Past locks and forts

Distance
42 km

Everywhere are forts, trenches, dykes, sluices, canals, casemates and group shelters to surprise you. Together these elements form an ingenious system that protected the Netherlands from hostile troops. Inundating the countryside with fifty centimetres of water made it impassable for soldiers, while still too shallow to use boats. Care to cycle through this utterly Dutch defence system from the 19th and 20th century?

Locations on this route

  • 15
  • 14
  • 55
  • 53
  • 46
  • 54
  • 52
  • 77
  • 51
  • 18
  • 14
  • 26
  • 64
  • 82
  • 47
  • 66
  • 63
  • 58
  • 57
  • 30
  • 56
  • 50
  • 13
  • 14
  • 15