Parnaasiapark, Zuiderachterveld and Landgoed Nijenburg Loop

You’ll be walking a long, almost perfectly flat 29 km (about 18.0 miles) loop with roughly 0 m / 0 ft of climbing—classic North Holland “strandwal, woods, estate lanes, and open polder edges” terrain. Expect a steady rhythm of compacted forest paths, estate gravel, and quiet paved farm lanes rather than any sustained rough trail. Because the elevation is negligible, the main challenges are distance, wind exposure in open sections, and keeping your navigation tidy through a web of intersecting paths.

A practical, reliable place to “pin” as the start/finish is Landgoed Nijenburg (Nijenburg Estate), Kennemerstraatweg 278, 1851 BG Heiloo, Netherlands, right by the estate entrance and close to the manor grounds. (hendrickskaravaan.nl)

Getting to the start (car + public transport)

• By car: Aim for Kennemerstraatweg 278, 1851 BG Heiloo (Landgoed Nijenburg). Parking right at the estate can be limited during events; a commonly used overflow option mentioned locally is Theater De Beun, Willibrordusweg 2, 1851 HB Heiloo, then walk in. (hendrickskaravaan.nl)
  
• By bus/train: The most useful nearby stop is Heiloo, Kattenberg (bus), a short walk to the estate area. If you arrive by train to Heiloo station, you can connect by local bus or walk/cycle onward depending on your plan and time. (hendrickskaravaan.nl)

What the route feels like underfoot

The “easy” rating is accurate in terms of gradient, but 29 km / 18 miles is still an all-day outing for many hikers. Plan for 5.5–7.5 hours of moving time depending on pace and stops. Footing is generally forgiving: forest duff and packed sand in the wooded parts, firm gravel on estate lanes, and smooth pavement on the agricultural connectors. After rain, some low-lying woodland and field-edge tracks can hold water—nothing technical, but wet shoes can become the day’s biggest annoyance.

0–8 km (0–5 mi): Estate woods, lanes, and classic North Holland heritage

Early on, you’ll likely thread through the park woodland and formal lanes of Landgoed Nijenburg, where the landscape design is part of the experience: straight avenues, older trees, and a “designed” feel that contrasts with the more open farmland later. Nijenburg’s history as an estate landscape is tied to post-1700 development and replanting of woodland lanes after earlier deforestation in the region; the area around Heiloo sits on an old sandy ridge (strandwal) that historically attracted settlement. (natuurmonumenten.nl)

Keep an eye out for: - Stolpboerderijen (traditional North Holland farmhouses)—iconic pyramid-roof forms that often sit right on the estate margins. (natuurmonumenten.nl)
- A wipwatermolen (seesaw-style drainage mill) in the wider landscape—these are part of the region’s long relationship with water management and polder drainage. (natuurmonumenten.nl)

Wildlife here is more “woodland edge” than deep forest. In spring and early summer, birdsong can be the highlight—nightingales are specifically associated with this kind of shrubby, layered woodland habitat on the estate. (natuurmonumenten.nl)

Navigation tip: the estate has many intersecting tracks; if you’re following a GPX, keep HiiKER handy and don’t assume the “main” avenue is always the correct one—several parallel lanes can look equally plausible.

8–18 km (5–11 mi): Zuiderachterveld / southern field edges and the “big sky” middle miles

As you leave the more structured estate setting, the walk opens into a quieter, more agricultural-feeling middle section—field margins, drainage ditches, and long straight lines typical of reclaimed and managed lowland. This is where