Русская версияMeasuring just 18 square kilometers (about 7 square miles),
Spiekeroog is home to 820 islanders whose numbers swell in the high
season by 3,500 tourists -- most of whom stay in holiday
apartments.
The nearby bathing resort on Norderney, one of six neighboring
islands, used to be better known.
But as early as 1846, guests
started coming here instead because it was "less noisy and
luxurious." On first glance, nothing has changed much.
There are no cars or any other motor vehicles on the island. Even
riding a bicycle is deemed to be disturbing the peace.
"Trips with a horse and carriage are possible," said tourism
director Silvia Nolte by way of compensation.
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With cars and bikes forbidden, the fastest form of island transport
is horse
Natural treasure trove
There are likewise not a lot of excursions to be had on what is
essentially a huge sandbank along the Wadden Sea. The highest
elevation and "East Frisia's tallest mountain" is a dizzy 24
meters. Long walks along the beach -- the best time is when the
tide has just gone out leaving the sand nice and firm -- are among
the most relaxing attractions on the island.
In contrast to the other Frisian islands, Spiekeroog's main
settlement escaped the ravages of the post-war reconstruction. A
village has been known at this site since 1600. The broad belt of
sandbanks around the settlement affords it protection from the
North Sea and there are consequently many older houses to be seen
which have withstood centuries of wind and weather.
The village church built in 1696 is the oldest house of worship in
the East Frisian Islands. Among its treasures is a picture of the
apostles said to have come from the flagship of the Spanish Armada
which sailed against England in 1588.
Norderloog is the location of an eccentric little museum with all
manner of stuffed birds, including a pheasant which crashed into
the door during a storm and broke its neck. The flotsam and jetsam
preserved here include the 16-kilogram (35-pound) lumbar vertebra
of a whale and a stuffed crocodile which must have been thrown
overboard by a passing sailor.
Fleeting literary fame
One who passed this way many years ago was Irish nationalist writer
Erskine Childers whose spy novel "The Riddle of the Sands" (1903)
revolves around two amateur yachtsmen who sail along the Frisian
coast on holiday and end up foiling a plot by Kaiser Wilhelm to
invade Britain. Spiekeroog plays a part in the story.
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With few motorized options, islanders adore beach play
The best thing about Spiekeroog, however, is its tranquil
landscape. There is plenty of woodland, thanks to a forestry
director from Hanover who came as a guest in 1862 and could not
resist planting little copses of pine, birch and oak trees. The
islanders followed his example and today Spiekeroog is decidedly
green. It is even home to the long-eared owl.
The so-called "Ostplate" in the east with its wide sandy beaches
can only be enjoyed on foot. Countless seabirds give birth to their
offspring here and the seals come to sunbathe. The drift line is
littered with objects abandoned by the waves.
Sometimes the sea shells pressed into the sand and garnered with
seaweed are like still life arrangements, so delicate that the
visitor is loath to disturb them by pocketing a souvenir.
(Deutsche Welle)
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