Walk.with.me #3: Want to see the world's largest collection of old windmills? Go to Kinderdijk!

The world’s largest cluster of old windmills have stood along a Dutch waterline for centuries. Built around year 1740 to help with flood water control in polder regions (tracts of low land lying below sea level), the Kinderdijk Windmills have been in operation up till WWII and are still able to be used today should a flooding emergency arise.

We planned to drive to Kinderdijk Windmills from Düsseldorf, park there (€5 per car), and walk around the area. There is the option of a 30-minute canal cruise (tickets cost €8 per adult, €5.50 per child aged 4-12, and free for those aged 3 and under), but we prefer the freedom of roaming around on our own two legs :)

The drive was a little over 2 hours long, but our singalong karaoke session to Spotify made it seem shorter. We took a break at a gas tank station.

To use the toilet, each visitor feeds 50 cents into a coin slot gantry and receives a ticket. The ticket given can later be used to buy an item at a 50-cent discount in the convenience store. There was such a big selection of hot and cold snacks to pick from! We finally settled on croquets, frikadelle, and a satay chicken stick.

We arrived at Kinderdijk around 12 noon.

There was a cafe at the entrance to the Windmills of Kinderdijk. It had a cool tree trunk log on which guests could lock their bikes up.

We started our walk, passing by an elderly fisherman trying his luck on the canal.

Water lilies thrive in the park too.

A random basket sat quietly on a bank. This is what I imagine the reed basket of Baby Moses would have looked like in the Bible story. Only, this one's so big that I could probably fit inside comfortably. :)

And of course, a couple windmills!

Ten minutes into our walk, we noticed a gathering ahead. My first thought was, Great, tour group alert! There’s gonna be many arms and legs and cameras in my photos today.

I was wrong. An ice cream bicycle stand was what caused the excitement. :)

Did you know that ducks like ice cream too? Someone dropped their scoop of vanilla ice cream on the floor, and this little duck walked over for a creamy snack.

A bridge went across the waterway, leading to a Windmill Museum. It was a drawbridge that could be opened up to allow boats to go by.

We did a quick detour over the bridge, only to find that the Museum was not open to visitors for the day. Still, I managed to get a group shot of us on the bridge :)

We carried on walking down the main path with water and windmills on each side.

Even though the skies were kinda overcast, the sun was still rather strong. Fortunately, a light breeze stirred up the air and hair from time to time.

We went round the bend where the walking and biking paths merged into one long, straight path.

Along this path, there were small little wooden landings on which boaters or boat passengers could embark/disembark. A local Dutch lady sat with her dog on one of them, enjoying the feel of the cool water on her immersed feet.

You can get close to the water and lean out to take a better shot.

Always be careful where you tread even while being distracted with all that photo-taking! Your foot could land in the water, on a stinging nettle patch, or in something much worse ;)

We walked till we passed the last windmill.

Then took a detour to watch a farmer baling freshly cut grass, before heading back the same way we came from.

The ice cream bicycle stand was less crowded on the way back. So we got ice cream (€1 per ice cream) for some of the boys. Why not for everyone? Because when Ying and I were ordering the ice creams, we noticed that it came from commercial tubs, so we decided to pass.

One last shot of a duck and a windmill, but this time, together. This windmill was happily spinning away. I took a video too, if you want to see that one, comment, and I'll post it up.

We finally reached the entrance after 2.5 hours of walking. Checked out some souvenirs and bought a Holland mug while The Mann got a free coffee that came with the parking ticket.

There're also homes behind the parking area. I only realised it as we walked to the car. Such a pretty area to live in!

Kinderdijk Windmills is a UNESCO world heritage site today, and for a good reason.

In the summer months, there’s a couple of cool ways available to get to there: One can pre-book a 150-minute horse-drawn carriage ride through Kinderdijk Windmills if traveling in a group of more than 10 persons. There are also regular water buses that bring you to Kinderdijk Windmills from Rotterdam in 45 minutes (€8 for a return ticket).

If you, like me, have always had your interest in windmills piqued by the colourful illustrations of children’s books, head to the Windmills at Kinderdijk. In one walk, you can see its 19 old windmills and enjoy their thatched, stone, and brick variety.

Address:
Molenkade Nederwaard 1
2961 AS Kinderdijk, The Netherlands

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