Rockanje to Stellendam: E2 Day 102

A walk in warm weather with a long lunch in the pretty village of Goedereede.

As I walked around the tidy outskirts of Rockanje, I admired the herringbone brickwork with which the road was paved. Neat, orderly, in good condition, but not showy, which struck me as very Dutch. I then plunged into the dunes, grassed or wooded like those yesterday. As I climbed over the last dune an impressive sight revealed itself. There was a long, pristine sandy beach, the sand mixed with shell fragments. A few people were thinly scattered over the strand. Swimmers in wet suits, people exercising their dogs and one couple walking their Shetland ponies (or maybe the Dutch equivalent). Beyond the beach and an expanse of water was the Haringvlietsluizen. A barrier built to avoid flooding when sea levels were high, part of the "Delta Works" constructed to prevent a repeat of the deadly flood of 1953 in which 2000 people died.

Unexpected sandy, North Sea beach.

Sadly the café at the start of the dam was closed so I continued along the base of the grass embankment towards the central part of the barrier. A few campervans were parked, no doubt having stopped there overnight. As the grass started to give way to concrete I followed the GR5 onto the top of the dam. Eleven huge sluice gates followed which controlled the flow into the sea. An information board was the first I found with an English translation. It described the gates as the "tap of Europe" controlling with other Delta Works flow from the Rhine and Maas, rivers which together drained a large slice of Western Europe.

Approaching the Haringvlietsluizen dam, GR5 walkers ahead.

Sluice gates.

Today, maybe as it was a Saturday, many people were out, mostly on bicycles. There were fast cyclists, bent over their handlebars in all the gear with lightweight racing bikes. There were elderly couples cycling, head up in a more sedate manner. A mother singing to her child, which was somehow attached between her and the bike's handlebars. Another mother had her baby in a carrier somehow located over the front wheel. Family groups went past chatting, while a few conversed on their phones while cycling. In Britain a cyclists faces hazards such as being crushed by a turning lorry or colliding with the door of a parked car, opened by an unobservant owner. The comprehensive cycle paths, well separated from traffic make cycling in the Netherlands a safer and more viable form of transport (especially when there was no headwind). However, as the LAW 5-1 ran along many cycle paths, I had to be careful to look behind me if I deviated from the side of the track to avoid a collision with any fast moving bike coming up from behind.

Today I also met my first long distance walkers in the Netherlands, one, with a large backpack, warned me that a bridge was down for repairs and suggested a way to avoid it and the associated diversion. Not taking the advice I went and viewed the bridge works. The swing bridge (one where the deck swings upwards helped by counterweights) had its road deck removed, I assumed for renovation. In the absence of the bridge the diversion took me over some lock gates, interesting as they were paired, one angled to contain a higher water level on the seaward side and the other to cope when the higher level was to the landward side, maybe when the tide was low.

I found myself following two girls with rucksacks. Although I was walking faster I kept stopping to take photos and read information boards. Worrying that they might think I was stalking them, I increased my speed to overtake them. We had a brief conversation as I passed. I discovered they were from Belgium and also walking the LAW 5-1 and GR5 in a number of trips. Having already covered the GR5 in their own country they were now tackling the equivalent Dutch part. A cyclist wanted to come by, interrupting our conversation, so I took my leave and stepped up my pace.

Goedereede was another sweet Dutch village with houses lining the canal. Stopping at the busy bar I ordered coffee and a goat's cheese salad (to improve my intake of fruit and vegetables). Service was slow, maybe they were extra busy as the bar next door seemed closed for renovation. However it was a pleasant place to linger and watch the comings and goings: local ladies sipping coffee; cyclists stopped for lunch; a family group with noisy kids; a very old lady with a stick accompanied by her grey haired daughter. As I finished my salad two ladies were hovering, evidently wanting my table, so I paid and went to the nearby SPAR to stock up on food as I was unsure of the eating options for my next two nights. I also bought an ice cream and Coke for dessert and enjoyed them at a table outside the shop. Two teenagers were hanging around. As I got up to go, on seeing me look for a rubbish bin, they took the can and wrapping paper off me and ran over to put them into the relevant recycling and general waste containers. An unexpected courtesy that I doubt you would experience from youngsters in Britain. 

Goedereede 

After Goedereede, there was a stroll, by a herd of cows eyeing me up, to the dyke separating farmland from a nature reserve of low trees, beyond which lay an unseen body of water. After following the dyke for a while I turned off into Stellendam, another neat Dutch village, and made my way to a campsite. Unfortunately I seemed to have pitched near an ants' nest and they have mounted an invasion into the inner part of my tent while I left it open to dry. Extensive brushing and squashing was needed to remove them.

Bins angled especially for cyclists. 

Later I walked into the village for diner. As it was now drizzling after a generally dry day everyone was inside. Being Saturday night I suppose, the place was packed but fortunately the friendly waitresses found me a spot. Tonight I was being a bit more ambitious and went for the "hete kip", which Google said was hot chicken. It came with chips and salad and was hot in a thermal sense rather than a spicy one.