140 km Strade Bianche Peel and Hei 2022

Last update: Sunday 11 September 15:47.

You follow the route counterclockwise and after leaving Heusden you cycle along a narrow cycle path along a golf course and then through agricultural area to National Park de Groote Peel. Here you follow a gravel bike path on the edge of the nature reserve. You have now arrived in the province of Limburg and the route continues through Central Limburg. After passing the small village of Ospeldijk you cycle again along the edge of the Groote Peel (mostly on gravel roads). The route then goes towards the village of Meijel with some gravel roads in between.

At a roundabout where two main roads intersect, you cross the Noordervaart canal and soon you come back to a series of gravel roads along the Afwateringskanaal, through nature reserve Weijenhout and towards the village of Neer. At the junction of the 90 and 140 km routes, a small post has been set up with food and drinks (that is after 31.5 km). You cycle towards the edge of the Leudal nature reserve and cross the nature reserve on the northern edge and western edge partly on gravel roads. You then cycle through the Haelensebeek valley on gravel roads, and then on gravel roads through the Exatenbosch nature reserve. Then you get the gravel cycle path through the Beegder Heide for the wheels. Along the Kloppeven and through the Sterrenbosch you cycle to Haelen where you pass the castle. You cycle right through Haelen and get some gravel roads between Haelen and the village of Nunhem over slightly hilly terrain.

Then you cycle to Buggenum and after passing the village you cycle on gravel roads through the floodplains of the Maas towards Neer (Hanssum). After 75 km there is a break place at the camper place / marina of Hanssum. Then you cycle up the high bank along the Maas and then you descend on a narrow cycle path (pay attention to other cyclists!) to the valley of the mouth of the Drainage Canal in the Maas and you climb away from it again. Via mostly gravel roads and one piece of forest road of several hundred meters long you reach the Keuperheide. From here you cycle on long gravel strips through the nature reserve, and then also through nature reserves Heldense Bossen and Kesselse Bergen. Then you cycle towards more agricultural areas, but here too there is an alternation of paved and gravel roads and occasionally you cycle through nature reserve (Vlakbroek). Break place is after 108 km at mini-camping de Peelweide.

Then the route goes through nature reserves with gravel roads (nature reserves Marisberg, Kwakvors, Scherliet) and you cycle on a gravel road along the Helenavaart. Then you cross the Helenavaart and the Deurne Canal (the "double canal") and cycle along the Deurne Canal to the Noordervaart on gravel roads. South of Meijel you go north partly on gravel roads and further on you cycle through the green zone along the Deurne Canal on gravel roads. You reach peel village Neerkant where some gravel strips are still being looked up. Then you cycle on most paved roads to the finish in Heusden, with one more gravel strip on the edge of the Groote Peel.

Gravel strips (length in km):

2.6 Sparrow Track
0.5 Mining dike
2 Lumme Buske
1 Middle peel
0,9 Coenenweg (Stille Wille)
0,6 Donkerpeelkensweg
2,6 Drainage canal (Witdonk - Karissendijk)
1.9 Burn-through/Brandweg
1,4 Schooldijk (Brookberg)
1.9 drainage channel + cooking pan
0.9 Mendert
0.9 Dondersberg (Boshei)
0,7 Side road St. Elisabethsdreef
0,4 Passage Tungelroysche Beekdal
1,0 N279->Duykstraat
1,5 Haelense Beekdal (Stockxhof -> SBB)
1.4 Exatenbosch
3.0 Beegder Heath
0,8 Heyserweg + Kloppevenseweg
0,6 Heitjesweg (Kloppeven)
1.5 Houterweg/Houterhof (in two places over a distance of 50 meters more dirt road than gravel road)
0.9 Nieuwenhofsweg
0.2 Kruiskampweg
0.6 Along the old sports field of Nunhem
0,6 Nunhem church - caravan camp
0,5 Landweerstraat
0.3 Haenwegske
2.1 Groezeweg (floodplains Meuse)
0.8 Arik
1,2 Mussenberg + Haagweg
1.3 Sterrebosweg + Steenbos + Bovensbos (transition from Sterrebosweg to Steenbos is a forest road (not a gravel road)).
4.1 Heroic Forests
1.3 Liberation Road
0,5 Groenstraat
0,2 Groenstraat -> Donk
0.7 Bosheideweg
4.7 Kesselse Bergen/Heldense Bossen
0.5 Hasenacker
0.9 Zandberg
0.5 Low heath
0,9 Flat pants
1.7 Kites
0.2 Vliegertsdijk
0,4 Camping de Peelweide
1.6 Marisbaan
1.3 Lapwing
1.1 Helena cruise
3,1 Deurne Canal (Heldensedijk - Krum)
0.9 Steenkampseweg
0,4 Steegstraat -> Heldense dike
0.9 Heldensedijk -> Heufkesweg
2,4 Deurne Canal (Vieruitextremten - Neerkant)
0,8 Steen + Broekstraat
0.3 Moostdijk
1,0 Achtermijterbaan + Kruisbaan
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67.0 km (= 47.7%) unpaved.