Hanseatic Cities Path

From Olst to Wijhe &
Part G "Het Nijenhuis"

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And around 9 am, we were hiking again!

We looked forward to it, especially with the clear, crisp, sunny winter weather. We quickly walked through the small town of Olst towards the IJssel. Near the river’s edge, we came across a unique work of art, the “Baken van Overijssel” (Beacon of Overijssel), which marks the provincial border. The ring symbolizes the letter O of Overijssel, and the wave suggests the IJssel.

We started hiking the frozen floodplains, where we were bombarded with picturesque views, such as the view near Fortmond looking towards Olst. We entered a nature development project, the Duursche Waarden. As of 1989, the IJssel river in this area is no longer controlled by levees but can flow freely once more. This allowed the site to return to its original, natural river landscape.

Near the ferry, we left the IJssel behind us and walked to Wijhe’s train station. Instead of heading home, we were to start the day hike from Station Wijhe to Station Heino, “Het Nijenhuis” trail.

Day Walk, Part G, The Nijenhuis trail.

We grabbed our lunch near Wijhe’s train station before walking to Heino through a typical, but never dull, Dutch landscape with canals, meadows, farms, and woods.

Spring has sprung, and we saw crocuses and snowdrops everywhere. The highlight of the Nijenhuis walk was Nijenhuis Castle, located south of Heino. Nijenhuis Castle is one of the best-preserved manors in Overijssel, dating back to 1382. .

The “Belle Bench,” close to Nijenhuis Castle, is a lovely tribute to Miss Belle van Ittersum. Belle grew up around 1800 in the Heino area and recorded her short life (she died at age 25) in detail so that we now have an insight into the life experience of a young female noble.