Oudorperhout, Alkmaar

Oudorperhout is a park in the north part of Alkmaar, inside the ring road, so very close by for anyone staying in or visiting Alkmaar. It is a well maintained and quite picturesque little haven within the city limits. It is quite a diverse park with a huge range of waterways, some forest areas and wide open fields, so there is something for everyone here.

Having said that, it does mean there is a large range of visitors sharing the park including dog walkers, hikers, people on lunch breaks, families with small kids and cyclists. It can get busy at times especially close to the road or college, but the further you go towards the forest areas, the less people you will encounter.

Also it is not a leash free zone for the whole of the park, just keep an eye out for the information signposts, they are not very clearly marked in all directions. If in doubt, follow the locals.

These vast waterways and natural surroundings are very much favoured not only by dog walkers but also for water birds. For that reason, there are areas that are protected during the breeding season between 1 March to 1 July, and dogs must be leashed at this time. I would even recommend leashing your dog on heavily populated bird areas even after this period if your dog is a proper little hunter because there are some less common birds breeding here – it is the only place I have ever seen a real live godwit (grutto in dutch).

Park at the Van der Meij College, then take the path away from the road to the Hoornsevaart river, turn right and then turn left over the wooden foot bridge. Alkmaar Noord train station is literally on the opposite side of the road to the college if you prefer to use public transport.

The windmills make the park very photographic but do note, there is a large Rottweiler living in the windmill closest to the bridge and he doesn’t like it when you walk too close! Don’t worry, he is fenced off but there is no need to antagonise the poor guy…

Once in the park, it doesn’t matter which way you go round, so just follow your dog and try to walk every pathway there is. The park is not so extensive that you can get truly lost in it.

The quieter small forest area is to the south east of the park near the skateboard park where you will find a small network of paths and bridges to explore in the shade of the trees. There is an official dog ‘beach” nearby at the south side of the Slotgracht for your pup to cool off in on a hot day, which is useful because most of the waterways have banks that are too high and too full of birds for dogs to get into the water.

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