Storm clouds hovering above the swans on Kralingse plas.
... view from the other side of the lake, towards Rotterdam and clearer skies.
The Kralingse Plas is a ~100 ha (~250 acre) lake northeast of Rotterdam centrum. One trip around the square-ish lake is approximately 4 km (2.5 miles), depending how close you stick to the shoreline. The lake is also, conveniently, a 10 minute bike ride from my new apartment, and home to Never Dry, my new kayaking club. Read on to learn about the fascinating history of this seemingly simple lake.
Boat launch and backyard at Never Dry kayak/canoe club.
Every Wednesday night, members gather at the clubhouse for an evening paddle, drink, or combination of both. Last night I met a few more members and did two laps around the lake with Amelia and Iede. I'm now a fully inaugurated, key-carrying, WhatsApp group member of the club, and already signed up for too many future trips! There's something so freeing about knowing that I can now casually go for a paddle in a nice sea kayak any time my heart desires.
The lake is home to various sailing, boating, rowing, and paddling clubs. Our neighbor is the Rotterdam Canoe Club, which seems to emphasize more racing and recreational paddling. Their member age distribution also seems to be skewed lower than that of Never Dry. But sea kayaking is my true love, and age has never played a big role in how I chose my kayaking friends :) Hopefully there will be ways to collaborate and get to know folks from both clubs!
The lake is home to various sailing, boating, rowing, and paddling clubs. Our neighbor is the Rotterdam Canoe Club, which seems to emphasize more racing and recreational paddling. Their member age distribution also seems to be skewed lower than that of Never Dry. But sea kayaking is my true love, and age has never played a big role in how I chose my kayaking friends :) Hopefully there will be ways to collaborate and get to know folks from both clubs!
The club's cool logo. Kayak representation notably lacking... :)
Selfie from my first paddle on the Kralingse Plas.
|
The clubhouse. I look forward to spending many more Wednesday nights here!
|
Club boat storage.
Amelia in front of Restaurant de Schone Lei.
History of Kralingse Plas in Rotterdam
Anyways, my goal for this post was to do some research into the Kralingse Plas. Simply reading the Dutch Wikipedia and Rotterdam City websites gives a glimpse into how interesting the history of a little Dutch lake can be:
The lake (which, like most Dutch water-features, is not natural) and 14 others were created by farming peat. The 17th century saw an increased demand for fuel in Rotterdam, resulting from the brick and gold pipe industries and population growth. The peat was a dense and readily available fuel source; they literally burned the ground out from under themselves (at other locations in the Netherlands the ground sunk because the marshes were drained, and then oxidized when exposed to air, or because of groundwater withdrawal).
Soon they found themselves surrounded by more and more water, with the lakes growing ever larger due to edge erosion (larger lake --> larger waves --> more erosion --> larger lake...) and less space to develop. Eventually, they even had to move the town of Kralingen to its current location because of the encroaching erosion.
The lake (which, like most Dutch water-features, is not natural) and 14 others were created by farming peat. The 17th century saw an increased demand for fuel in Rotterdam, resulting from the brick and gold pipe industries and population growth. The peat was a dense and readily available fuel source; they literally burned the ground out from under themselves (at other locations in the Netherlands the ground sunk because the marshes were drained, and then oxidized when exposed to air, or because of groundwater withdrawal).
Soon they found themselves surrounded by more and more water, with the lakes growing ever larger due to edge erosion (larger lake --> larger waves --> more erosion --> larger lake...) and less space to develop. Eventually, they even had to move the town of Kralingen to its current location because of the encroaching erosion.
Peat harvesters digging up peat and laying it on islands to try. Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/hvpa/with/3285413297/
The 14 lakes (blue) that were diked and drained to make the Prince Alexander Polder. Only the Kralingse Plas (green) remained. The lines were drawn by engineer J.A. Beijerinck. Today nearly all of this area is developed, and a train runs through it. Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/hvpa/with/3285413297/
In the late 1800s, all but one of the 15 lakes were diked and drained for development (see drawing). Only the Noordplas remained, and only because of strong engagement and resistance by a few powerful residents. The lake was renamed Kralingse Plas when Kralingen was annexed by Rotterdam in 1895. The Kralingse Bos (forest) was constructed in 1906 using dredged material from the Rotterdam Harbor. Around this time, the kayak club was born!
On May 14th, 1940, the Germans bombed and destroyed the city center of Rotterdam. Only a church, post office, trade center, and town hall remained. That's why Rotterdam looks and feels so different compared to other cities in the Netherlands - the city was completely rebuilt, taking advantage of this opportunity to better plan the city (read more here - interesting connection to US cities). Some of the rubble excavated from the destroyed city center was deposited in the Kralingse Plas, creating the broad green stretch and islands along the south edge of the lake.
Two windmills stand on the east edge of the lake: De Lelie (The Lily, 1740) and De Ster (The Star, 1886), both of which are still used to grind spices. A beach lines the west side of the lake, with the northernmost corner a designated nude beach! I'll let you know how that goes in the summer (swimming opens May 1st).
On May 14th, 1940, the Germans bombed and destroyed the city center of Rotterdam. Only a church, post office, trade center, and town hall remained. That's why Rotterdam looks and feels so different compared to other cities in the Netherlands - the city was completely rebuilt, taking advantage of this opportunity to better plan the city (read more here - interesting connection to US cities). Some of the rubble excavated from the destroyed city center was deposited in the Kralingse Plas, creating the broad green stretch and islands along the south edge of the lake.
Two windmills stand on the east edge of the lake: De Lelie (The Lily, 1740) and De Ster (The Star, 1886), both of which are still used to grind spices. A beach lines the west side of the lake, with the northernmost corner a designated nude beach! I'll let you know how that goes in the summer (swimming opens May 1st).
Erik and another new club member practicing their J-strokes.
I hope you enjoyed learning a bit of Rotterdam history - something that I expect will become a common theme in my posts about paddling through my new city!
Date: Wednesday, April 26th, 2017
Distance: ~8.6 km (5.3 miles)
Duration: ~1.5 hrs
Weather: Cool, breezy, impending rain, but it stayed dry!
Distance: ~8.6 km (5.3 miles)
Duration: ~1.5 hrs
Weather: Cool, breezy, impending rain, but it stayed dry!
RSS Feed
