Scenes from Vlieland - part two: when it storms

The past few years we had some real winters here, which is quite rare as the island has a more temperate climate than the main land because of the ocean's influence, but this year it seems that winter is passing us by and is being replaced by a very long autumn. Okay, the trees are bare and it's a little colder, but that's about it. And...we get many many storms.

Of course in a place like this it's always windy, but the real storms like the past week with forces up to 11 and even 12 beaufort winds can really keep you awake at night and...they give spectacular roaring seas and high waters. Last week we had two big storms in a row and I got a chance to take some pictures of the extra high tides.

Because of the high water this car has to almost ride sideways against the dunes.

These poles usually stand on dry land.

These are part of a dam. I sometimes sit on them when the water's normal.

The water is covering a road here that runs next to the Wadden Sea.

Kids were enjoying biking through the water.

Sandbags were put in place as a precaution against the water.

And some people have these boards that slide into premade slots.

Here you can see the damage to the dunes when the storm calmed down.

The water was not extremely high, we've seen much worse, but the weather was rough enough to prevent the ferry from going to the main land. We were isolated for an entire day last week.

I don't know why, but there's something cosy about being seperated from the 'real world'. ;-) It's one of the charms of living in this place. Nothing can be taken for granted.