Discover Nijeholtpade: Church, Waterways and Woodland Landscape

Holiday apartment in Nijeholtpade: village history between road and landscape

Nijeholtpade combines a late-medieval village structure with the surrounding landscape. The village lies on a spur of the Drents Plateau in a wooded Stellingwerf scenic landscape. As a late-medieval linear village, Nijeholtpade developed along the road from Wolvega to Oosterwolde. At the heart of the village stands the Takkenbiender, a statue. The village centre thus combines the historic settlement form with the statue. In Nijeholtpade, the view therefore extends from the historic road layout into the open landscape.

St Nicholas Church: late-Gothic architecture and local memory

St Nicholas Church is a single-nave late-Gothic church with a two-storey tower and a recessed spire. The church contains two gravestones belonging to the Lycklama family, dating from 1627 and 1640. The church in Nijeholtpade is also the oldest building in the village; its construction is dated to around 1525. It stands at Kerkweg 28 on a raised churchyard. The architectural form, gravestones and early dating give the church site several specific historical dimensions.

Church, roads and the former Friesburg stins

Originally, St Nicholas Church stood at the crossing of the regionally important Middelweg and Buitenweg roads. This location is connected with the village’s earlier orientation, as it developed as a linear village along the route from Wolvega to Oosterwolde. To the north of Nijeholtpade stood the former Friesburg stins, also known as Lewenburg, on the Vriesburgerweg.

Waterways, sandy ridges and wooded scenic landscape

The landscape around Nijeholtpade also contains clearly distinguishable elements. The canalised rivers Linde, called Lende in Stellingwerfs, and Tjonger, called Kuunder in Stellingwerfs, flank the village on opposite sides. The Scheene, a dug waterway, also flows through Nijeholtpade. The Zanen (Zanden) is a high sandy ridge between the Linde and Nijeholtpade. Together with the spur of the Drents Plateau, these elements shape the wooded Stellingwerf scenic landscape.

Gerrit's Hutte: expansive views across fields, river and lake

Gerrit's Hutte offers expansive views across the fields, river and a lake. With a little luck, various birds of prey can be seen there. Gerrit's Hutte can be reached from a car park south of Nijeholtpade on the N351 via a cycle path. Access is therefore specifically located via the car park to the south, the N351 and the cycle path.

Summer opening hours of St Nicholas Church

The church is open from 1:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on 4 and 18 July, 1, 15 and 29 August, and 12 September. The opening period is in the afternoon each time and is spread across individual days in July, August and September.

Oldetrijne, Blesdijke, Noordwolde, Scherpenzeel, Zandhuizen, Oldeholtpade, Boijl and Wolvega

For the higher-level travel overview: Weststellingwerf.