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All the Netherlands Vorden Het Knopenlaantje

Het Knopenlaantje

Where lovers tie birch branches into long-lived knots.

Vorden, Netherlands

Added By
Sarah Laskow
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A knot on the Knopenlaantje.   Hans Leony Geijtenbeek
A knot on the Knopenlaantje.   Hans Leony Geijtenbeek
The knottted branch grafts to itself.   Don Wijns
An older knot found on the castle grounds.   © Bomenstichting Achterhoek
A knot in the woods.   © Bomenstichting Achterhoek.
Another knot.   Hans Leony Geijtenbeek
Het Knopenlaantje   Hans Leony Geijtenbeek
  hansgeijtenbeek / Atlas Obscura User
  hansgeijtenbeek / Atlas Obscura User
  hansgeijtenbeek / Atlas Obscura User
  hansgeijtenbeek / Atlas Obscura User
  hansgeijtenbeek / Atlas Obscura User
  hansgeijtenbeek / Atlas Obscura User
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About

In the eastern Netherlands, south of the Castle Vorden, there's a pathway known as Het Knopenlaantje, or the "Lane of Knots."

The road is lined with beech trees, and many of them have their branches twisted into knots. Some have been growing into that shape for so long that the strands of the knot have grafted together and become a permanent part of the tree's shape.

The knots are supposed to symbolize love—they're tied by couples walking down the lane. The tied branches are meant as a stand in for the strength of their bond to each other (or, in a less charming interpretation, the growing stiffness of long-term relationships).

Some of the older trees (and their lovers' knots) died in a drought a few decades back, but new knots have taken their place, fusing together over time. 

Related Tags

Trees Lovers Lanes Castles Love Plants

Know Before You Go

Het knopenlaantje is a side path off one of the main routes running to Castle Vorden. It's also possible to park at the nearby Vordense Bosweg. There's a sign indicating that right pathway.

Community Contributors

Added By

Sarah Laskow

Edited By

hansgeijtenbeek

  • hansgeijtenbeek

Published

January 2, 2018

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Sources
  • http://www.eenwagenvolverhalen.nl/Dagelijks-leven/het-liefdeslaantje-van-vorden.html
  • https://www.seasons.nl/2015/02/14/het-knopenlaantje/
  • http://bomenachterhoek.blogspot.nl/search?q=knopenlaantje
Het Knopenlaantje
De Horsterkamp 8, 7251 AZ
Vorden
Netherlands
52.099835, 6.315357
Get Directions

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