We had never experienced a place that got so cold the sea edges froze, but that’s the North Sea for you!
The beach closest to our base in Hillegom, the Netherlands was called Langevelderslag : long, wide, windswept, frigid in the winter, and the first time we ever saw frozen sea – the dogs loved it!
Driving further towards the southwest of the Netherlands is Hoek van Holland (picture). This was a strategic hold for Germany in WW2 because of the harbor. It is in the southwestern corner of the country at the mouth of the Nieuwe Waterweg (ship canal) into the North Sea. There is a wide, sandy beach on the other side of the river, part of which is designated for ‘naturalists’ – but obviously deserted this time of the year!
