Tidal nature at the Sophiapolder

The Sophiapolder is a relatively new area of ​​tidal nature in the river De Noord, located just outside Rotterdam. I visited the island a few times shortly after the dike was breached in 2011, but my last visit was already nine years ago. Curious to see the current state of this former polder, I took the waterbus to Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht one Wednesday in September, together travel companion, A.

Little Tiengemeten

In a way, the Sophiapolder is like a miniature version of Tiengemeten. Both islands lie on the fringes of the Rijnmond region; both were agricultural land for a long time and were transformed into wetland nature areas in the early 2000s. The difference, however, is that the Sophiapolder is much smaller: 77 hectares compared to Tiengemeten’s 1,050 hectares.

Sandbanks

Like Tiengemeten, the Sophiapolder originated from sandbanks forming in the river. In the mid-19th century, a dike was built around them to allow the area to be used for agriculture. The polder was named after our queen at the time.

Tidal nature

Later, various ship-scrapping yards sprang up along the island’s west coast, beside a channel known as the Rietbaan. In the 1990s, the decision was made to transform the area into a tidal landscape, restoring the land to its original state. Debris from the scrapyards was cleared away, the soil was remediated, and eventually, the dike was breached in two places.

Wadden

Since then, most of the Sophiapolder consists of mudflats and salt marshes. Twice a day, a large part of the area is submerged; the tidal range in the Noord river is approximately one meter. Vegetation is tentatively taking root on the slightly higher ground, while the lower-lying areas form a sort of mini-Wadden Sea—alternating between being submerged and exposed. The key difference, however, is that the incoming water here is fresh.

Ferry

The island is a paradise for birds. Yet humans are welcome too—at specific times and with just a little bit of effort. A small ferry runs from Veersedijk, crossing the Strooppot and Rietbaan channels and circling the Galgeplaat sandbank. The crossing to the Sophiapolder takes only a few minutes.

Terrace

Are there, like on Tiengemeten, inns, hotel rooms, and playgroundz in the Sophiapolder these days? No; in that respect, the island in the Noord bears little resemblance to its “big brother.” The changes have been subtle. The electric ferry is slightly larger than the previous one, and the Zuid-Hollands Landschap, owner of the area, has built a tiny visitor center. It features a small terrace with a beautiful view of the nature reserve.

Flowers

Otherwise, little has changed since our last visit nine years ago. Birds forage in the mud for tasty morsels. In the southern section, low-growing vegetation is still trying to take root, with varying degrees of success. And thousands of wildflowers are growing along the dikes, although the flowering season is naturally drawing to a close by late September.

Contrast

The tranquility of the island stands in stark contrast to the activity surrounding it. On the Noord river, there is a constant stream of inland vessels, water buses, and other river traffic. Across the water, we see the industrial areas of Alblasserdam and Papendrecht. On the Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht side, shipyards and ship-breaking yards remain, while a new residential area is also rising. To the south, the skyline of Dordrecht looms. You might find all that industry and urbanization intrusive, but as a photographer, I actually appreciate the contrasts.

Trains

Another contrast: twenty-five meters beneath the marshes, freight trains on the Betuwe Line are rolling through the Sophia railway tunnel. But you have to know that, because you don’t notice a thing on the surface. Or perhaps you do: the island was, after all, returned to nature (depoldered) as compensation for the construction of the Betuwe Line.

Loop

The entire northern half of the Sophiapolder is inaccessible; during our previous visit, there was still a path along the east coast leading to the northern tip, but that is now closed off. And, for that matter, completely overgrown.

As a result, there’s not a lot of hiking to do. In fact, there is really only one loop to take: along the Rietbaan to the southern tip, then a stretch along the Noord river, and finally back via the zigzagging boardwalks. Or the other way around, of course. It’s a two-and-a-half-kilometer walk in total, so it won’t take you hours. But afterwards, coffee and tea await on the visitor center terrace.

Birds

I usually leave the bird-spotting to travel companion A. He spotted shelducks, mallards, herring gulls, lesser and greater black-backed gulls, black-headed gulls, coots, swans, cormorants, greylag geese, Canada geese, Egyptian geese, a wagtail, and a kingfisher. A volunteer at the visitor center also showed us photos of a pair of white-tailed eagles that has recently paid a visit to the Sophiapolder.

Free crossing

For anyone wanting to take a look at the Sophiapolder: the ferry runs only on Saturdays, Sundays, and Wednesdays from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM, and only from March through October. In winter, there is one sailing day per month. The crossing is free; the coffee and tea are not.