Already a week after my previous hike on the Great rivers trail, I return to Herveld-Zuid. I can almost see the finish line. Unfortunately, the trail takes an unexpected turn. From Herveld, I hike the original trail from the booklet via Slijk-Ewijk, Oosterhout and Lent to Nijmegen. Only halfway along the trail I find out that there is a diversion….
In mid-August 2021, I have three weeks off, so that means a lot of hiking! I have already picked out several trails, including the second-to-last trail from the booklet Green Heart hikes: the Bethlehem trail. I am also very curious about the Groene Jonker nature reserve that is not far from the Bethlehem trail. I have heard great stories about it. I decide to combine the two trails. Both are around 5 km. But how do I get to the trails? That’s not easy as it is difficult to reach by public transport. Via an approach trail of approx. 3 km from Mijdrecht, I succeeded in making it a substantial hike.
In previous hikes of the Great rivers trail, I often walked along the river Linge. Today, it is the turn of a really big river: the Waal! I travel to Tiel and follow for a large part of the trail this mighty river, up to the town of Ochten.
It is time to continue hiking on the Great rivers trail in the Netherlands. Last time, I ended on the outskirts of Buren. Now I first go through the historical centre of Buren. Next, I hike in the direction of fruit village Erichem and walk via Soelen castle and a town with the same name (but with a Z) to the station of Tiel.
It is now the end of May (2021) and once again I am going bird watching on the Migration birds trail in the Netherlands. In this part, I hike from the Gaasperzoom park in Amsterdam to Weesp, then I continue to the edge of the Naardermeer nature reserve.
After three times hiking on the Migration birds trail in a row, it is now the turn of the Great rivers trail again. The last time, I ended in Ameide. That is therefore my starting point for today. I walk along the river Lek, through the Zouweboezem nature reserve and via Lexmond through the polder to a suburb of Vianen. I pass several fruit orchards and am curious to see whether there is already some blossoms on the trees.
This is the last hike of 2020 on the Great rivers trail. This part goes from Nieuwpoort to Ameide, with a short extra walk from Schoonhoven due to public transport.
