Rolde sand drift
An open stretch of sand in the Boerdennen woods, where the people of Rolde used to hold celebrations and children played. The sand drift has been under restoration since 2016.
Generations of Rolde people know the sand drift from village festivities, sports competitions and school trips. Children from Groningen also came to Rolde by train in their droves to play in the sand and buy a treat at the kiosk run by Plest. In the 1960s there was even autocross racing here.
For centuries the wind had free rein over Drenthe's many sandy soils. Rolde was no exception: even the Brink, the village green, lay under the sand. That caused trouble for the village and its farmers. The Boermarke, the farmers' association that owned this common land, therefore appointed sand wardens to limit the effects of the drifting sand. Later, through tree planting and more intensive farming, the sand became covered with fertile soil and nature could take its course.
The NSB, the Dutch Nazi party, came here too. In the years of National Socialism the party held mass rallies on the sand drift, where its leader Anton Mussert was among the speakers.
After years of neglect the sand drift had become overgrown and almost forgotten, to the annoyance of many people in Rolde. In 2016 the Boermarke Rolde, Stichting Dorpsbelangen Rolde and the Rolder Historisch Gezelschap decided to restore it together. Before work began, the site was thoroughly surveyed. There is an information board by the open sand.
