Top 20 Gorges in the Netherlands

Beautiful view of the caves.

Along the rippling Geul River, an impressive marlstone wall rises, a silent witness to Limburg's underground landscape. These calcareous rocks were used for centuries for construction and crafts and now offer a fascinating sight for hikers and nature lovers. The wall forms a natural boundary along the water and, in some places, harbors small caves and niches where flora and fauna have found a home. The contrast of the white marl against the green foliage and the glistening water of the Geul makes this a particularly photogenic and tranquil spot during your walk.

Beautiful part of the walk along the Geul

Info about these caves: https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strooberggroeve

When the path that has been running between slopes and sloping forest on one side and the Geul on the other side suddenly starts to rise a bit, you know what is coming: part of the marl crops out and offers you a glimpse of what you can discover if you take one of the paths away from the Geul: quarries and marl.

The Blankenberg quarry, also known as the Wolfskop quarry, is located in South Limburg not far from Cadier en Keer. The extraction of the rock in this above-ground quarry ended in 1946. The quarry is particularly interesting because the boundary between the limestone of the Gulpen Formation and the Maastricht Formation can be seen and because it contains a special flint bank. When we enter the quarry site, we see this special flint bank at the bottom of the rock face. It is part of the Lanaye Limestone (Gulpen Formation), which has a total of 23 flint banks. This bank, which is no less than 2½ metres thick, probably concerns the merging of flint banks 6 and 7 or even banks 6 to 9. In the past, the flint from this bank was extracted for building purposes. The fairly white limestone above the flint bank also belongs to the Lanaye Limestone. This limestone forms the upper part of the Gulpen Formation. Above it begins the Maastricht Formation, with yellow limestone. The Valkenburg Limestone is exposed, which forms the lower part of the Maastricht Formation. The boundary between both formations is formed by the Lichtenberg Horizon. The package of limestone and flint is covered with loess from the Pleistocene. Source and more: https://www.debelemniet.nl/itemgroeveblankenberg.html And you can also climb up the stairs along the quarry to view everything and of course for the necessary views, where a bench stands next to a beautiful split but strong tree where, according to some traces, a cross or other object may once have hung.

Wonderful single track with deliciously scented wild garlic on both sides.

The Trichterberg quarry is located in the forest to the left of the steep Eckelraderweg, between Gronsveld and Eckelrade. Diagonally opposite are dole chambers. The quarry has been designated as a “Geological Monument”. Steep limestone walls with here and there sawn surfaces and a few small corridor remains are the only remains. Not much is known about the Trichterberg quarry. That is why Peter Jennekens, Kevin Amendt and Rob Habets wrote a source overview for the magazine of the Study Group Underground Limestone Quarries - Natural History Society in Limburg. Based on this, they cautiously conclude that the origin of the quarry must lie somewhere between the years 1846 and 1867. The entire PDF with all sources can be found at https://www.sok.nl (November 2013 edition).