Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: strand

Rusty Dimitrios shipwreck is an imposing cargo ship that has been abandoned on Valtaki beach since 1981. It is believed that this ship was used for transporting illegal cigarettes between Turkey and Italy, however many refer to this ship as a ghost ship, of which the origins remain unknown.

Vlieland is one of the Dutch Waddeneilanden (West Frisian Islands). The (car-free) island is known for its beautiful beaches. The wide beach on the North Sea is one of the most beautiful and cleanest in the Netherlands. On the west side of the beach (at the end of the Reddingbootpad ), there is a 'nursery' of new dunes (PiP5). The beach of Vlieland is about 15 kilometres long and 150 metres wide on average. It has only two beach pavilions (PiP4).

Strand Noordpier (Noordpier beach) is located directly north of the Noordzeekanaal (North Sea Canal) and south of Wijk aan Zee. The beach is one of the widest in the Netherlands. The Noordpier - built to prevent the harbour from silting up and to offer ships a safe passage to the North Sea Canal - causes a special wind and waves, making the beach a popular spot for wave, wind and kite surfing. Officially, the pier and the beach are located in Velsen-Noord, but can only be reached via Wijk aan Zee. That is why many people call it the pier of Wijk aan Zee. The beach may be beautiful and wide, but what struck me during a visit on a freezing winter's day was the horizon pollution caused by the Tata Steel factory and some wind turbines. This makes it for me also one of the ugliest beaches in the Netherlands.

The village of Petten has been existing since 1300 and was originally called Petten bi der Sipe . During a storm in 1625 no less than a hundred houses were destroyed. The village disappeared completely into the sea in 1792. From the 18th century onwards, Petten was gradually relocated. Petten's past and the struggle against the sea is emphasized by the Palendorp (Pole Village). This monument and work of art was placed in 2016. The 160 poles - six and twelve meters high - form the silhouette of a former church and ten houses. It was a gift of the contractors who carried out the project Kust op Kracht .

In the Middle Ages were dunes on the spot of the Hondsbossche and Pettemer Zeewering . Large storms such as the All Saints' Flood in 1570 swept away these dunes and the North Sea was only stopped by dikes. The impressive sea dike, protecting the villages of Petten and Camperduin, was designated in 2002 as one of the eight weak points of the Dutch coast. It was decided not to further raise the existing dike, but to opt for a solution with 'sand': Kust op Kracht (Coast on Strength). March 2014 the project started to create a beach and dune area on the seaside of the dike, stretching over eight kilometers between Petten and Camperduin and 300 meters wide. Approximately 35 million cubic meters of sand was used for this new piece of land of about 400 soccer fields. The newly created dune area was given the name Hondsbossche Duinen . This approach resulted in a new recreation area and artificial dune landscape with a wide beach, cycling and walking paths, but also a new area for birds with a wet dune valley lake. Near Petten is a panorama dune (26 meters high) - www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/48526386 - where one has a beautiful view over this new part of the Netherlands.

About 15.000 years ago the Netherlands and the UK were connected by a land mass. The arctic ice stretched out into Germany and Scotland. When temperatures started to rise, the ice receded and the meltwater caused the rise of the sea levels. The residents of the low-lying regions started to move to higher locations. About 1.000 years ago people started to build dikes to protect their land against the sea. Nowadays nearly half of the Netherlands lies below sea level and is protected by 14.000 kilometers of dikes. One of the most impressive dikes in the Netherlands is the Hondsbossche en Pettemer Zeewering . The name of this sea wall appears in records for the first time around 1350. The first dike was made entirely of sand. In 1873 the Hondsbossche en Pettemer Zeewering became the dike as it stands today with heavy basalt blocks on the sea-facing side. On 1 February 1953 the Netherlands was hit by a devastating flooding. Large parts of the western provinces of the country were flooded and more than 1.800 people drowned during these floods. The Dutch government decided the so called ‘Deltaplan’, to create coastal reinforcements. Due to this plan the Hondsbossche en Pettemer Zeewering was raised till a height of 11,5 meters above NAP (Amsterdam Ordnance Datum). The climate is changing and sea levels are still rising. That means that several weak spots in the Dutch coastline had/have to be reinforced again. Hondsbossche en Pettemer Zeewering was one of these weak links. The authorities decided to use a new method for the reinforcement: Zand tegen Zee (Sand versus Sea). The dike itself was not raised, but instead March 2014 started the project to create a beach and dune area in front of the dike, stretching over eight kilometers between Petten and Camperduin and 250 meters wide. Approximately 35 million cubic meters of sand was used for this new piece of land of about 400 soccer fields. This approach resulted in a new recreation area with a new beach, cycling and walking paths, but also a new area for birds with a dune lake (PiP 3). The main picture and PiP 2 were taken from a newly created panorama dune (PiP 1) with a height of 26 meters near Petten.

Nikiti is a popular tourist town on the west coast of the Sithonia peninsula. In the summer months, the terraces along the sea are crowded with tourists. In the port of Nikiti tourist boats, yachts and fishing boats moor (PiP1). The village offers many restaurants, bars, cafes - especially along the seafront - and shops. The northern part of Nikiti is the most traditional neighborhood (PiP2). The old houses from the beginning of the 19th century along the narrow streets are built of stone. The red tiles and gardens create a friendly atmosphere in this (quiet) part of Nikiti.

Just a flowering tree (Persian silk tree or pink silk tree) on a beach along the coast of the Gulf of Corinth north of Galaxidi; a small harbour and fishing village.

Nafpaktos is a town with a history of 3.500 years. It is well known for the naval battle of Lepanto, which took in place in 1571. It was a clash between the fleet of the allied Christian and Ottoman forces in the Gulf of Corinth close to Lepanto (as Nafpaktos was called that days). The victory of the so called Holy League was significant as it stopped the expansion of the Ottoman Empire into the Mediterranean. Nafpaktos is dominated by a Venetian castle on the top of a hill some hundred meters above the town. The castle has some of the largest and most well-preserved fortifications in Greece and offers breathtaking views towards the Gulf of Corinth with the beautiful Rio-Antirio bridge, the opposite coasts of Peloponnesus and Nafpaktos and its Venetian harbour. Nowadays Nafpaktos is considered being one of the most picturesque places in mainland Greece with a medieval character, beautiful beaches and green hilly surroundings.

Wooden breakwater at the beach of Schoorl, nearby “De Kerf’, a man made opening through the first row of dunes. Breakwaters are constructed to absorb the energy of the waves, intended to prevent the erosion of sand along the coast. Usually they stand perpendicular to the dunes. These breakwaters are very rare along the coast of North Holland, so I was quite lucky to find one. (In Zealand and Zeelandic Flanders they are quite common.)

Beach huts on the beach in Camperduin. Beach and dunes were developed by means of sand supplementation in front of the Hondsbossche Zeewering (Hondsbossche Sea Defence) in order to increase the safety. The 5.5 kilometers long dike was expanded in the year of 2015 with a beach and dune strip with the size of more than 400 football fields.

San Luis de Sabinillas was originally a fishing village, developing over the past hundred years. As in almost all Spanish fishing villages not much importance was attached to aesthetics and architecture and the old town is a jumble of structures. Like most places along the Costa del Sol the village has grown rapidly over the last decade and lives more from tourism than from fishing. Sabinillas has a relatively authentic feel and has probably one of the few boulevards and beaches not spoiled by huge and ugly buildings.

Beach along the Rio Guadalquivir in Sanlúcar de Barrameda; a well known sherry producing town. At the other side of the river lies Doñana National Park.

Wooden breakwater at the beach of Nieuwvliet-Bad, nearby beach pavilion De Boekanier. This kind of breakwaters is quite common along the coast of Zealand and Zeelandic Flanders. They are constructed to absorb the energy of the waves, intended to prevent the erosion of sand along the coast. Usually they stand perpendicular to the dunes. In Zealand they are already used for hundreds of years.