Discover Hoogstede: Walking Trails and Local History

Hoogstede can be explored through specific trail routes and historic sites. Two walking trails start at the village square; other points of interest include the Catholic Church of St. Bonifatius, the Peace Oaks on Schwarzen Weg and other topics in the municipality. For planning purposes, it helps to distinguish between Hoogstede as a town, other places in the municipality and regional destinations in the County of Bentheim.

Choose a walking trail by distance

The green walking trail in Hoogstede is about 11 kilometres long and leads from the village square along the Möllenkamp development area towards Scheerhorn. The red walking trail is about 6 kilometres long; it leads from the village square along Molkereistraße to Bathorner Diek. Both distances are approximate. By this measure, the red route is shorter; the rounded distances differ by about five kilometres.

The walking trails designated by the local heritage association in and around Hoogstede can also be cycled. If you are travelling by bike and the exact route is important for your planning, check the local signage in advance.

Church and historical milestones

The Catholic Church of St. Bonifatius in Hoogstede is a brick building in the Rundbogenstil (round-arch style), dating from 1859. Three Peace Oaks were planted on Schwarzen Weg in 1913. These dates mark two milestones: 1859 for the church's construction and 1913 for the planting of the oaks, a gap of 54 years.

In the municipality of Hoogstede, the Scholten-Meilink farm is home to a memorial to the former Arkel chapel. At children's birthday parties on the farm, animals are fed and children play in the straw in the play barn. If you are planning such a celebration, check availability with the farm in advance.

At the Hoagsteeder Familiengoarn in Hoogstede, you can plant a tree for a personal occasion or simply for no particular reason. The annual date may change, so check the date if you would like to include planting a tree in your plans.

The Vechte Altarm Kalle nature reserve is also located in the municipality of Hoogstede, in the cadastral district of Kalle in the County of Bentheim. This connection to the Kalle cadastral district adds a nature theme at the municipal level to the local history.

The County of Bentheim as a regional setting

The County of Bentheim is characterised by a changing landscape of heathland, raised and fen bogs, wooded ridges and the Vechte river valley. The Itterbecker Heide, a nature reserve covering around 85 hectares, is also located here. These regional landscape themes provide a broader setting for travel planning beyond the specific sites in Hoogstede and its municipality.

One regional route option is the main route of the Grafschafter Fietsentour: it is about 220 kilometres long and passes through every municipality in the district. This makes it markedly longer in scale than the two shorter Hoogstede walking trails.

Kunstwegen is also part of the County of Bentheim's cultural offering. This open-air museum of contemporary art, nature and history extends for more than 180 kilometres through the Vechte valley; more than 80 sculpture projects can be found along the route. This regional cultural theme therefore reaches well beyond the individual historic sites in Hoogstede.

Discover more destinations: Wielen, Uelsen, Neuenhaus, Engden, Bad Bentheim, Getelo, Itterbeck, Wilsum.

For the broader travel overview: County of Bentheim.