Off-Leash Area – Beach and dunes at Ouddorp

Last week I drew the popsiclestick with ‘Beach and dunes Ouddorp’ on it for the DogBlog Stick Challenge, so we went to this super nice walking area, twice! Today my blog with our experience and my review of this area.

The dunes and the beach at Ouddorp

A beautiful off-leash route through the dunes starts at the parking lot on the Vrijheidsweg and ends at the beach. In the winter months, dogs are always allowed to run off-leash on the beach here, in the summer months there are places where the dog must either be on a leash between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., or is not welcome at all. There are also still parts where the dog is allowed to run off-leash, so always check the signs before you go on the beach!

As mentioned, you can park on the Vrijheidsweg, I have never seen it completely full there, so there is usually more than enough space to park your car. I’m guessing that when the weather is really nice in the summer, it can get very busy here, but you have to wonder if it’s still fun to go there with your dog at these times.

Our walk

During our walk on Monday we walked via the dunes to the beach, and on Friday we walked exactly the same route in the opposite direction (and therefore started on the beach). The area, both the dunes and the beach, is beautiful! There is hardly any litter, except for the uncleaned dog poop at the beginning of the dune path. The beach itself is very wide and diverse. When you walk onto the beach from the dunes, halfway through the route, you first arrive at a stretch of beach where a lot of marram grass and other plants still grow, before you end up on the wide sandy beach. Super photogenic, and our girls loved to stroll around here.

In the dunes there are some places where rainwater collects, if you have dogs like mine, who want to jump in every puddle, it is probably best to walk through the dunes first so that your dog can still rinse off in the sea. The water in the dunes is not the freshest smelling water 🙂

All in all, the route that we walked is about an hour’s walk, a little longer if, like us, you occasionally stop to take a picture. The part through the dunes is next to an area where dogs are not allowed, but this is well fenced off.
Halfway through the route you have to cross a cycle path, keep in mind that some people ride their bikes very fast here. It is best to put your dog on a leash here, so that you can be sure that no accidents will happen.