The loonse drunese dunes before sunrise with hoarfrost on the fields

by Rob Saly

National Park De Loonse en Drunense Duinen is a nature reserve in the Dutch province of North Brabant. It covers over 3,500 hectares and has been a national park since 2002. On the one hand, the park is largely an alternation of dry sand drifts and coniferous forest, but it also includes the extensive stream valley area of the Zandleij river. Here, in particular, lies the De Brand nature reserve near Udenhout, with its alternation of coppice forests, wet meadows and marsh thickets. The entire park covers more than 3,500 ha. Of this, about 465 ha is drifting sand,[1] so the area is sometimes called the "Brabant Sahara".[2] The area is surrounded by towns and villages. In the north, from west to east, we find Waalwijk, Drunen, Nieuwkuijk, Vlijmen and 's-Hertogenbosch. Villages on the south side are Loon op Zand, Biezenmortel, Helvoirt and Udenhout; about six kilometres away is Tilburg. On the west side is Kaatsheuvel with amusement park De Efteling. The area can be seen in the Efteling from the Pagoda. As a result, incipient fires can be seen by Efteling visitors, so staff can then report them immediately. This way, they can then be extinguished in time.[3]