What I love about Terschelling

Exploring the beauty of a Dutch island

Early sunset behind the trees

My family and I are yearly visitors of Terschelling without exception. Celebrating New Year´s Eve in a small cottage is what we love to do to escape from the hustle and bustle of city life.

The island can be reached by the ferry from the mainland town of Harlingen, which takes about 2 hours. There are several ways to get to your accomodation such as by bus or bike.

Once arrived, you will not have a hard time figuring out what to do. Exploring the island by yourself can be done by hiking, visiting the small towns and the lighthouse and mountainbiking. However, there are also organized events such as horse riding, stargazing, and mudflat hiking. I am a fan of the versatile nature (forests, moorland, dunes and beaches), the orange sunsets and the birdlife.

Barrel jellyfish (Rhizostoma octopus) — Polypody (Polypodium sp.) showing its sori in the backlight — Stormy and cloudy Dutch weather

Wet dune-like landscape full of life

I never visited Terschelling in another time than winter; that does not mean it is not on my bucket list. I would love to explore the bird life in summer and see leafed trees in stead of bold ones for a change. Besides, the island is most known for its summer festival Oerol attracting around 50.000 visitors yearly, and for its cranberries, most abundant around September.

However, winter makes a great excuse for doing boardgames while sitting in front of the fireplace, and to go for a well-deserved lunch with coffee after a hike.

All in all, Terschelling is the perfect place to catch a breath of fresh air. I think it would be fair to call it my second home.

Sanderlings (Calidris alba) running along the coastline: a regular scene on Terschelling

Stay updated for my post about birds to find on Terschelling during winter!

Thanks for reading! I hope you like my post. I am Mo Schouten, a Biology student located in the Netherlands. Capturing my environment with a camera is what I love most. — — Want to stay updated? I do not have a very fancy subscription page, but please send a message below or via mail/Facebook and I´ll put you on my e-mail list. You will get a notification every time I upload a new post (usually once a week). Comments as well as tips are also welcome; leave them below!