We've had days of freezing temperatures, and Holland is now in the grip of ice fever! Everyone is on the ice, not only slating, but walking, biking, ice sailing, or as here, kite sledging - they use the big kites to pull a small sledge very fast along the wide iced up gouwzee outside Monnickendam Harbour.Yesterday was glorious weather, but very cold, and hundreds of people made the trip over the ice to Marken, there were middle aged couples with matching fleeces, skating sedately in tandem linked with a long pole, and young couples with their babies on old fashioned sledges making the trip.
The most impressive were the ice yachts, some modern, some lovingly restored wooden yachts from the 19th century, The Monnickendam club has 23 and yesterday all but 2 of them were on the ice
Here are a few at the entrance to the harbour. Some of them weigh up to 600 kilos so to manouver the yachts, before they catch the wind, you need to wear not skates, but ice clogs, like these!
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that looks amazing, but also scares me a little. You need to be really sure of the ice if there is a 600lb ship sitting on it!
How far is it to skate to Marken?
Hi Bev,
If you saw how many people were standing on the ice round the hot chocolate tent, you would realise the wight of the yacht was nothing!
I don't know how far it is to Marken, as the crow skates - about 3 km? But people were setting off on 50km to 60km skating trips all over holland at the weekend!
Jane
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