Picking up the routine

Due to winterly weather conditions (and other activities not concerning walking or travelling) there has been no walks after Christmas.
In Februari, it was decided we really needed to pick up out scheme of walking at least 20 kilometers each weekend. We started nearby, with two walks set out by volunteers of walker’s groups: Culemborg and Zeist. We’ve done walsk by both groups before, but some time ago.
Since this was merely picking up the speed again, I didn’t bring a camera so you’ll have to do with maps and tracking data:
Culemborg – Beusichem vice versa in Garmin, general and CSV format
Zeist – Rijsenburg vice versa in Garmin, General and CSV format.

Driebergen-Maarn vice versa

This is a route from a magazine. We made this nearby walk because the weather was said to get rainy in the afternoon, and since we could start early, we might have a dry walk: little time was lost for travelling to the starting point. It pais off – almost: The last few kilometers we walked in light rain – too much to require a raincoat to be worn, but not that heavy that we had to put on our rain-protected trousers.
The track runs through woods, hits the village of Austerlitz where we had a rest in restaurant “De Jonckvrouw”, headed for Maarn (cross the road! otherwise you will head into the entrance to the motorway) and get passed the former sandpit – where once was a hill named “Maarnsche Berg”, there is now a hole in the surface – to become a recreation area but nature is allowed to restore itself – so it’s closed for the public at the moment; finally getting back near the station of Zeist-Driebergen.
The walk has been tracked in Garmin, general and Excel formats, and some images to give an impression of the area we passed.

Vuursche Route

Once again, I downloaded a GPS route of about 20 kilometer. This one starts and ends in Park Groenendaal, just outside Baarn, and leads through the woods to Lage Vuursche, just tipping that village, runs down to Den Dolder, rounding a golf course and heads back via Soest and Soestdijk to the Groenendaal Estate. A number of landscapes are passed: The parklands of the estate, different woodlands and meadows, and urban areas.

I took some images (for most, I cannot remember exactly where these were taken), and the route has been tracked – the data is available in Garmin, exchangable and CSV formats.

(Walked 08-Jul-2009)

Austerlitz

Today we walked not too far away, near Austerlitz, on the Eastern slopes of the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, with a brief sidestep into the Geldersche Vallei. Most of the route went through the woodland covering the old sandy hills, where “new nature” is being developed at some places; an area used as hunting grounds for the Rich and Wealthy, that holds quite some wildlife – near the village we spotted a roe, only 50 meters away on a track left – but the picture I took was too bad to publish.
Just a few images have been taken on this track, and tracking is available in Garmin, general and CSV formats.

Villas and woods

We made a 25 kilometer roundwalk today. Started in Bilthoven, near a shopping center, close to the railway station. There is little room for parking but we were very early this time, so we did find a place nearby. The route started along the road, crossed the railway and continued in an area where The Rich may live: big houses, big gates and big cars…In Den Dolder, we entered the woodlands – that covers a big part of the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, even in this middle, rather densely populated area. We circumvented the Soesterduinen – an area of drift sand, where dogs are allowed to run free – we come there now and than to let our dog run. We had our rest at the cantine of the Atletics club, after 12.5 kilometers. From there, the route continued over upaved forest roads and narrow tracks, back to the populated area. The final part went once more along the big houses on Den Dolder and Bitlhoven, back to the shopping center.
I took a few pictures in the woods. You can download the map, and the tracks in Garmin, GPX and CSV format.

Up and down on the Utrechtse Heuvelrug

Starting out in a primary school in Veenendaal, today’s walk went into the woods – and on this area of the Utrechtse heuvelrug, it means going up and down. Not steep, but going up or down for a long time. The first and last few kilometers are over paved roads. Of course, you have to get through the outskitrs of Veenendaal, but once outside, you get on forest roads and paths through the woodland. The point for rest (and coffee) was on the high point at Kwintelooijen – about 50 meters over the Gelderse Vallei, looking out over Veenedaal, Ede and, in the distance, Wageningen. From here, we made a large loop over the Remmerden Forest – dogs not allowed: cattle greezing – and back to Kwintelooijen for a second rest, and the last part – downhill and into Veenendaal again.
The loop follows part of the Trekvogelpad between Amerongen and Rhenen – the part we didn’t do yet.
I took a few images, but tracked the whole route, downloadable in Garmin, GPX and CSV formats, as usual

Walking straight

We kept close to home today: a walk from Zeist to Austerlitz and back, through woods and along patches to become heatrer patches again in a few years: Trees cut and removing the top layer of soil, which is too fertile – grass and trees will grow too fast and suppress any new developing heather. I think sheep will graze on these patches to keep grass and trees short, in one spot they already do and this is the part where no dogs are allowed
Most of the route is over unpaved forest roads, sometimes one side is hardened by shells, for cyclists.
Al in all about 25 kilometers – 13 to the rest in Austerlitz, and a bit shorter back to out starting point.

I took some pictures on the road, and kept track in Garmin, general and CSV format

Maarten Luther

This is a yearly event: The first Sunday following October 31 – Reformation Day – there is a walk in the Southern part of the province between a number of Protestant churches. This the 2006 edition, that started in Amerongen. You can park opposite the castle entrance.
The maps according Mapsource and Google can be downloaded as well as the tracks in Garmin, GPX and CSV format.