Hoge Veluwe, a versatile day out

Home
Hoge Veluwe, a versatile day out

2022-10-02

Hoge Veluwe, a versatile day out

On Tuesday afternoon, August 14th, the time had come; we were going to redeem the VIP package we had won at the Hoge Veluwe National Park. A few months earlier, I participated in the e-training at www.regioambassadeur.nl, an initiative by VisitVeluwe for the Gelderland tourism industry. Thanks to my well-acquired knowledge of the history of the Hoge Veluwe area, the "must-sees" of the park, and the world-famous collection of the Kröller-Müller Museum, I was one of the lucky winners of this arrangement. Free entry to the park (by car) and the museum, refreshments in the museum restaurant, an audio tour of the museum, and an information booklet about the park were part of the prize package. A very fun 'participate-and-win' action indeed!

The combination of nature, culture, architecture, and the diversity of the landscape surprised us every time!

We chose to enter the park through the Hoenderloo entrance and park at the centrally located parking lot in the park, near the Kröller Müller museum. Initially, we wanted to park at the visitor center where the former park restaurant was located. However, they are now busy building there, so that a modern, multifunctional public building will arise in the future. However, we were eager to start the afternoon with a good foundation (read; a well-filled stomach), so we decided to drive a little further to the parking lot at the Kröller Müller museum where the outdoor restaurant Monsieur Jacques is located. We took a seat on the spacious and bright terrace overlooking the beautifully landscaped sculpture garden with over 160 sculptures by influential artists such as Auguste Rodin, Henry Moore, and Joep van Lieshout, and then enjoyed a delicious portion of bitterballen and oven-baked nachos with jalapenos, tomato salsa, cheddar, and sour creammmmmm. After enjoying the view of the garden and the sun on our faces for half an hour, we headed towards the Kröller Müller museum with a collection of masterpieces by modern masters such as Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Piet Mondrian, and Claude Monet.

After admiring the art, we chose a couple of white bikes, which are freely available to visitors, fastened the backpack into the child seat that is standard on the bikes, and set off to explore the park. If you want to cover long distances or wish for an extra "boost" on the pedals, there are also e-bikes available for rent, or you can bring your own e-bike/bicycle to the park.

The park offers over 40 kilometers of beautiful bike rides, where the combination of nature, culture, architecture, and the diversity of the landscape continually surprised us. The bike ride we took passed by various artworks in the park and through different landscape types such as deciduous, coniferous, and mixed forests, across heathlands, and through drifting sand landscapes. We set off without a map, but thanks to the presence of the ANWB signposts, we easily found our way through the park. During the bike ride, we also spotted wild boars with piglets, as well as a couple of deer.

We would also have liked to visit the Jachthuis Sint Hubertus, designed by the famous architect H.P. Berlage, but we were just too late for the regular tour. So we grabbed our bikes again and sat at the waterside of the large pond surrounding the Jachthuis. The rug we had brought with us was spread out and the tasty snacks were soon pulled out of the bag, after which we enjoyed the view and the beautiful weather for a while.

It was a lovely afternoon with a fine combination of art, nature, and architecture. Worth repeating!

PS. The reason we chose the entrance to Hoenderloo was not entirely coincidental....because if you drive through Hoenderloo, be sure to visit IJs van Co. They sell the best homemade ice cream in the Veluwe, so it is worth a stop.