town of Purmerend. After just fifteen minutes of cycling, you will have left the city completely behind you and cycle right through the green surroundings of the Purmer. A winding dike leads you to the picturesque Ilpendam. Cycling over the dike, you can already see the village church tower rising above the houses and a breathtaking view of the Purmer. The height difference of the reclaimed land is clearly visible from here. Crossing the meadows with a farm here and there, you cycle towards the cosy centre of Ilpendam, where the locals greet you warmly. You can stop off at the village's only catering establishment.
The Ilperveld
Soon you leave the centre of Ilpendam and cross to the other side of the Noordhollandsch Kanaal by ferry. After the ferry, you briefly deviate from the junction route and immediately turn left to the Ilperveld Visitor Centre. This unique peat meadow area of no less than 1,100 hectares and 600 islands stretches between Landsmeer, Den Ilp and the Noordhollandsch Kanaal. The area consists of nature reserves and grasslands managed by farmers. Did you know that the Ilperveld, together with the Oostzanerveld and Varkensland, forms the largest reclaimed low moor complex north of Amsterdam?
It may not be immediately visible, but the Ilperveld has suffered a lot for many years. Years ago, for instance, the peat meadow area was intensively used for peat extraction and later as a landfill. Even today, the Ilperveld still has its challenges. One of the biggest challenges in the Ilperveld is combating subsidence. Soil subsidence has many consequences, such as increased CO2 emissions and major damage to our infrastructure. Indeed, due to drought, the peat is subsiding as much as one centimetre a year! Can you imagine?
Peat that makes up the soil was built up over several centuries from plant remains (aquatic plants, reeds or trees). Landschap Noord-Holland conducts research into how to make the peat grow again in all kinds of ways. This also makes the Ilperveld a practical garden for peat growth. Curious about the whole story about the Ilperveld? Then click on point seven on the route.
Hardebol nature farm
After the boat trip, be sure to visit the adjacent 'Natuurboerderij Hardebol'. Landschap Noord-Holland and Natuurboerderij Hardebol work closely together in managing and maintaining the Ilperveld. Feel free to look around the farm and especially take a look at the farm shop full of fun and tasty regional products. Would you like to know more about the cooperation between Landschap Noord-Holland and Natuurboerderij Hardebol? Then click on point nine on the route.
After visiting the farm, cycle back to junction 21 to continue your route. On the Dorre Ilp, you cycle straight through a breathtaking green area with the Ilperveld on your left. From this cycle path you have a beautiful view over the peat meadow area and the islands are clearly visible.
Purmerland green area
At the end of the Dorre Ilp you cycle a short distance through Den Ilp before entering another green area via Het Twiske. The Purmerland green area begins near Purmerland. With its almost 90 hectares, this area forms the recreational link between the recreational areas of Purmerbos and Het Twiske on the one hand, and between the urban areas of Purmerend-Weidevenne and Purmerland on the other. The green area consists of three different zones: the forest edge zone, the nature zone and the peat meadow area. Cycling past all three zones, the differences are clearly visible. Can you distinguish them?
After this interesting bike ride full of flora and fauna, you will end up back in the centre of Purmerend where the day can be concluded at the local catering establishments.
- 32
- 35
- 31
- 23
- 22
- 21
- 21
- 15
- 13
- 14
- 32