Veenwouden is officially called Feanwâlden. It’s a village in Northeast Friesland, with a special historic landmark and stunning nature nearby.
The small village of Veenwoudsterwal and part of the hamlet Kuikhorne also belong to it.
Feanwâlden is easy to reach by public transport, as it lies on the railway line between Leeuwarden and Groningen. Trains stop here four times an hour.
The hotspot of Feanwâlden is without a doubt the Schierstins, built around the year 1300. It’s the only remaining stins in Friesland. A stins is a “stone house”: a residential tower with thick brick walls where prominent families sought refuge in medieval times when danger was near. Today, the building is a museum.
Old maps, skulls damaged by warfare and other archaeological finds take you back to the time of the hoofdelingen and the farming nobility in Friesland.
On the north side of the village you’ll find the 319-hectare nature area Bûtefjild, made up of several parts such as Bouwepet, Oer de Wiel, Sippen-finnen, Lodde Hel and the Ottema-Wiersma reservaat. Each has something different to offer, from rough grasslands to open pools of water.
There are several walking routes and a lookout post in the middle of It Bûtefjild. At the lookout post you can cross using a small pull-ferry. Please note: these facilities are not accessible during the breeding season.
Parts of the nature area can also be reached by bike. At the Toeristisch Overstap Punt in Feanwâlden you can park your car and hire a bike to head out into the Frisian Woods.
