A church serving as a Roman Catholic pilgrimage site, an air watchtower built during the Cold War and two medieval terps give Warfhuizen tangible historical landmarks. Waterways also shape the setting of the terps, and a walking trail follows the Kromme Raken. Those looking for accommodation for a cultural and landscape-focused trip can weigh up the religious heritage, more recent history and route information here.
Religious heritage and architectural history
Since 2001, the church has been used as a Roman Catholic pilgrimage site, Onze Lieve Vrouwe van de Besloten Tuin. The Kluizenarij Onze Lieve Vrouwe van de Besloten Tuin is housed in a former Reformed church built in 1858. The year it was built, 1858, and the start of its use as a pilgrimage site in 2001 mark two clearly distinct points in time. Warfhuizen’s religious history can therefore be explored both through the architectural history of a former Reformed place of worship and through its use as a Catholic pilgrimage site.
The Cold War air watchtower
Air watchtower 701 stands on the road between Warfhuizen and Wehe-Den Hoorn; it was built specifically for the Cold War. Constructed in 1955, it was part of a semi-secret network of 276 observation posts across the Netherlands. These figures place the individual site in a nationwide context: 19 air watchtowers still remain in the Netherlands, three of them in the province of Groningen. In early 2024, the tower was designated a municipal monument. An undated notice says that the tower is open to the public from April to September, on the third Sunday of each month from 14:00 to 16:00. As the notice is undated, it is unclear whether this schedule is still in effect. Check the opening times before your visit.
Terps, waterways and the village landscape
The settlement grew up on two medieval terps, Warfhuizen and Burum. They were raised on a former edge of the salt marshes and lie on opposite sides of the Warfhuister Loopdiep. This waterway is connected to the Reitdiep via the Kromme Rakken. The location of the two terps makes the waterway part of the village’s history. The rest of Warfhuizen’s buildings have also retained their distinctive 19th-century appearance. In this way, the medieval origins of the settlement sit alongside a much more recent architectural character.
Routes and practical information
The walking trail starts at a small car park beside air watchtower 701 at Baron van Asbeckweg 2 in Warfhuizen and follows the Kromme Raken river. This provides both a named starting point and a link to the waterway for planning your route. The N4.4 pilgrimage stage from Camping Lauwerszee to Camping Reitdiep in Warfhuizen provides a GPX file that can be used with navigation apps and GPS devices.
Just before Warfhuizen, there is a public toilet by the canoe landing stage; check its availability locally. The Pieterburen canoe route is also nearby. A 24.4-kilometre GPS track is available to download for this route. The route information thus includes both a walking trail with a named starting point and a canoe route with a specified track length.
Discover more destinations: Eenrum, Lauwersoog, Molenrij, Zuurdijk, Ulrum, Leens, Zoutkamp, Mensingeweer.
For the broader travel overview: De Marne.
