World Heritage route| Wadden Sea
Den Burg, Oudeschild, De Koog
The Wadden Sea is a unique piece of the Netherlands with a rich history and great appeal. This vast area runs from the Kop van Noord-Holland to the southwest of Denmark. Fresh river water and salt seawater converge here, creating an enormously rich biodiversity: up to 10,000 species of animals, plants and micro-organisms live here! The Dutch and German part of the Wadden Sea has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2009, due to its special biological, geological and cultural-historical value. In 2014, the Danish part was also added. It is one of the largest contiguous tidal areas in the world and is unique due to the dynamic interaction between sandbanks, mudflats, gullies and islands. For millions of migratory birds, the Wadden Sea is invaluable as a foraging, breeding and resting area. The continuous processes of tides, currents and sediment deposition create a landscape you will not find anywhere else in this magnitude. Texel is the largest Dutch Wadden Sea island and lies on the southwestern edge of the Wadden Sea. The eastern side of Texel borders the Wadden Sea (with Oudeschild as its most famous port), while the western side looks out to the North Sea. At low tide, large parts of the seabed fall dry; you will see mud flats and sandbanks appear. Around Texel, these mudflats are particularly nutrient-rich, so many birds - such as curlews, oystercatchers and plovers - forage there. Moreover, in spring and autumn, millions of birds migrate across the Wadden Sea and perch on these ‘mudflat restaurants’. Several populations of seals (common and grey seal) also live in the Wadden Sea near Texel. They rest on drying sandbanks and hunt in the shallow waters. As the Wadden Sea is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, strict laws and regulations apply to protect this unique ecosystem. For instance, there are restrictions on (shell) fishing, gas drilling and certain tourist activities. On Texel itself, much attention is paid to sustainable tourism, so that the special natural values are preserved for the future. Today, you will discover much of life on this special island in the Wadden Sea. You can watch seals and birds in their natural habitat and learn more about Texel's rich history in various museums. But above all, don't forget to enjoy the beautiful nature in the salt marshes, the polders and along the dyke - in short, the whole of Texel! This Premium Cycle route was compiled by our editor: Désirée van Uffelen.
| Directions | Distance | Total distance | |
|
Start: Ruijslaan 88, 1796 AZ Texel | 31.5 KM | |
|
From
17
to
16
|
622 M | 0.6 KM | |
| Head south on Ruijslaan | 110 M | ||
| Continue straight | 21 M | ||
| Turn right onto Randweg | 491 M | ||
| You are now at section 16 | 0 M | ||
|
From
16
to
48
|
3384 M | 3.4 KM | |
| Head southeast on Ploeglanderweg | 712 M | ||
| Turn left onto Monnikenweg | 2.2 KM | ||
| Make a slight left onto Kogerweg | 357 M | ||
| Make a slight right to stay on Kogerweg | 42 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Kogerweg | 44 M | ||
| You are now at section 48 | 0 M | ||
|
From
48
to
50
|
1910 M | 1.9 KM | |
| Head south | 656 M | ||
| Turn right | 11 M | ||
| Continue onto Kogerstraat | 108 M | ||
| Continue straight | 40 M | ||
| Turn left onto Kogerstraat | 200 M | ||
| Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Kogerstraat | 25 M | ||
| Exit the roundabout onto Kogerstraat | 320 M | ||
| Turn left onto Burgerhoutstraat | 189 M | ||
| Continue onto Wilhelminalaan | 44 M | ||
| Turn right onto Wilhelminalaan | 317 M | ||
| You are now at section 50 | 0 M | ||
|
From
50
to
51
|
584 M | 0.6 KM | |
| Head northeast on Drijverstraat | 67 M | ||
| Turn right onto Burdetstraat | 283 M | ||
| Turn right onto Hallerweg | 36 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Hallerweg | 198 M | ||
| You are now at section 51 | 0 M | ||
|
From
51
to
42
|
2068 M | 2.1 KM | |
| Head southeast on Hallerweg | 1.5 KM | ||
| Turn left | 69 M | ||
| Turn right | 9 M | ||
| Continue onto Skillepaadje | 512 M | ||
| You are now at section 42 | 0 M | ||
|
From
42
to
39
|
1307 M | 1.3 KM | |
| Head southeast on Skillepaadje | 244 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Skillepaadje | 457 M | ||
| Continue straight | 7 M | ||
| Continue onto Skillepaadje | 530 M | ||
| Make a slight left onto Het Buurtje | 69 M | ||
| You are now at section 39 | 0 M | ||
|
From
39
to
38
|
1095 M | 1.1 KM | |
| Head northeast on Trompstraat | 645 M | ||
| Turn left onto Loodssingel | 211 M | ||
| Turn right onto Heemskerckstraat | 91 M | ||
| Make a slight left onto Laagwaalderweg | 148 M | ||
| You are now at section 38 | 0 M | ||
|
From
38
to
37
|
3600 M | 3.6 KM | |
| Head east on Haven | 517 M | ||
| Make a slight right to stay on Haven | 156 M | ||
| Turn left | 76 M | ||
| Turn left | 109 M | ||
| Continue straight | 2.6 KM | ||
| Continue straight | 110 M | ||
| You are now at section 37 | 0 M | ||
|
From
37
to
36
|
2401 M | 2.4 KM | |
| Head southeast | 1 KM | ||
| Turn right | 1.4 KM | ||
| You are now at section 36 | 0 M | ||
|
From
36
to
53
|
1896 M | 1.9 KM | |
| Head northeast | 157 M | ||
| Turn left onto Oostkaap | 930 M | ||
| Make a slight left to stay on Oostkaap | 809 M | ||
| You are now at section 53 | 0 M | ||
|
From
53
to
62
|
2308 M | 2.3 KM | |
| Head west on Achtertune | 58 M | ||
| Turn right onto Oesterstraat | 151 M | ||
| Make a slight left onto Vliestraat | 269 M | ||
| Make a slight left | 200 M | ||
| Turn right | 22 M | ||
| Turn left onto Genteweg | 705 M | ||
| Turn right to stay on Genteweg | 903 M | ||
| You are now at section 62 | 0 M | ||
|
From
62
to
61
|
1743 M | 1.7 KM | |
| Head southwest on Schorrenweg | 1.6 KM | ||
| Make a slight left onto Zaandammerdijk | 46 M | ||
| Turn right | 92 M | ||
| You are now at section 61 | 0 M | ||
|
From
61
to
23
|
3012 M | 3 KM | |
| Head north | 2.2 KM | ||
| Continue onto Postweg | 69 M | ||
| Turn left to stay on Postweg | 273 M | ||
| Make a slight left | 64 M | ||
| Turn right | 30 M | ||
| Turn left | 419 M | ||
| You are now at section 23 | 0 M | ||
|
From
23
to
22
|
829 M | 0.8 KM | |
| Head northwest | 829 M | ||
| You are now at section 22 | 0 M | ||
|
From
22
to
21
|
1144 M | 1.1 KM | |
| Head west on Zanddijk | 904 M | ||
| Continue straight | 240 M | ||
| You are now at section 21 | 0 M | ||
|
From
21
to
20
|
680 M | 0.7 KM | |
| Head west | 680 M | ||
| You are now at section 20 | 0 M | ||
|
From
20
to
17
|
2939 M | 2.9 KM | |
| Head southwest | 6 M | ||
| Continue onto Ruijslaan | 589 M | ||
| Turn right | 206 M | ||
| Turn left | 612 M | ||
| Turn right | 322 M | ||
| Turn left | 105 M | ||
| Turn right onto Ruijslaan | 1.1 KM | ||
| You are now at section 17 | 0 M |