Follow the Delta Work Route through the Waterloopbos and discover this national monument and the stories behind the watercourse models that slowly blend into nature here.
You can hardly imagine it now, but how do you calculate complicated forces on large structures without a computer? People used to do that partly by mimicking reality. In the Waterloopbos in the Northeast Polder, you will find scale models of 35 famous waterworks. The Waterloopkundig Laboratory did all kinds of tests here in the 1950s and 1960s. The Delta Works were tested here, but also the ports of Rotterdam, Lagos, IJmuiden, Istanbul and Bangkok.
This route takes you past the former Delta…
Follow the Delta Work Route through the Waterloopbos and discover this national monument and the stories behind the watercourse models that slowly blend into nature here.
You can hardly imagine it now, but how do you calculate complicated forces on large structures without a computer? People used to do that partly by mimicking reality. In the Waterloopbos in the Northeast Polder, you will find scale models of 35 famous waterworks. The Waterloopkundig Laboratory did all kinds of tests here in the 1950s and 1960s. The Delta Works were tested here, but also the ports of Rotterdam, Lagos, IJmuiden, Istanbul and Bangkok.
This route takes you past the former Delta flume, which is now the impressive artwork Deltawerk//, designed by artists RAAAF and Atelier de Lyon. A little further on, you will come to the model site Golfbak. This pilot model, together with the accompanying Romijn weir, has been completely restored. This site has been used for as many as 16 different studies, including one on block dams that are now part of the Delta Works.
The route starts at the car park of the Waterloopbos and enters the forest at Pavilion Het ProefLab//. From there, follow the yellow arrows. The route is 1.2 kilometres long and easily accessible for people in wheelchairs or mobility scooters. Afterwards, you can have a nice cup of coffee at The ProefLab//.
