Discover the jewels of the North Sea
Take a P&O ferry to Rotterdam and head north, says John Hillman, and you’ll soon reach Germany’s wild and dramatic North Sea Frisian islands. There you’ll discover a land of mudflats, crashing waves, fine sandy beaches and abundant wildlife that was also the setting of the world’s first ever modern literary thriller.
The Frisian Islands consist of four large islands and ten smaller ones, or inlets. Situated high on Germany’s coast near the Danish border in the Wattenmeer National Park, they are known as the Jewels of the North Sea.
The combined beauty of marshlands, vast sand dunes and unspoilt countryside creates a tangible atmosphere of the remote and the romantic; nature at play beneath endless acres of open sky.
It was along these shores that Erskine Childers took the inspiration to write his famous 1903 thriller The Riddle of the Sands, navigating the rugged coastline with his brother Henry, on their thirty foot cutter Vixen he hatched the plot involving a pair of friends who accidentally discover a secret German plan to invade Britain.
The book was a roaring success. Not only has it never been out of print, and was made into a 1979 film starring Michael York and Simon MacCorkindale, Winston Churchill credits it with being an important motivator of public opinion, which allowed the British Government to establish naval bases in various North Sea coastal regions of Britain.
Today the Frisian Islands are still a favourite holiday destination for sailing enthusiasts, cyclists and birdwatchers, as well as being a source of inspiration to the many photographers and artists who flock each summer to capture the area’s extraordinarily magical light.
With strong tides and unpredictable weather sailing holidays, although incredible rewarding, are only recommended to experienced mariners. For the rest of us the islands remain an area of outstanding natural beauty worth visiting for the picturesque thatched villages and wild coastlines alone.
Northern Germany and the Frisian Islands are easily reached by car from P&O Ferries ports of Rotterdam, Zeebrugge or Calais as part of an adventurous driving holiday. Go on, explore your continent!
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