#Museum
Kwelder center - Salt mash centre
At the edge of the Wadden Sea, in the vast salt-marsh landscape of northern Friesland, lies the Kweldercentrum Noarderleech. This unstaffed information centre of It Fryske Gea is the perfect place to experience the nature and cultural history of the land outside the dikes. It also hosts a permanent exhibition about the war on the salt marshes.
Although the Noarderleech was not formally part of the Atlantikwall, it still plays a remarkable role in the wartime history of the Wadden region. In 1940, a group of about one hundred men — without machines — constructed the training site known as SF10 Marrum. “SF” stands for Scheinflughafen, meaning “dummy airfield”.
Bombers and fighter aircraft used this area to carry out bombing practice on targets in the summer polder — for example, mock-up ships. The nearby observation bunker monitored how these exercises went. Weapons and bombs were used, impacts created; craters were later filled again by the polhoeder, who ensured that both livestock and people were removed from the terrain in time.
Experience, education and nature
The Salt Marsh Centre houses a permanent exhibition about the war on the marshes, where the stories of the wrecks, the training site and the pilots who died come to life. The centre also showcases the natural richness of this outer-dike area: geese and water birds that, during migration, use this food-rich landscape in great numbers to rest or breed.
The centre also serves as a venue for lectures, presentations and discussions about nature, culture and the future.
Kweldercentrum Noarderleech is wheelchair-accessible, and the nearby sea dike offers a barrier-free path so that people with limited mobility can enjoy the fresh air with a wide view over the tidal flats.