Walking in Laag Holland: from Volendam to Etersheim

After yesterday's kilometres, Femke and I would have liked to lie flat a bit longer. But the dyke calls and we listen obediently. With a blister plaster on my little toe - yes, it has been a while since I braved long-distance walking paths - we step through the creaky front house of Hotel Spaander one last time. The eyes on the paintings pierce our backs. What a special atmosphere there is here.

The hotel is located at the end of the main street in Volendam and so we walk straight back onto the Markermeerdijk. The lake exudes tranquillity and with Volendam as an adjacent setting, I can understand why many painters came here.

Femke and I walk in silence. We enjoy the peace and quiet. Of the sunbeams that occasionally break through the cloud cover. The first five kilometres fly by; time for coffee.

At Paviljoen Strandbad on the edge of Edam, we take a seat at a table on the waterfront. In the distance, a ship sails by. In front of us, ducks wait patiently for falling crumbs. We are still silent. I don't know whether we are both just starting up, or whether we are intensely enjoying the tranquillity of Laag Holland. Maybe it's a combination of both. Either way, this waterfront has something enchanting about it.

We say goodbye to the ducklings walking around us and walk down the street to the centre of Edam. Known for its cheese, by now I think of Edam in terms of its beautiful protected townscape. A village full of national and city monuments, historic facades and quaysides covered with flowers and trees. We walk across the Kwakel bridge, one of the few wooden 'seesaw bridges' left in Edam. This bridge used to seesaw upwards with a firm tug on a chain (which is now firmly secured with a lock).

We get sandwiches for the road at Peter Gorter De Echte Bakker and walk out of Edam with a small diversions. Our final destination is still quite a few kilometres away, so for a day in Edam we will have to go back again. It was a pit stop, but fortunately the area around Edam is gorgeous for walking too. We climb the dyke again and listen to the next episode.

In some 14 episodes, Dijk tells us a wide variety of stories about what it is like to be a Dijk, how he experiences this role and what he experiences. Currently, some spots on the Markermeer dyke are being reinforced, which means we occasionally have to say goodbye to the sheep and continue walking on the asphalt. Dijk tells us that too, because it does need an occasional facelift. In the past, every landowner was responsible for 'his' piece of dike. Nowadays, fortunately, that is no longer the case.

Apart from that, Dijk also tells us why Holland is called Holland. Whenever I was asked that question, I always talked about the regions of the past, but Dijk tells a different story: it starts with the swampy, fertile marshland on which the first inhabitants of Laag Holland came to live. Beautiful, but not always practical. Ditches were dug to channel water. The marsh cushions thus became peatland, which subsided: a hollow-land was left behind. With here in Laag Holland -6.6 under NAP as the lowest point.

Femke and I look at each other. If Dijk were a window, we would now be walking in a semi aquarium in which the murky water of the old Zuiderzee splashes against the glass six metres above our heads. Dijk's story combined with our imagination makes the danger of water suddenly become very tangible. I am reminded of the story of Rutger Bergman, who wrote a letter to all Dutch people about the story of the water coming. Listen to that story here.

At that lowest point of Laag Holland, Femke and I arrive in Etersheim. A village that has been swallowed by the sea several times, only to be rebuilt a little further on.

We are welcomed by Jetty Voermans of the Etersheimerbraak foundation. In recent years, she has been working towards the arrival of the mini museum De Waterwolf. An interactive archaeological mini museum where you can learn more about the archaeological finds in this region, the history of the Dike and the area around it. A windmill flaunts next to the museum and the cosy terrace of Bezoekerscentrum de Breek beckons.

Never thought that there was so much to learn and admire in a hamlet like Etersheim. And The Waterwolf is not even everything. Jetty takes us to the Little School of Dik Trom. From 1883 to 1902, C. Joh. Kievit taught here in a small, one-class school. It was most likely the children who inspired master Kieviet to write about the mischievous pranks of Dik Trom. The classroom has been restored and now serves as a mini museum. Very nice to walk in here so spontaneously.

After sitting in the old school desks for a while, Femke and I notice how tired we are. Our feet have had a lot to endure on the Dike. Although we are eager to listen to the rest of Dijk's stories - the Podcast walk route continues all the way to Hoorn - we decide that we will save the last few kilometres for another time. Etersheim is a nice final destination. With some 35 kilometres in our legs, we gladly accept the offer to get a lift home.

Would you like to walk this Kijk Luister Dijk walking route with Podcast stories yourself? You will find more information about the route and Podcast points on this website. Even outside this route, Laag Holland is a surprisingly versatile area. Honeyguide Marit has already explored Broek in Waterland, Marken and Monnickendam. Honeyguide Anne-Floor recently slept in Dijkhuisje de Taanman in Grootschermer and I myself am a fan of Het Twiske nature reserve and Mrs Cha's tearoom.

Will you take us along on your adventure when you visit Laag Holland yourself? You can do so by tagging @honeyguide.nl/en on Instagram. Don’t forget to download the Honeyguide App too, so you’ve got all the sustainable travel tips right in your pocket.

Love,
Yalou