Route 26: De Bosbeek Ter Apel
On this route, you’ll walk along the Bosbeek in Ter Apel. This route is 12.5 kilometres long.
Over a hundred years ago, floods ravaged Westerwolde.
The meandering streams Ruiten Aa and Mussel Aa were unable to cope with the masses of water from Drenthe. The ‘sponge-like’ effect of the Groningen and Drenthe peatlands diminished in direct proportion to the progress of land reclamation there. Calls for canalisation grew ever louder, to the extent that a pressure group was set up to promote it: the Association for the Promotion of the Canalisation of Westerwolde.
The catchment area of the Ruiten-Aa meets that of the Runde near Ter Apel. That little river used to flow from the Zwartemeer peatland in south-east Drenthe, and a tributary of the Runde, the Moersloot, was one of the streams that fed into the Ruiten-Aa near Ter Apel Monastery.
Three organisations, Staatsbosbe…
Over a hundred years ago, floods ravaged Westerwolde.
The meandering streams Ruiten Aa and Mussel Aa were unable to cope with the masses of water from Drenthe. The ‘sponge-like’ effect of the Groningen and Drenthe peatlands diminished in direct proportion to the progress of land reclamation there. Calls for canalisation grew ever louder, to the extent that a pressure group was set up to promote it: the Association for the Promotion of the Canalisation of Westerwolde.
The catchment area of the Ruiten-Aa meets that of the Runde near Ter Apel. That little river used to flow from the Zwartemeer peatland in south-east Drenthe, and a tributary of the Runde, the Moersloot, was one of the streams that fed into the Ruiten-Aa near Ter Apel Monastery.
Three organisations – Staatsbosbeheer, the Hunze en Aa’s Water Board and the Dienst Landelijk Gebied – have joined forces to optimise the connection between the Runde catchment area and the Ruiten Aa. They dug the Bosbeek, which you will come across at points 6 and 33 on your walk. At point 6, you will see the restored Bosbeek, which forms the link between the Runde (Drenthe) and the Ruiten Aa. The stream has one slightly steeper bank with a mowing path and one gently sloping bank, with all sorts of uneven terrain and shallow areas at the water’s edge. To the south, the stream is channelled under the Ruiten Aa canal (see point 33): this is where the Bosbeek begins, and immediately to the right is the culvert under the Ruiten Aa canal, which carries water from the Runde via the Bosbeek to the small river Ruiten Aa. To the north, it joins the Ruiten Aa, which thus receives more and cleaner water. Whereas a hundred years ago the aim was to relieve the natural rivers, the focus now is not on transporting Drenthe’s water to the Dollard via the path of least resistance (the canals), but rather on allowing the rivers to thrive.
At point 4 on the route, you will see a reed bed filter: the overflow from the sewerage system is purified by this reed bed filter and discharged, now clean, into the Ruiten Aa. The reed bed filter was constructed as part of the ‘Westerwolde Schoon’ initiative.
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This is a route of the Walking in Westerwolde Foundation, sponsored by Hotel Boschhuis and Tri Fysio.
Here’s what you’ll see
Features
Walking
- Dogs must be kept on a lead Yes
Tour/Route
- Comment starting point: Hotel Boschhuis car park
- Tagged: Yes
- Explanatory marking: Yellow-and-white marked WIW 26
- Route typing: Nature trail