The most exquisite natural beauty

Sittard's City Park

Sittard's City Park can genuinely be called a true ‘people park’. Here, from first light you will already find children strolling around the duck pond with their parents, kids playing ball on the event grounds, and fishers patiently watching their bobbins from the banks the rowing pond, waiting for a bite. As this suggests, water is a central element of this verdant green park. In addition to the ponds, the Geleenbeek and the Molenbeek both flow through here.

Burgemeester Damenpark 

Geleen has Burgemeester Damenpark, another very centrally located park with a great deal of natural beauty. It's an ideal spot for a short walk or an escape for a little peace and quiet. The park plays host to a whole series of events in spring and summer, with something of interest for everyone. It is also the birth place of Pinkpop, the largest festival in the Netherlands.

Limbrichterbos

At the northern edge of Limburg's loess area, you will find the lovely Limbrichterbos woods, made up largely of deciduous trees over 75 years old. In some places poplars, black locust trees, and maples are being removed to make way for the indigenous shrubs and brush of olden times. The woods are also home to flowering plants like spotted arum, wood anemone, and moschatel.

And countless birds come to nest here, like wood warblers, nightingales, golden orioles, chiffchaffs, and many others. Buzzards and hawks patrol the skies. The woods are being managed to increase the amount of dead wood. 

Daniker Woods

Travelling the route from Geleen to Schinnen, you pass the Daniker Woods, and you would be well advised to stop in at the nature information centre you will now find in the former Plinthos brickworks building. Once you do, don't miss the opportunity for an excursion into the nature area here. The paths snake along coniferous and deciduous trees, meadowlands, and a marsh forest. The meadow paths will take you past orchards with dwarf fruit trees outlined by windbreaks. In early spring, you can see a number of unusual birds in the valley, like the great spotted woodpecker and the kingfisher. And if you look down and keep your eyes out, you may even see the rare and diminutive Desmoulin's whorl snail.

IJzerenbos

Travelling from Sittard towards Limbricht and Born, you pass through several spectacular nature areas. The IJzerenbos is a rich and varied area particularly notable for its extraordinary plant life. Here you will find beautiful botanical specimens like the parsely-piert and the Venus' looking-glass. The animal life in the area is just as varied, from butterflies and forest grasshoppers to long-eared bats and tree frogs. Following the contour of the oak and ash woods takes you into the adjoining wooded areas, the Limbricht Woods (a birdwatcher's paradise) and 't Hout (just below Susteren).

Absbroek Woods

Asbroek Woods is a woods in development, springing up on former agricultural land between Munstergeleen, Sittard, and Geleen along the restored course of the Geleenbeek. It is a part of the De Graven landscape park. The woods and the brook valley are an ideal habitat for a variety of plants and animals. In the coming years, this area will continue to change as the woods and the nature areas develop.

Meuse Valley

On the border between Dutch and Belgian Limburg, you find the Meuse Valley, a magical landscape crafted by the River Meuse itself. It is a living river with many faces – raging whitewater in the winter, or peacefully flowing in the warm summer months. The washlands change with the seasons, and here you can stroll over livestock paths and gravel ridge crests to your heart's content. The banks are even more beautiful when viewed from the water by kayak. Boating on the wild Meuse is adventurous and meditative. There are several places along the river to rent kayaks or board tour boats. Along the way you will see picturesque pools, marshes, flowery meadows and wild river woodlands. A walk or cycling trip through this stunning landscape is a great way to clear your head.

In this area, you can get off the trail and follow your own path. If you do this, always remember to keep a safe distance (25 m) from any Konik horses and Galloway cattle you may find grazing the area. This is for both the animals' peace of mind and your own safety.

Memory Forest

The Memory Forest offers visitors the opportunity to create a lasting monument to a momentous event such as a birth, marriage, anniversary, or death, by planting a tree. Ashes of loved ones may also be scattered in the woods here. This can be truly called a forest with a human soul. 

The first section of the Memory Forest was established at Duuster Gats in December 1999. A further 115 trees were planted in December 2012 on an adjoining strip of land in the direction of St. Rose's Chapel, bringing the Memory Forest to a total of 320 trees. When you sponsor the planting of a tree, you receive a certificate with the tree number and a description of the event your tree commemorates. This project is helping keep the area green and get people involved in local nature conservation.