Oost West en Middelbeers: Heathland, Cultural Heritage and Walking Trails

Oost West en Middelbeers combines nature, village history and various day-trip destinations. Baest, Middelbeers, Oostelbeers and Westelbeers each represent different facets: wet heathland and peat lakes, historic buildings, paths through woodland and fields, as well as other natural experiences. In the landscape, open water, woodland and field paths alternate with churches, chapels and mills.

Baest and the heathland landscape

The historic Baest estate is a relatively rare and well-preserved example of an “ornamental farm” in the Netherlands. The historic garden and park landscape combines agricultural and forestry plots with formal-style and landscape-style park features. Stichting Het Baesterlandschap monitors and manages the sustainable maintenance of woodland and nature at Landgoed Baest.

The Landschotse Heide consists almost entirely of wet heathland and peat lakes and is part of the Natura 2000 network. A quarter of the Landschotse Heide consists of open water. Ducks and grebes breed on the open waters.

Hiking between fields, woodland and water

The “Rondje Wit Hollandven” walk begins and ends at the Doornboomstraat car park in Middelbeers. It passes through pasture and arable landscapes as well as woodland around Middelbeers. The “Ontdek landgoed Baest” walking route is 15 kilometres long. The 15 kilometres give the route a clear scope for personal day planning. The Beerze flows through the municipal area of Oirschot; many long walks are possible along the river.

Churches and towers with a history of their own

The Oude Kerkje in Middelbeers was built between 1400 and 1450 on the commission of the Oirschot Chapter. It is the best-preserved surviving example of Kempen village Gothic architecture in the region. Cultural events are regularly held in the Oude Kerkje, including exhibitions, concerts, and book and record fairs. The Sint-Willibrorduskerk in Middelbeers was built between 1925 and 1927 on the initiative of Pastor van der Meijden, based on a design by the Eindhoven-born architect Louis Joseph Petrus Kooken (1867–1940).

De Oude Toren in Oostelbeers is a medieval church tower and a simple brick structure with four storeys, a pyramidal roof and no buttresses. The Beltmolen van Himbergen was built in 1884 on the Kleine Beerze between Oostelbeers and Middelbeers. For half a century, grain such as wheat, barley, oats and buckwheat was milled there using wind power.

Chapels, brewing tradition and further discoveries

The stone Mariakapel in Westelbeers was built in 1637 after an earlier wooden chapel had been destroyed. It is dedicated to Onze-Lieve-Vrouw van Scherpenheuvel. A statue of the Virgin Mary in a tower in Oostelbeers is regularly visited by passers-by. Brouwerij De Doornboom was founded in Middelbeers in 1760; historically, it brewed dark beer, lager and later pilsner.

De Konijnenberg adventure forest offers natural adventure play activities such as climbing, crossing bridges, building huts and discovering nature.

To the higher-level travel overview: Oirschot.