The Waaltje (common name; Dutch for Little Waal) is a dammed river in the western

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, southeast of

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

. Historically it used to be the western end of the

Waal river The Waal (Dutch name, ) is the main distributary branch of the river Rhine flowing approximately through the Netherlands. It is the major waterway connecting the port of Rotterdam to Germany. Before it reaches Rotterdam, it joins with the Afg ...

, hence its official name continues to be Waal, although the intermediate Waal sections,

Boven Merwede The Boven Merwede () is a stretch of river in the Netherlands, mainly fed by the river Rhine. The Afgedamde Maas river joins the Waal at Woudrichem to form the Boven Merwede, which at Hardinxveld-Giessendam splits into the Beneden Merwede rive ...

Beneden Merwede The Beneden Merwede () is a stretch of river in the Netherlands, mainly fed by the river Rhine. It starts as the continuation of the Boven Merwede after the branching-off of the Nieuwe Merwede ship canal. It flows from Hardinxveld-Giessendam to D ...

, and a subsection of the

Noord Noord () is a town and region in Aruba (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands). This town is known for its low rise and high rise hotels, restaurants, beaches, malls, the California Lighthouse, and other places of attraction. Places of interes ...

, have long changed their names.

The water

The Waaltje marks the border between the Zwijndrechtse Waard, formerly a separate island, and the historic Island of IJsselmonde. Ever since this section of the Waal was dammed, IJsselmonde also encompasses the Zwijndrechtse Waard (see map to the right). The Waaltje runs from

Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht () is a town and municipality in the western Netherlands. It is located on the island of IJsselmonde, and borders with Zwijndrecht, Ridderkerk, and the Noord River (with Alblasserdam and Papendrecht on the other side). The j ...

, along

Oostendam Oostendam is a Dutch village. It is located in the municipality of Ridderkerk, within the province of South Holland. The village was first mentioned in 1435 as "totten cleynen Waldammen toe, die men heet op desen voorsz. tyt Dappers - dam", and ...

, through

Rijsoord Rijsoord is a village in the Dutch province of South Holland. It is located about 10 km southeast of the city of Rotterdam, in the municipality of Ridderkerk. Rijsoord was a separate municipality until 1855, when it merged with Ridderkerk ...

, and along

Barendrecht Barendrecht () is a town and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, near Rotterdam, South Holland. The municipality had a population of in , and covers an area of of which is water. The municipality of Barendrecht also includes Barendr ...

Heerjansdam Heerjansdam () is a village in the western Netherlands, in the municipality of Zwijndrecht, South Holland. It has a population of 3,590. History It was originally called "''Heren Heyenland''", a name which first appeared in a document from 1323. ...

. In Heerjansdam it now connects to the

Oude Maas The Oude Maas (; en, Old Meuse) is a distributary of the river Rhine, and a former distributary of the river Maas, in the Dutch province of South Holland. It begins at the city of Dordrecht where the Beneden Merwede river splits into the Noo ...

through a pumping station. In 1332

William I, Count of Hainaut William the Good ( nl, Willem, french: Guillaume; – 7 June 1337) was count of Hainaut (as William I), Avesnes, Holland (as William III), and Zeeland (as William II) from 1304 to his death. Career William, born , was the son of John II, Count ...

had the Waal dammed at Oostendam. The Waaltje connected to the

through the old port of Ambacht and a

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

that enabled riverboats to pass the Oostendam until the 20th century. Since then, no sailing connection is available. More recently, the old port of Ambacht has also been dammed on the northeast side, transforming it into another enclosed section of the old Waal.

Bridges, roads and paths

The Waaltje is crossed by a highway, the A16, the railway between Rotterdam and Dordrecht, the HSL and the

Betuweroute The Betuweroute is a double track freight railway between Rotterdam and Germany. is the official name, after the Betuwe area through which the route passes. The line is popularly called Betuwelijn, after an older track in the same region. Th ...

. The A15 runs between the A16 and the

to the north of the Waaltje. Along the eastern bank of the Waaltje in Heerjansdam, between the clubhouse of the business association and the restaurant, volunteers from among others the environmental association Heerjansdam created an educational nature trail named Waalpad. Other walking trails along the Waaltje can be found in Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht, along the Kerkstraat and between Oordenweg and Jaapgpad. Nature development Wevershoek in Barendrecht also offers opportunities to walk along the Waaltje.

Management and direct uses

The Waaltje is managed by the

water board A water board is a regional or national organisation that has very different functions from one country to another. The functions range from flood control and water resources management at the regional or local level (the Netherlands, Germany), w ...

Hollandse Delta. Its waters are on the clear end. It is used for boating, amateur fishing, diving, swimming and ice skating.

References

External links

Waaltje page
with photos and text in Dutch
Waaltje page
at Nature Friends of IJsselmonde {{Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta Rhine Rivers of the Netherlands Rivers of South Holland IJsselmonde (island) Barendrecht Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht Ridderkerk Zwijndrecht, Netherlands