East of the Netherlands micro food adventure 🚲

This micro food adventure is part of a series of microadventures to discover sustainable food pioneers. Read more about our the impact of local food and don’t forget to let us know how you experienced this route (mareike@forkranger.com).

Link to the route – 30 km
Tip: if you use komoot app without the navigation function, it’s free!

This bike ride 🚲 is all about how nature and agriculture are connected. You can also split this bike ride in two parts with a night at the campsite 🏕️, or change it to walking mode if you have two days (there might be a few nicer paths that weren’t suitable for cyclists, change your own route on Komoot). If you want to look around the food forest at the second stop, make sure to send them a message a day or two beforehand (more details below).

First stop: Burgerboerderij De Patrijs

Starting from Lochem station we make our way and arrive after 6 km at the first stop Burgerboerderij De Patrijs.

Why we picked this stop for you → We got in touch with Johannes some time ago when he told us about his plans for De Patrijs. This farm is a farm in transition. It used to be a farm that only produces milk. And bit by bit they are transforming it to a mixed farm which makes multiple products, all within nature’s boundaries. They let me know that the first legumes are already produced, so you can try their own hummus and tempeh. And they are also starting a vegetable garden and starting to grow more and more crops. In this transition, what’s better than have nature as indicator of how it’s going? That’s why the farm is named ‘De Patrijs’ (dutch for Ptarmigan). This bird feels at home in a small-scale, varied landscape. In the past, this was very common, but not anymore. They hope to bring this bird back as a result of a better landscape where it can thrive. So if it goes well with the ptarmigan, it will also mean it’s going well for other plants and animals. Learn more about how they want to do this by their DIY tour (look for the A4-sized plates).

Second stop: De Trage Tijd

From here we continue for a short time, until we reach food forest De Trage Tijd (after 9 km from the start). Tim, Hedwig and Gerhard live here in the middle of the food forest, so it’s best to respect their privacy and not show up spontaneously, but send them a message (0623030911) beforehand. They are happy to invite guests to their food forest, as long as they know about it. If you missed it, you can always try calling them spontaneously, and see if it still works out.

Why we picked this stop for you → A food forest or forest garden, which is more fitting for this location, is a form of agroforestry in which agriculture is combined with a forest. While there are more industrial large-scale approaches of agroforestry this is a small-scale initiative. We added this stop for you because we wanted you to wonder again. To understand how harmonious food production and nature can be. De Trage Tijd has also built their forest garden around this more romantic perspective. This one is smaller than the usual more commercial food forests and some produce is harder to reach when it’s ripe (simply because it’s not optimized for food production in first place). They prioritize how you can explore the food forest, rather than efficiency. What does this spark in you? Don’t we sometimes sacrifice everything for the sake of efficiency? And is there also a beauty in putting the effort? It’s the same when you start a small allotment yourself, it’s hardly more efficient than going to the supermarket, but it can be so much more valuable. What can you do in your own window sill, balcony or small garden?

Third stop: ‘t Gagel

After letting these thoughts sink in, we cross the Twentekanaal and the Berkel and make our way to the regenerative farm ‘t Gagel, which we reach after 20 km from the start. You can also spend the night here – even without carrying your own tent 😉 if you want to travel light.

Why we picked this stop for you → Maybe you’ve heard of the community supported agricultural concept Herenboeren before. A few of the other routes have stops at Herenboeren as they are found throughout the country. Regenerative farm ‘t Gagel is a Lenteland farm, which is similar but also has some differences. While it’s similar in the sense that you also commit to a share of the harvest, it’s optional to be an owner of the farm through certificates. This makes it more accessible to people who don’t have the funds to buy a share in the farm. Also ‘t Gagel works according to solidarity payment, based on your income you can decide how much you’d like to pay for your fruit and vegetable box. What a great way to make sure everyone can eat local sustainably produced food. You can also shop produce at their farm shop, if you are just a one-time visitor.

Fourth stop: Aardigh

It’s time to make it to our last stop to self-harvest garden Aardigh! You arrive after 25 km from the start, it’s situated behind the house that’s next to the mill at number 165A. Els told me that you are welcome to explore but stay on the paths, please!

Why we picked this stop for you → Because we really liked Els’ story. She has tried out different local food formats over the past years. She started with a shop in Zwiep where she sold regional products. But she found out that the commitment was too loose. Some days would be really busy with customers and some days there would be nothing to do. That’s why it was not feasible in the long run and she focused on self-harvesting. Similar to ‘t Gagel people commit to a harvest share at Aardigh. And here you are also supposed to harvest it yourself. The higher commitment gives a steady foundation compared to the shop-concept. Els is always looking at how she can make this as easy as possible for people. That’s why she has even harvest videos! This is even interesting to watch if you are not a self-harvester, but simply to undestand how our food looks before it ends up on the supermarket shelves.

Which local food format would fit for you? Would you be able to commit to more than just an occasional visit to a farm shop? Would you be willing to commit to a harvest share, would you be willing to spend time harvesting, would you be willing to contribute financially or become a shared owner?

Extra info (updated April 2025)

• Burgerboerderij De Patrijs is open for a DIY tour and their farm shop including ‘rustpunt’ with coffee is open every day from 9:00 to 19:00. More info here.
• De Trage Tijd is private property and only accessible by arrangement. Message 0623030911 beforehand.
• ‘t Gagel‘s farm shop is open from 22nd of March 2025 until 22nd of November November 2025 on  Fridays 12:00-16:00 and Saturdays 10:00-16:00. If you want to stay the night, there’s more info here.
• Aardigh is open for visitors but if you come on Wednesday or Friday mornings (8:30-12:30), you might meet people who work in the garden together and get a spontaneous tour.