The Dutch Windmills of Kinderdijk On The Holland Barge Cruise
Kinderdijk is a village in the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. It is situated in a low lying area at the conflux of the Lek and Noord rivers. Around 1740, a system of 19 windmills was created in order to drain the polder (a tract of land surrounded by dikes). This particular group of windmills is the largest concentration of old windmills in the Netherlands.
The windmills of Kinderdijk are one of the most renowned Dutch tourist sites. They have been listed on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites since 1997.
A traditional windmill (called windmolen) is possibly the most exemplary Dutch symbol. As you travel about the Netherlands, you can find usually one or probably two Dutch windmills dispersed in the landscape, set apart in the fields. However, you can seldom find the great sails moving, as many are no longer operational. It’s sad but true that there are only about a thousand or so windmills left in the entire country. A source claims there are about 1,150 windmills left, but the fact is that the Dutch will only “count” a windmill if it is fully operational. So, the display of several spectacular windmills, sails rotating in the wind, such as these at Kinderdijk, is indeed a sight to enthrall a tourist’s heart.
For centuries, the use of windmills to pump out excess groundwater, dikes, sluices and canals has been part of the Dutch culture and survival. The 19 remaining windmills at Kinderdijk are actually still operational, although now modern technology does most of the pumping and land reclamation throughout the modern Netherlands. But the fact remains that, for centuries, the windmills played an important role in pumping water from the polders into the canals from ground water overloads, flood waters, and, in the area nearest to the North Sea, high tide waters.
Take A Holland Barge Cruise to The Dutch Windmills
Though Kinderdijk is particularly famous for its windmills, it is also a recreational area, drawing many hikers and bikers to the miles of paths topping the hundreds of dikes in this great polder.
Our Holland Barge Cruises and Holland Tulip River Cruises offer excursions to Kinderdijk. Call us for more information about these cruises and book one of them to see the spectacular beauty of the windmills at Kinderdijk! Europeanbarging 888-869-7907
