GOEREE OVERFLAKKEE
An oasis of award-winning nature TEXT: MICHIEL STOL | PHOTOS: MERIJN KOELINK
The coastline of the isle of GoereeOverflakkee, in the southwest of the Netherlands, has won multiple international awards throughout the years. And this year, the island, along with Westvoorne, Schouwen-Duiveland and Veere, was voted number one Green Destination in the world, over the likes of Lake Tahoe in the US and Sani Isla in Ecuador, winning the Best of Nature award.
the villages, the beauty is everywhere here,” says Michel de Bruin, director of Island Marketing of Goeree-Overflakkee. De Bruin himself moved here over two months ago. “As an ‘outsider’, I immediately felt the respect for nature here on the island. And knowing that it is only 30 minutes away from Rotterdam and even Antwerp, made it even more attractive to come here.”
“When you take a walk or go for a bicycle ride and you look around, there are so many vistas that will take your breath away. From the dunes to the heritage in
Goeree-Overflakkee is filled with multiple nature reserves which are home to a rich flora and fauna. Seals, porpoises, deer, wild horses, Europeans sea-eagles; the
50 | Issue 71 | November 2019
Indescribable nature
island is home to several exquisite species. Each autumn and winter period, a group of flamingos make a home for themselves on the island. “I often send pictures to my friends, with the question: ‘where am I, Canada or Goeree?,’ grins De Bruin. “The diversity in nature here is indescribable; on the one hand the beaches and the dunes, that are synonymous with the Netherlands, and on the other hand these vast landscapes with beautiful animals and birds that will make you forget you are in the Netherlands.” A definite must-see is the bird observatory TIJ, on the edge of the Haringvliet estuary. This eight-metre-high building, shaped in