Hoogwoud: Mills, Church Architecture and Walking Routes

When planning a stay in Hoogwoud, you can focus on different themes: mills and church architecture, a museum, a rose garden or walking routes. The local attractions and activities offer starting points for a range of interests. If you are looking for a hotel for your trip, you can plan around which of these themes you would like to explore further.

Mills and their building history

Molen De Lastdrager is an octagonal grain mill of the Grondzeiler type, dating from the 17th century. The date of the mill should be distinguished from that of its framework: the octagonal framework dates from 1522 and is described as probably the oldest octagonal framework in the Netherlands. The two dates therefore refer to different components and make the mill’s building history particularly complex. Flour is available at Molen De Lastdrager when the mill is open.

Molen de Vier Winden tells a different story of change over time: its predecessor burned down in October 1890, and the present mill was built in 1891. Compared with the far earlier dates associated with De Lastdrager, the focus here is on a clear transition from fire to rebuilding within two consecutive years.

Church, museum and rose garden

The Hervormde Kerk Hoogwoud was rebuilt in 1680 on the site of a cruciform Gothic church. The tower also points to an earlier building phase: its two lower stories consist of masonry dating from shortly after 1472. Inside, there is also a 15th-century baptismal font. The rebuilding, tower and baptismal font thus represent different historical periods that can be read together in one church building.

At Museumboerderij West-Frisia, visitors hear stories of earlier generations. The farm that houses the museum dates from 1857. This connects the building’s agricultural history with stories about people from earlier times. Rosarium De Rozenhof offers a different perspective: the display garden features around 140 rose varieties. While the church and museum focus on architectural and everyday history, the rosarium showcases the diversity of roses in the garden.

Walking routes in and around Hoogwoud

Several walking routes are signposted in the village centre of Hoogwoud with KNAU signs and stickers on lampposts. De Lindehof and Sportcentrum De Weyver are named as starting points. The “Genieten in Hoogwoud” route is 9 km long and passes through part of Hoogwoud. This means there are several marked routes in the village centre as well as one specifically named route with a stated length.

Several walking routes start from the Toeristisch Overstap Punt (TOP) near Hoogwoud, including the Opmeerder Wuivertocht. For your planning, you can distinguish these details by type of guidance: routes in the village centre are marked with signs and stickers, a length is given for “Genieten in Hoogwoud”, and several routes, including the Opmeerder Wuivertocht, are listed at the TOP. This allows you to consider cultural attractions and opportunities to explore on foot as different focuses for your stay.

Discover more destinations: De Weere, Aartswoud, Opmeer

Go to the main travel overview: Opmeer.