Vennen cycling tour with Gilde De Baronie

In the Mastbos and the area south of Breda, beautiful vennen can be found. This route takes you past these stunning, often romantic spots. 

A ven is a small, usually shallow lake that occurs on sandy soils. Vennen have fluctuating water levels and are rarely larger than a few hectares. Vennen are defined as natural waters only. Certainly in the past, ponds mainly occurred on heathlands. 

Before 1960, most heathlands were reclaimed, causing many vennen to disappear. When heath was reclaimed into forest, the vennen often remained intact. Most disappeared in agricultural areas. 

In a very large part of these vennen, sedge vegetation has developed. You will visit some of these vennen!