Hiking on the De Utrecht Estate

In 1898, the life insurance company De Utrecht began a reclamation project as an investment on the Belgian border, between the towns of Hilvarenbeek, Hooge Mierde, and Lage Mierde. A production forest was planted for the mining industry, and the better land was leased as agricultural land. The estate is characterized by its historical and spatial structure of roads, wooded areas, arable land, and meadows, a park landscape, and undeveloped natural landscape. Nearly three-quarters of the De Utrecht estate consists of forests, heathland, and fens. The estate is sustainably developed and managed.