Between the mudflats and ‘terra firma’

Without the dike, the province of Groningen would have been much smaller. Perhaps that is why the solemn strength of this area and its people are best understood from the top of the seawall. Many local cycling routes traverse the dike and offer breath-taking views. And if you are lucky you might just catch a tailwind.
The Ommelanderzeedijk, stretching from Lauwersoog to Nieuwe Statenzijl, was not the first dike to protect Groningen from the sea. Inland you will find long secondary ‘sleeper’ dikes here and there though the seawall is the highest. The otherwise flat Groningen landscape is best admired from above, from the top of a dike.