Noordwijk aan Zee, Katwijk aan Zee, Rijnsburg

Mermaids, heroes, queens and everyday villagers: everywhere along the boulevards of Noordwijk- and Katwijk aan Zee, statues tell something about the life, present and past of the coastal towns. You might easily pass them by on your bike, but this art route takes a closer look.

Welcome
Smiling broadly, the extremely colourful and scantily clad mermaid on the pavement in front of the Palace hotel seems to welcome everyone to the tourist area of Noordwijk aan Zee. Her golden locks, pink bikini and blue fin gleaming in the sun. No better starting point for a cycling tour of sculptures and other art by the coast than here.

Both along Noordwijk's promenade and in the neighbouring town of Katwijk, you come across accessible and recognisable statues and sculptures everywhere along the sea strip. Some are about special people or events, such as the huge statue of Queen Wilhelmina in Noordwijk, or of a lifeguard pulling a drowning person out of the water. Others depict very ordinary coastal townspeople in their daily activities, such as the net-maker sitting repairing a fishing net, the concentrated artists painting something only they can see and the elderly couple wading carefully through the sea water with their trousers rolled up.

Almost all the sculptures you encounter along the way were made by renowned artists who lived and worked here in the area or still do. Like the Hague-based sculptor, ceramist and illustrator Berry Holslag who created the Noordwijk Mermaid and former painter and sculptor Charlotte van Pallandt who designed the large statue of Queen Wilhelmina on the Noordwijk Boulevard.

Regional greats
Not only by the sea, but also in the towns a little further inland, the route passes some striking works of art. Just outside Wassenaar, for instance, you will read beautiful poems placed in nature and in Valkenburg you will stumble upon a silent statue of two horse traders that tells you about the busy horse market that has been held here for centuries. In Voorhout, a small diversions to the Nagel Bridge is well worth it. Over the bridge, you can see the tall artwork The Kiss, which consists of four mask-like, aluminium silhouettes gently kissing each other. Created by Rijnsburg artist Joop van Egmond, it symbolises the love and connection between the villages of Voorhout, Rijnsburg, Oegstgeest and Noordwijk.

The power of art
Striking art makes you stop and look, read or listen for a moment. It can detach you from your daily thoughts and offer a new perspective on reality. If all the art on this route has opened your senses, you might also experience the Coepelduinen and Berkheide nature reserves more intensely along the way. Just look at the beautiful shapes of the dune lakes, the symmetry in a spruce, the flowers of a dune rose and the gentle swaying of marram grass stems in the wind: natural art!


Note: Along the way, you will encounter a cycle ferry. Check the disembarkation point and the website for more information on the sailing schedule. Do you cycle the route when the ferry does not sail? Then cycle around via junctions 93, 58, 34 (or vice versa from the other direction).


This premium cycle route has been compiled by our editor: Wieger Favier.