The Longest Dike in Europe | NL by Bike – Day 10

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Xiaomanyc Frisian: https://youtu.be/FaoohSLIrt4?si=-mTIP1dhawN0NUyO

The Whole Trip 👉 https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL49bxTPhfjjkjBpPViPEZa23pOgPIKmiq&si=BiuhxOf4GTxV2C0o

Bike Tour 2024 👉 https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL49bxTPhfjjlKx9RQY-HgREh4CE6J8xH2&si=35Wc2zi1lKmKXnZj

A-Bike Rental & Tours👉 https://a-bike.nl/

0:00 The Afsluitdijk
0:33 Closing the dike
1:39 Land reclamation
1:50 Sluices and locks
2:19 Preparing for the future
3:30 Closed to cyclists
4:02 Netherlands by bike Day 10
4:24 No way out
4:53 Leeuwarden
6:29 Blokhuispoort
7:13 Stolen bike seat
7:50 Going to Sneek
10:01 Wind power
10:49 Crossing the dike
12:11 North Holland countryside
13:15 Alkmaar
14:00 Quiet streets

Sources:

Leeuwarden: https://www.holland.com/global/tourism/discover-the-netherlands/visit-the-cities/leeuwarden

Seaqurrant TidalKite™: https://www.seaqurrent.com/tidalkite-system/

Afsluitdijk: https://theafsluitdijk.com/

Afsluitdijk bike path: https://www.holland-cycling.com/blog/301-afsluitdijk-closed-for-cyclists

This is the Absloud Dyke, a causeway stretching 32 km between Freezeland and North Holland. It separates the Waden Sea and the Iselamir, which not only makes for a better connection between the two regions, it has been integral to the reclamation of over 1,600 square km of land. While it has been an iconic route on a bike in the past, it has been mostly closed to cyclists for the better part of 6 years. More on that later. This monumental piece of engineering is nothing less than ingenuity over nature. It’s the Dutch way of looking at the ocean and saying not today. For centuries, the Zer was a vital maritime connection, a vast natural harbor offering protected access to Amsterdam and other coastal cities. But with the opening of the North Sea Canal, which gave ships a faster route to Amsterdam and with the Netherlands in desperate need of more land for its growing population, the idea for closing off the Zha for reclamation, was put forward in 1913 by civil engineer Cornelius Ley. His contributions would later be honored not only in this monumental dam, but also in the capital of Flavorland, a city some consider among the most beautiful in the country, Lilyad. At first, his proposal met stiff opposition. But as is often the case, progress found its momentum through tragedy. After devastating floods and famine, public opinion shifted, and by 1918, the country was ready to embrace this enormous undertaking. Nearly a decade later, construction finally began. Thousands of workers labored daily while dredgers hauled up more than 36 million cubic meters of glacial till and sand. And after 5 years of relentless work, the Zer was sealed off in 1932 with the motorway across the dyke opening the following year. The closing allowed large tracks of land to be reclaimed in enormous effort known as the Zadri Works, giving rise to vast boulders that would eventually form the Netherlands 12th province, Flavland. Playing an important role in keeping water out of the isomer are the two large complexes of shipping locks and discharge slooes at either end of the causeway. On the freezand side is corn vertand with two series of five slooes and on the north Holland side there are three series of five slooes. Altogether these 25 slooses ensure the lake does not overflow continually discharging excess water fed by rivers, streams and many of the boulders that drain into the isomeir. Since 1958, the Asslaw Dyke has undergone several height increases and reinforcements. Part of a long tradition of vigilance born out of tragedy. The North Sea flood of 1953, the worst natural disaster in the Netherlands since the Middle Ages, claimed nearly 2,000 lives and made clear the catastrophic consequences of underestimating the sea. That disaster, much like Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans half a century later, serves as a stark reminder of what complacency can bring. So to ensure such devastation is never repeated, many waterworks, including the Absloud Dikeke, have been continually updated and strengthened. Most recently, its surface was heightened and fitted with a new protective layer. Along its flanks, engineers placed 70,000 ultraodern concrete blocks, each weighing 6,500 kg. These massive blocks are designed to shatter the force of waves during storms. And the upgrades also include additional slooes and high-capacity pumping stations in Denover. It’s estimated that without the vast system of dikes, dunes, and pumps, about 65% of the Netherlands would be underwater at high tide. Today, around 26% of the country’s land area and 21% of its population lie below mean sea level, protected only by these vital defenses. Today, the A7 motorway that runs across the dyke carries over 20,000 vehicles daily and could carry many people more cycling, but it has been closed to bikes since April 1st, 2019. A decision that many at first mistook as an April Fool’s joke. But it was no joke. The closure was meant to last 3 years. Yet, delays have stretched it far beyond schedule, and parts of the route remain inaccessible to this day, only having been completely open for very short stints. I wanted to see how much I could ride of it for myself because I am after all on a bike trip across the Netherlands. So, it’s uh finally time to roll that intro. [Applause] [Music] No way out. I just want to continue searching for the perfect stroop waffle. Just please let me out. [Music] Today I’m headed to Elkmar from Louarten, the capital of Freezeland. Once a royal residence and still home to a historic center filled with centuries old buildings. It also boasts a lively shopping district with bustling squares and restaurants. And in 2018, it earned the title of European capital of culture. Yet, the people are modest about it. There is apparently a saying in the city. It has never been much to brag about, but it could be. And I like that. But it’s an absolute underell. The city center is nothing less than idyllic. Set around a canal in an old way house, the streets are lined with shops, restaurants, cafes, and most importantly, people enjoying the space. One fact I learned is that you can actually hop on a boat and reach some of the beautiful Waden Islands in less than half an hour, which is something I have to bookmark for the next time I visit. The Friian language is still very present in Luardan. Similar to old English, it is recognized as the second official language of the Netherlands. Counting all of its dialects, it is spoken by an estimated 400,000 people in the region. There is actually a really great video by Xiao ManyC, who spent a day in the city trying out his basic frizzen with locals. I’ll link that below. One thing I really loved in the city was the Old Hova, this leaning tower. Not just because I can’t hold the camera straight. That tower really does tilt. And in fact, it leans even more than the famous one in Pisa. Construction began in 1529 after the citizens of Lou Warden demanded a tower taller than the Martini Tower in the nearby Grown, a crooked landmark that defines the skyline of Lou Warden. In retrospect, I really wish I explored more, but with the deadness of my ebike battery and the soreness of my butt, I took to the city limited by the speed on my own two feet. Probably my favorite part of Luartan was the block houseport, the city’s old prison and the hotel where I stayed. Outside the historic center, it has grown into a big cultural hub. This centuries old fortress is imposing from the outside. Yet inside, it has been transformed into a vibrant hot spot. The former cells that once held prisoners now host entrepreneurs, small shops, a library, a cafe, an escape room, and creative workshops. And on the evening I arrived, one of the courtyards was filled with a barbecue festival, families crowded around food trucks having drinks and live music filling the square. It was exactly my vibe. The only thing missing was my wife or a friend to share it with. In the morning, when I was ready to head out, I hit an actual snag. It turned out someone else should have been the one locked up. Someone has uh stolen my seat. That’s uh that’s unfortunate. So, uh I have to figure that out. The journey ahead was going to be quite long, so I had to get a move on. But I quickly found out that riding the bike as is was not feasible for more than a short stint. You know, this kind of sucks, but at least the whole bike wasn’t stolen. See, I don’t think this rack is meant to support my fat ass. My plan was to find a bike shop and buy a replacement. Problem is, it was too early, meaning none were open for a few hours. So, I looked up on a map for a city I could get to by transit on my way to the Abslow Dyke, which would have open bike shops once I arrived. That city would be Snick. Not directly in between Lou Warden and the dyke, but it would still get me closer and later I would find out afford me a bonus. Getting on the train was easy enough. A sprinter with level boarding. And since it was a Saturday morning, I was free to take it on as the peak time restrictions for bikes doesn’t apply on weekends. When I arrived in Sneck, I was met with a lovely city center and the air was filled with the music from one of those big street organs. [Music] On the other side of this drawbridge was the bike shop I was headed to. I’m sure for locals these bottlenecks are a pain in the rear, but for me it’s an opportunity to capture the critical mass of traffic that just puts a smile on my face. [Music] This is Bike Totel. The staff were very helpful. Get me back in shape in no time. Though I was surprised when the mechanic told me he had never seen a bike seat stolen before. What? With my bike back to normal working order, I crossed back over the drawbridge to supply myself with some sunblock as I forgot to take my advice from the previous trip. Put the lotion on the skin or else get the sunburn again. Just as I left Snick, I came across what I can only imagine is an outdated design of Dutch cycling infrastructure. Once you cross over, not ideal. Fascinating. While coming to Snack didn’t get me too much closer to the dyke as opposed to riding out of Lou Warden, it saved me about 12 km of riding, I was afforded more ideal conditions. So today’s headwind looked similar to yesterday. It looked like it wasn’t supposed to be as hard. The bonus of me having gone to snack is now instead of kind of coming straight towards where the wind is coming from, it’s coming across to my left. So, at least for this portion, shouldn’t be too bad. I passed through the small city of Balsswart. Even here in a city with just over 10,000 people. Can you call that a city? Anyways, even here, a nice little city center. I’m getting closer to the sea. And there’s two reasons you can tell. There’s like a there’s a cool breeze coming in, but also there’s a lot more wind turbines. The Netherlands, of course, is traditionally known for their use of wind to power their mills. But in the age of electricity, wind turbines have taken their place. Here you can see just a few of the 12,000 turbines that are spread across the country, accounting for nearly 20% of the electricity produced for the population. Apart from the wind turbines, they have developed a more novel type of energy production. Beneath the waves are tidal kites, large winged kites that oscillate in a figure eight pattern whose tensile forces generate electricity via the base attached to the seabed. I wouldn’t spot any of those. Instead, for the rest of the day, I would likely not have one moment without at least one wind turbine in sight, even from the aud. But I did get to ride this 4 km stretch to Corn Verdisand with the Waden Sea on my right. [Music] Just enjoyed myself a refreshment at the Waden Center and I think the bus is scheduled to leave in the next 10 minutes. So, uh, let’s go check it out. This is the Feats bus. It carries a max of 15 bicycles, comes hourly, and is completely free. It’s pretty straightforward. Roll your bike on the bus, and the driver secures it with old bike tubes. Take a seat and do your best not to nap because uh I fell asleep for most of the 20-minute journey. Now, I I I did want to ride across it. It is a shame that it’s not completely open yet. I don’t know if I could have done the whole day. It would have been too far. My total would have been over 110 km if I had ridden from Lou Warden across the dyke and to Elkmar, even just above 100 km from Sneck. While I would love to come back and ride the entirety of the dyke when it’s open, my ride was reduced to a manageable 75 km, the bulk of which I still had to get done. At this point though, I’d like to race to Alkar because apparently there’s a Pride festival going on and that sounds like a lot of fun. So Google says it’s going to take me 2 and 1/2 hours to get 48 km. I’m going to try to get under too. While I have been to North Holland before, the feel here is different from the area around Amsterdam. Here, more wind turbines dominating the landscape. [Music] This was an interesting case of traffic calming. There was a chicane on this frontage road that reminded me of what you might see at lemons or Monza. Literal racetracks that were too fast. So they put chicanees to slow down the cars. Here on a frontage road, they employed the same technique. Now this this feels Dutch. Look at that. So cool. After cruising this freed strat to the outskirts of Alkar City Center, just taking over 2 hours, I did make good time. I was able to catch the final floats of the Pride Parade. And of course, I should have expected as much in the Netherlands, literally floating on a canal. And after getting settled into my accommodations, I walked the streets of Almar, a city with roots stretching back to the Middle Ages. It’s most famous for its traditional cheese market, which has been running since 1593, where wheels of Dutch cheese are weighed, carried, and traded in a ceremony that feels like stepping back in time. But Elkar isn’t just cheese. Its narrow canals, gabled houses, and lively city square give it that quintessential Dutch charm. But the vibe today was much more lively as the pride festivities were well underway in the heart of the city. As I continued to the northern perimeter of the city center, I was blown away by the peace. Listen to this. Listen. Holy. There’s actually a car. This is like the center the center of Elkar. At least this is like I’m at the edge now of the city center. But it’s crazy. There’s a cat loafing on the street just having a nap on the street. We need this in more places. This is good. This is good for everybody. And I think that’s a great place to mark the end of the day with a bittersweet feeling as I look forward to the morning for the final leg of my trip across the Netherlands.