I am not a fan of high temperatures. In fact, when the thermometer hits 25 degrees, I find that unpleasant. A good reason to escape the heat every now and then and seek my salvation northwards. I don't even remember exactly where I read that there is a colony of Northern Gannets breeding on Helgoland, but it seemed like a good destination to kill two birds with one stone.
Now, the German Wadden coast is not very far away, but I thought it would be nice to see more than just Helgoland and so my first stop was Landgoed Twickel in Twente. I left the castle and its gardens for what they were for a while, but it was wonderful to wander around the beautiful estate. A flying kingfisher and an old watermill eventually led me to a well-known spot on the Twickelervaart, where a few beech trees hang beautifully over the water. Not an original photo, but a very appealing place that will undoubtedly come into its own even better in the autumn.
I hesitated for a moment, but then I drove straight to Cuxhaven, the departure point of the boat. I didn't feel like rushing the next morning. And of course, the traffic could always be bad. There is a very large and uninviting camper place there at the harbour, but that would have to do.
I had booked a seat on a fast ferry and so the next day I was standing with both feet on the small island 1 hour and 15 minutes after departure. From the harbour it was not far to walk to the colony of Northern Gannets, which only stay on the steep cliffs on the north side of the island during the breeding season and live at sea the rest of the year.
I had no idea what to expect, but I would never have dared to imagine that in some places you could approach these large birds to within a few metres. Apparently they are very used to people, because they are not distracted at all from what they are doing.
And so I spent a few hours observing and photographing these beautiful birds. Fortunately, there were also quite a few chicks to be seen, which contrasted nicely with the adult birds with their black beaks and feathers. And yes, when so many birds live so close together, you also see the extremes of their behavior. Because where one moment they seduce each other with very characteristic movements of their beaks, a moment later they use the same beak to keep other birds that come too close at a distance.
All in all, it yielded quite a few photos. Hopefully, the photos below will give you a good impression of this largest seabird of the North and Wadden Sea and its habitat.
The next two days I used to drive along the German Wadden coast back to the Netherlands in peace. I was definitely not looking for subjects with bright colours, but somehow they presented themselves. For example:
A few buoys on dry land in Cuxhaven.
Typical, old-fashioned German beach chairs.
A kite festival where my heroes from the past took centre stage.
The surrealistic lighthouse of Pilsum. You might think so, but no, I really did not adjust the colors of those clothes afterwards to the colors of the tower. This was a coincidence of the highest order.
At the end of those two days I ended up in Groningen at De Dollard, where I was not only treated to beautiful colours again, but also to a fantastic flock of starlings.
And it didn't stop. The next morning I was up early again to capture the sunrise. Now the sunrise itself was quite disappointing, but the light during the so-called golden hour afterwards made up for everything. And not only was that flock of starlings present again, but apparently literally thousands of geese had also spent the night, which now flew up in groups and went looking for a place to eat.
After this incredible start of the day it was actually time for breakfast, but the night before I had seen that there is a place about 18 kilometers further where you can observe seals. The beautiful morning light was still there and I wanted to make the most of it, so breakfast had to wait a little longer.
After the seals I saw this curlew sitting in the sun. Well, I couldn't ignore that one of course.
When I was finally finishing my oatmeal halfway through the morning, I read about Fraeylemaborg Estate in Slochteren. And you guessed it, not much later I first visited the borg itself and then went for a nice walk on the estate of about 23 hectares.
Another beautiful location that will be even more beautiful in the fall. I'm going to be busy in two months...
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