Canadian Trail Overijssel: Walking Route and Liberation Stories
Deventer and several of its villages are now also connected to the western track of the Canadian Trail Overijssel. The Canadian Trail is an (inter)national themed route following the path of the Canadian liberators, stretching from Normandy to the north of Germany. On May 4, 2026, at 3:00 PM, 102-year-old Canadian veteran Nick Janicki will perform the official unveiling of one of the memorial sites at the Cröddenbrug in Schalkhaar. Deputy Mayor Marcel Elferink will be present on behalf of the municipality of Deventer.
In the footsteps of the Canadians
The Canadian Trail is part of Liberation Route Europe, a route network that keeps the memory of the Second World War alive and accessible. Overijssel is part of the Canadian Trail because of the significant contribution the Canadians made to the liberation of this province. The chosen route broadly follows the original path taken by the Canadians during the liberation of Overijssel and connects to the junctions of the existing walking network.
Liberation of villages and city
The regained freedom of our region began on April 8, 1945, with the liberation of Bathmen and Colmschate. Lettele and Okkenbroek followed (April 9), then Schalkhaar and Deventer (April 10), and finally Diepenveen (April 11). The route follows the tracks of the liberators, sometimes passing directly through village centers. Special ‘Vectors of Memory’ can now be found at key locations. At these memorials, a QR code can be scanned with a phone to gain immediate access to the corresponding liberation story. The route through the municipality of Deventer includes unique stories in Bathmen, Colmschate, Deventer, Schalkhaar and Diepenveen. The story of the now 102-year-old Nick Janicki and the liberation of Deventer belongs to the Cröddenbrug. An extra-large ‘Vector of Memory’ has been placed here, which will be unveiled by Nick Janicki.
Memories of Nick Janicki
On the evening of April 9, 1945, the Germans had partially sabotaged the Cröddenbrug to hinder an Allied crossing of the Overijssel Canal. Despite the damage and fierce German mortar fire, Canadian troops managed to cross the bridge on foot. Shortly after midnight on April 10, the Canadians advanced toward Schalkhaar along the Oerdijk. Nick Janicki was one of those Canadian soldiers: "We had to cross the fields with tanks and drive to the edge of the city. We lost one of our commanders there.” He also remembers the liberation of Deventer on April 10, 1945: "We marched through the Lange Bisschopstraat. There were people everywhere. They were standing on the roofs or waving to us from their windows."
A better understanding of history
Deputy Mayor Marcel Elferink is pleased that Deventer is now connected to the Canadian Trail Overijssel: “It is good that our liberation is also tangible at the locations where important moments of liberation took place. This applies not only during the commemorations in April and on May 4; the route offers a tangible and free connection to our local history all year round. Liberation Route Europe and the Canadian Trail Overijssel help us to better understand history.”
