Friesland is the land of dykes, water, survivors, old-fashioned cosiness and quiet streets paved with dark red rectangular clinkers. There, we discovered a beautiful and special part of the Netherlands and learned a lot about water and the relationship Frisians have with water. This trip was not only fascinating, but also practical, because once you are in south-west Friesland, everything is close together, which is super convenient.

Water everywhere

We start our trip in Lemmer, a beautiful old fishing village also called the gateway to Friesland, 250 km from Antwerp. And immediately the "Waterland of Friesland" tone is set, as we sleep at a campsite next to the IJsselmeer (read: water).

The centre of Lemmer is particularly charming thanks to the boats bobbing on the, yes, water and we visit the impressive Wouda pumping station (read: also something with lots of water).

Wait, Woudawhat? Well, a pumping station is a collection of machines that suck millions of litres of water a minute out of the ground and spit it into a large pool - in this case, the IJsselmeer. In other words, a pumping station is a necessary evil in Friesland to ensure that people live here dry and safe, because Friesland is below sea level.

Fearless Frisians have a special bond with water. They embrace it and have been looking for liveable solutions for both nature and residents since time immemorial. This is noticeable throughout the trip. For example, the Dutch built the Afsluitdijk, a dyke that closes off the North Sea. Can you imagine a sea!!! Really crazy. And they built villages on residential mounds made of clay, earth and manure so the houses would stay dry during a flood. That's what they call a mound village. Allingawier is an example of this.

The Frisians also make a virtue of all that water. Just think of the Elfstedentocht on natural ice, countless sailing competitions and the lucrative eel trade with London that was set up from the village of Heeg at the time. Still, when choosing a place to stay, take all that water into account and don't make the same mistake as I did in Sudersé: one rainy day, I decided to park in mud on a grassy field, you guessed it, we were stuck there. Fortunately, this happened at a campsite whose friendly owner has a tractor and it pulled me out nicely the next day. The relieve!

Conviviality trumps

Speaking of Elfsteden, we do pass a few on our route: Sneek, IJlst, Hindeloopen, Heeg and Lemmer. Sneek is already a bit bigger, but still very cosy, Hindeloopen is called the Venice of Friesland and was marked as a 'top experience' by Lonely Planet in 2018, Heeg and Lemmer are very pretty on the water and I can imagine it must be lovely terraces here in summer, and then we have IJlst. This is the surprise on the route as far as I'm concerned. IJlst is a small and super cosy town. The centre has just a few quiet streets with all the little cosy houses next to each other, each of which has a characteristic yard. These are perfectly maintained little gardens between the street and the canal. Oh yes, there is also a very cosy brown pub in the town centre.

Except IJlst and strolling through the Eleven Cities are my highlights on the route:

• Walking in the Rijster forest - follow the 5.5 km route via blue directions and be amazed by the beautiful ancient beech trees, winding paths, water, silence and (autumn) colours. Magically beautiful!
• Bird-watching hut De Swan, a hidden gem on the IJsselmeer in a lush nature reserve.
• The route between Stavoren and Molkwar, a tight somewhat deserted road with grass on both sides and a view of a choppy lake. I had a bit of an end-of-the-world feeling here. Lovely! And although it was storming like hell at the time, I couldn't resist stepping out to capture the beauty of this road. Afterwards, we struggled to close the motorhome door in the nick of time, after which the children rightly remarked: "Mum, have you gone all tick-tock?". Oops!

The cliff (yep, the Netherlands has 3 cliffs!) at Mirns, a beautiful spot on the IJsselmeer where, when the wind blows, you can see dozens of colourful kitesurfers dancing in the air.

Conclusion: lots of nature, water, cosiness and goodies. I would say: consider this destination and route (and maybe even more in summer, as the water sports and enjoyment along the water's edge come into their own even more). We never had to drive long or far. There are also plenty of campsites or RV parks with the necessary facilities. Parking at cities or other attractions was never a problem either.

Our route in a nutshell

• DAY 1: Visit Woudagemaal in Lemmer, Tjeukemeer in Echten, eat at the Fûke in Echten and sleep at Holidaypark Lemmer on the IJsselmeer.
• DAY 2: via the zwerfkei in Rottum to Sneek for lunch and city walk, in the evening eating at the city inn in IJlst and sleeping at the motorhome site in IJlst.
• DAY 3: visit to sawmill De Rat in IJlst, lunch in Heeg, stop at the cliff in Mirns, dinner in Koudum and sleep at farm campsite De Braamberg in Mirns. 
• DAY 4: hiking in Rijsterbos, short stop in Stavoren and bird hide De Swan, lunch and city walk in Hindeloopen, dinner at Friesland's most beautiful square in Workum and sleeping at camping Sudersé in Workum.
• DAY 5: past the Elfsteden monument in Tjerkwerd and mound village Allingawier, and appropriately conclude with lunch at the Afsluitdijk Wadden Centre visitor centre.

Cool campsite spotted

Of our four nights, one location stood out: boerderijcamping De Braamberg in Mirns. Because of its location and facilities. The campsite is located next to the picturesque Rijsterbos forest and opposite the IJsselmeer on one of the Netherlands' three cliffs. On the beach you can enjoy the view over the gigantic lake and the countless kite surfers, you can kite, surf or swim yourself or have something to eat and drink at Paviljoen 't Mar. At the campsite itself, there are pipowagens on the lawn in summer and special spots for campers all year round. The indoor area in the campsite's hangar is a cosy meeting place with a play area for children.

More details on this 5-day in Friesland can be found in the Get Out Of Town travel blog.

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