Oosterschelde pad is one of the official regional paths in the Netherlands (RP 15) encircling the largest national park of the country. It is well marked both ways with yellow-red markings. The national park has an unique ecosystem, crosses many coastal towns and is popular amongst divers too. It also crosses historical towns such as Goes and Zierikzee. Many historical landmarks from the Eighty Years' War can be found along the way. Most of the route follows the coastal line. Along the route there are many oyster restaurants, a regional speciality. The route crosses the world famous ''Delta Works" (Delta Werken). It has been labeled as one of the Seven Wonders by the American Society of Civil Engineers. The primary purpose is to protect the country against flooding and prevent a deadly disaster such as in 1953, when a large part of province was flooded. The route provides beautiful views of the rough coastal line. The dikes do also cover some regions that are sometimes closed as they are resting spots for birds but parallel routes (next to the dike) can be taken as this resting place should be respected at all times. Also, the ferry between the islands go only in the high season, but this can be easily solved by a short car drive.
You must run the entire route, including both the loop sections and the out & back section to the railway station in Geos. The larger (48,2 km) loop is easy: it starts at Kleine dijk and finishes there (also finish of the trail). So no transport is needed here. The small loop (20.8 km, St Philipsland) is a bit tricky as normally a ferry goes there (but only in the tourist season). If supported, you can drive to the South point ( St Philipsland) and that way if you go up north and down south again via the other side you can do the full loop while ending at the same point again (St Philipsland). This is also described this way in the route description. If you are self supported you can use public transport (?) or a taxi. If you are unsupported you will end up doing part of the loop twice in order to complete the whole thing. (Unsupported runners can use the ferry.)
NOTE: Some areas that are marked as trail on the old GPX files and in the out of print booklet (Oosterscheldepad, NIVON, 2003) are now protected nature reserves (due to birds breeding there/vulnerable ground). Running that section would violate the law and could lead to a serious financial penalty. You can (should) on the parallel road /trail next to the nature reserve/dyke.
