Tips 1 - 10 of 19 Schiermonnikoog Things to Do
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Things To Do: Going to Schiermonnikoog
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Good morning everyone! It is still early morning, hahaha, hence the sleepy look on my face. So why am I up so early, and a more important question, why am I telling you all this to you? The answer is quite easy, today I am going on a nice daytrip to the island of Schiermonnikoog and I wondered if you would care to join me on my trip :-)
I see this confused look on your face and see you wonder "Schiermonnikoog"? What's that?? Schiermonnikoog is an island in front of the Dutch coast and it is one of my favourite daytrips in the Netherlands. It is a popular destination for the Dutch but I feel it is rather unknown abroad. So on this page I would love to show you a bit more of this little island and show you why it is worth the trip going here. So hop on the ferry! We are leaving in a few minutes......
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Things To Do: Enjoying the views from the ferry
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The ferry crossing is a very enjoyable one and that alone is almost worth making this daytrip. It only takes 45 minutes to make the crossing from the mainland to Schiermonnikoog but the views are so nice and it is such a relaxing trip. You can sit inside, nice and cosy and warm and enjoy a cup of coffee and look through the windows enjoying the views.
But you can also go to the top deck, out in the open air, and enjoy the views from here. It's much colder out here, with the fresh sea breeze, but it is so much more enjoyable, hahaha, that's what I think anyway :-) Bring a nice thick sweater though, you might need it! Especially if you are travelling so early in the season like I did (early April). The sun is nice and warm already this time of year, but the winds are still quite cold.
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Things To Do: Arriving at Schiermonnikoog
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Schiermonnikoog, or sometimes also called 'Schier' by the Dutch people, is a beautiful little island. The "Wadden islands" are at the north of The Netherlands and are a series of small islands in a row in front of the coast. Schiermonnikoog is the smallest inhabited Wadden Island. It is only 16 kilometres long an 4 kilometres wide and it has one village (which is also called Schiermonnikoog)
The photo you see here is taken from the ferry and you can see the island and the village of Schiermonnikoog. We are almost there! So grab your things and get ready to set foot on land! It's time to discover a bit more about this lovely little island.
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Things To Do: Welcome to Schiermonnikoog!
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Most likely the first stop you will make on the island is at the village of Schiermonnikoog. A comfortable way to get here is by taking the bus that waits in front of the ferry. The bus times are adjusted to the ferry times, so there is no waiting involved. It's only about 10 minutes by bus to the village.
The village itself is small but rather picturesque with lots of old houses, like the ones you can see in the photo. The village of Schiermonnikoog dates back to around 1760 and the house on the photo must have been one of the first because it dates back to 1759. There is not so much to do and see here, but nice for a lazy stroll. There are some shops scattered around in the little streets, mainly little tourist shops where you can buy postcards, some gifts or everything you need for your kids to have a great time on the beach.
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Things To Do: An island on the move
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The island hasn't always been here, and certainly not the way it looks these days! The islands here in the north part of The Netherlands are constantly on the move. Many islands have been formed in this region and overtime have disappeared again due to the tides and the influence of the sea. The island of Schiermonnikoog has existed now for over a 1000 years although the size and shape have changed a lot in the course of time. The oldest part of the present island is only about 800 years old.
People have been forced to move around on the island adjusting to the 'wandering' spirit of the island. A good example of this is when the largest village on the island in the year 1725 fell prey to drifting sand and the advancing sea and had to be abandoned. The population moved to a new village, the present-day village of Schiermonnikoog (see previous tip for photos of the village).
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Things To Do: How Schiermonnikoog go its name
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So how did the island get its name? To most the name sounds strange: Schiermonnikoog, hahaha, and yes, I know.... it's impossible to pronounce! It's even difficult to describe how to pronounce it, so I skip giving that a try. So let me focus on the easy part and tell you how this island got its name.
In the fifteenth century the island was administered by Cistercian monks and these.monks wore grey clothing. And the island is named after these monks: 'schier' means 'grey', 'monnik' means 'monk', and 'oog' means 'island', so together it forms "Schier-monnik-oog" or "Grey-monks-island".
In the photo you can see the statue in the village centre of a Cistercian monk.
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Things To Do: The lighthouse of Schiermonnikoog
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The structure that dominates the island, and can be seen from far away, is the lighthouse. In 1853 there were two lighthouses build on Schiermonnikoog. When seen from a ship, the lights of the two lighthouse coincided, the shipper could sail inbetween the sandbanks from the 'Wadden sea' to the 'North sea'. But over time the sandbanks moved and made one of the lighthouses obsolete.
Maybe some of you that have been to the island might not recognize the lighthouse right away, but that's because the lighthouse was painted in this cheerful red colour in 1998.
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Things To Do: The lighthouse of Schiermonnikoog
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It's very easy to get to the lighthouse itself. I think it's best if you buy yourself a map of the island so you can navigate around and see all the bicycle paths.
The lighthouse is not far from the village, just head towards the beach and you'll find it. The bicycle path is a dead end, but it does end at the beach, hahaha, so that's not a bad stop to make :-) It's only a slight detour from the main road to get here. The street name (photo 2) is appropriately called "Vuurtorenpad" which means "lighthouse path" :-)
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Things To Do: The watertower of Schiermonnikoog
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This is the second lighthouse of Schiermonnikoog that is located more inland. This is the lighthouse that is not in use like a lighthouse anymore, so it was made into a watertower instead.
If you really want you to, you can bicycle to the tower....although it is actually a walking path, so maybe I shouldn't reccommend this ;-) A little warning though: iIt's quite the climb getting uphill as the tower is located on top of a dune!
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Things To Do: By bicycle of course!
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The absolute best way to explore this island is by bicycle. The places I've shown you so far (the village, lighthouse and watertower) are quite close to each other and easily reached by foot. But if you would like to see more of Schiermonnikoog, the bicycle is your best option.
Everywhere on the island are little bicycle paths which lead you through the beautiful dunes and landscapes of the island. Don't worry about bringing a bike yourself, as you can rent a bicycle on the island (see my transportation tips). But if your not in the mood for an active vacation, you can also be lazy and lay down on the beautiful and huge beach :-)
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More Schiermonnikoog Tips
| Overview | Things to Do
Tips: 19 - Photos: 37 | Restaurants
Tips: 1 - Photos: 1 | Hotels & Accommodations | | Nightlife | Off The Beaten Path | | Tourist Traps | Warnings Or Dangers | Transportation
Tips: 3 - Photos: 3 | Local Customs | | Packing Lists | Shopping
Tips: 1 - Photos: 1 | | Sports Travel | General Tips |
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 Comments for sim1 about Schiermonnikoog | | | | |
Trekki Sun Sep 14, 2008 15:09 UTC
Some photos are just THE classic prime photos, like yours with the fence :-) I am looking for an island for November or so to get my brain washed by wind and ... why not Schiermonnikoog :-)) tons of afternoon hugs :-)) | Sininen Sun Nov 4, 2007 09:05 UTC
There are so many wonderful palces in the world, which I've never heard of before, Schiermonnikoog being one of them. Very good page, I really enjoyed my tour there with you. Your favourite photo is absolutely great! | ronaldbarr Sat Nov 3, 2007 10:02 UTC
Hi Simone, I loved these pages. Terschelling is my favourite island although I have not been to Schiermonnikoog yet. Check out some of my latest pics to catch up with what I have been up to..http://picasaweb.google.com/ronaldbarr54/Portfolio | Pisgonut Sat Nov 4, 2006 22:16 UTC
wow,wow,wow.....beautiful. I am dreaming to go there now. |
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on May 16, 2006
