On Texel, you will find several tow ferries in the landscape. A tow ferry is a small raft floating on the water. You can stand on it and by pulling a rope you can sail from one side to the other of a ditch or canal. Fun to discover these ferries with the children, or as part of a walking route.

Tow ferry Hollandseweg

In the north of Texel, there is a cable ferry on the Hollandseweg. You can go there yourself and try it out, but even more fun is to walk one of the walking routes. During the walk from De Cocksdorp to De Waal on the North-Holland path, you cross the Eierlands Kanaal with this draw ferry. You then continue walking over a kilometre-long grass dike filled with Texel sheep and through Waalenburg nature reserve, the oldest meadow bird sanctuary in the Netherlands.

Tow ferry Slufterweg

Between polder Eierland and polder Het Noorden there is also a tow ferry to cross the Eierlands Kanaal. One of the routes you can walk there is the walking route Slufter to Kaap. This route goes from De Slufter to the IJzeren Kaap. During the walk, you pass Hogezandskil nature reserve and then through the farming landscape, where you come across this little draw ferry.

Tow ferry Hoornderweg

In the south of Texel, there is a draw ferry near the Hoornderweg. A route you can walk here is Skéép and Lantskap. This route starts in Den Hoorn. During the walk, you can use the draw ferry to go to Kaasboerderij Wezenspyk.

Have you ever used one of the tow ferries?

More hiking on Texel