The Zuid-Kennemerland National Park is located between Zandvoort and IJmuiden on the coast and offers something for everyone. You will find wild dunes, beautiful dune lakes, wide beaches and beautiful estates. Did you know that the National Park has existed for 25 years?
The Netherlands has 21 national parks. We have set ourselves the goal of visiting all these beautiful parks within a year. I make a report with beautiful photos of every visit. Do you want to see which parks we have already visited? Then take a look here!
Typically… .. National Park Zuid-Kennemerland
This national park is a combination of wild dunes and dune grassland on one side and country estates on the other. In addition, you will also find a large strip of beach with dunes on the edge of the park. Here you can get a breath of fresh air and you will find one of the widest beaches in the Netherlands at IJmuiden.
In this park you will find many different plant and animal species. There are large grazers such as Scottish Highlanders, Konik horses and fallow deer. Bison have recently been released. Few trees grow, but many shrubs such as hawthorn, dog rose and sea buckthorn. The dune grassland is unique in Europe.
The park covers 3,800 hectares. It is an area where you can walk and cycle very well and quietly. But wherever you can go with your horse or with your children. You can even swim there. There are many possibilities. The founder of the park is Jac. P. Thijsse, this is one of the country’s first conservationists. He tried to bring people into contact with nature in a positive and humorous way. You can take a walking / cycling tour that takes you back in the time of Thijsse: the Thijsse Tour.
There is a Visitor Center and Duincafé, De Kennemerduinen, here you will find all the information, there is a shop, an exhibition and you can enjoy something to drink or eat.
My humble opinion
Having visited this area many times as a child, I have fond memories of it. Last year we had a lovely walk here during our NS walking tour. This time our visit was short, we took a walk on the beach during storm Bella. But even in the pouring rain and strong wind, the beautiful nature of this park is impressive. We will definitely come back with better weather. Who knows, maybe we can spot bison!
The route
We visit the national park during storm Bella. So I left my Canon camera at home and only take a few photos with my I-phone. We start at the beach and walk in the pouring rain and strong wind. Fortunately we are well dressed, we put on a nice rain jacket and pants.
Into the dunes
At Kattendel we walk into the dune area. We make a tour along the Vogelmeer, among others. This lake is man-dug, as are a number of other lakes in the park. It is now an attractive place for a variety of birds.
Dunes and dune grassland
Several dunes have trees at the top, but there are mainly shrubs and grass here. We notice how wet the area is. Very different from last year when we visited the park during a dry period. Besides the lakes, we see puddles everywhere in the landscape. A boot pad that we encountered is now only suitable for waders or a diving suit!
We follow the red, green and blue posts and eventually arrive at the parking lot on the beach.
Information
- Start and end point: parking lot on the beach at Bloemendaal aan Zee
- Length: 5 kilometers via a self-made route along, among other things, the beach and the Vogelmeer
- Marking: You can follow different routes, the posts are clear. In addition, there are other paths, use the map that you find on the website
- Information: on the website of np-zuidkenemerland you will find a lot of information, in addition on websites of staatsbosbeheer and natuurmonumenten
