This must be one of the most amazing and (literally) hair-raising experiences I have had in the Netherlands. We parked in the shadow of this huge dyke and I wasn't planning to venture up or across. But my brother-in-law insisted and urged me and accompanied me... and it was unforgettable! I have once before been so swept off my feet by wind and water. That was at Cabo de Roca in Portugal and it must say something about the ferocity of the winds rising off the North Sea that I had no time for any philosophical thoughts in this instance.I did wonder how best to capture the view, the wind, the noise... really, the spectacle... with a mere camera. The grandest phenomena are really best left to poetry and abstract art.
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| This is as high as the dyke is. We did not take the stairs up. We climbed up the grassy side! |
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| The view of the North Sea from the top |
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| The wind carries sand, foam and godknowswhatelse up to erode the land. |
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| The embankment of the dyke stands between this ferocious wind and water, and agricultural communities on the other side. |
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| These communities would not be possible without the dyke system.  |
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| This is what forms the wall of the dyke-- carefully designed boulders. |
