Nature house in Ossenzijl

A natural place to enjoy together with up to 9 people! In the middle of the Weerribben nature reserve, in a wonderful location in the head of Overijssel, you will find this very modern nature house with lots of privacy, peace, space and a beautiful view. The house was built about 40 years ago and has a thatched roof making it a beautiful picture. The fully furnished vacation home is located in the "center" of Ossenzijl on the main road between the Northeast Polder and Steenwijk. Ossenzijl is a very small village (about 500 inhabitants) and is centrally located in the Weerribben-Wieden Nature Park. Lots of water, biking and hiking trails and a beautiful piece of nature. The house is fully equipped and has a large garden (about 1200 square meters) with lots of privacy and several terraces. The conservatory behind the house is an extra living room where you can enjoy the outdoors in the Weerribben until late in the evening. The house is located on a pond but no boats pass by so you retain your privacy but still the enjoyment of water behind the house. From the jetty you look over the Weerribben and if you are lucky you will see one of the many the deer or storks. Central in the village, yet in no time in the middle of nature! Within walking distance are 2 cozy restaurants, a (small) supermarket and several recreation companies where you can rent a boat or bikes. You will like the house and you will enjoy the peace, space and nature in this beautiful area. Fishing, boating, cycling, swimming, canoeing and hiking are the many activities of this area.

National Park Weerribben Wieden is a national park in the Netherlands, located in the province of Overijssel and covers an area of 100 square kilometers. The park is the largest low moor in Europe and was created by peat extraction and later by reed cultivation. Around the Ice Age, this area was lower than the rest of the Netherlands so the water remained in the soil mainly due to the abundance of boulder clay. Due to the accumulation of plant debris over the centuries, a peat layer of several meters was formed. In the 15th century, peat extraction began by dredging peat which was laid out to dry on narrow fields called ribs located next to the draft holes. During heavy storms and high water these peat dykes and draught holes were destroyed and lakes were created. Especially in the Wieden this happened by making too narrow fields. In the Weerribben, where they later started peat extraction, they learned from this and built the ribs wider. Around the village of Kalenberg you can still clearly see the structure of the landscape as it was then. After 1920 with the rise of new fuels, small-scale agriculture, fishing and cane cultivation started here. Given the accessibility of the area, agriculture was very labor-intensive because everything had to be transported by water. Many farmers sold their land to nature conservation organizations, leaving the cultivation of reeds as the main source of income. After 1950, less and less reed was cut and the landscape was neglected due to lack of planting which resulted in the marsh forests. The area now has beautiful flora and fauna due to the clear water and reed beds which are an ideal base for all kinds of plants, insects, birds, otters and ducks. Especially by canoe or whisper boat you can still get "deep" into this area to see it all.