Vrouwenheide

The Vrouwenheide (Women's heath) is a hill in the Netherlands and former heath land, just south of Ubachsberg in the municipality of Voerendaal. With a height of 218 metres above NAP it is one of the highest points in the European part of the Netherlands.[1]

Vrouwenheide
Highest point
Elevation218 m (715 ft)
Coordinates50°50′40″N 5°57′0.3″E 
Naming
English translationWomen's heath
Language of nameEnglish
Geography
Vrouwenheide
Netherlands
LocationLimburg, Netherlands
Monumental Bernardushoeve

Geology

The area is made up out of inliers and outliers. The Vrouwenheide is the highest point of the plateau of Ubachsberg. Between 1 and 2 million years ago it was part of the island of Ubachsberg in the Meuse river.[2]

With a height of 218 metres above NAP it is one of the highest point in the European part of the Netherlands. It was long believed that this was in fact the highest point in the Netherlands, because from the top you can see over the top of the Vaalserberg, to see the even higher hills from the German Eifel.[3]

Buildings

On the Vrouwenheide are several national monuments. Windmill Op de Vrouweheide, build in 1858, is located at 216 meters above Amsterdam Ordnance Datum, and build on an artificial hill to catch even more wind. As such it is the highest windmill in the Netherlands.[4][5] The Bernardushoeve is a farmhouse build in the early 19th century and currently a restaurant.[6][7] In the forest on the Vrouwenheide the remains of an old watchtower can be found.[8]

Activities

The Vrouwenheide has a lot of walking routes and biking routes pass through and is also home to a farmer's golf course. The Vrouwenheide is part of the Mergellandroute, a tourist route for cars and bikes through South Limburg, Netherlands, mapped out by the ANWB. Due to the hills, the Vrouwenheide and surrounding areas are part of the Amstel Gold Race, a road bicycle race. As such it was also part of the 2006 Tour de France (stage 3).

Panorama of the Vrouwenheide

References
  1. (in Dutch) Nederland heeft ook bergen, plazilla, 3 February 2012
  2. (in Dutch) Wandeling met gids Jos Littmann, Vrouwengilde Landgraaf, 10 May 2014
  3. (in Dutch) Nederland Bergenland, ANWB
  4. (in Dutch) Op de Vrouweheide, De Hollandsche Molen
  5. (in Dutch) Windmolenbiotoop inventarisatie Limburg 2010, Monumentenwacht Limburg, 2010
  6. (in Dutch) Bernardushoeve (monument nr37895) Description at monumentenregister.cultureelerfgoed.nl, official website for Dutch cultural heritage
  7. (in German) P. van Laake, Niederlande: 52 ausgewählte Wanderungen, 2011, page 183-184
  8. (in Dutch) wandelpaden.com
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