Volkerak
The Volkerak is a waterway in the Rhine-Meuse delta that separates the island of Goeree-Overflakkee from the Dutch mainland ( Noord-Brabant , Steenbergen municipalities and Moerdijk in the east ). The western part is called Krammer, in the east it is connected to the Hollands Diep and Haringvliet via the Volkerak locks . It was probably created during the Elizabeth flood in 1421 .
The area is 63 square kilometers, it is 2 to 4 km wide and 6 to 13 m deep. Until 1987 it was connected to the North Sea, but it was separated by the Delta Works and fresh water, which led to problems with algal blooms. There are plans to make it a brackish water area, so far (as of 2018) only implemented in the western part of the Haringvliet.
The rivers Dintel and Steenbergse Vliet and the Scheldt-Rhine Canal , which connects it with the freshwater area of the Zoommeer and the port of Antwerp , flow into the Volkerak from the southeast . In the past, instead of the canal, the waterway called Slaak ran there, on which a naval battle took place in 1631 ( Sea Battle on the Slaak ). The former Willemstad fortress , part of the fortifications on Hollands Diep and Volkerak, is located near the locks . The 539 hectare nature reserve Dintelse Gorzen is located on the mainland side of the Volkerak.
The Volkerak is popular with anglers (including zander ).
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Volkerak with locks in the east
Volkerak
Map from 1773
