Weerribben NP Travel Guide

In the north-west region of the province of Overijssel lies a scenic and wildlife area called the Weerribben. Water and reed dominate its landscape and together with the neighbouring Wieden nature reserve, it is the most valuable marshland of north-west Europe.

Peat extraction over the past few centuries helped to shape the Weerribben as we know it today. Traces of this activity can still be found in the landscape and in the name of the area: ‘ribben’ – levees – are narrow strips of land on which the extracted peat was laid out to dry and a ‘weer’ – or turf pond – is the excavated land that subsequently flooded with water. Once peat extraction died out, crops of reed defined the appearance of the landscape.

The Weerribben is exceptionally valuable from a scientific point of view, one of the reasons being that it boasts all the different stages in its natural development from water to carr woodland. So its environmental diversity, namely stretches of water, reed-land, hay land and carr woodland, is impressive. Each of these environments has its own specific vegetation, offering habitats to fit all sorts of animal species – mammals, birds and insects.

So water predominates in the Weerribben. The ecological and biotic communities of the plants and animals there are all related to it in one way or another. The natural resources in the Weerribben are most unique – especially for a wetland of this size.

But this nature reserve is also a vulnerable place. Sufficient quantities of clean water are required for peat to develop. The natural quality in the area will suffer if the level of the groundwater drops or if the air and water are polluted.

In 1986, the Weerribben nature reserve was designated as a ‘National Park in development’, and was subsequently granted the full status of National Park in 1992. The Weerribben National Park measures approximately 3,500 hectares (35 square km) and is largely owned and managed by the Dutch Forestry Commission.

National Parks receive special attention because of their unique natural value; more nature conservancy, nature development and protection are provided, and additional funds are made available for nature recreation, information and education, and scientific research.

All this extra attention is provided with three main objectives in mind, namely: to preserve the area as an entity and to manage it as best as possible in order to ensure that its natural and scenic values continue to develop to give visitors the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the nature and landscape to enable people to enjoy the nature and scenery without endangering their survival