Hiking trip: The Path of Freedom - From Oosterbeek to Wageningen - 5 days

After an impressive stop at the Airborne War Cemetery near Oosterbeek, the route continues through the woods to the Warnsborn Estate. In a front garden next to a small landing field stands a battered birch tree. This is where a Dakota with seven crew members crashed. Three did not survive the crash. Crosses in the tree form a subtle but poignant tribute.

Today you will walk through the woods and heathlands between Oosterbeek and Ede, once the heart of Operation Market Garden. You will pass Wolfheze, where the Allied airborne landings took place. What is now a quiet walking area was then the scene of tension and chaos. Along the Juliana Hoeve estate - royal simplicity in nature - and across the beautiful Ginkelse Heide, two airborne monuments take you back in time. The stories of courage and loss are still palpable, but the silence of nature also provides space for reflection. An impressive stage about freedom, then and now.

Walk along the flanks of the Veluwe to Lunteren, where the Muur van Mussert (Mussert Wall) - now a national monument - serves as a reminder of dark times. The leader of the NSB gave his speeches here, deep in the forest. The route then takes you through the open landscape of the picturesque Gelderse Vallei, with its hedgerows, country estates, and tranquil villages. You reach the Grebbelinie, once designed to protect the west of the Netherlands. Fort Buurtsteeg has been beautifully restored and tells the story of defense and hope. The longest but most varied day of walking, full of contrasts and reflection.

Via the Slaperdijk, you walk up the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, towards the woods of the Prattenburg Estate. Here, a monument commemorates resistance fighters who gave their lives for our freedom. The route continues to climb past the Kwintelooijen nature reserve and the old Lamerstein Estate. You will pass the Koerheuvel, once an observation point for spotting enemy aircraft. The last part takes you through the floodplains to Rhenen, where the imposing Cuneratoren welcomes you. A day with differences in altitude, literally and figuratively — with room for silence and remembrance.

Your final stage is short but meaningful. You will return to Wageningen via the wooded slopes of the Grebbeberg. You will pass casemates, trenches, and monuments commemorating the battle of May 1940. Along the way, the panoramic view of the Gelderse Vallei unfolds. In Wageningen, the route takes you past memorial sites to Hotel de Wereld, where the German surrender was signed on May 5, 1945. Here, at the site where this important moment took place, your journey ends — not only geographically, but also as a journey through history, freedom, and awareness.