Two new Van Gogh hiking trails

ETTEN-LEUR, July 5, 2022 - Two new Van Gogh hiking trails opened today in Van Gogh National Park. Hikers will follow in the footsteps of Van Gogh with the new trails in Zundert (8 km) and Etten-Leur (14 km) and discover the landscape that inspired him. The opening of both routes took place this morning at one of the attractions along the Van Gogh walking route in Etten-Leur: The Black Barn in nature reserve De Pannenhoef. Aldermen Ralph Bogers and Jean-Pierre Schouw of the municipalities of Zundert and Etten-Leur respectively opened the routes together with Frank van den Eijnden, Operational Director Van Gogh National Park, by symbolically driving the route pole into the ground. Site manager Bart Pörtzgen of Brabants Landschap gave an introduction to De Pannenhoef. The routes are numbers two and three in a series of five walks that VisitBrabant Routebureau is developing on behalf of Van Gogh National Park. The first walking route was opened in Nuenen in February 2022. Two more Van Gogh walks will follow later this year in Helvoirt and Tilburg.

Zundert: the landscape of Van Gogh's childhood
Vincent van Gogh was born in Zundert on March 30, 1853. This place symbolizes the origins of his personality and artistry. This varied walking route (8 km) starts at Van Gogh's birthplace, the current Vincent van GoghHuis. The route leads past six Van Gogh Monuments, heritage sites and past places from his childhood where he walked, played and dreamed about later as a child. In Landscape Zone de Tuinderij, street names such as Orchard, Spitter and Sower recall Van Gogh's sketches and paintings. Something beautiful is growing in this landscape zone. Here, together with nature zone de Kleine Beek and the Assortment Garden, a large, "inner-city" area is formed where nature is given room to develop. Partly over unpaved paths you walk through the landscape with picturesque streams, such as Aa or Weerijs. Places that Van Gogh later thought back to with melancholy.

Etten-Leur: the landscape that Van Gogh touched and inspired
It was in Etten-Leur that Van Gogh started his artistic career in 1881. For Van Gogh nature and art were inseparable. Vincent took hours of walks here and was charmed by the moorlands, countryside and peasant life. The long distance walk (14 km) is 98% unpaved. You walk through farmland, across wild fields with characteristic pollard willows, through forests and past pools, streams and picturesque fens. The walk combines well with the five Van Gogh Monuments in Etten-Leur, including the Van Gogh Church, the Kosterswoning and the Lambertuskerk. The latter shines on the horizon in his drawings "Field at rising thunderstorm" and "Away with the pollard willows."

Bart Pörtzgen, manager Brabants Landschap: "We have been managing nature reserve De Pannenhoef for 50 years. In that time it has become much more varied and its natural value has increased. Thanks to the appreciation of visitors and the intensive cooperation with the partners within Van Gogh National Park, we ensure a healthy future for nature and landscape in this region."