Routes

Planner

Features

Updates

App

Get the App

Blij Weerzien Sculpture at Florizoone Bridge

Blij Weerzien Sculpture at Florizoone Bridge

Highlight • Monument

Blij Weerzien Sculpture at Florizoone Bridge

Recommended by 100 cyclists out of 107

Save

Location: Koksijde, Veurne, West Flanders, Flanders, Belgium

Save

See rides here

Take Me There

Routes here

Top cycling routes to Blij Weerzien Sculpture at Florizoone Bridge

4.5

(172)

1,108

riders

1. Veurne Market Square – Yser Estuary, Nieuwpoort loop from Westende

42.4km

02:33

80m

Moderate bike ride. Good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Moderate

4.5

(24)

303

riders

2. Michael Yzer War Memorial – Winding Forest Path loop from Middelkerke-Bad

74.4km

04:16

60m

Moderate bike ride. Good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Moderate

4.4

(23)

298

riders

3. Along the Lovaart – Winding Forest Path loop from Koksijde

64.0km

03:43

60m

Moderate bike ride. Good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Moderate

Tips

Willem VS

June 4, 2025

The Florizoonebrug in Wulpen spans the Nieuwpoort-Veurne canal, a waterway constructed around 1640 to connect Bruges, Veurne and Dunkirk via Plassendale. This canal was partly deepened from an existing watercourse, the Langelis, and the rest was dug entirely by manpower. The bridge formed the only crossing over the canal for a country road, which led to the development of a dike settlement with houses, inns and a brewery. During the Franco-Spanish Wars in the late 17th century, the settlement was reinforced with fortifications and redoubts, remains of which are still visible in the landscape. The bridge played an important role in both military defence and water traffic, with a society of three cities, ’t Nieuw Bedelf, taking over its operation. In 2007, the bridge was completely renovated and named Florizoonebrug, as a tribute to a family that had settled on Wulpendijk since 1699 and whose members were influential mayors, entrepreneurs and cultural figures.

Translated by Google •

Francis

August 27, 2020

Great place to stop, enjoy the canal scenery, the artwork/lifesize statues or just enjoy a beer or coffee on the café terrace overlooking it all.

🇧🇪 Herwig Aertbeliën

May 3, 2024

The artwork symbolizes the restored relationship between the Dijk and Conterdijk in Wulpen, which is realized by the new bridge. But also to strengthen the bond between Wulpen and Oostduinkerke, between land people and sea people, between village people and tourists, between the Bare and the dunes.

History: The pre-war swing bridge was dynamited on May 28, 1940 by the British army in order to stop the advancing Germans pending the disembarkation of the English expeditionary corps in the De Panne-Duinkerke sector. Due to the disappearance of that swing bridge, Wulpen was divided into two, on either side of the canal, Dijk and Conterdijk, Dorp and Conterdijk. The connection between Oostduinkerke and the hinterland (Veurne, Booitshoeke, Avekapelle, Pervijze, Diksmuide...) was also broken and all traffic was diverted through Koksijde and Nieuwpoort. In addition, heavy rural traffic between Oostduinkerke and Veurne - for example to the sugar factory in Veurne - had to pass through Koksijde. That is why the Germans built a wooden emergency bridge during the war. A bridge that ultimately remained in service for 36 years - until February 1976 after a collision with a barge.

About the artwork: The artwork consists of two abstracted people - a man and a woman - who symbolize the meeting between Dijk and Conterdijk, between Wulpen and Oostduinkerke as described above. They are made of bronze with a shiny patina. They sit close to each other, looking at the canal together. They sit within a wooden square frame of 2.80 meters so that they form a unity within the overall project around the bridge and symbolize togetherness. The dedication that belongs to the coastal work and provides the viewer with the necessary information was engraved on the bridge side of the frame. The poem “The Bare” by Fernand Florizoone is engraved on the other side of the frame. That poem is an ode to Wulpen, the village where the poet grew up and from which the Florizoone tribe originates. Het Blote is the popular name for the open landscape that characterizes Wulpen.

Poetry:

The plain becomes at the bend
an arm wave infinity
tilting towards space

the wind was planted
and the tree became wind
and disappeared

clouds sun and earth
have a bare date
on the shoreless meadows.

Source: beeldhouwatelier.be/nl/blij-weerzien-aan-de-nieuwe-brug-wulpen

Translated by Google •

In the know? Log-in to add a tip for other adventurers!

Details

Informations

Elevation 0 m

Weather

Friday 12 December

10°C

3°C

0 %

If you start your activity now...

Max wind speed: 8.0 km/h

Most visited during

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

See rides here

Take Me There

Location: Koksijde, Veurne, West Flanders, Flanders, Belgium

Other Popular Places to Check Out

Grote Markt Veurne

Nieuwpoort–Veurne Canal Sheep Path

Searching for Utopia by Jan Fabre

Ter Yde Nature Reserve (Oostduinkerke)

Nieuwpoort-Bad Beach

View to Koning Albert I Monument

Saint Nicholas' Church (Sint-Niklaaskerk) Veurne

Nieuwpoort Harbor Entrance

Nieuwpoort Pier

Hoge Blekker vijvers

Sheep on the Dike

Dunes of De Panne

Blij Weerzien Sculpture at Florizoone Bridge

1. Veurne Market Square – Yser Estuary, Nieuwpoort loop from Westende

2. Michael Yzer War Memorial – Winding Forest Path loop from Middelkerke-Bad

3. Along the Lovaart – Winding Forest Path loop from Koksijde

Other Popular Places to Check Out

We value your privacy ⛰️

We value your privacy ⛰️