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Bolsward - Wadden Sea dike | Elfstedenpad Hiking Trail: Section 8

(20.6 km)

he Elfstedenpad trail leaves Bolsward through the De Marne industrial estate. Long ago, an inlet of the same name stretched this far inland from the Wadden Sea.

This section of the trail takes you from the Hanseatic city of Bolsward to the Wadden Sea dike north of the Afsluitdijk. Further on, the green meadows in this flat landscape give way to the grey clay of the mudflats.
The land you walk on as you pass the little villages of Skettens, Witmarsum and Arum was once beneath the sea. The local people started building dikes around the salt marshes in this area from 1100 onwards.

Towards the village of Kimswerd, the Elfstedenpad trail follows part of the Pingjumer Gulden Halsband (Gold Collar of Pingjum), a unique ring dike built in the 11th century. You walk through the village of Kimswerd (the home of the Frisian rebel leader and pirate Grutte Pier) onto the mudflats where today the fertile seabed produces a plentiful supply of beets, grain and potatoes.

Sights on this route

Bolsward (Boalsert)

Bolsward, or Boalsert as we say in Friesland, is the city where history and architecture play a leading role. Let yourself be carried away by the rich history of this eleven cities city.

Filenspolder Nature Reserve

The Filenspolder nature reserve is just south of the village of Witmarsum. This is an area that attracts large numbers of meadow birds. And bird counts indicate that the populations are increasing.