Busy on the water, but it is quiet at lock keeper Frits in Rustenburg: “Zero boats”

The lock in Rustenburg and the associated bridge are operated by volunteers during the week. About 15 people work in shifts of two or three hours to maintain the lock. This one dates from 1920.

One of those voluntary lock keepers is 73-year-old Frits Dijkstra, from Bergen. “I was a wedding official in the municipality of Langedijk for ten years, but the law made me stop there when I turned 70. I thought that was a shame. When I saw that they were looking for volunteers for this, I responded.”

After obtaining a license, he was able to get started. “I enjoy operating the bridge and lock the most. And I wanted to deal with people. The people you meet here are either on a day trip or on holiday, so always in a good mood. And that’s me too. ”

No boat

It is not busy on a radiant and warm Wednesday morning between 10 and 12 o’clock, the regular service of Frits. And that’s putting it mildly. Not a single boat passes by. “Soon, during the high season, that will be different. Then there will be enough boats. The intention is to keep this lock running together. Then you cannot say: ‘I won’t be there on Wednesday morning, because there probably won’t be a boat anyway’† That’s not how it works.”

Still, he gets through his time. The coffee is ready for him in the adjacent restaurant De Gouden Karper and on the bench by the lock he says he can ‘completely relax’.

In addition, the solidarity with the group of volunteers is great. The clog – inextricably linked to the lock keeper – plays a major role in this. “Because this is a free passage, we can’t peddling for money. So the clog is in a fairly modest, but visible place. If visitors do want to give us something, that money goes into the tip jar. We go out for dinner once a year. Very cosy.”

Merry

After waiting in vain for two hours, Frits’ shift is over. The result: zero boats, the lock remains closed. Yet he fills in the log meticulously. “Between 10 and 11: zero boats. And between 11 and 12: also zero boats.”

It has little influence on the positive character of Frits. “If I am only guided by the number of boats that pass by, then nobody is here. And if you want to maintain something like this, it is important that someone is here. Even if no boats pass by for a while. I remain cheerful , hear.”