The best running trails in Boswachterij Sleenerzand

‘De Kielse Kei’, a large granite erratic boulder originating from Scandinavia and carried here by the inland ice. The boulder testifies to the great force with which the ice pack moved across Drenthe.

Recommended, great paths, good trail

The path/forest path was in good condition and fun to ride there

https://www.tracesofwar.nl/sights/4277/Monument-Halifax-JB892.htm When the four-engined English bomber Halifax B II (JB 892 KN-E, part of the 77th Squadron) returned from a bombing raid on the industrial area in Bochum (part of an air fleet of 446 bombers), it crashed at this location at 2:30 am on May 14, 1943, after being shot down by a German night fighter over the border area near Emmen. In memory of the 7 deceased crew members buried in the General Cemetery in Sleen and whose names are mentioned on this monument, a group of school friends from Zweeloo and Oosterhesselen erected this monument in 1945 from the wreckage they found during the war. When it looked neglected after 30 years, the remains were encapsulated in concrete in 1975 and then handed over to the municipality of Sleen for sustainable maintenance. On April 28, 1988, this monument was taken over by group 7 of the Christian primary school “De Fontein” in Sleen on the initiative of the “Februari ’41 Foundation”. ################################################# During the war, 4 boys rode bicycles, who lived in Zweeloo and Oosterhesselen, went to school together, the HBS in Coevorden. They were Henk van der Velde, his brother Beerend van der Velde, Riekus Gelling and Co van Dixhoorn, son of the forester. During the discussions, a plan was made to recover the remains of the bomber that crashed on May 14, 1943. And so it happened. Memorial Summer 1945 The German soldiers had taken most of it with them, but a lot of rubble was left behind in the young, confusing forest. They went into the forest every Saturday and "combed through it", sometimes on their hands and knees. They hid everything they found in a shed belonging to the state forestry administration. Immediately after the war, around May or June 1945, the boys were of the opinion that all the parts of the plane should be made into a memorial in memory of the seven fallen crew members. Hennie Schuiling had joined in the meantime; he had gone into hiding during the war. They erected the memorial on the spot where the plane had burned fiercely. Source: B. van der Velde

The Sleenerzand is a varied nature reserve in Drenthe, where vast heathlands, forests and sand drifts alternate. This area is home to beautiful sights, such as the Grafheuvels and the Galgenberg, which take you back to the distant past.

Dolmen next to the Aagjeshoeve campsite

Returning from a bombing raid on the industrial area in Bochum (part of an air fleet of 446 bombers), the 4-engine English bomber Halifax B II (JB 892 KN-E, part of the 77th Squadron) crashed at this location on 14 May 1943 at 2.30 am, after having been shot down by a German night fighter above the border area near Emmen. In memory of the 7 crew members who died and were buried in the general cemetery in Sleen and whose names are mentioned on this monument, a group of school friends from Zweeloo and Oosterhesselen erected this monument in 1945 from the wreckage they found during the war. When it started to look neglected after 30 years, the remains were encapsulated in concrete in 1975 and then transferred to the municipality of Sleen for sustainable maintenance. On April 28, 1988, this monument was adopted by group 7 of the Christian primary school "De Fontein" in Sleen at the initiative of the "Februari '41 Foundation".

The canal has been closed to shipping traffic since 1976. There are plans to make it navigable again for pleasure boating. So far nothing has happened due to the high costs of renovating bridges and locks. However, the importance of the canal for the flora and fauna of the area has increased and the canal has therefore unintentionally developed into an area of great landscape value.