Driving on a Dike (Lekdijk) in the Dutch Countryside

Have you seen a dike?

The Netherlands popularised dike technology due to necessity. It is a beautiful very flat and low country surrounded by water everywhere. When you get out of the city, you will see lots of winding dikes, endless water and the flat green countryside that makes the Netherlands unique and refreshing.

This is the Lekdijk, a dike and a road. To the left you can see the river, this is the River Lek that flows all the way to Rotterdam. There are however dikes that are much taller than this.

These pictures were taken last year on Lekdijk at the back of IJsselstein and Nieuwegein between Lopik and Wijk bij Duurstede. Dutchman and I went for an afternoon ride.

The Lekdijk in Utrecht is a road, as well a dike that protects Utrecht and the northern part of the Netherlands from flooding when the waters rise from the River Lek. It is quite a long winding dike road that follows the flow of its namesake river from Ameide/Lopik to Amerongen.

Here is the River Lek and the Lekdijk on the map:

I used the walking route here so the path will follow the flow of the river. You can move the map by holding it with your mouse, as well as zoom it in and out by clicking on the + and - signs on the lower right hand side.

If you visit the country and have enough days to go around, do rent a car and drive on the dikes. Much better actually if you ride on it with a bike =). Since dikes are everywhere in the countryside which isn't really that far from the cities and big towns (read: because the country is small), you are guaranteed not to miss it.

I suggest a scenic drive from Amsterdam -> Ouderkerk aan den Amstel -> Uithoorn -> Mijdrecht -> Harmelen -> Montfoort -> Lopik -> Lekdijk. You then follow Lekdijk all the way to Amerongen and back.

The Netherlands is obsessed with bike lanes (see the red lanes), even the dike roads in the countryside are fitted with them.

Strolling on the dike =)

Houses and farms just below the dike.

Horses, sheep and cows graze the countryside just below the dikes.

Biking on the dike =)

Families with kids biking on the dike. Biking here in the Netherlands is not a hobby or sport. It is part of daily life. It is the most basic form of transportation. 

Now you see what a dike (and the Dutch countryside) looks like!

Travel Period: September 2014
Destination: Lekdijk (Utrecht), The Netherlands

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