Out and about in the historic Langstraat

1 hour 45 minutes (42.6 km)

"On the Trail in the Historic Langstraat" is a bicycle route that connects the historically distinct cores of Waspik, Capelle, Spang, Vrijhoeve, Besoijen, Waalwijk and Baardwijk.

This varied route passes historically significant points of the individual municipalities. Waalwijk as the current municipality was created by merging the individual cores. In 1922 the cores of Waalwijk, Baardwijk and Besoijen were merged. The original names were dropped in the process; we now talk about Waalwijk center, Waalwijk east and Waalwijk west. In 1923, a similar process took place with the nuclei of Spang, Capelle and Vrijhoeve. They went on to form the municipality of Spang-Capelle. In 1995, a municipal redivision brought together the cores of Waalwijk, Sprang-Capelle and Waspik to form the current municipality of Waalwijk. The original names Spang-Capelle and Waspik can still be found in the nameplates.

In the cores of Wa...

"On the Trail in the Historic Langstraat" is a bicycle route that connects the historically distinct cores of Waspik, Capelle, Spang, Vrijhoeve, Besoijen, Waalwijk and Baardwijk.

In the cores of Waalwijk, Sprang-Capelle and Waspik historically important points have been made visible in attention tiles, 24 in total. On these tiles you will find a short description, often of a building and its function, a photo from the past and a QR code with which additional information can be requested, which can be found on this website.

The route also takes you past hydraulic works that were carried out to drain and keep the low-lying area, the original catchment area of the Meuse, dry. These are the Bergsche Maas, the South drainage canal, the Baardwijkse Overlaat with the Drongelens canal. The route takes you over dikes like the Winterdijk, Zomerdijk and the Elshoutse Zeedijk. You also cycle along remnants of the old, medieval course of the Meuse, both north and south of the Bergsche Maas.

The route can be ridden in its entirety and will be about 42 km long. The route can also be ridden in parts. The western part in about 28 km, the eastern is about 18 km.

The directions can be found further down on this page. You can also download the route as a .GPX file for your navigation app here. Prefer a printed leaflet? These are available at Schoenenkwartier in Waalwijk and de Bolder in Waspik.

The description of the route starts in Waalwijk center, but can be cycled from any other point.