Swartbroek - De Pelen - green - 5.3 km

Further, you walk through much wooded nature, along lakes, the De Hoop mill, and the war cemetery in Swartbroek. Swartbroek is a village that is part of the municipality of Weert. The Krang, a large natural area surrounding the village, serves as a breeding ground and resting place for many birds. The area is bisected in the north by the Leuker brook and in the south by the Tungelroy creek. Due to the differences in height and moisture, many different species of plants and animals can be found. The moist, flower-rich grasslands account for the presence of many butterfly species. The area consists of several depressions where peat bogs or 'pelen' are located between higher sandy ridges, on which the village of Swartbroek has developed. Peat bogs or 'pelen', a term used only in the vicinity of Weert, are dish-shaped depressions that formed during warmer periods in the Holocene as a result of runoff meltwater in the sandy landscape. The pelen, including the Roukespeel, Moeselpeel, Kootspeel, Roeventerpeel, Sarven, and Banen, are located to the southeast of Weert and Nederweert. Later, the Leuker brook was dug through these peat bogs to drain and exploit them.