Noordhollands Duinreservaat

The Noordhollands Duinreservaat runs about twenty-five kilometres along the coast between Wijk aan Zee and Bergen and covers roughly five thousand three hundred hectares, which makes it one of the largest dune areas in the country. It is owned and managed by the regional water company, because these dunes filter drinking water for North Holland - river water is infiltrated into the sand and drawn out clean, which is why parts have channels and are fenced. That management has kept the area open. There are dune heaths, wet valleys, planted woodland, and a herd of European bison introduced at Kraansvlak from 2007 in one of the first such projects in Western Europe, kept in a large enclosure with a walking route through part of it when the animals allow. Konik horses and Scottish Highland cattle graze elsewhere.

What you actually see

• Five thousand hectares of dune - twenty-five kilometres of the North Holland coast.
• A drinking water catchment - infiltration channels and the management they require.
• European bison at Kraansvlak - introduced from 2007, in a large enclosure.
• Grazing herds - Konik horses and Highland cattle keeping the dunes open.

When to go

April to October. A day.

Honest expectations

Some entrances need a paid day ticket. The bison route closes when the herd is near it, and sightings are not guaranteed. Cycling is restricted to marked paths. Ticks are common.

Nearby

Castricum aan Zee is on the coast; the Schoorlse Duinen continue north.