Walking the Grebbeliniepad

A 91km walk through wartime landscapes and quiet nature.

About the Grebbelinie

Straddling the border between Gelderland and Utrecht, the Grebbelinie cuts through the landscape like a forgotten line in time. It was originally built in the 18th century as a water-based defense system, but it gained real significance in 1939–1940, when it became known as the Valleistelling and played a key role in the Dutch military defense.

After World War II, the bunkers, tank barriers, and pillboxes were slowly swallowed up by greenery. Now, over 40 kilometers of military history lie quietly tucked away in a long, scenic stretch of nature that follows the Valleikanaal and the river Eem.

Stats

Walk overview

I recorded GPS data during each walk. This allows me to create an overview of the route, as well as connect those coordinates to the images I made along the way.

Photo essay

I walked random sections of the route over the course of two years, rather than doing it all from start to finish. So the images aren’t shown in chronological order, but in this sequence you’d see the scenes if you walked the route from north to south (which I believe is the right direction for this walk).

Interestingly, you’ll notice a mix of weather conditions—even in scenes that are close together in real life—because they were photographed at different times, often in very different light (quite literally).

I've taken 4069 images in total. After much culling, 75 of those made it into the final selection. You can find them all below.

References

This walk was previously documented in my other projects 'Monologue' and 'Dialogue'. You can find each instance, some containing some additional images that didn't make the final selection, below:

251 | Walking the Grebbeliniepad

I should’ve done this way earlier. This afternoon, after a couple of hours of online research and general uncertainty if I was making a mistake or not, I went out to start walking parts of the Grebbe Line (Grebbelinie, in Dutch) for the first time. An old defence line,

Mitchel LensinkMitchel Lensink

252 | Walking the Grebbeliniepad (part 2)

The trail called me again. So I returned to it. Furthering the walked kilometers of the official paths. I took photos and I recorded GPS data. That’s all it was. That’s all it will be. I’ll get around to creating a proper map soon but here’s

Mitchel LensinkMitchel Lensink

The therapeutic nature of photography walks

Whenever I feel disoriented or not in control of my life, I simply need to find a moment to go on a walk that’s at least 30 minutes long. I’ve learned that half an hour is the minimum amount of time required to purge any internal chaos and find balance again.

Mitchel LensinkMitchel Lensink

Pseudo-camping and a semi-big walk

My ears are still ringing from the festival when I open my eyes again in the same tent but in a different location. This time though, I can actually enjoy the silence and fresh air.

Mitchel LensinkMitchel Lensink

The glorious, life-invigorating act of walking

When I first landed on Craig Mod’s website and read he describes himself as a ‘writer, photographer, and walker,’ I was a little confused. What the hell does it mean to ‘be a walker’?

Mitchel LensinkMitchel Lensink

If you want to see all images that made it through the editing phase, you can view those in the dedicated gallery in my online photography archive:

21.09.08 - 23.08.05 Grebbeliniepad - Mitchel Lensink

Mitchel Lensink Photography Archive

Mitchel Lensink