Holiday apartment in Tweede Exloërmond: Canals and nature

Tweede Exloërmond was established around 1840 as a peat colony. The reclamation of the land resulted in elongated strip parcels. A dual canal system was also created: the Noorderdiep was dug parallel to the Zuiderdiep. Tweede Exloërmond is one of the Mond villages in the Hunze Valley. These villages were laid out across the older peat villages along the transport canals used for peat. The peat colony, strip parcelling and canal system shape the history of Tweede Exloërmond.

The landscape of Tweede Exloërmond

Behind Tweede Exloërmond lies the 70-hectare Exloërkijl nature area. It was planted in the 1970s and 1980s around a sand-extraction lake between older peatlands. The planting took place after the older peatlands and the sand extraction. The nature area therefore brings together a body of water created by sand extraction, older peatlands and later planting. The sand-extraction lake and the old peatlands form different components of the same nature area.

Numerous traditionally designed farmhouses stand along the Zuiderdiep.

Churches, farmhouses and culture

A distinctive architectural feature is the former Gereformeerde Kerk in Tweede Exloërmond. It was built in 1908 by the architect Klaas Prummel, combining Neo-Gothic and Neo-Renaissance elements. Neo-Gothic and Neo-Renaissance elements come together in this historic church building in a unified design.

Under the name ODEON Cultuurhuis, the church interior is rented out for cultural and social activities. Concerts, workshops, theatre performances, exhibitions and conferences are part of this range of uses. Architectural history and cultural events exist side by side in Tweede Exloërmond.

The religious architecture of the 20th century also includes the Baptist church and the hervormde kerk. In 1922, the Baptist church acquired its own small church building with a façade tower. The hervormde kerk dates from 1939 and has a tower standing to the side. The construction years 1922 and 1939 add to the historical sequence of churches in the village. The two churches therefore differ both in their year of construction and in the position of their towers.

Places in the surrounding region

The Hunebedcentrum, a museum, is located near Tweede Exloërmond. Barnflair, a fort, and Jabes, a church, are also located nearby. The three destinations thus represent a museum, fort and church as different points of interest in the same area.

The Boswachterij Odoorn, Bloemendellen, Boswachterij Emmen and Boswachterij Gieten parks are also located nearby. Further afield in the region lies Wedderborg, a castle. The four parks are in the surrounding area, whereas Wedderborg is in the wider regional surroundings. With Wedderborg, the geographical area of interest extends beyond the immediate vicinity.

At the Tweede Exloërmond natural ice rink, you can go ice skating when the waterways are frozen. The natural ice rink remains an explicitly frost-dependent winter attraction of Tweede Exloërmond. The opportunity to go ice skating is therefore dependent on wintry freezing conditions.

For further orientation, you can also explore Exloo, Klijndijk, Buinen, Valthermond, Drouwenermond, Odoornerveen, Odoorn and Drouwenerveen.

For the broader travel overview: Borger-Odoorn.