Warten Roaming Route

This route takes you through De Alde Feanen National Park, across De Burd island and past several interesting wetland villages. It will come as no surprise that this route includes several short ferry crossings. Sailing times and periods when services run are subject to change. Check with the VVV tourist office in Grou or Earnewâld to make sure you have the right information.

The village of Warten grew up on the banks of the narrow It Alddjip river, which at one time flowed into the former Middelzee estuary. A stretch of this river still runs along the northeast side of the village. Though there were mound settlements here before the year 1000, Warten remained isolated until the beginning of the 19th century. The local people were reliant on waterways for transport. The first road links were built in around 1865. The main sources of livelihood were livestock farming, shipping, fishing and peat cutting.

To the south of Warten lies De Alde Feanen National Park. You can explore the park by boat from Warten. Traces of peat pits and narrow strips of land created by the small-scale peat cutting done in Friesland in the first half of the 18th century make for a spectacular landscape. Large-scale peat extraction from the middle of the 18th century to the 19th century led to the formation of lakes with narrow strips of land, most of which later collapsed. Saiterpetten lake is a typical example. Warten has a long-standing reputation as a village that specialises in shipping. This accounts for the various shipyards, yacht brokers and boat hire companies you see here.