Discover Warfhuizen: Pilgrimage, tower and terps

Warfhuizen combines religious history with traces of the Cold War and a landscape of terps and waterways. This gives you several distinct ways to plan your trip: you can focus on the history of pilgrimage, place the air-raid observation tower in the context of the post-war period, or follow walking and pilgrimage routes.

Pilgrimage history and church architecture

The Kluizenarij Onze Lieve Vrouwe van de Besloten Tuin is housed in a former Reformed church built in 1858. Since 2001, the church has been used as a Roman Catholic pilgrimage site, Onze Lieve Vrouwe van de Besloten Tuin. These two dates distinguish its construction history from its history of use: 1858 marks the construction of the former church, and 2001 the start of its use as a pilgrimage site. If you are interested in sacred heritage, the combination of an older church building and its later religious use offers a particularly distinctive way to explore Warfhuizen.

The air-raid observation tower and its history

Warfhuizen’s air-raid observation tower stands on the road between Warfhuizen and Wehe-Den Hoorn and was built specifically for the Cold War. It was constructed in 1955 as part of a semi-secret network of 276 observation posts across the Netherlands. The tower is one of the 19 air-raid observation towers still standing in the country, and also one of three surviving towers in the province of Groningen. These figures provide two points of reference for understanding its place: the nationwide network and the surviving towers within the province. In early 2024, the air-raid observation tower was designated a municipal monument. This structure therefore brings together the history of Cold War surveillance and municipal monument status.

Terps, waterways and village character

Warfhuizen developed on two medieval terps, called Warfhuizen and Burum, built on a former salt-marsh fringe. The two Warfhuizen terps lie on opposite sides of the Warfhuister Loopdiep. This waterway connects to the Reitdiep via the Kromme Rakken. These places and waterways give the area’s history a concrete geographical setting: the terps, the Loopdiep and its connection to the Reitdiep can be considered together. The rest of Warfhuizen’s buildings have also retained their distinctive 19th-century appearance. Medieval settlement history and a 19th-century village character therefore coexist in Warfhuizen.

Walking and route information

The walking trail starts at a small car park beside air-raid observation tower 701 at Baron van Asbeckweg 2 in Warfhuizen and follows the Kromme Raken river. The starting point and river are two specific landmarks to help you plan your walk. Another route option is pilgrimage stage N4.4, from Camping Lauwerszee to Camping Reitdiep in Warfhuizen. A GPX file for navigation apps and GPS devices is available for this stage. The information offers different ways to find your way: the walking trail has a specified starting point at the air-raid observation tower, while the pilgrimage stage comes with a navigation file.

The Pieterburen canoe route passes near Warfhuizen, with a downloadable GPS track covering 24.4 kilometres. Just before Warfhuizen, there is a public toilet at the canoe landing stage. Check the information about this facility again locally before setting out.

When choosing your destination, you can weigh up the different themes: religious use and church architecture, the Cold War monument, or the landscape of terps and waterways. The route information also differs considerably: the walking trail specifies a starting point and the Kromme Raken river, while the pilgrimage stage is described with a GPX navigation file. This allows you to choose Warfhuizen for your trip based on specific historical and landscape interests.

Discover more destinations: Eenrum, Hornhuizen, Vierhuizen, Zoutkamp, Leens, Kloosterburen, Pieterburen, Ulrum.

For the overview of the wider region: De Marne.