Walking over water

When the tide is low, you can walk across the “sea” and reach some of the Islands on the north coast of Holland. I like to call it “walking over water”, in Dutch it is officially called “Wadlopen”. My friend Anneke is a guide for these tours and brought me along with her on a night-trip to one of the islands “Schiermonnikoog”. We got up at 3 in the morning to catch a boat that brought us to the starting point. Best is to wear short pants that dry easily. The shoes you wear should not be your favourites, and be tight around the feet. Your shoes become wet and muddy and it is possible they get stuck into the mud… Leaving the boat we had to wade through water that reached thigh level! Then suddenly I found myself on a sandbank, in the middle of the Sea, “Waddenzee”…silence all around…it is dark…and we had to start walking before the tide came up that makes the water rise quickly. It is exciting, cold and beautiful. I followed the guides with their GPS-systems. We walked accross sandbanks, ditches of varying depth and got stuck sometimes in muddy ground. Around 6 o’clock the sun started to rise and the sky becomes a painting of the most amazing colours. It is nice to feel warmth of the sun on your wet feet and legs….Now I started to see the width of the surrounding area. Around 7 o’clock in the morning we saw the island of Schiermonnikoog where we were heading. On our arrival, we could wash our feet and change clothes at a farm on the island. My feet were all pale and wrinkly but I felt I carried the silence and quietness along with me.

Once again I realised, I don’t have to travel far from home to experience the amazing influence of nature surrounding us! Thanks Anneke!! (www.wadlopen.com)