Fishing village on the Zuiderzee; a dip into history
Elbug
It is hard to imagine that fishing ships once sailed here to and fro. When Flevoland and the Veluwemeer were still the Zuiderzee. Yet in Elburg you can still find much of the once thriving fishing past on the Zuiderzee. That is exactly what we will be looking for today! From way back, Elburg was a thriving fishing and trading town on the shores of the Zuiderzee. Thanks to the open connection with the North Sea, fishermen could take to the sea with relatively small ships - the famous botters - in search of herring, anchovies and, later, eels. Fishing provided a stable source of income and attracted craftsmen who forged boat fittings, hammered masts and repaired nets. The natural inlet near Elburg offered shelter from heavy weather, while nearby dykes provided extra protection in times of turbulent winds and high waves. Yet even these defences did not always prove sufficient. Over the centuries, Elburg faced devastating storm surges. Dykes broke, houses were swept away and farmland turned into swampy inland lakes. Time and again, people had to evacuate, livestock drowned and fishing was under pressure as the infrastructure was largely destroyed. The accumulation of such disasters eventually led to the realisation that the Zuiderzee needed to be curbed structurally. Engineer Cornelis Lely, a member of the Zuiderzeevereeniging founded in 1886, presented his plans to close off the Zuiderzee and (partially) drain it in 1891. Initially, he met fierce opposition, even during the periods when he himself was a minister. Only after the devastating Storm Flood of 1916 and the famine of 1918 did parliament give the green light to his Zuiderzee Act. In 1932, the Afsluitdijk was completed, turning the Zuiderzee into the fresh IJsselmeer. With that, saltwater fishing, which had been the town's lifeline for centuries, disappeared for Elburg. Despite this drastic change, the rich fishing past is still tangible in Elburg. Fishermen's houses, old fishing boats and museums remind us of the days when the sea was right on our doorstep. The strong connection with the water has therefore not disappeared, but has taken on a new form: the IJsselmeer and the Veluwemeer now offer peace, space and recreation, while the stories about the old Zuiderzee and the once proud fishing fleet are an important part of Elburg's heritage. This Premium Cycle route was compiled by our editor: Désirée van Uffelen.
| Directions | Distance | Total distance | |
|
Start: Elburgerweg , 8081 PA Dronten | 29.2 KM | |
|
From
46
to
30
|
2291 M | 2.3 KM | |
| Head southeast on Elburgerweg | 566 M | ||
| Turn left onto Flevoweg | 495 M | ||
| Continue onto Havenkade | 351 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Havenkade | 18 M | ||
| Continue onto Flevoweg | 861 M | ||
| You are now at section 30 | 0 M | ||
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From
30
to
2
|
344 M | 0.3 KM | |
| Head south on Flevoweg | 344 M | ||
| You are now at section 02 | 0 M | ||
|
From
2
to
1
|
1805 M | 1.8 KM | |
| Head west on Nieuwstadsweg | 1.8 KM | ||
| You are now at section 01 | 0 M | ||
|
From
1
to
25
|
2004 M | 2 KM | |
| Head southwest on Veldweg | 1.6 KM | ||
| Turn right to stay on Veldweg | 371 M | ||
| You are now at section 25 | 0 M | ||
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From
25
to
34
|
402 M | 0.4 KM | |
| Head southwest on Zuiderzeestraatweg West | 402 M | ||
| You are now at section 34 | 0 M | ||
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From
34
to
25
|
414 M | 0.4 KM | |
| Head southeast on Rode Landsweg | 14 M | ||
| Turn left onto Zuiderzeestraatweg West | 400 M | ||
| You are now at section 25 | 0 M | ||
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From
25
to
23
|
2777 M | 2.8 KM | |
| Head northeast on Zuiderzeestraatweg West | 873 M | ||
| Turn right onto Oude Harderwijkerweg | 251 M | ||
| Turn right onto Huisdijk | 1.6 KM | ||
| Continue onto Stadsweg | 52 M | ||
| You are now at section 23 | 0 M | ||
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From
23
to
6
|
3613 M | 3.6 KM | |
| Head north on Broekdijk | 781 M | ||
| Keep right onto Broekdijk | 203 M | ||
| Turn right onto Van Sytzama Allee | 474 M | ||
| Turn left onto Schouwenburg | 75 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Schouwenburg | 617 M | ||
| Turn left onto Eperweg | 36 M | ||
| Turn right onto Zwaluwenburg | 816 M | ||
| Turn right onto Laanzichtsweg | 611 M | ||
| You are now at section 06 | 0 M | ||
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From
6
to
5
|
2422 M | 2.4 KM | |
| Head northeast on Bovenstraatweg | 2.4 KM | ||
| You are now at section 05 | 0 M | ||
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From
5
to
22
|
1369 M | 1.4 KM | |
| Head northwest | 684 M | ||
| Turn left | 120 M | ||
| Turn right onto Stouwdamsweg | 8 M | ||
| Turn left onto van Asch van Wijcklaan | 155 M | ||
| Turn right onto Stationsweg | 88 M | ||
| Turn left onto van Sytzamalaan | 158 M | ||
| Turn right onto van Asseltsweg | 156 M | ||
| You are now at section 22 | 0 M | ||
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From
22
to
4
|
3084 M | 3.1 KM | |
| Head southwest on Zuiderzeestraatweg (N308) | 28 M | ||
| Turn right onto Kerkstraat | 64 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Kerkstraat | 82 M | ||
| Turn right onto Kerkpad | 1.2 KM | ||
| Turn left onto Eekterweg | 101 M | ||
| Turn right onto Kibbelwegje | 881 M | ||
| Turn left | 269 M | ||
| Turn left onto Schiksweg | 478 M | ||
| You are now at section 04 | 0 M | ||
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From
4
to
3
|
4734 M | 4.7 KM | |
| Head southwest on Winterdijk | 815 M | ||
| Turn right onto Hof ter Eekterweg | 536 M | ||
| Turn right onto Oostendorperstraatweg | 440 M | ||
| Turn right onto De Weeren | 426 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on De Weeren | 53 M | ||
| Turn right onto Oostelijke Rondweg | 326 M | ||
| Turn right | 15 M | ||
| Turn right | 21 M | ||
| Turn left onto Vrijheid | 271 M | ||
| Turn left onto Vrijheid | 339 M | ||
| Turn right onto Blaauwsweg | 267 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Blaauwsweg | 1.2 KM | ||
| You are now at section 03 | 0 M | ||
|
From
3
to
30
|
1654 M | 1.7 KM | |
| Head southwest on Kamperweg | 601 M | ||
| Turn left onto van Kinsbergenstraat | 99 M | ||
| Continue right onto Zuiderkerkstraat | 158 M | ||
| Turn right onto Bloemstraat | 114 M | ||
| Turn left onto Beekstraat | 134 M | ||
| Turn right onto Bagijnendijkje | 548 M | ||
| You are now at section 30 | 0 M | ||
|
From
30
to
46
|
2291 M | 2.3 KM | |
| Head north on Flevoweg | 861 M | ||
| Continue onto Havenkade | 18 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Havenkade | 351 M | ||
| Continue onto Flevoweg | 495 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Flevoweg | 566 M | ||
| You are now at section 46 | 0 M |