Sneekermeer Cycling Route

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This cycling route is a chance to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Frisian Lakes (Sneekermeer lake, Tjeukemeer lake and Langweerderwielen lake). You also visit the town of Joure, where the world-famous Dutch coffee brand Douwe Egberts was born, and the village of Terherne, which served as the setting for the popular Dutch children’s book series, De Kameleon. 

Sneek
The route starts at the VVV Waterland tourist office at the Frisian Maritime Museum in Sneek. During your visit to the museum, you will learn more about the city of Sneek and the history of shipping in Friesland. And you can’t leave without seeing the famous Waterpoort water gate and the Fountain of Fortuna created by Stephan Balkenhol. You cycle past these iconic sights towards the end of the route.

Sneekermeer (Snitser Mar) lake
Sneekermeer is best known as a haven for water sports enthusiasts. The interconnected bodies of water in the area include Sneekermeer lake itself, Goïngarijpsterpoelen (Goaiingarypster Puollen) lake, Zoutepoel (Sâltpoel) lake and Gauwsterhoppen (Gauster Hoppen) lake. It is interesting to note that the city of Sneek is not situated next to the lake.

Terherne
The village of Terherne is situated on the banks of Sneekermeer (Snitser Mar) lake and is surrounded by water on all sides. In other words, it is really an island! So water sports and tourism are its main sources of income. The village is now known as ‘the chameleon’ village’ because the popular Dutch children’s book series, De Kameleon, written by Hotze de Roos is set in and around the village.

Joure
Many monuments and sights in Joure testify to the craftsmanship that flourished here in the past. The town was known for its clock makers, furniture makers and shipbuilders. It was also the birthplace of the Douwe Egberts coffee company founded by Egbert Douwes. Joure was granted the right to hold a market as far back as 1466. The Jouster Merke, the town’s famous annual market, continues to attract thousands of visitors. A beautiful place with a shopping street that is more than a kilometre long! Tip: Be sure to visit Museum Joure. This fascinating manufacturing museum can be found on the site where the world-famous Dutch coffee brand Douwe Egberts set up its first factory.

Haulsterbossen forest
This forest was planted by the Douwe Egberts company in the late 1940s. At the time, the Douwe Egberts factory in Joure produced tobacco. And people who smoked tobacco needed matches. A few years after it was planted, wood cut from the forest could be used to make matches. The Dutch word for ‘match’ is ‘lucifer’. So the forest is also known as Lucifer forest. In the forest there is a war memorial with the inscription ‘Droppingsveld 1944/1945’. Towards the end of the Second World War, the Allies regularly dropped weapons here for resistance fighters.

Tjeukemeer (Tsjûkemar) lake
If you carry straight on at junction 90 rather than turning right, you will come to Tjeukemeer (Tsjûkemar) lake and the beach. You may be surprised to learn that this is the largest inland lake in Friesland. The Frisian Lakes are the heart of the water sports scene in Friesland. But these lakes appeared relatively recently. There are several explanations of how the lakes were formed. They are generally thought to be the result of human activity. The extraction of peat and salt created depressions that filled with water. The major storm surges that hit Friesland in the late Middle Ages were also a contributing factor. As the lakes increased in size, some villages had to be moved to avoid being swallowed up by the water!

Scharsterrijn (Scharster Rijn) canal
From Tjeukemeer (Tsjûkemar) lake, you cycle north again along a beautiful route next to the Scharsterrijn (Scharster Rijn) canal. At one point the canal ran dry, but it was dug out again in the 18th century to transport peat.

Langweerderwielen (Langwarder Wielen) lake
As you cycle past Langweerderwielen lake, which transitions into Alde Wei lake, be sure to enjoy the view of the many water sports enthusiasts. The lake is close to the village of Langweer, which is popular with water sports enthusiasts.

Refreshments
Want to stop for a drink and a bite to eat along the way? There are plenty of restaurants and terraces in Sneek, Terherne and Joure and along the route, where you can also charge your e-bike.

Here are some we highly recommend:

Just before you arrive in Terherne, you cycle past IJsboerderij Boereiis. In the summer, you can enjoy the wonderful dairy ice cream made on the farm.
Just after Terherne, you pass two restaurants: Pavilion Salt and Picknickers. Both are situated in a beautiful location where you can relax on a terrace with a spectacular view of Sneekermeer (Snitsermar) lake.
After Joure (after junction 82), you pass the De Palingfabriek eel farm in the village of Rohel, which has been sustainably farming eels for more than 30 years.