The Afsluitdijk

Now you've seen the fist leg of our trip around the IJsselmeer we take you to travel the Afsluitdijk. Perhaps it's better to check out Wikipedia if you want to know all the interesting facts about this most famous dam - but here's a resume: 

The Afsluitdijk is the dam or dike closing of the former Zuyder Sea: once a shallow inlet of the North Sea between the provinces of (among others!) Noord-Holland and Friesland. Originally a lake, it was joined with the North Sea by heavy flooding in the Middle Ages and as a sea infamous for it's dangerous waters. 

As early as the late 1900's a group of notables discussed the idea of reclaming the land. The famous engineer Cornelis Lely planned the Afsluitdijk, met a lot of resistance (the fishermen!) but after first a flood and next a famine building (finally) started in 1927, and 5 years later the 32 km. long dam was finished. Parts of the former sea - now the IJsselmeer (meer = lake, the IJssel the main tributary to the lake) were reclaimed for agriculture, and formed the new province of Flevoland, with it's capital 'Lelystad'. 

After almost a century the Afsluitdijk is still one of our most impressive works of civil engineering! 

While travelling the Afsluitdijk you cannot see both the IJsselmeer and the North Sea (or to be correct, the Wadden Sea) (that's another story) but it is still a very nice trip. The water you see is the IJsselmeer. 

'Groningen' is the capital of the province with the same name, east of Friesland and bordering Germany, 'Leeuwarden' is the capital of the province of Friesland. 

The last two pics are taken from the visitors' tower and give a view of the Afsluitdijk - the first one towards Friesland, the second back towards Noord-Holland. 

Enjoy the photo's!