Misty dawn at Niehove

A misty morning at Niehove, Zuidhorn, Groningen, The Netherlands.

When Herman asked me yesterday if I wanted to capture the sunrise this morning, I hesitated. Sunrise is very early (around 5.30) and I sure could use some more sleep than I'm getting lately. Still, I checked the weather forecast and it seemed we could get a nice morning mist. Herman wanted to go to Moddergat, one of our favourite locations at the Wadden Sea, but I thought a visit to Niehove would be a good idea. In the end we decided to both go our own way. I arrived at the scene around ten minutes past five and was very happy with my choice. Herman informed me he was having fun at Moddergat as well; looking forward to seeing his results.

The village of Niehove is built on an artificial dwelling hill called a 'wierde' in the province of Groningen. The wierdes were made because the surrounding land is below sea level and flooding was very common before the dikes were built. Niehove still has its original shape, with the 13th Century church on top of the wierde and the houses in a circle around the church. The narrow streets are paved with setts, adding to the authentic atmosphere of the village.

This panorama consists of seven photos, stitched together in Photoshop. I had to size the image down quite a bit to be able to upload it to Blipfoto; the original image is 12531x3354 pixels and I scaled it down to 8000 pixels. Still quite impressive in large, I think.