tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85704736414140845312024-02-25T18:47:28.085+01:00Netherlands BikewaysClassic bicycle routes of Holland.Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.comBlogger161125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-44130643253140765092022-01-15T22:52:00.004+01:002022-01-23T09:56:39.687+01:00Flevodelia, part 3<p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2vV5NVq3lX0/YKuA5pj6dZI/AAAAAAAAOpg/nieEuoCYV94Nkt5JFOhwzgtN-w2D4SMfQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/IMG_20210401_104557_026.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2vV5NVq3lX0/YKuA5pj6dZI/AAAAAAAAOpg/nieEuoCYV94Nkt5JFOhwzgtN-w2D4SMfQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h400/IMG_20210401_104557_026.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The Land Art tour of Flevoland province continues. But to access the next works, both located on remote Noordoostpolder and unconnected to the rail network, I had to start from another province, Overijssel. The city of Kampen was my jumping off point for the northeastern portion of Flevoland, accessed via a bridge 9 km to the north. I then traversed the southern edge of the reclaimed land mass to reach the two large-scale objets d'art, both located at its eastern edge. After visiting those, I returned to Overijssel, making for the town of Meppel via the southern section of the substantial Weerribben wetlands reserve. A few days later, I began a very circuitous journey to the next and final piece. This involved a riverine jaunt south to the ancient city of Zwolle, the entire route following the LF-9. </span><p><i><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span></span></span></i></p><a name='more'></a><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of the entry: March 30, 2021)</span></i><p></p><p>Both of today's works are on Noordoostpolder, the first component of Flevoland to be reclaimed, drained and converted to polderland between 1936 and 1942. On the western edge is the former island of Urk (later engulfed by the reclaimed province), a staunchly Protestant enclave that remains aloof from the government of the Noordoostpolder. It was recently in the news for defying pandemic restrictions on congregating in churches. One member of the congregation <a href="https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2021/03/urk-man-arrested-after-attack-on-journalist-reporting-on-church-opening/" target="_blank">tried to run down a reporter </a>with his SUV. </p><p><br /></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DK97tJF_hmE/YIs7Q7-0ySI/AAAAAAAAOmY/urNTFJFbkBMpuVKS4pieUxnxuXGGAELGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-03-30-11-21-56-742%257E2.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1926" data-original-width="2048" height="188" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DK97tJF_hmE/YIs7Q7-0ySI/AAAAAAAAOmY/urNTFJFbkBMpuVKS4pieUxnxuXGGAELGwCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h188/IMG_2021-03-30-11-21-56-742%257E2.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaving Kampen</td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">kp 41 → 13 → 33 → 35</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p>The day is superb as forecast. My bike was intact at Kampen-Zuid station. I took a little tour of Kampen, strolling up the main promenade, the towers of Sint Nicolaskerk looming over everything. Then the famous drawbridge, letting a tanker through so I could see it in action, the giant golden weight ascending to let the mid-section descend into place. </p><p><br /></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rqnST5q-jvc/YIs7RESzgKI/AAAAAAAAOmc/Aa8Y8evzpqQx2VwrF0Cc2wdoPSc945_bgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-03-30-12-43-27-139%257E2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1907" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rqnST5q-jvc/YIs7RESzgKI/AAAAAAAAOmc/Aa8Y8evzpqQx2VwrF0Cc2wdoPSc945_bgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-03-30-12-43-27-139%257E2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kampereiland with a view to the Eilandbrug</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p>On the other side, I skirt the IJssel west to kp 33. I'm on <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2014/11/ijssel-delta-day-2.html" target="_blank">Kampereiland </a>again. A sign on a picnic table alerts me to some of the bird life here: black-tailed godwit, Eurasian oystercatcher, snipe (all waterfowl with long beaks). Beyond kp 33, I cycle through emerald meadows that form the IJssel's north bank, and the massive <a href="http://www.artnet.com/artists/hans-rudolf-giger/" target="_blank">Giger</a>-esque Eilandbrug (N50) comes into view. Beyond the bridge the trail meanders through a green polder-scape. Eventually it overpasses the N50, then pulls up at the bridge to Flevoland, a more modest affair than its IJssel predecessor. <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zi3zF7kGUB4/YK7cgyy78ZI/AAAAAAAAOqw/3XdhBCecvy0a2xcMht0JMtFIyeXRIfRqwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1591/Kampen%2B-%2BMeppel.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1274" data-original-width="1591" height="512" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zi3zF7kGUB4/YK7cgyy78ZI/AAAAAAAAOqw/3XdhBCecvy0a2xcMht0JMtFIyeXRIfRqwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h512/Kampen%2B-%2BMeppel.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Kampen to Meppel via Noordoostpolder<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t5cu3cGSAQE/YIs7RKyspBI/AAAAAAAAOmg/OV2qOh3gJ80stNgXMXzWgVb-1_Glmah6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/IMG_20210403_010416_819.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t5cu3cGSAQE/YIs7RKyspBI/AAAAAAAAOmg/OV2qOh3gJ80stNgXMXzWgVb-1_Glmah6QCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h200/IMG_20210403_010416_819.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Zwartermeerweg, Noordoostpolder</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">kp 22 → 14 → 34</span></div><div><p></p><p>Coming off the bridge, I turned around and headed for kp 22, then got on the Zwartermeerweg —the lower west-east road of Noordoostpolder and proceeded to pedal. The road was long and straight and flanked by upright elms with red leaves. This went on for perhaps 7 or 8 km, always the same but not monotonous, on either side the vast polder fields, now seeded and primed to produce. Trucks and tractors plied this road, only a few cyclists. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-09SPg0LLNFI/YKBSzh8fDrI/AAAAAAAAOoA/fqRYpwka81kD_sMMI03PechUX99vl2mpQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-03-30-14-04-21-106.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1856" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-09SPg0LLNFI/YKBSzh8fDrI/AAAAAAAAOoA/fqRYpwka81kD_sMMI03PechUX99vl2mpQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-03-30-14-04-21-106.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Pier + Horizon by Paul de Kort</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKdxWyE6S1ZTlOHMD9of1Njvu545HVMrH-sezMXaycO5AWMvSOJjpgv6HPkkoaivqM6Kcd_7oCiU3adNIm7B176vo9ANJqEnYl8shycbHD9-5AucpqyAQOGtbEEPvD76hno0WwujAUoznJ/s2048/IMG_2021-03-30-14-10-49-882.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKdxWyE6S1ZTlOHMD9of1Njvu545HVMrH-sezMXaycO5AWMvSOJjpgv6HPkkoaivqM6Kcd_7oCiU3adNIm7B176vo9ANJqEnYl8shycbHD9-5AucpqyAQOGtbEEPvD76hno0WwujAUoznJ/s320/IMG_2021-03-30-14-10-49-882.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Past kp 14, I angled right to reach the Zwarte Meer. Here was my first <i>kunstwerk</i> of the day, <b>Pier + Horizon </b>(2016, Paul de Kort). A lovely spot on a perfect day. The basis of the work is a section of an old dam that once extended as far as Genemuiden on the opposite bank. Arranged around it is a set of rectangular islets covered with vegetation. These serve as perches for abundant waterfowl and seabirds. Winds cause them to align in different orientations. Beside each is a pole. Seen from above the poles appear as dots tracing the hexagonal shape of the Noordoostpolder, designed by Cornelis van Eesteren. Here the bike path strikes east along the bank, tracing the old pier. At kp 34 it bends west to traverse a wooded corridor to the Voorsterbos. <p>I find a perfect picnic table slightly above the trail, overlooking a swamp now bubbling with amphibians. This is along the strip of forest between kp 34 and 16, a dogleg of the Voorsterbos, where I'm now headed. Splendid and hot as summer. </p><p>Found an even splendider spot: a great wheel of a table in the shade, down the trail and round a bend through the forest, at the point where it meets the Kadoelermeer, a slender lake with islands that is a remaining sliver of the Zuiderzee before it was hemmed in by the Noordoostpolder. You can climb the embankment for an outstanding lookout, a glimpse from new to old as the other bank is Overijssel. The <i>meer </i>forms an inlet to the west, then bends north to reach the village of Vollenhove. The spot is truly magical. </p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8TI2Bot4HM0/YIs7PISyy8I/AAAAAAAAOmU/L229oNinAN8DvqBIcSK6h2frlpQlRMH1gCLcBGAsYHQ/s878/IMG_2021-03-30-16-12-03-037%257E2.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="878" data-original-width="778" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8TI2Bot4HM0/YIs7PISyy8I/AAAAAAAAOmU/L229oNinAN8DvqBIcSK6h2frlpQlRMH1gCLcBGAsYHQ/w178-h200/IMG_2021-03-30-16-12-03-037%257E2.jpg" width="178" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Marta & Henk</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">kp 16 → 23 </span></p><p>The <i>bos</i>, as Henk explained, was the site of research for the Delta Project and now appears to be a popular recreation area, the Top Waterloop Bos. To reach it I turned left at kp 16 and followed signs to Deltawerk. Henk and Marta explained to me that <b>Deltawerk</b>, the eighth land artwork I've observed, marks the place where research was done for the Delta Project of Zeeland. Thus the colossal concrete wall with openings along the way that simulate the gates in various stages of opening is a monument to the researchers. There are various trails into the woods here, picnic tables and a café (closed for lockdown). </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tsPVwlWHwcQ/YKuA5i4eG7I/AAAAAAAAOpc/-J4Kc0bWQhkqxAR09fpYOimSgaH0kokfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/IMG_20210401_104557_112.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tsPVwlWHwcQ/YKuA5i4eG7I/AAAAAAAAOpc/-J4Kc0bWQhkqxAR09fpYOimSgaH0kokfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210401_104557_112.jpg" /></a></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8Jp7KYwZRS0/YKuBEW_aPvI/AAAAAAAAOpk/9c8qAP45g1oZj-lIidUpRNe-oQm-EPTjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-03-30-16-18-54-294.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8Jp7KYwZRS0/YKuBEW_aPvI/AAAAAAAAOpk/9c8qAP45g1oZj-lIidUpRNe-oQm-EPTjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-03-30-16-18-54-294.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Deltawerk </td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">kp 73 → 74 → 75 → 81</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;"> </span></span></p><p>There are no railroad stations in Noordoostpolder; one of the nearest NS stations is in Meppel, in adjacent Overijssel province. It was a 25 km ride east from the Deltawerk. I crossed the Vollenhovermeer and arrived in a wetlands landscape with plenty of geese. Now at Sint Jansklooster. <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2016/12/guidebook-research-xii-weerribben.html" target="_blank">I've been here before</a> — around 6 years ago. It is the location of the visitor center for De Wieden-Weerribben. As I recall, there's an excellent boardwalk trail to the lake (Beulakerwijde). Blokzijl and Giethoorn to the north. Meppel to the east. The spot where I've stopped is not peaceful —there's a road behind me— but on this day most pleasant. A shaded bench facing the wetlands. Though the quaint Dutch towns no longer enchant me —if they ever did— the countryside still has a restful effect. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CN86yiMjuuc/YKuDAMSt6SI/AAAAAAAAOpw/qrxZVI9A0Kk2TA2gQsonznHH3iCEkCx9wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-03-30-18-06-57-220.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CN86yiMjuuc/YKuDAMSt6SI/AAAAAAAAOpw/qrxZVI9A0Kk2TA2gQsonznHH3iCEkCx9wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-03-30-18-06-57-220.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>East of Sint Jansklooster (to kp 95), the trail joints the N762 as it becomes a sort of wetlands causeway, like something out of Louisiana. The whole northern part of Overijssel province is a recreational area for boating and fishing. The ride was long and quite pleasant, flanked by lakes. Goes through a few towns, such as Blauwe Hand; Giethoorn is just north of here. Then turns off southeast through the wetlands.<p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: courier;">kp 82 → 94 → 63 → </span><span style="font-family: courier;">45</span></span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><p></p><p>Now in De Wieden wetlands reserve around 9 km outside Meppel. The sun is still glaring around 6:30 pm and quite warm. It's a tantalizing taste of summer, the long dormant sensation of freedom. Wetlands landscape, swampy, lots of bird life —low flying geese honking. The bike path through it doubles as a backroad with occasional sportscar. It's quite still here, and amphibious creatures croak rhythmically in the swamp between patches of turf fringed by dry reeds. </p><br /><p><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">kp 45 → 47 → 49</span><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p style="text-align: left;">The wetlands zone makes a nice low-key conclusion to the journey, bathed in the golden light of the late afternoon. As I approach Meppel, the landscape softens, ceding to deep green pastures. I turn right onto a road and proceed into the town of Meppel, with a pretty historic core. Park my bike on the (uncovered) roof of the garage and catch a train to Zwolle, then Amsterdam Centraal, a 1&1/2 hr journey. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">🚲</span></i></span></i><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">🚲</span></i></span></i><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">🚲</span></i></span></i></p><p style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Apr 1)</span></i></p><p>Another fine day, though not as warm, and the wind is blowing south, so I'm going back to Meppel to continue the journey, with a plan of cycling from there to Zwolle via the LF-9. I've done the southern portion in reverse (Zwolle-Zwartsluis) on <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2014/11/door-de-ijsseldelta.html" target="_blank">a circuitous route to Kampen</a>. That was seven years ago. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qj2LlZOPDUg/YJrurBzMenI/AAAAAAAAOnY/Mgdn02xM8ucdlmVxRUJREGSfHFjQd8kvgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-04-01-12-41-08-330.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qj2LlZOPDUg/YJrurBzMenI/AAAAAAAAOnY/Mgdn02xM8ucdlmVxRUJREGSfHFjQd8kvgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-04-01-12-41-08-330.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Leaving Meppel</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Covb9b41v4/YKw_DRf3bPI/AAAAAAAAOqg/Czk-QMSYgD8Dca_sS-uRbC2XYe4cXdCWwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2299/kp%2B76%2Bw%2Bof%2BMeppel.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1149" data-original-width="2299" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Covb9b41v4/YKw_DRf3bPI/AAAAAAAAOqg/Czk-QMSYgD8Dca_sS-uRbC2XYe4cXdCWwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h320/kp%2B76%2Bw%2Bof%2BMeppel.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />kp 49 → 76 → 96</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> (LF-9a)</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><p></p><p>I poke around Meppel. The day is sunny and rather windy. I find a little street market and have a snack of <i>kibbeling</i>. Leaving town I go through the pretty Wijkpark. Now I'm beside a little nature reserve, the Oude Stroom, here nothing but flat fields with a ditch running through it, farmhouses. </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fKchSTQnMpU/YJrurZW2RmI/AAAAAAAAOnc/gNcRY7sXrUE_EhkgnH7JFbuX3A4M-J46QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-04-01-14-57-04-990.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fKchSTQnMpU/YJrurZW2RmI/AAAAAAAAOnc/gNcRY7sXrUE_EhkgnH7JFbuX3A4M-J46QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-04-01-14-57-04-990.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>This parallels the Meppelerdiep, then joins it at Baarlo. The river borders the wetlands area I cycled through on Tuesday. At Zwartsluis it joins the Zwartediep, which in turn flows into the IJssel at Zwolle. The field in front of me used to be submerged beneath the Meppelerdiep, yet another case of land reclamation. The little road I ride is mostly deserted, with only the occasional touring or racing fietser. Bliss. </p><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LzXbpvTmdY0/YKw_D7Sc14I/AAAAAAAAOqk/c3NpQrXzQJUXF2m_FriWK-G4f9_Awx5TgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-04-01-13-41-59-440.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1170" data-original-width="2048" height="229" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LzXbpvTmdY0/YKw_D7Sc14I/AAAAAAAAOqk/c3NpQrXzQJUXF2m_FriWK-G4f9_Awx5TgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h229/IMG_2021-04-01-13-41-59-440.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">kp 96 → 95 → 30 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">39 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">38 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">31 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier;"> 60</span></span></p><p>Racers and old couples. That's who you see on the trail. I am an oddball for sure. But I sure like tooling down these paths on a cool sunny day. </p><p>I followed the Meppelerdiep for a bit around Baarlo —the industry of Zwartsluis is visible from here— then jogged east into a cool strong wind. At kp 96 I turned right toward kp 95 and headed south again, wind pushing me forward, sun radiating me, and I am back on an old country road, here and there plied by farm vehicles, tractors as wide as the road. Feels hazardous but the drivers are used to seeing cyclists and adjust accordingly. Then I turn right (W) to kp 30 on the margin of a big road with traffic. I could continue into Zwartsluis, catch the ferry to Genemuiden and take the west bank of the IJssel down to Zwolle. But I'd rather go with the flow and continue south on the LF-9 through waterlogged fields. It's such a pleasure to just ride. </p><p>As I sit here in the sun just off the big road (mostly quiet) which skirts a canal, I notice there is a low level of activity at this little junction. Mostly touring cyclists and the occasional auto. One of the latter just rolled by, the driver gave me a friendly wave. But mostly it's empty and peaceful. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-zv1ql2KFEvnrMPvz4Gr7Fdj9CYfN3DMhS7dIjru9XRBowEoS05c7KgfiyEL0CW7SNxjDSMWXwldImITgm3DwVfr0w_dYas57PRJs-Rg81cwPgK5aeHT0Xo7RJeqA-AuVu2HkuHA8HrG9/s2048/IMG_2021-04-01-15-28-18-456.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-zv1ql2KFEvnrMPvz4Gr7Fdj9CYfN3DMhS7dIjru9XRBowEoS05c7KgfiyEL0CW7SNxjDSMWXwldImITgm3DwVfr0w_dYas57PRJs-Rg81cwPgK5aeHT0Xo7RJeqA-AuVu2HkuHA8HrG9/w400-h300/IMG_2021-04-01-15-28-18-456.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Old wall of Hasselt</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5KHTlGF1DL0/YKw9JwoG5kI/AAAAAAAAOqM/JcUiLS5ggsgfQ2JJLQLrhV1uDXylJXCXwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-04-01-16-40-59-072.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5KHTlGF1DL0/YKw9JwoG5kI/AAAAAAAAOqM/JcUiLS5ggsgfQ2JJLQLrhV1uDXylJXCXwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-04-01-16-40-59-072.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><p>The town of Hasselt looks like an old place with a few handsome brick remnants of its heyday. Now it is pretty quiet. The path alongside the wall is a splendiferous old country lane. At Streukel, just south of Hasselt, 90% of the Netherlands' fritillaria (<i>kievisbloemen</i>) are preserved. </p><p>Past Holten is a picnic table protected from the wind by an old <i>schotbalkenloods</i> (brick hut). So I can bask in the sun carelessly by reed-fringed marshes. I am going toward Genne (to kp 60) and I believe this old lane is the Gennedijk. It is deserted. Sometimes I feel like I'm being watched, a solitary intruder in this uninhabited landscape. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjQwe5IMLgFj2sn10Jy6okEIqWJJ1FQyxHL0J_XGFajbzdORKt7dSpETdu18w9-npaJTz4Lgl9yAekAbdxCnZOHnXciXDMPljuzuDimwTWWYtKutujf4Rhn463x5EbfRcx4MhHcbTmi9EdV46rUSgtHCGkhB1i74BEMOk1XLaY-FWKWSxvdOZbdXTl2Yg=s1726" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1726" data-original-width="1140" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjQwe5IMLgFj2sn10Jy6okEIqWJJ1FQyxHL0J_XGFajbzdORKt7dSpETdu18w9-npaJTz4Lgl9yAekAbdxCnZOHnXciXDMPljuzuDimwTWWYtKutujf4Rhn463x5EbfRcx4MhHcbTmi9EdV46rUSgtHCGkhB1i74BEMOk1XLaY-FWKWSxvdOZbdXTl2Yg=w422-h640" width="422" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meppel to Zwolle via LF-9</td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">kp 68 → 69 → 47 → 49</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p>After the extended bliss of cycling old rural Overijssel, then cruising through a high forest, I reach a little house and the ferry landing. An old woman with a mane of white hair is holding a ladder. Her graybearded man comes up behind her. No ferry until May —with Covid that could be June. Go that way. </p><p>That is the way to kp 47, down a moderately busy road flanked by reddish-brown strips. When the traffic abates, it's a pleasant ride. Then I arrive smack at Zwolle's urban edge in the form of a highway interchange. I could follow the busy road straight into Zwolle —there are plenty of cyclists plying the broad 2-way path— but choose to stick with the LF-9. </p><p>Here I sit on the threshold of a rural jaunt, facing a riverbank, the domain of geese, watching the highway in the distance crossing the river (a bike path flanks that road too). </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOGwGDyndcWFXnFJlJ4T9iaDIFqoZ8HIhQJ3lyP8flo3wMefQ3VL-7Sjmn1-iuJjjtVjF_Ljk5Z7SWD6C9iu3QZhZ3XGfVhDyJbbvqQetSqJhvm0S1s4XFLF_csHZoNeqH5ptOwRom2pHa/s2048/IMG_2021-04-01-18-09-13-617.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOGwGDyndcWFXnFJlJ4T9iaDIFqoZ8HIhQJ3lyP8flo3wMefQ3VL-7Sjmn1-iuJjjtVjF_Ljk5Z7SWD6C9iu3QZhZ3XGfVhDyJbbvqQetSqJhvm0S1s4XFLF_csHZoNeqH5ptOwRom2pHa/s320/IMG_2021-04-01-18-09-13-617.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Approaching Zwolle</td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">kp 49 → 48 → 66</span></p><p>At kp 49 I turn left but it's for the wrong 40 — 45 instead of 48. I got past the railroad tracks when I realized I was heading toward Dalfsen (on the LF-16), not Zwolle. I turned around, back across the tracks (just as the alarm bells were going off), then followed an exquisite path flanked by tall trees toward kp 66. And here I am at the edge of town looking at a willow brooding over a lake as cyclists ply the sunny path behind me. What is Holland's main attraction? These people know how to live. </p><p>At kp 66, I followed directional signs for "Centrum." Probably the wrong move. Had I stayed on the LF-9 to 66, I believe I would've pulled up in front of the station. Instead I had a little tour of urban Zwolle —it's a substantial town. The Centrum signs had me going in circles and I consulted my phone. I'd somehow ended at the top of the historic core. I rode straight down through it, stopping momentarily by the Grote Kerk, just as the bells tolled, with the green glass statue of Archangel Michael in front. </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFah0VyTZleUay1g7phdotGS_xNQOGCgKumNG2hpe5wmsc60TLLa4nJA5NgReESgftkHrlix1Qxh70zGP9aqCd4qE3qLBSdtGXCsEFAtVOBXKLV8Y_j6xRo9hL9hnTEHw8iFrtR1Uo4uHt/s2048/IMG_2021-04-01-19-19-59-114.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFah0VyTZleUay1g7phdotGS_xNQOGCgKumNG2hpe5wmsc60TLLa4nJA5NgReESgftkHrlix1Qxh70zGP9aqCd4qE3qLBSdtGXCsEFAtVOBXKLV8Y_j6xRo9hL9hnTEHw8iFrtR1Uo4uHt/s320/IMG_2021-04-01-19-19-59-114.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Zwolle station</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Then I was exiting the old center at the south end and turned left for the station. But the surrounding areas were under construction. I descended to the bike garage but they charged a fee to leave it there longer than 24 hours. Leaving the garage, I noticed the interesting detail that the staircase had a conveyor belt alongside so you don't have to push your bike up. This sort of detail still thrills me. <p></p><p>Where was the outdoor lot that every station has? The check-in guy at the garage had said something about it being on the other side of the station. But I didn't see how to get around it. I was passing a van from which a young man emerged with his bicycle. I asked him where the bike parking lot was located. The handsome local lad confirmed that it was on <i>de andere kant. </i>He said he was going that way, I could follow him. We headed alongside the tracks, then zipped down through a tunnel —he was going pretty fast— then he pointed in the direction of the lot and continued on his way. It was a large uncovered lot with thousands of bikes. I had to walk down 9 rows to find a spot. I parked the bike on the upper rack, figuring it would take a thief more of an effort. <i>(Continued...)</i></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-63655150183908496042021-05-24T21:42:00.005+02:002022-01-15T22:56:12.997+01:00Flevodelia, part 2<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JrIDk3lfb4E/YHghwhoPjlI/AAAAAAAAOik/fup2nVxi0YoSI_YAl5-mGaMUxfxH94tugCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Dronten%2Btrail.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JrIDk3lfb4E/YHghwhoPjlI/AAAAAAAAOik/fup2nVxi0YoSI_YAl5-mGaMUxfxH94tugCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/Dronten%2Btrail.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just outside Dronten</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The tour of Flevoland continues. I had reached Dronten, the easternmost town in Flevopolder (that being the younger, southwestern component of this artificially constructed province). I struck further east, skirting the railroad, to reach the edge of the land mass, location of one of the quirkier works of land art that formed the basis of my tour. From there I jumped over to the adjacent province of Overijssel and had a tour of the ancient rural landscapes around Elburg before proceeding further east through a splendid riverine landscape to the town of Kampen. Now I was poised for the next leg of my journey, the remote Northeast Polder. </span><p></p><span><a name='more'></a></span><p><i style="font-size: small;">(original date of this entry: Feb 22, 2021)</i></p><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">kp 1 → 2 → 3 → 99 → 98 → 50 → 95 → 96</span></p><p>So far, so good. Very easy to leave Dronten. From the train station, I ride up to the N307, then head south a bit, ending up back at the train line (to Kampen). From there, the trail winds gently east along a sort of nature corridor between the tracks and a canal fringed by reeds, the Zwolsevaart. At road/canal intersections, rather than going over or under, the trail circumvents these obstacles. The day is beautiful and a few <i>fietsers</i>, mostly elderly or racers, are out. Trains whiz by now and then. Without really thinking about it, I chose the perfect route east to the Veluwemeer. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ETsqGKmSr5k/YKGM9MPttFI/AAAAAAAAOoY/GkAokMAmI5UNOsmA5xNAPQxP28wsZfODACLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Dronten-Elburg%2Bbig.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="506" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ETsqGKmSr5k/YKGM9MPttFI/AAAAAAAAOoY/GkAokMAmI5UNOsmA5xNAPQxP28wsZfODACLcBGAsYHQ/w169-h200/Dronten-Elburg%2Bbig.jpg" width="169" /></a></div><br /><p></p><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5DFQ8ZS3fZI/YKGHyM_EboI/AAAAAAAAOoQ/D7q98T644ZsFVgWmF15ktgn7cAcmXEqRwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1374/Dronten%2B-%2BElburg.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1249" data-original-width="1374" height="364" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5DFQ8ZS3fZI/YKGHyM_EboI/AAAAAAAAOoQ/D7q98T644ZsFVgWmF15ktgn7cAcmXEqRwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h364/Dronten%2B-%2BElburg.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Dronten, Fleveoland - Elburg, Overijssel</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WdHgMALlHWU/YHghw5oKmiI/AAAAAAAAOio/QmkA64lq1IkmJA9OYd9sI6uiyaLBUTJeACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Dronten%2Btrail%2B2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WdHgMALlHWU/YHghw5oKmiI/AAAAAAAAOio/QmkA64lq1IkmJA9OYd9sI6uiyaLBUTJeACLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h240/Dronten%2Btrail%2B2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Temple of the Sun (sans sun)</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Continuing along the train line/nature trail, before getting to kp 98, I reached the intersection of the Zwolse Vaart and the Hoge Vaart. Here was a small stepped pyramid which may have been inspired by Teotihuacán, with a little observation platform at the top, from which you can take in the slow-moving brown waterways as they meet. It was clearing. <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cfSxNv29mW0/YHglCtTaFOI/AAAAAAAAOi0/ZvL56lFMSMwnE6Q9tZZCMcFf-Exk2ivMACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/randmeerbossen.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cfSxNv29mW0/YHglCtTaFOI/AAAAAAAAOi0/ZvL56lFMSMwnE6Q9tZZCMcFf-Exk2ivMACLcBGAsYHQ/w242-h320/randmeerbossen.jpg" width="242" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Riverbank forest</span></td></tr></tbody></table>This corridor connects to Het Roggebotzand, a riverbank nature/recreation zone, not only providing a continuous natural strand where species can thrive but a nice way for the inhabitants of Dronten to reach the river by bike. It was certainly a pleasant ride, and the <i>randmeerbossen </i>(riverbank forests) (kp 96 <span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span> 42) were a joy. I emerge from the forest onto a bright sunlit road alongside vast fields of plowed dirt. This is not so pleasant but before long I reach Het Greppelveld —a small wetlands reserve that attracts godwit, lapwing, curlew, snipe and corncrake —then the bridge to Elburg. Not far south is the Gransma project. <div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6Q1axh_FeDg/YHgmheM7lxI/AAAAAAAAOjI/tg-kXwDXaqAv_hNTMvZjXqPU1nOooJrQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/randmeerbossen%2B2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="242" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6Q1axh_FeDg/YHgmheM7lxI/AAAAAAAAOjI/tg-kXwDXaqAv_hNTMvZjXqPU1nOooJrQQCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h242/randmeerbossen%2B2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Het Greppelveld<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Xh5SxMdUBnC-QLFVRAWUZMFkZyg7stNTPifnggZMhB5F2IY0ZMvbudJV5qqsGwNu2JT8j1oStyceiFH-QGySFWqk4ENdZkMfk7-o8NEE-bEFPOUoW7Aq2DR0jeeLOnE3eY-Dt1xB4aFE/s2048/Riff+PD+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Xh5SxMdUBnC-QLFVRAWUZMFkZyg7stNTPifnggZMhB5F2IY0ZMvbudJV5qqsGwNu2JT8j1oStyceiFH-QGySFWqk4ENdZkMfk7-o8NEE-bEFPOUoW7Aq2DR0jeeLOnE3eY-Dt1xB4aFE/w640-h480/Riff+PD+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ptWujLjr0IY/YIE3ZXidsnI/AAAAAAAAOj0/VQbUp1TRWNQngBm2K2C2l1kQWco9fohbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Riff%2BPD%2B2.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ptWujLjr0IY/YIE3ZXidsnI/AAAAAAAAOj0/VQbUp1TRWNQngBm2K2C2l1kQWco9fohbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Riff%2BPD%2B2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Riff PD#18245 (2018, Bob Gransma)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H6weeI1_QMc/YIE3g43pMmI/AAAAAAAAOj8/nAdRIpHXcoMx86B5Ab9O1CvUyR2e15tLQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Riff%2BPD%2B3.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H6weeI1_QMc/YIE3g43pMmI/AAAAAAAAOj8/nAdRIpHXcoMx86B5Ab9O1CvUyR2e15tLQCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h150/Riff%2BPD%2B3.jpg" width="200" /></a><b>Riff PD#18245</b> (2018) by Bob Gransma, stands in the middle of a typically vast flat field on the southeast corner of Flevoland's western component, a strange V-shaped mass. This is at the beginning of Het Spijk, a riverside recreation area that stretches down the Veluwemeer to the southwest. The sky is perfectly clear. The massive artwork casts a great shadow before it. I approached and immediately climbed a central staircase that leads to an observation platform, though there isn't much to see —just the smooth top surface, the flat countryside, the highway. Descending and strolling over to the sunlit side, I could see it in its entirety —a huge, oblong slab of earth supported by stone pillars. The piece was inaugurated in 2018, centennial of the Zuiderzee act, which sanctioned the act of pulling this landmass from what was then known as the Southern Sea and making it inhabitable and agriculturally productive. In homage to this momentous occasion, artist Gransma took 8000 cubic meters of polder dirt and sealed it in concrete, then extracted the dirt filling. The resulting cast stands upon a pair of stone-pillared supports. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p3qST_04xFo/YIE3hybmU0I/AAAAAAAAOkA/72RIC-o00dI1iZAwN96r5Wke-ks0XeYSgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1134/Riff%2BPD%2B5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1091" data-original-width="1134" height="309" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p3qST_04xFo/YIE3hybmU0I/AAAAAAAAOkA/72RIC-o00dI1iZAwN96r5Wke-ks0XeYSgCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h309/Riff%2BPD%2B5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"></span><p></p><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">kp 42 → 45 → 46 → 30 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">2 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">23 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">6</span></p><p></p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q0tifTZlDps/YHgmYUxMlQI/AAAAAAAAOjE/6RR9DCRR-t0jD3cWj5xm0gwbCCL2LxIcACLcBGAsYHQ/s2016/kp%2B46a.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: -webkit-standard; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1865" data-original-width="2016" height="296" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q0tifTZlDps/YHgmYUxMlQI/AAAAAAAAOjE/6RR9DCRR-t0jD3cWj5xm0gwbCCL2LxIcACLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h296/kp%2B46a.jpg" width="320" /></a>I then took the bridge cross the river to reach the walled town of Elburg thus arriving in the province of Overijssel— then proceeded southeast to 't Harde, at the threshold of the Veluwe forest. About a minute after I parked my bike at 't Harde, the train to Amersfoort was arriving, just enough time to scan my pass. Oops: <i>saldo te laag. </i>This means I am riding from 't Harde to Amersfoort without paying my fare. ... Made it, <i>tee hee</i>!</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">🚲 🚲 🚲</span></i></p><p><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Feb 24, 2021)</span></i></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Today's ride had two components: rolling around the old farmsteads and estates between 't Harde and Elburg, and sailing down the LF-9 to Kampen. </span></p><p><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">kp 28 → 6 → 5 → 22 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">4 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">3 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">81 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">26 </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: courier; font-size: large;">69 </span></p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dxS6sPBAfoQ/YIqV-ADy0iI/AAAAAAAAOlU/lsLGDaQqCScjbvOtWA-u5qpAmY8KDvrtwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-25-14-24-26-175.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dxS6sPBAfoQ/YIqV-ADy0iI/AAAAAAAAOlU/lsLGDaQqCScjbvOtWA-u5qpAmY8KDvrtwCLcBGAsYHQ/w242-h320/IMG_2021-02-25-14-24-26-175.jpg" width="242" /></a><br />I easily located my bike at 't Harde station, then took the long way round the west side of the village, crossed the N309, which I'd come down yesterday evening, and entered the forest of Zwaluwenburg estate, an old forest (as opposed to the budding ones of Flevoland). There are castles and mansions within. </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7WONZexo_BE/YIE6pRaKFXI/AAAAAAAAOkc/CVc2DGCZDTg94hFcd01bl331V9nNpYb0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-25-14-41-34-272.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7WONZexo_BE/YIE6pRaKFXI/AAAAAAAAOkc/CVc2DGCZDTg94hFcd01bl331V9nNpYb0gCLcBGAsYHQ/w242-h320/IMG_2021-02-25-14-41-34-272.jpg" width="242" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Landhuis Morren</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p>On the way to Oldebroek I rode through a vast flat field in the sunshine, at points having to make room for the old folks approaching. On the way to kp 4, I looked at an old estate mansion, Landhuis Morren. Here the path becomes an exceedingly narrow country lane. </p><p></p><p></p><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oTkvfBAwGXU/YIqWBDPxlhI/AAAAAAAAOlY/meFsS_y9j-0ug1c2mYxeUQi9fdoB1MgIACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-25-15-34-11-093.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="242" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oTkvfBAwGXU/YIqWBDPxlhI/AAAAAAAAOlY/meFsS_y9j-0ug1c2mYxeUQi9fdoB1MgIACLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h242/IMG_2021-02-25-15-34-11-093.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Elburg<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The modern part of Elburg was dull and full of traffic. I found the old city center and browsed its collection of ancient buildings, then looked at the ramparts —green, with a strand of a path, inviting for a stroll but I kept going. <p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a78xV3t81M8/YKGViYvzIOI/AAAAAAAAOog/ZuqhX9SRl0Eyr8xx2-QMfhfSvNFA9sHbQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1676/t%2BHarde%2B-%2BKampen.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1676" data-original-width="1268" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a78xV3t81M8/YKGViYvzIOI/AAAAAAAAOog/ZuqhX9SRl0Eyr8xx2-QMfhfSvNFA9sHbQCLcBGAsYHQ/w303-h400/t%2BHarde%2B-%2BKampen.png" width="303" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">'t Harde - Kampen<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>Immediately I found myself on an elevated dike alongside the Drontermeer —another name for the Veluwemeer/Nuldernauw/Nijkerkernauw, etc, essentially the waterway that separates Flevoland from the mainland—and I was alone. It had cooled down considerably and I donned my coat. (The pre-Indian summer had come to an end.) On and on, cruising along: to my left, across the river, Flevoland —in fact the same woods I descended through yesterday— to my right, flat waterlogged fields crowded with ducks and grazing sheep. I see one of those proto-hens pecking in the grass. Honking geese flying between bank and islets in the river. </div><div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0VcpzNSRDxM/YIqVpndqa-I/AAAAAAAAOlA/N6hz8pzuTkcLrMsFl-R75mBbYDv2FbgygCLcBGAsYHQ/s1729/IMG_2021-02-25-16-03-33-629.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1702" data-original-width="1729" height="318" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0VcpzNSRDxM/YIqVpndqa-I/AAAAAAAAOlA/N6hz8pzuTkcLrMsFl-R75mBbYDv2FbgygCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h318/IMG_2021-02-25-16-03-33-629.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FGIjrjpQ4aY/YIqVrujV4II/AAAAAAAAOlE/pv25TEhcqm0j_G3md_BT4RN9B-1ZaQwawCLcBGAsYHQ/s1415/IMG_2021-02-25-16-09-44-101%257E3.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1412" data-original-width="1415" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FGIjrjpQ4aY/YIqVrujV4II/AAAAAAAAOlE/pv25TEhcqm0j_G3md_BT4RN9B-1ZaQwawCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h320/IMG_2021-02-25-16-09-44-101%257E3.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0VcpzNSRDxM/YIqVpndqa-I/AAAAAAAAOlA/N6hz8pzuTkcLrMsFl-R75mBbYDv2FbgygCLcBGAsYHQ/s1729/IMG_2021-02-25-16-03-33-629.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>I reach a bend and my view takes in a big lake or marsh bordered by a band of reeds that recede into the distance. It is an impressive vista. Rolling down the lakeside I admire the swampy vegetation and scores of ducks. <p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Finally I reach the bridge to Kampen (<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: courier;">kp 26-69</span>), a modest span supported by stone trestles and somewhat perilous to traverse as the bike lanes are a part of the road and the traffic is regular in both directions. Surprising to find this on the threshold of Overijssel. </p><p></p><p></p>There is no signage to Kampen-Zuid station but I deduce from the map that I need to follow the trail toward <span style="color: #38761d; font-family: courier;">kp 40</span> for a bit, then bear left down to a traffic rotunda. Then I am channeled on to a side road, which seems like an ordinary road but is mostly clear. Then I cross the highway (N50) and skirt it north. I see Kampen-Zuid station to my left but cannot access it across the road and have to travel a little ways north, finally see a turnoff and loop around through a newly built neighborhood and roll up at the station, a modern brick structure with plenty of protected bike parking. </div><div><br /></div><div>So now I've cycled from Amsterdam to Kampen via Elburg. Now the train rides home are longer and costlier. But it's worth it. And the service on the KampenZuid -Amsterdam line is good and frequent. Plus wi-fi. </div><div><p></p><p>This frenzy of riding has to do with the fact that I start work next Monday and such long-distance joy rides will be limited to the weekend. The spell of springy weather was motivation enough to ride like hell. <i><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2022/01/flevodelia-part-3.html">Continued</a>...</i></p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oLNqNsE3RSM/YIqY_UJB3CI/AAAAAAAAOlg/_LO3GNQf04sWODHuUffBcqsrTAasUjrJQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-25-17-40-40-251%257E2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1527" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oLNqNsE3RSM/YIqY_UJB3CI/AAAAAAAAOlg/_LO3GNQf04sWODHuUffBcqsrTAasUjrJQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-02-25-17-40-40-251%257E2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Kampen-Zuid station</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></i></p><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><p><br /></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p></div>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-50016369394774749632021-04-14T19:06:00.004+02:002021-05-24T21:46:15.697+02:00Flevodelia, part 1<p> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XbigT6FH2cM/YHCyWQuSkSI/AAAAAAAAOfw/Fw_CMrRN6Z4VYnmrP-aDiCmPiBU6c9txwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1760/IMG_2021-02-22-16-32-20-175%257E4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1760" data-original-width="1562" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XbigT6FH2cM/YHCyWQuSkSI/AAAAAAAAOfw/Fw_CMrRN6Z4VYnmrP-aDiCmPiBU6c9txwCLcBGAsYHQ/w355-h400/IMG_2021-02-22-16-32-20-175%257E4.jpg" width="355" /></a></div><p> </p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Flevoland, the Netherlands' 12th and youngest province, is generally given short shrift in travel guidebooks, as it has few genuine "attractions" other than the former islands of Urk and Schokland, both of which were incorporated into the land mass that became the Noordoostpolder in the mid-20th century. But in fact the flat expanses of Flevoland harbor a unique set of nine "land art" installations that exploit the possibilities of the landscape as a medium, while some reflect on its history. I've already seen <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2017/09/almere-and-green-cathedral.html" target="_blank">the Green Cathedral</a>, now I wanted to see the others. They provided a perfect pretext to explore. So I</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">worked out an itinerary where I could visit one or two per ride, then park my bike at the nearest train station. I started by cycling from Amsterdam to Almere, the province's westernmost city, with a couple of land art pieces within cycling distance, found another amidst the vast polderland, then two more near the town of Lelystad. </span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Feb 20, 2021)</span></i><p></p><p>Following the first snowstorm in a decade, it turned crazy beautiful, so I decided to embark on a new bike-train tour, starting in Flevoland. </p><p>The way out of Amsterdam I took the Nescio bridge to IJburg and traversed Diemerpark to the Vijfhoek — the pentagonal nature reserve that juts into the IJmeer. It felt like it had fast-forwarded to spring, and the greenway to Muiden was already open. Past Muiden I continued along the LF-9, skirting the IJmeer to Muiderberg. There I found one of the country's oldest Jewish cemeteries — closed, as it was Saturday. </p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tjhp4pLXbL0/YGjti2mnM-I/AAAAAAAAOek/c1l3c1BDexkPjJvYWNRRuRv7lGScIpBygCLcBGAsYHQ/s1845/fietsen%2Balmere.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1575" data-original-width="1845" height="273" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tjhp4pLXbL0/YGjti2mnM-I/AAAAAAAAOek/c1l3c1BDexkPjJvYWNRRuRv7lGScIpBygCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h273/fietsen%2Balmere.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flevoland west coast drive</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p><span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 15 →16 → 17 → 18 → 26 → 28 → 6 → 5 → 4 → 34</i></span></p><p>Beyond Muiderberg was new territory for me. I had never cycled all the way to Almere. It was a question of climbing the bridge (<i><span style="color: #38761d;">→ 26</span></i>). The bikeway on the bridge was as broad as a car lane, a pleasant ride between the IJmeer and Gooimeer. Arriving in Flevoland, I headed up the west edge of the province in search of the next work of land art. This was a lovely ride, first past the beach of Almere Poort, then a seaside jaunt up to the northwest corner of the province and around the bend.</p><p><br /></p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JYYgnN1g74A/YHbc_YaZrFI/AAAAAAAAOiU/ykaLfw46KHYBkaduquk4sWStluRq2b7ygCLcBGAsYHQ/s1628/polderland%2Baerial%2Bview.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="822" data-original-width="1628" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JYYgnN1g74A/YHbc_YaZrFI/AAAAAAAAOiU/ykaLfw46KHYBkaduquk4sWStluRq2b7ygCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/polderland%2Baerial%2Bview.jpg" width="320" /></a><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4EAHjWJAOkA/YGjtqBFMbNI/AAAAAAAAOeo/4NWdYgtcWucArC3BarmP9vv2jULdi6g_gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Land%2BArt%2BPolderland%2BGarden.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4EAHjWJAOkA/YGjtqBFMbNI/AAAAAAAAOeo/4NWdYgtcWucArC3BarmP9vv2jULdi6g_gCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/Land%2BArt%2BPolderland%2BGarden.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Polderland Garden of Love and Fire </i>(1997, Daniel Libeskind)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p>Land Art 2: <b>Polderland Garden of Love and Fire</b><i> </i>(1997) by Daniel Libeskind. This series of aluminum monoliths is one component in a sort of pictograph, comprised of five lines, as seen from above; the other lines are formed by 3 slender canals and a footpath. Apparently the artist was inspired by "Llama de amor," a poem by the 16th-century Spanish mystic Juan de la Cruz, though how these passions are reflected by the polders of Flevoland I couldn't say. </p><p style="text-align: center;">🚲🚲🚲</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zYrZoX5QBQg/YHTMvs67KPI/AAAAAAAAOhw/Ta8vREYwBnsykRbA66NlIjp4BHa8pvR0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Almere%2BBuiten.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2013" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zYrZoX5QBQg/YHTMvs67KPI/AAAAAAAAOhw/Ta8vREYwBnsykRbA66NlIjp4BHa8pvR0wCLcBGAsYHQ/w394-h400/Almere%2BBuiten.jpg" width="394" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Lage Vaart, east Almere</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(Feb 21, 2021)</i></span></p><p><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 52 → 74 → 59 → 60 → 62 → 70 → 71 → 93 → 6 </span></i></p><p>Today's ride was splendid. About the first half was along the Lage Vaart, a broad canal that skirts Almere's lengthy eastern extension: Almere Buiten. Almere is a large town. Almost the entire way the path was full of people: families out strolling, cyclists on this unseasonably warm Sunday. Past kp 71 the urbanization ends and the path parallels the train tracks along the bottom edge of the Oostvardersplassen reserve. At kp 6, I turn around, climb up to a lookout over the reserve, where crowds are having ice cream from a truck, and go south over the A6. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cF1bekVrE48/YHTLnsLXFnI/AAAAAAAAOho/B5viCKOLi80v1n3OpirNYLnoBnAVBANxQCLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Almere-Lelystad%2Bbig.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="506" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cF1bekVrE48/YHTLnsLXFnI/AAAAAAAAOho/B5viCKOLi80v1n3OpirNYLnoBnAVBANxQCLcBGAsYHQ/w169-h200/Almere-Lelystad%2Bbig.jpg" width="169" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vPdg28TiwyY/YHTKEZ77sEI/AAAAAAAAOhg/zXGoSmYmm_ABYqN5oghszDAinggRRYhPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Almere-Lelystad.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1504" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vPdg28TiwyY/YHTKEZ77sEI/AAAAAAAAOhg/zXGoSmYmm_ABYqN5oghszDAinggRRYhPwCLcBGAsYHQ/w470-h640/Almere-Lelystad.jpg" width="470" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 5 → 10 → 47 → 45 </span></i></p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KUgddXl0nCQ/YHbdVOOH0YI/AAAAAAAAOic/svXHiAnTYhw6D9Ub1OmeOzHlG5oIqRmZACLcBGAsYHQ/s1833/aardzee%2Baerial%2Bview.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a>Thus begins the one arduous stretch of the day, riding down a flat road flanked by a series of eolic windmills. The line of trees that mark the turnoff seems impossibly distant, though it's just a little over 4 km, going against the wind. But eventually I reach it. As soon as I turn onto the broad asphalt path alongside the N706, it's a pleasure once again. About 1km east is the installation on the left. <br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iYmBFVoRbx4/YHS7YNw1ghI/AAAAAAAAOhU/zBlsEXSrlVY7oKfG7n1qodDcY0G1gWn8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-21-15-56-17-698.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iYmBFVoRbx4/YHS7YNw1ghI/AAAAAAAAOhU/zBlsEXSrlVY7oKfG7n1qodDcY0G1gWn8gCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/IMG_2021-02-21-15-56-17-698.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Aardzee by Piet Slegers</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TTH7K2KYaf4/YHS7UJmzq7I/AAAAAAAAOhQ/U78jElSLmKUBXp9dziyTll5kKTSojUXSACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-21-16-10-11-020.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TTH7K2KYaf4/YHS7UJmzq7I/AAAAAAAAOhQ/U78jElSLmKUBXp9dziyTll5kKTSojUXSACLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h150/IMG_2021-02-21-16-10-11-020.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table></div><br /><p></p><p></p><b>Aardzee </b>(1982, Piet Slegers) — "Earth Sea" — is a sort of homage to Flevoland's not-so-distant watery past beneath the Zuiderzee. The 5 hectare artwork consists of a series of embankments alongside a still canal traversed by 2 footbridges. The sloped green protrusions might be seen as rolling waves. In a sense, the entire landscape of Flevoland is a work of art, as it was created from nothing, and Aardzee blends right in. If there weren't a sign you might not notice it. Before inspecting the installation, I sat at a picnic table and ate my sandwich. A geezer came over — the only other person in sight — and commented on the lovely weather. He said he could recall when the site was being built. A photo shows it being dredged from the water. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KUgddXl0nCQ/YHbdVOOH0YI/AAAAAAAAOic/svXHiAnTYhw6D9Ub1OmeOzHlG5oIqRmZACLcBGAsYHQ/s1833/aardzee%2Baerial%2Bview.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="995" data-original-width="1833" height="188" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KUgddXl0nCQ/YHbdVOOH0YI/AAAAAAAAOic/svXHiAnTYhw6D9Ub1OmeOzHlG5oIqRmZACLcBGAsYHQ/w307-h188/aardzee%2Baerial%2Bview.jpg" width="307" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Aerial view of Aardzee</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KUgddXl0nCQ/YHbdVOOH0YI/AAAAAAAAOic/svXHiAnTYhw6D9Ub1OmeOzHlG5oIqRmZACLcBGAsYHQ/s1833/aardzee%2Baerial%2Bview.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3KhpUV-_Tsc/YG7tj1ivUiI/AAAAAAAAOfU/c11_C5W4xUAVi84zCn2a6Jx3k1Y9MDFOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/to%2Bkp%2B45.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1121" data-original-width="2048" height="218" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3KhpUV-_Tsc/YG7tj1ivUiI/AAAAAAAAOfU/c11_C5W4xUAVi84zCn2a6Jx3k1Y9MDFOwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h218/to%2Bkp%2B45.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Heading north to Lelystad</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />I continued east and now with the wind pushing me along, it was pleasant indeed. I had thought of going as far the Larserbos and heading north along the Larservaart canal. But at kp 47, looking over the stark landscape to the north and noticing a biking couple gliding onto it, I decided to do the same. This jaunt turned out to be splendid, as pleasing to the senses as the way down was annoying and monotonous. Yet it was around the same distance. Nothing but a vast swatch of green, power pylons to my left beyond a fringe of reeds. Eventually the highway came into view and I plowed <i>under</i> it to reach the Hollandse Hout. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQaEl1-0bet8R5MGs5eSpAH-wtS3qLvRH3PLBXWyTE3ksR6F_fC8Ek-yC-LDdzliTcmAG5doTOfnNRWQMxkalo1HWVTx9_R_wBELcypx3pnm5Qrdw6twfATLthQUgiXja6zRyGqZpg1X_W/s2048/kp+45.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1690" data-original-width="2048" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQaEl1-0bet8R5MGs5eSpAH-wtS3qLvRH3PLBXWyTE3ksR6F_fC8Ek-yC-LDdzliTcmAG5doTOfnNRWQMxkalo1HWVTx9_R_wBELcypx3pnm5Qrdw6twfATLthQUgiXja6zRyGqZpg1X_W/w320-h264/kp+45.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 08 → 91 → 92 → 27 → 26 → 28 → 31 → 37</span></i></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tMeNx3zWDoM/YHC3Rz_7RWI/AAAAAAAAOgA/ZH84X44nQCUoSvC_ah7L0zCJ-URTl8f_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Hollandse%2BHout%2B2.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tMeNx3zWDoM/YHC3Rz_7RWI/AAAAAAAAOgA/ZH84X44nQCUoSvC_ah7L0zCJ-URTl8f_ACLcBGAsYHQ/w240-h320/Hollandse%2BHout%2B2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Hollandse Hout</span></td></tr></tbody></table><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/12/nieuw-landroute.html" target="_blank">I had been to the Hollandse Hout </a>but got a different perspective on it today. Not exactly dramatic but splendidly remote. I took an L-route through the forest, which now seemed scrawny and straggling. None of the majesty of the Veluwe but somehow comforting. It was a perfect day capper. <p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;">🚲🚲🚲</div></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z-cBhqeM8Bg/YHS6FIMLxWI/AAAAAAAAOhA/ww738fPinD0FdOcZy9vS51sxcfiAcwCgACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-22-13-44-25-104.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z-cBhqeM8Bg/YHS6FIMLxWI/AAAAAAAAOhA/ww738fPinD0FdOcZy9vS51sxcfiAcwCgACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/IMG_2021-02-22-13-44-25-104.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Feb 22, 2021)</span></i><p></p><p><span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 31 → 30 → 32 → 33 → 34</i></span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PrRmCOm6kk0/YHS6Gb8e-zI/AAAAAAAAOhE/3P_seFBNj0Y93p6z9r9oDKcQ46L67ebHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-22-13-48-02-976.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PrRmCOm6kk0/YHS6Gb8e-zI/AAAAAAAAOhE/3P_seFBNj0Y93p6z9r9oDKcQ46L67ebHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2021-02-22-13-48-02-976.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Exposure (Antony Gormley)<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>On the Bataviastrand at Lelystad. Slightly cool but fine beach weather. This dramatic setting is at the foot of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houtribdijk" target="_blank">Houtribdijk</a> — the 27km causeway to Enkhuizen in Noord-Holland. Perched on a spit of land on the southwest end of the beach is <b>Exposure </b>man, exposing himself I guess, to the sea: the Markermeer. It is Land Art object #4, the creation of British artist Antony Gormley. He certainly is a photographable chap; I've taken shots of him from every angle and distance. He pops out of the landscape, far or near, a crouching figure. He is a 26m tall construction of what appear to be pieces of power pylons. Not a straight line to be found — it is all shapes formed by placement of steel bars at suitable angles. <p></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sW52hzohaXU/YHCyWBZMTLI/AAAAAAAAOfs/bZaR6bSZLR4JMyfb4mk7vsEWHHylxFtFgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2021-02-22-13-31-39-893.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sW52hzohaXU/YHCyWBZMTLI/AAAAAAAAOfs/bZaR6bSZLR4JMyfb4mk7vsEWHHylxFtFgCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h240/IMG_2021-02-22-13-31-39-893.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Houtribdijk, Lelystad end</span></td></tr></tbody></table>I took a small section of the Houtribdijk — installed between 1957 and 1976 as part of the Zuiderzee reclamation project — just to see how it felt. With the wind at my back it seemed calm and I contemplated just riding to Enkhuizen but didn't. I'm sure it would be pleasant and not monotonous, something like a sailing trip. If I were to take the causeway to Noord-Holland, I could head down to Alkmaar or over to Den Helder. The wind must be blowing northwest for maximum fun. <p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WVkEYNSjnE4/YHWMJuJfoRI/AAAAAAAAOh4/uIE1AMRzeQsrYe-Fpr01N87wJyRDpiOEwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/lelystad-dronten.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1490" data-original-width="2048" height="466" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WVkEYNSjnE4/YHWMJuJfoRI/AAAAAAAAOh4/uIE1AMRzeQsrYe-Fpr01N87wJyRDpiOEwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h466/lelystad-dronten.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Lelystad - Dronten</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 40 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">96 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">78 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">77 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">76 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">75 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">74 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">80</span></i> <p></p><p>After Exposure, I headed up the coast to kp 40. The coastal path felt pleasantly remote. It was great just to ride and look at the occasional eolic windmill or shipyard. At kp 78, I hauled the bike up over the dike (stairs with rail) to find the highway in front of me (A6). Climbed deftly over this and proceeded south through polder — like yesterday but less daunting. Reaching a T (kp 74), I turned right (west) to kp 80. There stood Land Art item #5: <i>Observatorium</i>. </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r3X16v0BS_4/YHNTRocVYWI/AAAAAAAAOgw/w7TqgDZW4kUA6ONccn0z-ufWnBg22QSXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/observatorium.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1862" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r3X16v0BS_4/YHNTRocVYWI/AAAAAAAAOgw/w7TqgDZW4kUA6ONccn0z-ufWnBg22QSXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/observatorium.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QcW2w0CV6O4/YHNTP7qdVyI/AAAAAAAAOgs/MdUBJqPclvUS96ji3VRUjMRV3RG05wUggCLcBGAsYHQ/s2606/observatorium%2Bbirdseye.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1206" data-original-width="2606" height="216" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QcW2w0CV6O4/YHNTP7qdVyI/AAAAAAAAOgs/MdUBJqPclvUS96ji3VRUjMRV3RG05wUggCLcBGAsYHQ/w316-h216/observatorium%2Bbirdseye.jpg" width="316" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Aerial view of Observatorium (1977, Robert Morris)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />There was no one around. The piece dates from 1977 and was created by Robert Morris, who is according to a New York writer friend, "along with Donald Judd one of our greatest minimalists ... an integral part of the NY art scene, this guy worked in almost every medium but was known for installation and performance." When it was transplanted from Velsen (North Holland) to its current location east of the city of Lelystad in 1977, the province of Flevoland had just been reclaimed from the sea and there was plenty of room for such a mega-project. Now it stands in a triangle between roads and railroads, dwarfed by numerous eolic windmills. It consists of a pair of concentric donuts; from the inner one the sunrise can be sighted through a sort of stone viewfinder on solstice and equinox days. On the explanatory board, it is compared to Stonehenge, but it made me think of the Maya observatory at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uaxactun" target="_blank">Uaxactún, Guatemala</a>. It was neat but a little rundown, the boards that lined the interior circle covered with graffiti. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 74 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">83 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">84 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">87 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">29 </span></i><i style="color: #38761d;">→ </i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">11</span></i></p><p>Rather than return to Lelystad, as I'd originally planned, I continued east as far as Dronten — at 14km, a reasonable distance to cover in the hour of light that remained. By going further east, I had an easier ride to my next destination, Kampen. I was cycling along a backroad, wind pushing me along, and I soon reached the burg of Swifterbant, where I was pleased to find an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFuizX3SiyE" target="_blank">Albert Heijn supermarket</a>, and I got water and chocolate. </p><p>Then I was on a busier road to kp 87, where I turned south through vast fields, seeing no sign of a town. Some confusion over unposted signage, then I was gliding down most smoothly into Dronten, <i>fietspad </i>along a well-lit thoroughfare flanked by identical modern dwellings, each crowned with an A-shaped studio. This was a prosperous, ultra-planned community in the middle of nothing. Dronten has a population of 40,000. It is the world's chief manufacturer of Velomobiles, or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velomobile" target="_blank">human-powered cars</a>. </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GqEKoR1zTQg/YHDUTPGgTAI/AAAAAAAAOgI/Lib6AwsnEXIYNJcV8W9I3eBKAE2C2f00QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/parkeer%2BLelystad.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GqEKoR1zTQg/YHDUTPGgTAI/AAAAAAAAOgI/Lib6AwsnEXIYNJcV8W9I3eBKAE2C2f00QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/parkeer%2BLelystad.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Free parking</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p>Over a highway and into the center, which was rather lively. It was a mild evening and I didn't mind waiting on the platform for half an hour. Dronten has an ultra-modern station with ample protected parking. That is a key element is this bike/train approach, and with just a couple of exceptions — Harderwijk, Hilversum — I could always park under a shelter. <i><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2021/05/flevodelia-part-2.html">Continued...</a></i></p> <p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-81239961753079869802021-03-21T23:33:00.011+01:002021-04-15T12:44:41.931+02:00All signs<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h6NPVft8cY8/YEqj6yMAW6I/AAAAAAAAOao/tiRnYz0ESXsyIVFILNeT1ish5ELYGyf7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/knooppunt%2Boverijssel.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h6NPVft8cY8/YEqj6yMAW6I/AAAAAAAAOao/tiRnYz0ESXsyIVFILNeT1ish5ELYGyf7wCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/knooppunt%2Boverijssel.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Plans are afoot to install a new network of </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">fast bikeways</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> for commuters, primarily between cities </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">and suburbs. A few pilot routes have already been installed: Eindhoven-Veldhoven in Noord-Brabant; Deventer-Apeldoorn; and Utrecht-De Bilt. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">To designate these special routes, a new signage element will be added: the letter 'F' (fast I guess) plus the number of the route in white lettering on a blue background. The website of the</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><a href="https://fietsberaad.nl/Kennisbank/Nieuwe-bewegwijzering-hoogwaardige-regionale-fiets" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";" target="_blank">Fietsberaad </a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">shows what these look like. </span></span><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A number of signage systems are already in use throughout the Netherlands. It can be a bit confusing to visitors, and in fact many Netherlanders aren't aware of them either. I've discussed and illustrated the various types of signs in previous posts and how they can be used, but I'd like to break it down here and provide a brief guide to cycling signage in the Netherlands. </span><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a name='more'></a></span></span><div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HUkRg5Fp5CM/YEv1jmoq_oI/AAAAAAAAOcc/ickk-7bohbAIVDozK7DrbWTn_Ss0QMD8QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/point%2Bman.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HUkRg5Fp5CM/YEv1jmoq_oI/AAAAAAAAOcc/ickk-7bohbAIVDozK7DrbWTn_Ss0QMD8QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/point%2Bman.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Signing in</td></tr></tbody></table><p>As impressive as the cycling infrastructure that links the entire country are the various signage systems that help you get where you want to go. It is <i>almost </i>impossible to get lost, except in those rare instances when a sign has been damaged or obscured (in which case, you can report the issue at <a href="https://www.meldpuntroutes.nl/#/fietsen" target="_blank">this website</a>.)</p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h2><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great; font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoZF4AB1flLnqpccQLjHXqcR-z1zCC4_ydDvwDqSho9tezBdsarr03w-iOQYVRQRbz5ET0qHcHmJfm_n7zdRiQ5FBMRtX9tQuL3XfMiGL8lJco1hxBjqZ90stU-LUuIdIoxKY4z5CU8FHZ/s1600/directional+signs+utrecht.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoZF4AB1flLnqpccQLjHXqcR-z1zCC4_ydDvwDqSho9tezBdsarr03w-iOQYVRQRbz5ET0qHcHmJfm_n7zdRiQ5FBMRtX9tQuL3XfMiGL8lJco1hxBjqZ90stU-LUuIdIoxKY4z5CU8FHZ/w320-h242/directional+signs+utrecht.JPG" width="320" /></a>Directional signs</span></h2></div>These are the ubiquitous red-bordered arrow-shaped signs seen all over. They're very handy for simply getting from point A to point B—not necessarily scenic but almost always safe and direct. Usually distances are included. Green directionals refer to greener routes that may not be as direct but are traffic-free and serene. The ones pictured below are a variation; they point to LF routes (7a, 13b, etc), which have their own signage network.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tqBBNisW25M/YEqkjeURiyI/AAAAAAAAOaw/-m3h2X020PEajg69BVBFnU3vcAJJhDvLQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/LF%2Bcrossroads.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="320" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tqBBNisW25M/YEqkjeURiyI/AAAAAAAAOaw/-m3h2X020PEajg69BVBFnU3vcAJJhDvLQCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h150/LF%2Bcrossroads.JPG" width="200" /></a></div></div><br /></div><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great;">Knooppunten</span></span></h2><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--yHyWXh02n8/YEqlb3m7fXI/AAAAAAAAObA/h-VXrsYdvXkBDJObzYPpOQQgjBpw66yhACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/knoopuunt%2Bdrenthe.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great;"><img border="0" data-original-height="150" data-original-width="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--yHyWXh02n8/YEqlb3m7fXI/AAAAAAAAObA/h-VXrsYdvXkBDJObzYPpOQQgjBpw66yhACLcBGAsYHQ/s0/knoopuunt%2Bdrenthe.JPG" /></span></a></div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hyJSqdLy_Ps/YAtrioxhxdI/AAAAAAAAORg/tX3tThI6Ukc1oWtmXXqYQlVJtHMroAxNQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG-4040%2B%25282%2529.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1245" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hyJSqdLy_Ps/YAtrioxhxdI/AAAAAAAAORg/tX3tThI6Ukc1oWtmXXqYQlVJtHMroAxNQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG-4040%2B%25282%2529.jpg" /></a><i>Knooppunten</i>, which may be translated as "nodes," are numbered points which connect all the bike paths throughout the Netherlands and northern Belgium. They are not necessarily the most direct ways between points but usually the more scenic, lower traffic routes. They're ideal for planning tours, as you're almost guaranteed a scenic jaunt by following them. You can pore over knooppunt maps at home to plan your route, or simply improvise along the way. You need a knooppunt map, such as the ones pictured in my posts, to use them effectively. These maps are available in various formats. There are regional knooppunt maps, an <a href="https://webwinkel.anwb.nl/webwinkel/basiskaart-lf-routes.html" target="_blank">atlas</a> and an <a href="https://www.fietsknoop.nl/" target="_blank">app</a>. </div><div>Knooppunten are a relatively recent development on the signage scene. The system was started in northern Belgium, though the Dutch developed it more extensively. The network is morphing and expanding all the time. </div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SlGZUTTCAYU/YEvxAElh5EI/AAAAAAAAOcI/QEfXs7lcK04mlQo1KQ5zt2FhorPGI8b6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/kp%2Bguide.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SlGZUTTCAYU/YEvxAElh5EI/AAAAAAAAOcI/QEfXs7lcK04mlQo1KQ5zt2FhorPGI8b6QCLcBGAsYHQ/w150-h200/kp%2Bguide.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gettin' geeky</td></tr></tbody></table>If you want to get all geeky about it, you can purchase pre-printed paper strips on which you can mark all the knooppunten on your route and affix it to your handlebar, so you won't have to consult the map. No doubt these are being rendered obsolete by smartphones, for which you can naturally purchase various handlebar holders. I wouldn't go that far, hopeless boomer that I am. </div><div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqwYn9urvTHOhUy5KcaG7a5jQev7hZu5K2la85GAtL_U_kARVQPPwipzX6cEVDMUsB14raOS2Sj9QkVHWRVoQtjpEtWq2MYSy80qL3EO4Md94Qza8sxHaFEzEAbiIOgXyV-TLDJh-lFzSl/s320/nadeert+2.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqwYn9urvTHOhUy5KcaG7a5jQev7hZu5K2la85GAtL_U_kARVQPPwipzX6cEVDMUsB14raOS2Sj9QkVHWRVoQtjpEtWq2MYSy80qL3EO4Md94Qza8sxHaFEzEAbiIOgXyV-TLDJh-lFzSl/s0/nadeert+2.JPG" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"You are approaching 46"</td></tr></tbody></table>Distances between knooppunten vary greatly —urban areas generally have more nodes than the countryside, and in certain extreme cases, such as the causeway between Lelystad, Flevoland and Enkhuizen, Noord-Holland, where there are no possible deviations from the route, you may pedal more than 20km between them. But ordinarily it's on the order of 5 or 6 km between knooppunten. When you're getting near the next one, you'll see a sign reading "<i>U nadeert het knooppunt ...</i>" though you may still have a kilometer to go. <br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j3ucoKjJapw/YEqt2HeRkcI/AAAAAAAAObo/YuXlAegjL0sxA_hdG8w4EM-4FWuqTmkIACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/dogleg.JPG" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j3ucoKjJapw/YEqt2HeRkcI/AAAAAAAAObo/YuXlAegjL0sxA_hdG8w4EM-4FWuqTmkIACLcBGAsYHQ/s0/dogleg.JPG" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Jog right, then keep going</span></td></tr></tbody></table>The numbers are always accompanied by arrows. These may point left, right, up (straight ahead), or angle left or right when you need to bear in those directions. Sometimes, for example when getting on to a bridge or going through a tunnel, the arrow may take the form of a loop, indicating you need to turn around. In another frequently seen sign, the arrow takes the form of a right angle, usually indicating you need to cross a road and turn on the other side, or it may zigzag to show you need to jog left or right, then keep going in the same direction. On occasion, the instruction symbolized by the arrow is unclear and you have to make your best guess, or it may even be wrong. The <a href="https://www.fietsknoop.nl/" target="_blank">fietsknoop app</a> is an excellent resource in such cases. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RJ2doGJP5ks/YEqnrfe59yI/AAAAAAAAObY/pyapNwpdhGwdND6h29FdsC5NVaZdQjfjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/knoppunt%2Bmap%2Bzeeland.JPG" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="310" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RJ2doGJP5ks/YEqnrfe59yI/AAAAAAAAObY/pyapNwpdhGwdND6h29FdsC5NVaZdQjfjQCLcBGAsYHQ/w194-h200/knoppunt%2Bmap%2Bzeeland.JPG" width="194" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div><div>Even if you don't carry any maps or apps along with you, regional maps are posted at most knooppunt locations, though not at every one. The design of both the knooppunt signs and maps may vary from one province to another. </div><div><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w_0i-LMISqs/YE4V9cq91NI/AAAAAAAAOcs/AxjhbHoMS506PQyf_2AjwmC0FQaCoUEFACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/board%2B46.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1700" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w_0i-LMISqs/YE4V9cq91NI/AAAAAAAAOcs/AxjhbHoMS506PQyf_2AjwmC0FQaCoUEFACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/board%2B46.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Some examples of local maps posted at knooppunten</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VvWghO57-3A/YE4V9eZRV7I/AAAAAAAAOcw/i5BsMrxlhHsZZjt39OLBD_0qTMLiQTraQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/board%2B67.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1638" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VvWghO57-3A/YE4V9eZRV7I/AAAAAAAAOcw/i5BsMrxlhHsZZjt39OLBD_0qTMLiQTraQCLcBGAsYHQ/w160-h200/board%2B67.jpg" width="160" /></span></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great; font-weight: normal;">LF route signs</span></h2><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wmIOZPAgFSc/YEv04MR_fjI/AAAAAAAAOcU/iDmzbTf77N0KJRFMaSx-ShgwSnou0oLKwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/LF%2B1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wmIOZPAgFSc/YEv04MR_fjI/AAAAAAAAOcU/iDmzbTf77N0KJRFMaSx-ShgwSnou0oLKwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/LF%2B1.jpg" /></a></div><br />LF refers to <i>langeafstand fietsroutes</i> — long-distance bike routes. There are 15 or so LF routes traversing the country, covering distances of 200 to 600 km, altogether covering nearly 4,000 km. I've cycled all or part of various LF-routes, as described on this blog. </div><div>They include the North Sea route (<a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2018/10/lf-1-hoek-van-holland-to-voorne.html" target="_blank">LF-1</a>), the Saksenroute (<a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2017/06/twente-32.html" target="_blank">LF-14</a>), which skirts the German border, and the Schelde-Rheinroute (<a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2015/03/fietspad-naar-antwerp-iv.html" target="_blank">LF-13</a>), which follows the Schelde and Rhine rivers through the southern provinces. Some of these routes extend into Belgium, with the same numbers. </div><div>LF routes are generally scenic, and excellent tours can be planned around all or part of any of them. Some of them are being phased out, while others are currently being upgraded or transformed into thematic "icon routes," each having <a href="https://www.lfkustroute.nl/en" target="_blank">its own website</a>. I'll have more to say about these as they develop. </div><div>Signs for LF routes have a standard format through the 12 Dutch provinces. LF routes predate knooppunten, and the latter are generally superimposed on the former, so you can follow either one. (In northern Belgium, the two networks are <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/search?q=truiden" target="_blank">sometimes separate</a>.) In general 'a' routes (i.e., LF 4a) have a west-east trajectory, the 'b' routes east-west. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great;">Mushroom markers</span></span></h2><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SU3QqFwtZLI/YEqvt-sqevI/AAAAAAAAOb4/3fVHYtZBzZcSiMYgSy1RwAkc3t1Q11JNACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/mushroom%2B4.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SU3QqFwtZLI/YEqvt-sqevI/AAAAAAAAOb4/3fVHYtZBzZcSiMYgSy1RwAkc3t1Q11JNACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/mushroom%2B4.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>These seem to be the earliest cycling signposts, pre-dating the other networks, and though they aren't as widespread as the above versions, they often sprout up in forests. Some seem to be quite old and weathered, while others are shiny and new, so I suppose they're still being produced. I find them comforting. One can imagine the squat <i>paddenstoel </i>markers pointing the way through a misty wood in the distant past. They serve essentially the same function as the directional markers, but being four-sided they more efficiently cover the compass points. <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ysi4CjZowVk/YEqvtXgN3nI/AAAAAAAAOb0/pOzxR6vcZks4iR-MYjl8fYuHv-4w94rwwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/mushroom%2B3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="150" data-original-width="200" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ysi4CjZowVk/YEqvtXgN3nI/AAAAAAAAOb0/pOzxR6vcZks4iR-MYjl8fYuHv-4w94rwwCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h240/mushroom%2B3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This mushroom marker also indicates LF routes at the base.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div><h2 style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great;">Theme Routes</span></span></h2>Another kind of sign seen along the fietspad is linked to thematic circuits that have been</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nl9ohgQB-J8/YFES0pC6ObI/AAAAAAAAOdk/Q2AeCcr4iHs3o3XKKieXnuOBVPsiDIV9gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/themed%2Broutes%2Bdrenthe.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="314" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nl9ohgQB-J8/YFES0pC6ObI/AAAAAAAAOdk/Q2AeCcr4iHs3o3XKKieXnuOBVPsiDIV9gCLcBGAsYHQ/w240-h314/themed%2Broutes%2Bdrenthe.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Theme routes indicated on the post</span></td></tr></tbody></table>developed by the provinces or by the ANWB (Koninklijke Nederlandse Toeristenbond, or Royal Dutch Touring Club), the national touring association. Such routes might traverse a national park, or follow a series of windmills. In Friesland, there's the Elfstedenroute, or "11 Cities Route," which corresponds to the famous skaters' route that happens when it's cold enough for the waterways to freeze. I haven't actually used these signs. My sense is that they're being superseded by smartphone technology. The routes are still there but instead of using route signs, people use the knooppunten that link the route; the sequence of numbers can be accessed via the ANWB cycling app. <br /><br /><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Fredericka the Great; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;">Other signs</span></h2><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9gUd1xHQGBM/YFCbM4VrKnI/AAAAAAAAOdU/4W_rD5bgPksBIl7fbsD25qcdTMUC6RvlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/geen%2Bbromfietsen.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9gUd1xHQGBM/YFCbM4VrKnI/AAAAAAAAOdU/4W_rD5bgPksBIl7fbsD25qcdTMUC6RvlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/geen%2Bbromfietsen.JPG" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">"No scooters or mopeds, except for those over 65 or the handicapped"</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="text-align: center;">Another sign that comes in handy is the blue "fietspad" (bike path) sign, which may indicate which of several paths is devoted to bikes (as opposed to pedestrians, horses or cars). More often than not, other kinds of vehicles, including scooters and motorized wheelchairs, are not allowed to use fietspads, and sometimes you'll see additional signs to emphasize the point. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><p><br /></p></div></div>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-89397404136793770312021-03-08T15:35:00.001+01:002021-03-08T15:39:20.850+01:00Park & Ride, Part 2: Winterlude<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qXlxtEp0Yts/YEAkVhAQwWI/AAAAAAAAOYU/3V-QD3xrUzkkGSVXPB0_Ae0EEVk1PwZlgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/Horst.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qXlxtEp0Yts/YEAkVhAQwWI/AAAAAAAAOYU/3V-QD3xrUzkkGSVXPB0_Ae0EEVk1PwZlgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h400/Horst.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cyclin' large</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">The autumn days got chillier as I continued my journey in stages through central Netherlands. Having skirted the rivers, I was now poised to plunge into the great forests: to the north, the Veluwe and to the west, Utrechtse Heuvelrug. I traversed the northwest corner of the former, then the northern edge of the latter as far as Hilversum. An icy wind propelled me home from there. <span><a name='more'></a></span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-style: italic;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rO_PN46Dbb4/YCcgno4Z98I/AAAAAAAAOWE/9jwadbxh8_wQoJ5DakdHZ_w-cZ17Nf1PACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201122_122015.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rO_PN46Dbb4/YCcgno4Z98I/AAAAAAAAOWE/9jwadbxh8_wQoJ5DakdHZ_w-cZ17Nf1PACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/20201122_122015.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Misty morning in the Blue Room<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div><i><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Nov 22, 2020)</span></i><br /><div>When I arrived in Rhenen, it was raining. I descended to the river and took the Blauwe Kamer route in reverse. At the end of this lovely riverside jaunt I crossed a road and took the path to <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 31 → 11</span></i>. This follows a creek (the Grift), woods on my left, another fine stretch. On the way up to <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 11</span></i>, the creek widens and the landscape opens to vast flat fields of grass. I'm heading for Ede. </div><div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tc3ND-jYmrI/YCchmHk70WI/AAAAAAAAOWU/VqPcBf_3bK0fqt6aqvfrswMQhZFolOSHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201122_124056.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tc3ND-jYmrI/YCchmHk70WI/AAAAAAAAOWU/VqPcBf_3bK0fqt6aqvfrswMQhZFolOSHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201122_124056.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Plying the Grift</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vDo3Brb4mLM/YCcg95JyPDI/AAAAAAAAOWM/Rv3wvme9mpEQ_b7gtNXfk00VZ9ilLiBcACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201122_123343.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vDo3Brb4mLM/YCcg95JyPDI/AAAAAAAAOWM/Rv3wvme9mpEQ_b7gtNXfk00VZ9ilLiBcACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201122_123343.jpg" /></a>I approached the town along a succession of country lanes, past isolated farmhouses and some larger farming operations with multiple new tractors. I rode into Bennekom, the town between Ede and Wageningen, which comprise an urban zone along the western edge of the Veluwe forest. </p><p>Coming into Ede, I lost the knooppunt network and ended up climbing quite a ways north alongside a traffic-heavy road. A sign on my right declared that I'd reached the forest but I was still on the highway. I just kept going until I found a sign pointing right to Otterlo — the green way. Soon I entered the forest and all was well. But the distance to Apeldoorn was 31 km, more than I'd anticipated, and I doubted I could make it through the forest by dark. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UbFhDkh6Dog/YEUdFCuNkuI/AAAAAAAAOZ8/5-McH0yqAqURwjDCK-H1Fq4s7O09dmCtQCLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Netherlands-Barneveld.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="506" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UbFhDkh6Dog/YEUdFCuNkuI/AAAAAAAAOZ8/5-McH0yqAqURwjDCK-H1Fq4s7O09dmCtQCLcBGAsYHQ/w169-h200/Netherlands-Barneveld.png" width="169" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="color: #38761d;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hrYVrg75UgA/YCmsRB-XaiI/AAAAAAAAOXU/3Hm1fWLZ1jQSoc3mcCuFZl3GhAOAR_ARQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Rhenen-Barneveld.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1688" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hrYVrg75UgA/YCmsRB-XaiI/AAAAAAAAOXU/3Hm1fWLZ1jQSoc3mcCuFZl3GhAOAR_ARQCLcBGAsYHQ/w330-h400/Rhenen-Barneveld.jpg" width="330" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 4: Rheden - Ede - Barneveld<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div>kp 62 → 83 → 81 → 82 → 93 → 17 → 76 → 1</span></i></h3><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VWmSIhDPEqc/YCmJWBZ4vUI/AAAAAAAAOW0/g7tjjBcReusHs1nxiiwPBMl_jBVLcqw1wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201205_160250.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: 18.72px; font-style: italic; font-weight: 700; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="286" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VWmSIhDPEqc/YCmJWBZ4vUI/AAAAAAAAOW0/g7tjjBcReusHs1nxiiwPBMl_jBVLcqw1wCLcBGAsYHQ/w214-h286/20201205_160250.jpg" width="214" /></a>I reached the wide-open heath (<i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 62</span></i>) and a crossroads with plenty of fietsers and hikers on this mild November Sunday. It was fun to climb and zip down a narrow winding asphalt path through the woods and heath, though reaching high speeds one must be cautious with oncoming fietsers. About halfway to Otterlo, I struck northwest for <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 81</i></span>, thus leaving the forest and following a succession of country roads, estates and horse pastures. It was almost dark when I reached <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 1</i></span>. I then headed west to <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 39</i></span>, turning right (north) at the first connecting thoroughfare into the town of Barneveld. I left the bike at Barneveld station, and got a local <a href="https://www.connexxion.nl/en/our-routes/travel-areas/valleilijn" target="_blank">Valleilijn train</a> to the nearest NS connection, Amersfoort. </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">(Sat, Dec 5)</span> <span style="font-weight: normal;">--------------------------------</span></i></span></h4><p>I had left the bike at Barneveld station, where it sat under a protecting roof, and it was in good shape after a couple of weeks. </p><h3><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 95 → 25→ 94→ 57</span></i></h3><p>The first part of the ride was dull, up the N805 to Voorthuizen through a sterile industrial zone. From Voorthuizen I proceeded east through flatlands interspersed with suburban homes till I reached the edge of the Veluwe forest at kp 94. </p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KDfI-jre7ek/YCmJOQ57reI/AAAAAAAAOWw/GmOGKv6GyVUy0AUI4_fwiLaDV-_E9e5eACLcBGAsYHQ/s1712/Barneveld%2B1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1712" data-original-width="1474" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KDfI-jre7ek/YCmJOQ57reI/AAAAAAAAOWw/GmOGKv6GyVUy0AUI4_fwiLaDV-_E9e5eACLcBGAsYHQ/w173-h200/Barneveld%2B1.jpg" width="173" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><h3><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 91 → 50→ 56 → 48 → 34→ 80 → 39 → 78</span></i><i><span style="color: #38761d;"> → 95</span></i><i><span style="color: #38761d;"> → 77</span></i><i><span style="color: #38761d;"> → 58</span></i><i><span style="color: #38761d;"> → 6</span></i></h3></div></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bU78xMdLTlo/YCmJmw_lHAI/AAAAAAAAOXA/1BZOGazE3Pwv_sKv3v6KN6JLBVIjByKkQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1596/Sprielderbosch%2B1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1596" data-original-width="1469" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bU78xMdLTlo/YCmJmw_lHAI/AAAAAAAAOXA/1BZOGazE3Pwv_sKv3v6KN6JLBVIjByKkQCLcBGAsYHQ/w294-h320/Sprielderbosch%2B1.jpg" width="294" /></a><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>From there it was a blissful ride north through the western edge of the Veluwe — a pair of distinct forest zones called the Sprielderbosch and Leuvenumse Bos. Most of the ride was along an asphalt strip flanked by pine and bare deciduous trees, occasionally crossing a road, climbing a bit. It was chilly but not too bad—I didn't need a hat or scarf. There were a few others on the trails but I was mostly solo. The whole ride was a pleasurable workout and felt effortless. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-39IGYmPZYDk/YEFVEqTly8I/AAAAAAAAOY0/ryv7k3SD4XU_ZiHpcwy27hWXtWt1BFrjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Putten-Harderwijk%2Bdetail%2B2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1634" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-39IGYmPZYDk/YEFVEqTly8I/AAAAAAAAOY0/ryv7k3SD4XU_ZiHpcwy27hWXtWt1BFrjQCLcBGAsYHQ/w254-h320/Putten-Harderwijk%2Bdetail%2B2.jpg" width="254" /></a></div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yg-A6g1EeRA/YEFVsG6GC5I/AAAAAAAAOY8/c8RE1ZjVWJQlEjw6QHVAFnakEJKKZoYygCLcBGAsYHQ/s1680/Barneveld%2B-Putten.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1680" data-original-width="1502" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yg-A6g1EeRA/YEFVsG6GC5I/AAAAAAAAOY8/c8RE1ZjVWJQlEjw6QHVAFnakEJKKZoYygCLcBGAsYHQ/w286-h320/Barneveld%2B-Putten.jpg" width="286" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 5: Barneveld - Harderwijk</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Coming into Harderwijk, I went over a major bike bridge, then flew down the ramp and into town — then made a wrong turn, taking me around the east edge rather than into the center of town. But that was alright. Now that I was finally equipped with <i>mobile data,</i> I could consult the map and plot my route through Harderwijk to the train station. This worked perfectly and within moments I was going down Stationstraat. </div><div><br /></div><div>Once again, rather than putting the bike on the train, I left it parked at the station, thinking I'd start my next ride from Harderwijk. I could cut across Flevoland to Lelystad, or simply follow the LF-9 back to Almere/Amsterdam, or a combination of the two. </div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tl27WAVhK_4/YCmJn_g4iRI/AAAAAAAAOXE/LgWpLkTfNVATAf6c2lpziZ6nxJwf6i5aACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Harderwijk%2B1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1680" data-original-width="2048" height="262" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tl27WAVhK_4/YCmJn_g4iRI/AAAAAAAAOXE/LgWpLkTfNVATAf6c2lpziZ6nxJwf6i5aACLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h262/Harderwijk%2B1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption">Coming into Harderwijk<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: small;"><i style="font-weight: normal;">(Sun, Dec 13) -------------------------------</i></span></h3><div><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: small;"><i style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></i></span></div><div>Weather is alright — not cold — so I decided to continue my epic journey. I had left the bike in Harderwijk. That is easy to get to: Amsterdam Muiderpoort - Amersfoort Schothorst - Harderwijk (Zwolle-bound Sprinter). Easy getaway: <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>→ kp 82</i></span> down an underpass, up through the center of this olde town and down to the waterfront. Then follow signs to <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 9</i></span>, along the waterfront part of town, a pleasant ride along the wooded banks, punctuated by little "beaches." The path was fairly busy with both cyclists and dog-walkers, typical Dutch suburban scene. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xNC7CbpT1LM/YEUkTZajJpI/AAAAAAAAOaE/4HRrGFsriDYGBcbyr_MuyNSZxQExpVLygCLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Netherlands-Harderwijk-Amersfoort.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="506" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xNC7CbpT1LM/YEUkTZajJpI/AAAAAAAAOaE/4HRrGFsriDYGBcbyr_MuyNSZxQExpVLygCLcBGAsYHQ/w169-h200/Netherlands-Harderwijk-Amersfoort.png" width="169" /></a></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OtRQPuxB-04/YEFZbRlnZ8I/AAAAAAAAOZM/0OxOrKpHmTk0VXkFSLpLBI_sJqJ61oTUgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Harderwijk-Nijkerk.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1561" data-original-width="2048" height="305" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OtRQPuxB-04/YEFZbRlnZ8I/AAAAAAAAOZM/0OxOrKpHmTk0VXkFSLpLBI_sJqJ61oTUgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h305/Harderwijk-Nijkerk.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 6: Harderwijk - Nijkerk</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Leaving Harderwijk <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>(→ 7)</i></span>, the <i>fietspad </i>parallels the freeway (A28) for the next 7 or 8 km. To my right the Nuldernauw, a section of the waterway that separates Flevoland from Gelderland (then Utrecht province). I have long wanted to take this route. The drone of traffic is constant but I get my own wooded corridor so I don't mind. One has to wonder where all these people are driving to on a Sunday. At Horst, I cycle over to the shore in hopes of catching a ferry to Zeewolde on Flevoland. This is on the LF-9, which appears to continue down the north bank through the woodsy zone of the Horsterwold. At the dock I find a young fisher who tells me the ferry doesn't run in the winter months. Checking <a href="https://veerpontzeewoldehorst.nl/bcs/HorsterveerHorst" target="_blank">the website,</a> I see that from Nov 1 to March 1 the ferry doesn't run on weekends, otherwise it goes year-round. It costs €3.50 return. That's alright. I stop at Horst strand for lunch. There are two large sculptures of white bicycles here, which seem to function as a billboard for passing traffic. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--LoVkvbml4E/YEAk9d6sU9I/AAAAAAAAOYc/om-fOaoHv_AUchhhGKbiHAzJ3Onew0VJACLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/Nuldernauw.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--LoVkvbml4E/YEAk9d6sU9I/AAAAAAAAOYc/om-fOaoHv_AUchhhGKbiHAzJ3Onew0VJACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h400/Nuldernauw.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nuldernauw (<span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 38-67</i></span>)</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br />At <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 38</i></span>, the fietspad finally leaves the freeway (that is, the freeway leaves the shore) to become a solitary asphalt strip hugging the banks of the Nuldernauw, with islands of bare trees and flocks of birds swooping around. A pleasant ride, it continues this way until <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 67</i></span>, where there's a bridge to Flevoland. (This could be the next ride: Amersfoort-Nijkerk and a wander round the forests of Hulkesteinse Bos and Horsterwold, with option of returning by ferry to Ermelo.) The route continues in this fashion beyond Nijkerk to <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 52 → 51 → 50</i></span> (outside Binschoten). The polderland to my left looks rather swampy, with plenty of avian activity. By the time I reach<span style="color: #38761d;"><i> kp 50</i></span>, the sky is dimming and I make my descent through pure polder toward Amersfoort (to <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 9</span></i>). It becomes a "<i>fietsstraat" </i>but there are more cars and scooters on the path than bikes. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ndBTvAXriIM/YEFZw3bx72I/AAAAAAAAOZU/Shrlk1yJTb0o8qgKv91FBH25nZzB48gwACLcBGAsYHQ/s1862/Nijkerk-Amersfoort.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1862" data-original-width="1593" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ndBTvAXriIM/YEFZw3bx72I/AAAAAAAAOZU/Shrlk1yJTb0o8qgKv91FBH25nZzB48gwACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Nijkerk-Amersfoort.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nijkerk - Amersfoort</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Unfortunately I lost the <i>knooppunt </i>network here and relied on my phone to guide me. But I got confused looking for "Centrum," which referred not to the center of Amersfoort but of the northern suburb of Hoogland. I had been wandering at least an hour when it became apparent that Amersfoort was 3-4km south of there, so it was an exhausting, though pleasant, ride to the center of town along a well-lit cycle-way. I parked the bike under a protective roof right in front of Amersfoort's substantial station. With a change at Duivendrecht, it took under an hour to get to Muiderpoort. </div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: small;"><i style="font-weight: normal;">(Sun, Jan 10) ---------------------------</i></span></h3><div>I took a chance and got on a train to Amersfoort, even though the Netherlands is still in lockdown mode. The train is quite busy on a Sunday afternoon. I want to get my bike finally and take it home. But now I've got the nutty idea of riding to Hilversum in the cold. It isn't far, just 24 km...</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PJVndr6NUY0/YELETed4v7I/AAAAAAAAOZg/0_h8JG7I6roMvhYVAbMREEsbsjX9RNCMQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/Utrechtse%2BHeuvelrug.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PJVndr6NUY0/YELETed4v7I/AAAAAAAAOZg/0_h8JG7I6roMvhYVAbMREEsbsjX9RNCMQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Utrechtse%2BHeuvelrug.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Utrechtse Heuvelrug</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><h3><i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 60 → 59 → 58</span></i></h3><div>After a month of disuse, my bike was safe and sound at Amersfoort station. It was easy to get on the LF-9. I just went right (west) and soon I reached a turnoff for <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 60</span></i>. This route zigzagged through suburban neighborhoods, then entered the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, the great forest that stretches northwest to the city of Utrecht. This northern section of the park was a pleasant ride through rolling terrain, with pine forest edging sandy expanses. Despite my doubts about riding in the chilly, overcast weather, I was definitely enjoying this. People were out in droves this Sunday, including many groups of strollers — not unlike Vondelpark in Amsterdam yesterday where the crowds were so thick it was a challenge to weave through them, especially with oncoming cyclists not yielding an inch. </div><div><br /></div><h3><i><span style="color: #38761d;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7P67iA0ILNxJ0m0m1HpcG5jtypGJx2CNMoqWCi1l5mPasf3a7LFBPwgC3-nlyKHhXp95jvi14_9h744VlipVQXBmXyfpk4PnK0N_gpi_uzPBNx5wm_hlMN4VIrOWTXYqv9VRrU10v_Jp/s2048/Amersfoort-Hilversum.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1592" data-original-width="2048" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7P67iA0ILNxJ0m0m1HpcG5jtypGJx2CNMoqWCi1l5mPasf3a7LFBPwgC3-nlyKHhXp95jvi14_9h744VlipVQXBmXyfpk4PnK0N_gpi_uzPBNx5wm_hlMN4VIrOWTXYqv9VRrU10v_Jp/w400-h311/Amersfoort-Hilversum.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 7: Amersfoort - Hilversum via LF-9</td></tr></tbody></table><br />57 </span></i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">→ 61 → 26 → 62 </span></i><i><span style="color: #38761d;">→ 97 </span></i></h3><div>It appeared I had emerged from the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, crossed a road (N-413), then continued through more forest. I was skirting the southwest side of Soest. (I had been here before <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/12/lage-vuurscheroute.html">on my way to Den Dolder</a> and I recognized the sections of dunes.) </div><div><br /></div><div>As dusk approached, from <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 97</span></i> I followed a directional sign to Hilversum. This turned out to be the best part of the trip, a peaceful ride on a dirt trail through Lage Vuursche forest. First I went through the touristy village of the same name. People were out and a few cafes were providing takeout refreshments. The general festivity both here and in Vondelpark seems to belie the sense of dread transmitted by the nightly news. The last bit to Hilversum was a peaceful stretch of forest, and I arrived in the city just as dusk fell. Parked my bike in the uncovered lot in front of the train station. Next time I can cycle back to Amsterdam. </div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><i><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: small;">(Jan 30, 2021) ------------------------------------</span></i></span></h3><div>Cold day. Still, it wasn't supposed to rain and the wind was blowing west. And my beloved Batavus Intermezzo had been sitting in front of Hilversum station for weeks. Hilversum was one of the places struck by waves of vandalism following the implementation of a curfew, and I worried that they'd raided the open-air lot at the station. So after Saturday shopping, I got a train to Hilversum, half an hour ride. I had forgotten where I'd parked the bike so had to look around awhile. There it was and — oh no, the saddle was missing. And it so happened I really liked that saddle. It was the first time anything like this had happened, though I'd parked the bike at a number of stations. Well, the bike was still there anyway. </div><div><br /></div><div>I took it down the bike tunnel that runs below the station and found the <i>fietsenstalling/</i>bike shop, fortunately open at lockdown time. The old guy working there said he couldn't put on a new saddle because they'd also snatched the fitting it was attached to. He suggested I try the bike shop across the street. This was open too, and the large showroom was empty. A guy in the back was repairing some bikes. He said he could replace the seat for me, pick one out. I got one that sort of resembled the previous one. It cost €30, but he tacked on another 22 to replace the post and fitting. </div><div><br /></div><div>It doesn't take long to leave the urbanization of Hilversum and enter the forest (to <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 11</span></i>) — the Conversbos —and thereon it's all forest. Despite the chill, there were plenty of strollers and dog-walkers out. It continued this way to <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 10</span></i> <span style="color: #38761d; font-style: italic;">→ 8. </span><span>A lovely ride and the multiple sweaters and jackets I wore effectively insulated me against the cold (around 3-4 C). I proceeded through the Ankeveensche plassen, a great slender dirt trail alongside a canal </span>—even this had its share of hikers— then the Spiegelplas, <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2011/04/across-rijnkanaal.html" target="_blank">a route I've taken multiple times</a> but remains quite attractive. </div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1709" data-original-width="2048" height="334" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8KxNdAVgpRY/YEYtmhkrJjI/AAAAAAAAOaU/-gjKLwf3dvkmjmwnggYROrWciaVO2j8GQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h334/Hilversum%2B-%2BAmsterdam.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 8: Hilversum - Amsterdam</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8KxNdAVgpRY/YEYtmhkrJjI/AAAAAAAAOaU/-gjKLwf3dvkmjmwnggYROrWciaVO2j8GQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Hilversum%2B-%2BAmsterdam.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></a></div><br />At <i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 39</span></i>, an isolated wooden bridge, I headed north to <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 40</i></span>, then followed the broad Vecht river northeast and around the bend west to Weesp (<span style="color: #38761d;"><i>kp 46 → 47 → 45</i></span>). Across the Rijkanaal to Driemond and home, the wind pushing me west. </div><div><br /></div><div>This was the conclusion to a journey that started in Den Bosch two months previous and took me to Zaltbommel, Tiel, Rhenen, Barneveld, Harderwijk, Amersfoort and Hilversum. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4FN3pVhXgvU/YEY1ZMWwHqI/AAAAAAAAOac/kc7MODMM_jUbidEK41qUq1di4avRKLlOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/Weesperzijde.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4FN3pVhXgvU/YEY1ZMWwHqI/AAAAAAAAOac/kc7MODMM_jUbidEK41qUq1di4avRKLlOwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h400/Weesperzijde.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Back home, Weesperzijde</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-15100612957017963852021-02-12T00:17:00.010+01:002021-04-16T12:09:17.396+02:00Park & Ride, Part 1: The Great Waal<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-svq1W4NWchA/X9vYz-imGSI/AAAAAAAAOPM/oGllzsFrYFcJBplVJiBjxKrDa4Dvp5xxACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/molen%2BMaas%2B%25282%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1456" data-original-width="2048" height="285" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-svq1W4NWchA/X9vYz-imGSI/AAAAAAAAOPM/oGllzsFrYFcJBplVJiBjxKrDa4Dvp5xxACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h285/molen%2BMaas%2B%25282%2529.jpg" title="Mill on the Maas" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i></i></div><i></i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span>I've been getting into a new mode of touring, partly due to lockdown rules. Overnight stays with <a href="https://www.vriendenopdefiets.nl/en" target="_blank">Vrienden op de Fiets</a> are out. So instead of overnighting, I simply leave my bike at a train station at the endpoint of the day's tour. Then return another day to continue the tour. Parking is always available at stations, usually secure, often sheltered from the rain. I tried this approach along the North Sea coast </span><span>last summer</span><span> </span><span>with great success, from Amsterdam going straight west to Zandvoort beach, then heading north in stages: Beverwijk, Castricum, Heiloo, Alkmaar, each station an easy 5-10km ride to a fabulous beach. Then I rode back along an alternate route with different beaches. </span></span></p><p></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>This time I tried the park & tour method in central Netherlands, and again it worked brilliantly.<span><a name='more'></a></span> <div style="break-after: page; page-break-after: always;"></div>I started by taking the train to the southern town of 's Hertogenbosch, </span>aka Den Bosch, of Hieronymus fame, then following a tour from my <a href="https://www.bol.com/nl/p/anwb-fietsgids-4-veluwe-utrecht-oost-flevoland-gelderse-rivieren/9200000036035241/" target="_blank">ANWB guidebook</a>, the Bommelerwaardroute.<span style="font-size: large;"> </span>Virtually the entire tour skirts rivers, the highlight being the conclusive ride along the south bank of the River Waal to the town of Zaltbommel. I picked it up northwest of Hedel, the town across the Maas River from Den Bosch. </span></div><p><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cgxdWGIxPwk/X9vXW-NqhMI/AAAAAAAAOPA/SJMDfcGwH_YLiQYokE4hRuqaCsmIE9ddACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/bridge%2Bover%2BMaas.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1530" data-original-width="2048" height="299" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cgxdWGIxPwk/X9vXW-NqhMI/AAAAAAAAOPA/SJMDfcGwH_YLiQYokE4hRuqaCsmIE9ddACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h299/bridge%2Bover%2BMaas.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crossing the Maas</td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana; font-size: x-small;"></span></p><p><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana; font-size: x-small;"><i>(original date of this entry: Nov 7, 2020)</i></span></p><p><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 51 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">50 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">49 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">48 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">97</span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">It took a while to reach the Maas, aka the Meuse, from Den Bosch Centraal Station. But it is a lovely jaunt through the basin of the Dieze River, a tributary of the Maas that flows through the city of Den Bosch. The Dieze was a component of the old defensive waterline, dating from 1629, which you can follow on a trail (<a href="https://www.erfgoedshertogenbosch.nl/activiteiten/fietsroute-linie-1629">gratis app available</a>). Finally I reach an old arched bridge over the broad Maas (→ kp 97). </span></p><p></p><p><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 14 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">40 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">98 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">80 </span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I followed the north bank of the river west toward Ammerzoden, site of a medieval castle that I didn't see. This route traverses vast green fields and horse pastures that back up on the river. From Ammerzoden the narrow road/dike continues to hug the Maas, with splendid views the whole way, dotted with plenty of lookout benches. Unfortunately too much traffic, of all kinds, along this stretch: racing cyclists, cars and vans, and most annoyingly big-ass motorcycles. It seems neither safe nor serene. Beyond Ammerzoden, the route (LF-7) proceeds up a tributary of the Maas, the Afgedamde Maas ("dammed Meuse"), going through Well (another castle unseen), Wellseind and North Nederhemert. These roads are old dikes with different names: the Wellsedijk and the Slijkwellsedijk. </span></p><p><i><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hjqoxeHh8EM/X9vZ2hdH54I/AAAAAAAAOPU/5K0-6BNpMYk-6aUepL7vIObmmj8Ap9czACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/maas%2Bflowers%2B%25282%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1317" data-original-width="2048" height="258" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hjqoxeHh8EM/X9vZ2hdH54I/AAAAAAAAOPU/5K0-6BNpMYk-6aUepL7vIObmmj8Ap9czACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h258/maas%2Bflowers%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></i></p><p><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 17 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">18 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">19 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">6 </span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Beyond kp 80 the traffic thins a bit. This whole region is covered in green pasturelands with various horse farms and stables. Along the way is the straggling farm community of Aalst, and there's a pumping station toward kp 19. Toward kp 6 the traffic ends and soon I reach Zuilichem on the Waal. Here I wandered down a footpath to the bank of the river at sundown. There is a real beach. The only other soul in sight was a fisherman, casting off a spit. An enormous freighter moved west. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lB0wz2FX2aI/YCR1teFIXxI/AAAAAAAAOVs/SniWbPi8YjUxS0eYvkrduGkyUF9lZcL7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Netherlands-Waal%2B1.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="506" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lB0wz2FX2aI/YCR1teFIXxI/AAAAAAAAOVs/SniWbPi8YjUxS0eYvkrduGkyUF9lZcL7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Netherlands-Waal%2B1.png" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><i><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--cCuTEoVxZ4/YB81c7Bk_6I/AAAAAAAAOUY/dlmEEgmqBlY0NetmV44YcAhjCmVLeMdPACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Den%2BBosch%2B-%2BZaltbommel.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1318" data-original-width="2048" height="412" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--cCuTEoVxZ4/YB81c7Bk_6I/AAAAAAAAOUY/dlmEEgmqBlY0NetmV44YcAhjCmVLeMdPACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h412/Den%2BBosch%2B-%2BZaltbommel.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 1: Den Bosch to Zaltbommel via Aalst</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></i><p></p><p><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 8 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">66 </span></i></p><p>As dusk descended I was riding east along the Waal with no wind and a mild temperature. The river and its swampy banks looked lovely and at points the route shifted to a <i>fiets</i>-only path. To my right the communities of Nieuwaal and Gameren, the softly lit rear side of large sturdy wooden houses, children playing in the yards, a world of domestic bliss. Now some illuminated ships could be glimpsed on the river. It was an enchanting ride. I came into Zaltbommel, a historic gem with an impressive bridge across the Waal, but it seemed dead this evening. </p><p>I followed signs to the station, quite a ways from the center. This station has a unique system of lifts. To get to track 1 for the train to Utrecht Central, I had to board a lift up to a corridor, then go to the other end and catch another lift. As expected the station had substantial covered bike parking and a bank of OV-Fiets share bikes. </p><p>Waiting on the platform with my bike for the return trip home, I decided instead to leave the bike at Zaltbommel station, so I could continue the journey along the Waaldijk at a later opportunity. The next journey could be to Tiel (on the north bank of the Waal), or alternatively along the Maas, or up one and down the other, keeping an eye on wind direction. I guess I can keep doing this down to 10 degrees C or so. Today was up to 14. </p><p style="text-align: center;">***</p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana;">(Nov 8, 2020)</i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Another day of sunny windless weather so I figured I should continue the journey. I'm taking another </span><i style="font-size: large;">keuzedag </i><span style="font-size: large;">("choice day," free ride for people over 60). My plan is to cycle to Tiel along the south bank of the Waal. Today is </span><i style="font-size: large;">koopzondag </i><span style="font-size: large;">(the one Sunday per month when stores are open), so there should be a ferry from Wamel to Tiel till 5 pm — but if I get there too late I can take the bridge at Beneden-Leeuwen and cycle back to Tiel.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-40g9ok_sZyc/X9v1-KNk2sI/AAAAAAAAOPk/kzWBZK6lfIUhguEy0IWHfC6l8V8dJFghgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1740/IMG-4039%2B%25282%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1740" data-original-width="1453" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-40g9ok_sZyc/X9v1-KNk2sI/AAAAAAAAOPk/kzWBZK6lfIUhguEy0IWHfC6l8V8dJFghgCLcBGAsYHQ/w334-h400/IMG-4039%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="334" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jewish cemetery of Zaltbommel</td></tr></tbody></table><br />It was tricky getting out of Zaltbommel — signage was lacking — but a circuit of the center took me past a substantial Jewish cemetery with a WW2 memorial. From here I managed to find the Waaldijk way, which approaches the sinister towers of the <span style="text-align: center;">Martinus Nijhof </span>bridge north (A2), paralleled by an old railroad bridge, a route I could have taken to avoid the question of ferries but I would have missed the Waaldijk. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M6LE2iV5JCs/YCMrcJTYGvI/AAAAAAAAOU4/JP5xOlbBeMYnpY2kdamswf0tJ6ZqYDJSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Zaltbommel-Tiel%2B2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1433" data-original-width="2048" height="448" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M6LE2iV5JCs/YCMrcJTYGvI/AAAAAAAAOU4/JP5xOlbBeMYnpY2kdamswf0tJ6ZqYDJSQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h448/Zaltbommel-Tiel%2B2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 2: Zaltbommel - Tiel</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Oy--pQFXufw/X9v2wY6CgGI/AAAAAAAAOPs/vTRO9WZySk0P1n4iFLUGXDYsE4A6rZVxgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG-4040%2B%25282%2529.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1245" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Oy--pQFXufw/X9v2wY6CgGI/AAAAAAAAOPs/vTRO9WZySk0P1n4iFLUGXDYsE4A6rZVxgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG-4040%2B%25282%2529.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martinus Nijhof bridge</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 78 </span></i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;">→ </span><i style="font-family: courier; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">67 </span></i><p></p><p style="text-align: left;">The Waaldijk is about as great as I expected. Its character is much like the route <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2016/04/guidebook-research-iii-ooijpolder-and.html">east of Nijmegen</a>: an elevated strand of asphalt overlooking the grand river and its swampy banks. The stretch east of Zaltbommel flanks the river, then moves inland past various waterways, such as the Kil van Hurwenen. The fietspad is busy today, mostly older couples with matching bikes and racers in lycra. I am approaching the village of Hurwenen. At Rossum I'll pick up the LF-12. </p><p style="text-align: left;">kp 67 is Rossum with several <i>horeca </i>("hotel-restaurant-cafe") establishments overlooking the river — takeout only, needless to say. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m7hpQgdddPw/YCMzDxTAtWI/AAAAAAAAOVE/cQtq5L5nMNA8NdL4CKinGvldJ9ispJKiACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/39A3EFC6-24A3-475B-A417-164B9780652A.jpeg" style="font-size: x-large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1530" data-original-width="2048" height="299" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m7hpQgdddPw/YCMzDxTAtWI/AAAAAAAAOVE/cQtq5L5nMNA8NdL4CKinGvldJ9ispJKiACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h299/39A3EFC6-24A3-475B-A417-164B9780652A.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><i><span style="color: #38761d;"><div><i><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></i></div>kp 69 → 24</span></i><p></p><p style="text-align: left;">From this point on the path only gets better, at first shooting in a straight line for miles, immediately left of the road. Then the <i>fietspad </i>veers away from the road as trees form a barrier to the urbanization of Heerewaarden and Voorne. The panorama takes in (left to right) the river—now and then plied by giant freighters—the vast pastures of the bank, the path, houses and industry. The cyclists are sparser here and many are solitary. I have been this way before, in the reverse direction, on my way to Den Bosch. <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2013/03/bike-ulele-tour-part-3.html">I was on the De Blasi then.</a> (I only realized that because of this blog!)</p><p style="text-align: left;">As it turned out there was no ferry. When I got to the landing at Wamel around 4:30 there was obviously nothing going. The only soul to be seen there was a young guy on his scooter scanning his phone. The boy split, then another youngster roared up on his scooter and gave me the once over. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o5p4q3at0do/YCMzFJ058cI/AAAAAAAAOVI/wMkdzDmmAk0BP0D2ainrqlhuN0VBLgoFACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/9F90BACC-D053-4C33-B19B-6F19F5872510.jpeg" style="clear: left; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1530" data-original-width="2048" height="297" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o5p4q3at0do/YCMzFJ058cI/AAAAAAAAOVI/wMkdzDmmAk0BP0D2ainrqlhuN0VBLgoFACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h297/9F90BACC-D053-4C33-B19B-6F19F5872510.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">Prins Willem Alexanderbrug, east of Tiel</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><div>Since there's no ferry I have to push on to the bridge east of Tiel. Heading east of Wamel, I could see the gold-lit arches of the Prins Willem Alexanderbrug, but how to get on it? Approaching the bridge, I saw a steep staircase at the base with fiets guide-rail. But that seemed too strenuous. Instead I continued down the Waal toward kp 86, looped through the town of Beneden-Leeuwen (Boven-Leeuwen to the east) and onto the bridge access ramp (to kp 85), typically a serene ascent through forest. It was a strenuous climb and the two sections of bridge must have been over a kilometer in length. By the time I arrived in Ooij, on the north bank, it was dark. I headed toward kp 85 in darkness. My dynamo lamp wasn't very good at illuminating the path but I managed. It wasn't far to Tiel. I saw just one other fietser on the trail, with a more powerful light. The young man powered past me and soon the red point of his taillight receded out of sight. Eventually I came to a crossroads, where a sign for kp 83 pointed north. This took me up to a road into Tiel. It was another 3km to this significant sized town and soon I was plying the cobblestoned streets, past housefronts through which large screens could be glimpsed. Sunday evening in Tiel. <div><br /><br /><div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GEJtsigiRvU/YCMzFJq3AgI/AAAAAAAAOVM/XPhxyX0t_GwxDIyBaQgagFaiZMnz1HSdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/34DEAF32-6E60-4395-B248-49ED415738F3.jpeg" style="clear: left; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1530" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GEJtsigiRvU/YCMzFJq3AgI/AAAAAAAAOVM/XPhxyX0t_GwxDIyBaQgagFaiZMnz1HSdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/34DEAF32-6E60-4395-B248-49ED415738F3.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The way to Beneden-Leeuwen</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;">I reached an intersection, not sure which way to turn and found myself facing the headlights of an SUV. He didn't honk, just paused, and I got out of the way. I passed a bare bones coffeeshop lit by traces of neon, <i>allochthon </i>youth hanging around. Eventually I found the station located at the top of the old center. A train to Den Haag was on the track. </span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><i style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana;"><br /></i></p><p style="text-align: left;"><i style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana;"><br /></i></p><p style="text-align: center;">***</p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Picked up my bike at Tiel, then took another stellar ride, and not too strenuous, though I totally adlibbed the route. </span><span>There was a ferry at Opheusden directly to De Blauwe Kamer, a forest just east of Rhenen. </span><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2013/02/rondje-betuwe-day-1.html">I've taken it before</a><span>. </span><span>Concluding with the best bit — a slender dirt path along the Nederrijn river — at twilight and arriving at Rhenen station just at sundown. </span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><i style="color: #38761d; font-family: verdana;">(Nov 18, 2020)</i></p><p style="text-align: left;">Seems to be the last day of mild weather—up to 14 C—so I figured now is the time to return to Tiel and get the Batavus. As the wind seems to be blowing NNE, I'll stay on the north side of the Waal and head NE for Wageningen, just a 45 minute train ride back home. </p><p style="text-align: left;">In Tiel I purchased the <a href="https://webwinkel.nederlandfietsland.nl/basiskaart-fietsnetwerk-lf-routes-english.html" target="_blank">2020-2021 Basiskaart LF-routes</a>, published by Landelijk Fietsplatform (€24.95 at ANWB shop). A quick scan shows many additional knooppunten since the last edition. </p><p style="text-align: center;">***</p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Here I am at the east edge of Tiel, precisely at the bottom of the turnoff for kp 83 that I spotted in the dark a couple weeks ago. Now it's bright and sunny. Also rather windy, with the wind coming off the Waal to the south. I'll be taking a different route east (to kp 52), which parallels the route I took in the reverse direction to Tiel. I can see the same 2 pair of cement silos that I spotted illuminated when I arrived last time. There is some clay mining going on, the stuff of the purportedly ecological bricks that pave the villages. My plan is to continue east a bit, then head north toward the Nederrijn, wondering if ferries are running. <p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: medium;">kp 52 → 44 → 2</span></i></p><p style="text-align: left;">The route east, paralleling the Waal along the Waalbaandijk (north bank) is quite pleasant on this perfect November day. Approach the Prins Willem Alexander bridge and go under it, immense expanses of green flatness on either side, pastures populated by sheep and cattle toward the banks of the river until IJzendoorn, where the dike is at a higher elevation and you get good views over both village and river, plied by many ships. The dike is rather busy — just as it was on the north bank of the Maas: cars, trucks, bikes (elderly couples mostly) and big-ass motorcycles. At Ochten I sat on a bench overlooking the Waal and had my sandwich. </p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--MHNTP1Yghk/YCRbU_QFqzI/AAAAAAAAOVg/3xXFuFi15twUYtjxl-qoAD_eA_FbYOiygCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Tiel%2B-%2BRhenen.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1546" data-original-width="2048" height="484" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--MHNTP1Yghk/YCRbU_QFqzI/AAAAAAAAOVg/3xXFuFi15twUYtjxl-qoAD_eA_FbYOiygCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h484/Tiel%2B-%2BRhenen.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 3: Tiel - Rhenen</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>East of Ochten several little lakes fringed by tall trees parallel the Waal, flocks of ducks and geese on the banks. At Eldik, I struck north, crossing the Linge river, then climbing over the highway (A15), then the railroad. The zone north, between Kesteren and Opheusden, is busy with industry and intensive farming: fruit trees and hops. It didn't take long to reach the Nederrijn (kp 92). </div><div><div><br /></div><div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yofdhj_At70/YBqwA-SsYqI/AAAAAAAAOTc/iVu5G5RG2A0uI3CPGhisOsv_Lg--Qv1AACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201118_160211.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1226" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yofdhj_At70/YBqwA-SsYqI/AAAAAAAAOTc/iVu5G5RG2A0uI3CPGhisOsv_Lg--Qv1AACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h240/20201118_160211.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nederrijn ferry</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div>I headed east (to kp 94), turned off the dike left (to kp 24) to reach the landing where the ferry was just docking and cyclists were getting off. (There is no indication of this ferry on other maps, but there is on mine.) Arriving seconds before departure, I shared the little <i>pont</i> with just 1 car. A geezer with a pokey electric car on deck got out to collect the toll from me: 90 cents. Rather than heading east for Wageningen as I had originally planned, I made for Rhenen, only 4.6km from the ferry dropoff. Crossed the river then proceeded up a road flanked by bare trees tinged gold. At kp 24 (Grebbedijk), I was looking at the map when I was approached by a pair of 60ish nature gals, each with lovely thick white hair. One of them asked me if I knew the location of a bus stop to "the station." No idea, sorry. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K9T0JQSj1ig/YBqwEchr5DI/AAAAAAAAOTg/V1PyZ0WgoZ4gOjnjukbm8TvCpFa55ZIZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201118_163030.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1792" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K9T0JQSj1ig/YBqwEchr5DI/AAAAAAAAOTg/V1PyZ0WgoZ4gOjnjukbm8TvCpFa55ZIZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201118_163030.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">De Blauwe Kamer</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: left;">A short distance west, I cut across the N225 to reach De Blauwe Kamer, a patch of high forest immediately east of Rhenen. The route along the Nederrijn is splendid with the ships rolling by on your left and the forest ascending on the right. Along the way are metal staircases up into the forest, a substantial climb. At the end of the path, you're just below the station. I parked the bike in a lit-up spot with protective roof. <i><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2021/03/park-ride-part-2-winterlude.html">To be continued ...</a></i></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LXRam1_bUJA/YBqv9TkRjWI/AAAAAAAAOTY/gO5R36utmHE-CISqbyb9vc1jmsHVI0cfgCLcBGAsYHQ/s984/20201118_165408.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="984" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LXRam1_bUJA/YBqv9TkRjWI/AAAAAAAAOTY/gO5R36utmHE-CISqbyb9vc1jmsHVI0cfgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h320/20201118_165408.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rhenen</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><br /><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p></div></div></div></div>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-29567690703521207372020-06-30T02:38:00.000+02:002020-06-30T02:38:35.026+02:00Amsterdam: Oud-Zuid to Zuidoost <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TldPmGzCQkI/XvqF-zSKK9I/AAAAAAAAOCo/RfWqUpHT-M45WP6f_8rr7sjsDoHL5DqLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG-3342.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1196" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TldPmGzCQkI/XvqF-zSKK9I/AAAAAAAAOCo/RfWqUpHT-M45WP6f_8rr7sjsDoHL5DqLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG-3342.JPG" width="298" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Lockdown time but it's ok to take a bike ride. This is one of a series of tours I took in March and April from a guidebook put out by the </span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: center;">Commissie voor Welstand en Monumenten (Commission for Well-Being and Monuments). The commission reviews architectural proposals throughout Amsterdam, whether renovations of existing structures or new buildings. They assess each project to determine if it fits into the existing architectural context and also reflects the historical legacy of the neighborhood in some way.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: March 20, 2020)</span></i><br />
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The tour, entitled <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">"Van Oud-Zuid naar Zuidoost,"</span> gives the "two faces of the South." In the introduction, it says it takes you through distinct forms of development, each of which can be linked to a distinct era. They reflect different notions about how places should be built and rebuilt. On the one hand the Zuidas is the "show horse" of the city, where a new elite put up residences between banks and lawyers offices. On the other is De Bijlmer, a working-class zone where 140 nationalities dwell. Yet De Bijlmer also has a special form of development, as was strikingly clear to me when I lived there from 2010-12 (before some of the places in the guidebook were built), and remains clear when I revisit it. I didn't recall the zone being so black but it must have been. Yet "rough" as it's often made out to be, it remains harmonious and laced with parks.</div>
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The intro says something about how the original desire to separate living, working, recreation and traffic did not work well and the renewal of the 1990s sought to merge them.</div>
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Yesterday I did most of the first part, the area west of Beatrixpark and Zuidas. Today I covered the second half of the tour, Zuidoost.<br />
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To get there I took an unaccustomed route to Zuidoost, going through Frankendael park to Nobelweg, then attempting to parallel the S112 (Gooiseweg). I went through the Darwinplantsoen, obviously meant for pedestrians, including many dog walkers out on this sunny if chilly and windy day. It definitely tasted like spring. I then got on a<i> fietspad</i> alongside the Rozenburglaan, today lousy with roaring motorcycles. I arrived at the highway interchange where my customary Duivendrecht canal (or Weespertrekvaart) route comes up and goes over a bridge, a journey documented in <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2011/01/weesperzijde-route.html">a post of 2011</a>.<br />
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Checking the iPad I saw that it was more or less a straight line east from there to the first stop on the itinerary, World of Food. The fietspad rolled sinuously through parks, along canals, and I marveled once again at how clever these Dutch are. I stopped in an office park next to a hotel shaped like a giant A-frame, the <a href="https://www.viahostels.com/amsterdam/">Via</a>. It was a nondescript zone but I could sit on a bench and take the sun, protected from the wind and read.<br />
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The World of Food was a bit further up, on the Develstein, by a highway interchange. One of the "international" foods on offer here was McD's. But no one was going inside it; typically service was via a drive-up window and several cars were lined up for a bag of shitburgers.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NZnhqGnZ4HE/XvqHAgbUb0I/AAAAAAAAOC0/acXCj6isOCMxLptj6dF90CU91PQEo8argCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Scan_20200630%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1035" data-original-width="1600" height="409" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NZnhqGnZ4HE/XvqHAgbUb0I/AAAAAAAAOC0/acXCj6isOCMxLptj6dF90CU91PQEo8argCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Scan_20200630%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">CWM "Van Oud-Zuid naar Zuidoost" route. The right-hand bit covers Southeast, my old neighborhood.</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><br />The </span><a href="https://worldoffoodamsterdam.nl/" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">World of Food</a><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">, a strange food court that had been fashioned out of an old parking garage. I was surprised to find that some of the kitchens were open during the lockdown, including a Chinese and Turkish one. I felt a sense of danger as I entered, as if just wandering through the drafty interior I was wading through a toxic haze. I sat outside at one of a line of picnic tables in the sun. Several of these were occupied by groups of youngsters who made not the slightest attempt to keep their distance from one another. At what point will they start arresting people for such behavior?</span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
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What is somewhat ironic about The World of Food is that its original function was to hold the cars which were not permitted to go into the residential zone. But those later became the "unsafe places." When they renewed De Bijlmer to a less doctrinaire state, many of these saw the wrecking ball. Thus was a parking garage repurposed and refurbished as a bit of cultural heritage. Will the same be done in the USA when the gas runs out?<br />
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"Thanks to the parking ramps, all the levels are connected." I found the interior rather graceless and grim, with its concrete steps and stalls, less inviting than, say, the central market of Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. I got out of there quick. The guide says there is a terrace on the roof but I didn't investigate.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Lontarpalmstraat, Zuidoost</td></tr>
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From the World of Food, I found myself in an unusual situation: no bike paths. So the parking garage that had been installed to remove autos from public life had somehow transformed into a symbol of auto gluttony. I descended a gravel path to a sharp bend and reached a two-lane path at the bottom. Following the squiggly green line on the map, I found a big pond and zigzagged in an eastern direction along the Passtukkenpad. I vaguely recognized the "yellow wings" sculpture in the center of the pond. I was in familiar territory. I passed a behemoth apartment block (which appears as a hexagon on the map) and then I was riding along the rear end of the shopping center beside Ganzenhoef metro, my old stomping ground. I continued past the metro to the restful woodsy trail that I used to tak to reach my home on 's-Gravendijkdreef. I go past the garage where on New Year's Eve 2011, I nervously <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2011/01/amsterdam-boxing-day.html">watched a barrage of fireworks</a> in deserted surroundings, then took the snaky trail through the swamps that backed my former residence. Off to the right was the solitary statue of a hefty Surinamese woman, then I was skirting the neat row of red brick homes along Lontarpalmstraat. I took a right and reached the next "sight" on the route: Kleiburg.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Kleiburg<br /></td></tr>
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On the map it appears as a giant zigzag. The massive apartment block stands next to the Metro tracks and a running track. A soccer match is going on on a fenced court. Almost all of the players are black. In the CWM guidebook such apartment blocks are called "<i>honinggraat flats," </i>i.e. honeycomb flats. Utopically planned, they somehow went amiss and De Bijlmer became a "problem neighborhood." The zone was "renewed" in the 1990s. The flats were knocked down or drastically adjusted. Only one was left in its original state: Kleiburg. It was slated to be demolished but resistance arose: "<i>Het is een waard stuk erfgoed." </i>A group of architectural designers bought it from developer Rochdale for 1 euro. The plan was to renovated the shell and the flats sold from €66,000 apiece. They were all sold.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-29xn-e-RulI/XvqFCgL9FCI/AAAAAAAAOCU/oqTbFO3nlW4vUOpUaUxlJdp-WfKIWDLXwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG-3336.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="738" data-original-width="1158" height="201" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-29xn-e-RulI/XvqFCgL9FCI/AAAAAAAAOCU/oqTbFO3nlW4vUOpUaUxlJdp-WfKIWDLXwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG-3336.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kazerne Anton, the firehouse</td></tr>
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I was next to head south, looking for the Kazerne Anton. At first I headed in the wrong direction and was going through a sort of park with long stone tables and benches. Then I headed in the direction of the highway (A9). I reached it but couldn't go through. I followed a narrow gravel path east behind a row of houses. Before long I found the Nellestein path, and this climbed a ramp and went over a barren tract which seemed under construction before tunneling under the A9. On the other side I was a the Nellestein, the little housing complex on the west side of Gaasperplas park. I'd definitely been here before. I followed the Gaasperdammerpad, not to the park but west toward the S112. A before reaching it I turned right, back toward the highway, and had to navigate a service road behind some apartments. Emerging onto the Langbroekdreef (no bike path) I spotted it. The Kazerne Anton was a solitary firehouse on a little hill. It look especially interesting, a low oblong structure with white, gray and red bands of brick. It seemed deserted and, standing next to a highway interchange, hardly a welcoming spot. Still, I read about it: "A sturdy, recognizable building with a striking striped facade in black, white and gray bricks." The CWM was not pleased with the design, which it found rather pedestrian. They wanted something more "iconic."<br />
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Now I had to get back underneath the A9 to head north. But how?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vqIam9XvB4s/XvqF6FmrXSI/AAAAAAAAOCk/-eann79bvJk-KrlhracGLDuwHr4DI6ojwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG-3344.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1518" data-original-width="1600" height="378" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vqIam9XvB4s/XvqF6FmrXSI/AAAAAAAAOCk/-eann79bvJk-KrlhracGLDuwHr4DI6ojwCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG-3344.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Weesperzijde, underneath the A10</td></tr>
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<i></i><i></i><br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-38899086987483274372020-05-22T22:10:00.001+02:002020-05-23T15:56:35.880+02:00Mexico flashback edition: Bicitekas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prepare for takeoff: by the Angel, Mexico City</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://bicitekas.org/">Bicitekas</a> is a Mexican cycling advocacy organization with the formidable task of promoting two-wheel transport in a country that is almost as car-obsessed as its northern neighbor. Lately they've seen some positive developments with the installation of temporary cycling infrastructure as biking is encouraged as an alternative to overcrowded public transport amid the current pandemic.</span><br />
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Back when I lived in Mexico City in the early 2000s, I joined Bicitekas on several of their <a href="http://www.critical-mass.org/">Critical Mass</a>-style demonstrations, which gathered Wednesday evenings at the Ángel de la Independencia monument. What follows are accounts of two different Critical Mass events which I recorded in my journal.<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Jan. 28, 2004)</span></i><br />
I arrived a bit after 9 at the Ángel. There was a substantial turnout this evening, perhaps 40 or 50 people. A cop from one of the many squad cars that line the Zona Rosa side of the traffic circle came over to inquire if we'd need an escort and someone said we'd welcome one.<br />
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I recognized some of the characters gathered there: Alán, the wacky purveyor of Brompton bikes and an enthusiastic ringleader; dark-skinned impish Roberto, who was trying to sell Bicitekas handkerchiefs; Ricardo, tall and friendly, a good English speaker; Guillermo, the intellectual with a profound knowledge of Mexican architecture; Gerardo, the oddball with the German helmet and Harley-Davidson limited edition bicycle. We milled around as usual as the traffic encircled the Ángel. Announcements were made. Finally at around 9:45 somebody gave the signal and the dozens of riders moved counterclockwise around the circle. As usual, the command was given to take over all four lanes of Paseo de la Reforma for the block up to the next circle, with the statue of Diana the Huntress.<br />
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"We're not blocking traffic — we<i> are</i> traffic!" shouted Alán, a real bicycle revolutionary.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lordy! This is the ship I need. Now how do you get on it?</td></tr>
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So we did it. Strange and wonderful how you feel protected from the auto traffic cloaked in the group of cyclists. It gives you a sense of bravery. You're no longer an insignificant cyclist but a force, a flock, a hundred-wheeled being. We moved slowly, deliberately, ignoring the honking of the pissed-off drivers and the police car megaphone order to move over to the right lane.<br />
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"<i>Más despacio!"</i> someone shouted, and the arrogant throng of cyclists slowed down even more. It was definitely a rush, a delirious feeling of power over the oppression of the automobile. We were speaking as one cantankerous voice: "Enough of you lumbering, gas-guzzling deathtraps! There is another way!"<br />
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After we reached the Diana monument, we all moved over to the right lane and proceeded up Reforma. The "leaders" would post themselves at the entrance lanes to halt traffic until the group passed.<br />
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It was a lovely evening with a cool wind pushing the clouds past a bright half moon. The group was so large it was difficult to coordinate everyone. Someone at the back would shout "Turn right!" but by the time the instruction was communicated by a series of shouts moving toward the front, the group had already moved straight through the intersection.<br />
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We were moving along glitzy Presidente Masaryk, with SUVs and sports cars impatiently trailing us. (But in general drivers were surprisingly courteous; there was little heckling.) We circled around the median, headed east a few blocks, then did another 180, aggressively moving into the left lane in front of bewildered drivers.<br />
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If the head of the group entered an intersection when the light was green, the tail would follow even after the light changed, as if we were a long caterpillar-shaped vehicle. Drivers in the sidestreets just accepted the situation in most cases. A few aggressively charged toward us and were sworn at in response. Many bikes were equipped with noisemakers of various kinds, including bells and rubber-bulbed horns. One guy had a car-alarm style signal hooked up to a dry-cell battery, which he used liberally at intersections. Another did an uncannily accurate imitation of a police car <i>whoop!</i> The low-budget clamor enhanced the circus atmosphere. As <a href="https://www.akpress.org/criticalmassbicyclingsdefiantcelebration.html">Chris Carlsson</a>, one of the founders of Critical Mass, said, it didn't take much to replicate the concept since people had such a good time doing it.<br />
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At some point we shifted over to Horacio. When we reached the bed of the old Cuernavaca railroad, there was some discussion over what to do next. Alán wanted to go up to the northern end of the<i> ciclopista</i> but others wanted to just take it from that point. It wasn't entirely clear to me what happened next: we took a detour past some freeway interchanges and were then heading down the red path between apartment buildings. Some strollers gawked at us and Alán chanted, "<i>Coches no! Bicis sí!"</i><br />
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We continued along the Periférico until we exited on a quiet street at the edge of a working-class neighborhood. There was a kind of traffic jam as all 40 or so bikes filled the street, making it hard for the random vehicle to pass. In fact, the trail did continue up the sidewalk in what may have been Colonia San Antonio.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">President López Obrador aka AMLO: <i>¡Viva Bicitekas!</i></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Feb. 4, 2004)</span></i><br />
At the Ángel a large crowd gathered again, perhaps close to 50 people, riding up from all directions with all kinds of bikes, from super-duper suspension-spring models to cheap little kid's bikes. The 50ish mestizo fellow who always shows up had his bicycle with the small wheels with cool flashing blue lights. He later told me he builds these bikes himself. The "recumbent" bike guy was back too. He seems so comfortable riding along as he reclines that he is a reassuring presences. I found out this evening that he is also involved with a sustainable transport group that advises the city environmental department on policy for bicycle facilities.<br />
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People were asking me if I knew where we were going, but I hadn't a clue. Eventually the word filtered through that we were going to the airport. The airport!<br />
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Some cyclists started moving east on Reforma. I was riding alongside the hipster with the Harley bicycle and German helmet. I pedaled hard to catch up with the front of the group waiting at a light at the next intersection. There were a few girls along this week — a tiny girl in a red track suit and a big, chunky girl in yellow sweatpants. I was concerned that they wouldn't be able to handle the long, treacherous journey to the airport. (They made it ok.)<br />
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We continued along Juárez. (A mestiza cop asked us what we were doing. I think most spectators assume we're<i> peregrinos</i> on our way to some shrine, since that's the only reference they have available.) We then proceeded down Madero, taking over the street, to the Zócalo. There we assembled and Memo, one of our "leaders," made a few announcements. First, he told us there'd be an official Critical Mass ride on Friday afternoon.<br />
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The other announcement was about the route we were going to take that evening, with warnings about potholes and bridges. From the Zócalo we took off down 5 de Febrero (German helmet pointed out to an energetic young Indian guy with rasta hat that that date, which refers to Constitution Day, was just a day away), turned at República de El Salvador and took that past La Merced. We made a left turn at the Palacio Legislativo and looped around to the Circuito Interior where people waiting for buses gawked at us.<br />
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I had gotten adept at sticking to the group, keeping to the center. We generally rode two to three abreast in a single lane to the right. I checked the signs: Norte 17. We went through a tunnel, trucks passing alongside us. It was actually a very dangerous thing to do but the term "safety in numbers" definitely applied in this situation. We were a long snaking vehicle and it was impossible for a bus or truck to move into our lane until we'd all passed.<br />
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Before long, the lit-up runway came into view on our left. Then we turned right onto a curving street with lots of<i> </i>speed bumps and onto the airport access road. This seemed particularly hazardous since fast-moving traffic kept trying to cut over to the right. At one point we snaked around a truck in the second lane from the right to get around a stalled vehicle in the right lane.<br />
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The key thing was to stick together. At certain points, when going over bridges for example, some people would fall behind the more agile members of the group and then the formation would become perilously dispersed.<br />
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We turned triumphantly onto the lanes of the airport terminal. Who knows what the taxi drivers and security guards made of this motely procession?<br />
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But in fact we were mostly ignored. We rode over the big speed bumps, pulled up at Sala C, the domestic terminal, and parked our bikes, everyone grinning in self-satisfaction. We'd done it damnit!<br />
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<br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-36811999483602325182020-05-17T02:03:00.001+02:002022-01-19T22:45:42.032+01:00Zeevangroute<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large;">A roll through the polderland. Starting at Purmerend, north of Amsterdam, this loop traces the former triangular island known as the Zeevang, land of ancient pastures laced with a filigree of slender canals. The east side follows the bank of the Markermeer south along a high dike that takes in broad swaths of the stark, serene landscape, ending up at the storybook town of Edam. From there it's smooth sailing along a broad canal, the Purmeringvaart, back to the start point.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Route</span>: Purmerend - Kwadijk - Oosthuizen <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: 24px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">-</span>Beets - Schardam - Etersheim - Warder - Edam (via LF-21) - Purmerend </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Distance</span>: 32km</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Train access</span>: Purmerend, Hoorn</span></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Nov 24, 2019)</span></i><br />
Sunday ride. One of the myriad polder jaunts between Hoorn and Purmerend.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kwadijk</td></tr>
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» 28<br />
Along this backdoor route, a number of apartment blocks backed up on the canal, some of them massive, not unlike what can be found in Amsterdam Zuid-Oost, which made me realize that Purmerend is another bedroom community.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Beemsteringvaart</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» 4 <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» 9</span></span><br />
Crossed over the canal to enter the quaint community of Kwadijk. Followed a narrow road populated by cyclists, dog walkers and a few cars. The houses were generally squat affairs with neat little gardens. I was glad to leave it behind and turn north along a tree-lined canal, table-flat sheep pastures on my left. This was polderland. At the community of Hobrede I crossed the canal (the Beemsteringvaart) and continued along the east bank. The fields to my right soggy and green, tracts of mud and manure cut through by long straight ditches. As the guidebook explains, the polders to the west and south — De Beemster and De Purmer — were waterlogged in the past, so I was skirting what was once an island, De Zeevang, historically similar to Urk in Flevoland. Astute observers should be able to detect a difference in the terrain, the more recently filled-in polders more uniformly parceled out, the former island like a jigsaw of thin horizontal parcels outlined by ditches. Now the green expanses were dotted with ducks and geese, rows of trees in the distance.<br />
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The route detours into the starkly empty polder, then comes into the drab community of Oosthuizen with the typical brown-beige brick housing. About 3km beyond, outside Beets, I hit the highway (A7) though don't actually see it above a wall, skirt the A7 for a bit, then angle east to skirt the Korsloot, crossing railroad tracks, and finally reaching the banks of the Markermeer at Schardam, whose "locks have played an important role in the water management of Noord-Holland since the 14th century." All I see is a row of yacht masts in the distance. I consider heading a short distance north to Hoorn, where I could catch the train back to Amsterdam, instead keep to the route and follow the LF21 south. This is not so vivid a ride as further south, as the trail skirts the base of the dyke rather than going on top of it. Along the way there are staircases so you can climb up and get views of the Markermeer, the southern portion of the IJsselmeer, which separates Noord-Holland from Flevoland, and westward the stark landscape of the polder. At Etenheim a solitary windmill stands upon the empty horizon fronted by striated sheep-grazed pastures.<br />
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Zeevangroute</div>
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Toward dusk I am coming into Edam along a canal, and I recall that it was one of the first towns I saw in Holland, on a cycling journey with my brother and niece to Texel. Also that I came up here with Steve James when he performed at the Café Harmonie, which I went by on the same canal. The town is quaint and pretty and I'm glad to get an overview from the cycle path which threads right through it to kp 95. Then, as the sun fades I enjoy a serene ride along the eastern extension of the Purmeringvaart, a broad waterway between sections of sprawling polderlands. This bends south and heads straight into Purmerend. Again I pass the quaint bridge to Kwadijk. Further down I take a wooden bridge over it toward kp 25 but somehow miss the outlying Purmerend Overwhere station and continue into the center of town, where due to lack of signage I wander around awhile till I locate the station. Purmerend has an American suburban feel. The Albert Heijn XL and Lidl are off auto thoroughfares with big parking lots. Still, they are flanked by bike paths for those who prefer to pedal.<br />
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<br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-11534954837196776292020-05-06T01:34:00.000+02:002020-05-06T09:32:30.005+02:00Imboschroute<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;">This woodsy jaunt starts at Rheden, east of Arnhem, then heads north through the heath and forest of the Veluwe National Park almost all the way to Apeldoorn. The open spaces of the Rozendaalse Veld and the deep woods of the brook-laced Imbosch make for a serene ride. For an attraction there's the architectural oddity of the Posbank pavilion with adjacent sun-drenched terrace café.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Route</span>: Rheden - De Steeg - Rozendaalse Veld (via LF-4) - Imbos - Loenermark - Apeldoorn</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Distance</span>: 35km</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Train access</span>: Arnhem, Velp, Rheden, Apeldoorn</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(original date of this entry: Nov 8, 2019)</i></span><br />
Today is Friday and the weather is nice though chilly of course. I decided to take my <i>keuzedag</i> (day of free travel on NS rail) and go back to Arnhem to continue the Imboschroute … In fact, last time I only did the initial bit, east of Velp, then chose to proceed around the Giesplas and along the IJssel to Doesburg. I thought about venturing up into the Veluwezoom at the conclusion of that circuit but was too knackered to climb, and headed straight back to Arnhem and Battle of Arnhem commemoration.<br />
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Now the train is rolling out of Arnhem, looking at a clutch of modern office buildings and humble attached oatmeal brick dwellings, and it just occurred to me that I haven't paid my bike supplement. I have approximately eight minutes to reach my destination of Rheden to elude the conductor's control check and a possible fat fine. This is the real Netherlands, grim looking commuters and students on their daily rounds, most of them pale and blondish.<br />
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This tour has me climbing up into the forest, reaching the Netherlands' highest point outside Limburg and supposedly spectacular panorama.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coming into the forest</td></tr>
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From De Steeg, turn left through village and very soon up into the Nationaal Park Veluwezoom, which is immediately<i> prachtig</i> and<i> rustig.</i> Not too steep a climb. An asphalt path littered with wet <br />
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Queen Beatrix, <i>fietser,</i> at Posbank</div>
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brown leaves, the sun peeking through the mostly yellow-leaf branches of birches and oaks, the sweet smell of decay rising up around you. You come out of the forest at kp 25, then a left turn takes you to the <a href="https://www.natuurmonumenten.nl/natuurgebieden/nationaal-park-veluwezoom/monument/paviljoen-de-posbank">Posbank</a>, a modern architecture glass enclosure of an old house that burned down. It appears that the architect, B Mastenbroek, incorporated trees and boulders within. Beside it is a lovely terrace café that gets the full benefit of the sunshine. Within the structure, supported by massive logs, is a full-service café with supposedly panoramic views from the upper level and €6.50 soup. A popular spot today.<br />
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Outstanding ride through the sandy bits of the Rozendaalse Veld. It is an open landscape of mossy hills backed by rows of pines, popular with dog walkers. Very fun to glide through these hills on an asphalt strip, less smooth on the climb up to kp 17, which threads through a strip of stubby pines. A handful of cyclists out on this fine day, mostly racers. The next part, to kp 32, takes me into the Imbos proper and a sign warns of muddy bits.<br />
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Rheden to Apeldoorn via Imbosch</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8WV2Uau8JbM/XrFa4nRkXSI/AAAAAAAAN7A/Dae8gATtP8QdXTg2VJuFzmOjyRR5GEQNwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/holland_map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; clear: right; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="524" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8WV2Uau8JbM/XrFa4nRkXSI/AAAAAAAAN7A/Dae8gATtP8QdXTg2VJuFzmOjyRR5GEQNwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/holland_map.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="173" /></a><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
It isn't bad though, just a few sandy stretches that are slightly perilous. The ride is superb along a rough road within birch, pine and oak forest. This opens quite surprisingly on a flat open expanse bordered by woods, the Loenermark.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmAZkyuXUxvhf-AzKaeIUZjTfEMDA-s33zTOnZ0ItA1BEDvgQ0AyxMxlP95639FTc_VmVWF0esN_UgP950veCwiC3dMzWMmNopOFFNB8jlJrgHUtt16mN5mzKDk2oepBhtpF57kqksyZxx/s1600/IMG-3003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1304" data-original-width="1600" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmAZkyuXUxvhf-AzKaeIUZjTfEMDA-s33zTOnZ0ItA1BEDvgQ0AyxMxlP95639FTc_VmVWF0esN_UgP950veCwiC3dMzWMmNopOFFNB8jlJrgHUtt16mN5mzKDk2oepBhtpF57kqksyZxx/s320/IMG-3003.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loenermark</td></tr>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cjj5udsa7g4/XrCZOQJplPI/AAAAAAAAN6o/ME4CTOOV-vsuP2yDrV2ddKI6e793MxWVQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG-2994%255B1019%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a>
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<span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><i><span style="color: #274e13;">» 32 <span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» 87 <span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» 28 <span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» 51</span></span></span></span></i></span><b></b><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
At kp 32 I choose to leave the prescribed route and strike north for Apeldoorn. This turns out well—I am plying a nice packed-dirt trail on a long downhill stretch through a forest of magical fall colors (to kp 87). At this remove it is silent. The climbing has been fine, not too precipitous. At a crossroads I encounter no fewer than six cyclists, all going in different directions.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PFVnnxQkZhQ/Xq9GQ1sGXLI/AAAAAAAAN5s/sejaf7fRa5oNp2ibyArvJTPelRnXTNFPwCEwYBhgL/s1600/IMG-3008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #0066cc; float: left; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="239" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PFVnnxQkZhQ/Xq9GQ1sGXLI/AAAAAAAAN5s/sejaf7fRa5oNp2ibyArvJTPelRnXTNFPwCEwYBhgL/s320/IMG-3008.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a><br />
The<i> fietspad</i> to kp 51 strikes northeast down a broad pebbly trail beside a brook, its banks strewn with brown leaves and needles. Below the spindly trees the floor is carpeted with ferns. <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Brooks like this one, reads an information board, were dug by hand sometime between 1600 and 1800. The water that coursed through them was used mainly to power mills. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Then I noticed something about the little cascade here being the Netherlands' highest waterfall (Niagara it ain't), and I realized I'd been at this very spot before with Alice. At that very same picnic table. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Although dusk falls early at this time of year I am confident of reaching Apeldoorn. I have not seen anyone at all out this way.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "times new roman";"><i>» 51<span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» </span>52 <span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» </span>91 <span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">» </span>94 <span style="background-color: white; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">»</span> 90</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman";">After the waterfall it's a long gradual descent down a corridor like a tree-lined boulevard, the dirt trail between continuous strands of reddish leaves. On the way to kp 51 there is a perilous crossing at the N786 — almost constant traffic and no traffic light. Then you continue down the red-leaf path flanked by golden trees. Finally I cross the Apeldoorns Kanaal and turn left to follow its east bank along a cycling strip, all the way to Apeldoorn pleasantly removed from the traffic that moves along the west bank. I don my headphones as dusk falls and revel in the sheer physical delight of cycling swiftly into the city.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman";">I can say that this entire bike ride was pleasurable, from start to finish. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lHuUfLNQEQ8/Xq9GROM0JuI/AAAAAAAAN5w/-QFb3X-EDwYJ8KKYx1LFJMQ6X0AWE3vXQCEwYBhgL/s1600/IMG-3018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #0066cc; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="239" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lHuUfLNQEQ8/Xq9GROM0JuI/AAAAAAAAN5w/-QFb3X-EDwYJ8KKYx1LFJMQ6X0AWE3vXQCEwYBhgL/s320/IMG-3018.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside Apeldoorn</td></tr>
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<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="background-color: white;">[Another option:<span style="color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"> Deventer to Zutphen along the IJssel (LF-3), then to Arnhem via the forest (LF-4)]</span></span></span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"></span><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"></span><span style="background-color: white;"></span><br />
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<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><i></i><i></i><br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-47034289623451768012020-01-17T02:00:00.003+01:002020-03-10T00:11:05.583+01:00Haavikerwaard route, Gelderland<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YW3x2e9AxtA/XgVs4TPpfgI/AAAAAAAANxA/eAObju88hQkDWwtKZlZdenKileL6I4HNwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/BC5EB809-BC87-4EA8-9FD7-C4A9B6E10F19.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="302" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YW3x2e9AxtA/XgVs4TPpfgI/AAAAAAAANxA/eAObju88hQkDWwtKZlZdenKileL6I4HNwCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/BC5EB809-BC87-4EA8-9FD7-C4A9B6E10F19.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">IJssel</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">This route strikes northeast of Arnhem along the IJssel river (which continues on to Zutphen) and crosses a lake, the Giesplas, via two ferries and several splendidly remote peninsulas. It continues to skirt the river as far as the storybook village of Doesburg, then follows a beautifully serene curve of the river to the town of Dieren via yet another ferry. This puts you at the edge of the Veluwezoom national park, but instead of climbing into the vast forest, I skirted the railroad west back to Arnhem in time to catch a massive celebration on the anniversary of the Battle of Arnhem. </span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Route</span><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">: Arnhem-Velp-Giesbeek-Doesburg-Dieren(along LF-3)-Rheden-Velp-Arnhem</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Distance</span><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">: 48 km</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Train access</span><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">: Arnhem, Velp, Rheden, Dieren</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 13.33px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">(original date of this entry Sept 20, 2019)</span><br />
Last day for a<i> keuzedag</i> (free ride day on NS rail) and the weather happens to be perfect for a bike ride. So where to go? Arbitrarily I chose Arnhem--slightly warmer than Amsterdam).<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TrvEP0gUMpA/XgVsycTdchI/AAAAAAAANw4/8L_I33RLt0M9UT0518khDbUo6aAbWofFgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/98014468-9572-43BC-AEE2-71BB3D035CB9.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1196" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TrvEP0gUMpA/XgVsycTdchI/AAAAAAAANw4/8L_I33RLt0M9UT0518khDbUo6aAbWofFgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/98014468-9572-43BC-AEE2-71BB3D035CB9.jpeg" width="150" /></a>It didn't take long to get to Arnhem. Outside the hulking station there were signs for an event. Today, 20 Sept, Arnhem commemorates the Battle of Arnhem, 75 years ago! (1944) Some kind of mega-event by the famous Bridge Too Far tonight.<br />
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I headed east toward Velp. An urban landscape but the fietspad winds through it seamlessly. Coming into Velp I find myself behind a cycling caravan of schoolkids, all wearing yellow vests (not a protest). As they're impossible to pass I follow them for a bit. Seeing the procession of yellow vests ahead on a crisp early fall day fills me with elation. Yes, this is where I belong.<br />
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Landgoed Biljoen</div>
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The urbanization continues eastward as a few estate-type houses pop up. Finally I encounter a big green field, then a broad tree-lined lane to find the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biljoen_Castle">Landgoed Biljoen</a> (<i>"niet te bezoeken"</i>). The yellow-vested kids are parked there. Around the bend is a little lake with a few ducks where I have a sandwich. Here the fietstocht proper begins.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XnkYewm7p3g/XgocbOHoTWI/AAAAAAAANx0/vQi78fN59Ac7MrOJAl7UzHcbiUT6KsykACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2904.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XnkYewm7p3g/XgocbOHoTWI/AAAAAAAANx0/vQi78fN59Ac7MrOJAl7UzHcbiUT6KsykACLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_2904.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giesplas</td></tr>
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Reaching kp 80 on the Giesplas — a sort of appendage of the IJssel river — I see there is a little ferry that only functions till 1 October, permitting one to do a circuit of the lake, formerly ringed by farmsteads, now given over to recreation. There had also been a stone factory. The area was cut off with construction of a highway. Rounding the lake on the northeast side I come to an even smaller ferry, which bridges a gap between peninsulas on the north side (toward kp 24<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XNLj55kl2A0/XhUjN3XdApI/AAAAAAAANzk/uWvoFfH9w30TNmUWd4PmhloCMhW_QY2iwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/holland_map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; clear: right; color: #0066cc; float: right; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="524" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XNLj55kl2A0/XhUjN3XdApI/AAAAAAAANzk/uWvoFfH9w30TNmUWd4PmhloCMhW_QY2iwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/holland_map.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="173" /></a>). This too runs only till 1 Oct, so I'm fortunate to catch it, season's end. At this point I chose to follow the Haavikerwaard route<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"> with "pastoral IJssel landscapes,"</span> as described in my guidebook, followed by a slice of the Nationaal Park Veluwezoom.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DrMZLPIBbvI/XhUi5CvpxkI/AAAAAAAANzc/D_iabQztERQIo7WZo3L4b5WiPhLv504CQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Arnhem-Doesburg%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1132" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DrMZLPIBbvI/XhUi5CvpxkI/AAAAAAAANzc/D_iabQztERQIo7WZo3L4b5WiPhLv504CQCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/Arnhem-Doesburg%2B2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Now at a fine outlook/peninsula facing the IJssel, or perhaps the Oude IJssel, as Doesburg is at the confluence of these two rivers. A sign explains that the Oude IJssel is a tributary of the IJssel that branches east to Germany (where it's called the Issel), via Doetinchem. So this journey might be seen as an extension of either of two previous journeys: along the IJssel from <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2010/09/aa-of-weerijs-route.html">Deventer-Zwolle-</a>Kampen, or from <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2017/06/twente-34-winterswijk-west.html">Winterswijk to Doetinchem</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f8kiCH0KnFo/Xg_UfzpwkVI/AAAAAAAANyg/dsZ4Vqami-IaOaZF9LOsovSEjsUN3tHEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2905%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="468" data-original-width="672" height="280" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f8kiCH0KnFo/Xg_UfzpwkVI/AAAAAAAANyg/dsZ4Vqami-IaOaZF9LOsovSEjsUN3tHEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_2905%2B2.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="400" /></a></div>
The trail from the Giesplas reaches the south bank of the IJssel at Giesbeek, then follows the river as it winds its way to Doesburg (kp 38 - 37 -36), alternating between a riverside trail and a busy roadway. Doesburg, where I sit now most pleasantly by the river, has an industrial heritage and a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martinitoren">Martinitoren</a> (like Groningen). The route now continues up the IJssel basin, then loops around west to the Veluwezoom. Perfect (so far).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Terminal quaintness: Doesburg</td></tr>
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I'm now between De Steeg and Rheden (kp 83 - 85) which is just a road but I managed to find a nice spot just off it, the entrance to a residential zone. It has a bench at the top of a lawn focusing on a sculpture of two embracing figures. At first I thought they were lovers but now I see it's a mother and daughter with a small dog at their heels.<br />
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Doesburg was pretty in that inaccessible uninteresting way that old Dutch towns are, <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">an affluent void, </span>another case of terminal quaintness. But I guess I was seeing it at its best in the late summer glow, the cafes full if uninviting. They were gearing up for some event, stands being set up along the river.<br />
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The next bit, kp 35 - 01 - 52, from Doesburg to Dieren, was pretty fabulous. Generally overlooking the IJssel on my left as it wound north, like a reflecting band of bronze, then west. (I could've continued north along the IJssel to Zutphen.) The trail (LF-3) was little used. Between the meadowish banks of the bronze IJssel and vast mostly chopped up fields—triangular swaths of tall cornstalks standing alone—I was following three old women; one turned off lustily through a field. It was a long blissful ride. At the end of it was a T. I turned left toward kp 90 and found yet another ferry, this one plying shallow choppy waters to Dieren. I had been moving fast, concerned that I might arrive late for the last ferry. It was after 4, and the ferries at the Giesplas stopped at 4 (in mid-summer at 8). But the ferry to Dieren ran till 7 pm, apparently more used, and it carried cars—though on the way over I shared it with just one car and one little girl, seen off perhaps by her aunt and met at the other side by her mom (or vice-versa).<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XNLj55kl2A0/XhUjN3XdApI/AAAAAAAANzk/uWvoFfH9w30TNmUWd4PmhloCMhW_QY2iwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/holland_map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>Outside Dieren I ran into a major road and some confusion due to map discrepancies. I was headed, according to the route map, to kp 99. But at the intersection I found signs only to kp 14 and 10. After a long wait to cross the road I realized 14 went east. I was going west, but took the busy road north to kp 10, though I got my own little road to reach it. At 10 I found the turnoff west to 99 and escaped the racket. Now I would make my way north to the Veluwe forest. But by the time I reached De Steeg I was knackered and the sun was setting and I hadn't the<i> ganas</i> to climb up to the forest. Another time for sure. Also, I wanted to catch at least a bit of the historic battle of Arnhem commemoration.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Veterans of the Battle of Arnhem (1944)</td></tr>
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I thought about getting on the train at Rheden—it was my<i> keuzedag—</i>but instead rode the 15km to Arnhem along a busy thoroughfare. The ride was fast and smooth. Somehow I found my way to the precise focus of the event: the Airborne Plaza.<br />
<i></i><i></i><i></i><i></i><br />
[Another option for a ride would be Zutphen to Arnhem via the IJssel, then the Veluwezoom.]<br />
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Clearly this was an occasion of great importance to Arnhem. People were ringed around the top of the subterranean monument viz cycling rotunda—which I marveled at on previous visits—10-12 people thick going all the way round the plaza. It was impossible to penetrate the crowd and I couldn't see anything, though judging from the telecast on two screens, there wasn't much happening. A Dutch politician or diplomat introduced, in both Dutch and accented British English, a series of superannuated veterans of different nationalities who must've survived the carnage somehow. Some of them were driven up in golf carts. The crowd applauded profusely. Some ambassadors, including US ambassador Hoekstra and a pair of German diplomats laid wreaths for the fallen. More profuse applause. People seemed genuinely moved by the commemoration.<br />
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When it was over the crowd descended to the street below and I took a walk in the direction of the John Frostburg bridge, but that was closed off. From up there I had a view of the Nederrijn. A huge stage was set up on the opposite bank. I could also see more throngs on the other side of the street where the war veterans were filing back down from the plaza in their little golf carts. More profuse applause. I walked down to the street along with the throngs and tried to move toward the river. But it was a challenge. Finally I made it down to the river. As at the plaza the crowds formed an impenetrable band by the riverbank. Some kind of viewing pavilions were set up along the bank but these seemed inaccessible and had the effect of blocking the view to those not fortunate enough to get into them. From the distant stage I could hear the da-da-da-dom of Beethoven's 5th. Hmm, so they chose something by a German for the occasion. Choppers hovered overhead, casting rays of light into the darkness, the point being I guess to recreate the atmosphere of the battle. In fact it did occur to me that a sniper could set off a powder keg of mayhem amid such a throng of onlookers. It lent the scene an air of menace. Anyway, the historic aspect of the event was lost on me, even though I'd seen A Bridge Too Far.<br />
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<i></i><i></i><br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-59693656821407537832019-12-22T14:20:00.006+01:002020-08-25T20:28:01.303+02:00Nieuw Landroute<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-33pHp0RJ_gs/Xd28tRc6mXI/AAAAAAAANtg/oHbDvoDJekUNhoJfTgFtgh4DbNsXvoLZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/A6A49AE0-E064-4DBF-BC75-38D6DBD3A550.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="302" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-33pHp0RJ_gs/Xd28tRc6mXI/AAAAAAAANtg/oHbDvoDJekUNhoJfTgFtgh4DbNsXvoLZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/A6A49AE0-E064-4DBF-BC75-38D6DBD3A550.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Natuurpark Lelystad</td></tr>
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<br /></div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span face=""><span style="font-size: large;"><i><div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span face=""><span style="font-size: large;"><span face="" style="font-style: normal;">Hardly a tourist destination, the young city of Lelystad nevertheless proves a brilliant case of urban planning, surrounded on three sides by parklands and nature reserves, with a few genuine attractions by its harbor. After </span><span face="" style="font-style: normal;">an on-foot wander through the province's famed avian reserve and a harborside jaunt, this </span><span face="" style="font-style: normal;">route follows a serene green circuit of Flevoland's second city. </span></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span face=""><span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></span></span></div>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Route</span>: Lelystad - Oostvardersplassen - Lelystad Harbor - Natuurpark Lelystad</span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span face=""><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Distance</span>: 40km</span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span face=""><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Train access</span>: Lelystad</span></span></span><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">Oostvaardersplassen</span></td></tr>
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<div><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Sept 2, 2019)</span></i></div><div>Late summer tour. Pretty day with giant clouds drifting through blue skies. I took the train to Lelystad, which is the town on the other (east) side of the <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2016/03/almere-spoonbill-reserve.html">Oostvaardersplassen</a>, less than an hour from Muiderpoort.<br /><br />I headed south, then west (to kp 92), a long, straight, flat, featureless road, to the Hollandse Hout. But the woods were a disappointment. Disobeying the signs ('<i>verboden uitgezond werkverkeer'),</i> I headed south toward kp 91. This looped around along an unsurfaced path where sand mining operations were going on, and the principal features were big piles of sand. I encountered one worker who seemed surprised, though not perturbed, to see me. I came out on a paved road—no <i>knooppunt</i> marker.<br /><br />I went back through the sand hills, only to find that I needed to take the same paved road to kp 20. This turned out to be a stretch of blacktop between the patches of forest. <span face="" style="background-color: white;">But things picked up from there and it turned out to be a genuinely scintillating tour.</span><br /></div></div><div><span face="" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div><i><span style="color: #274e13;"><br /></span></i></div><div><i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 20 -> 23 -> 24</span></i><br />
At the end of the road you turn right on the LF-20 and the Knardijk. A little ways up is the visitor center for the Oostvaardersplassen. Closed Monday, but the walking trails were accessible. I took a short hike past a small lake to the start of a canal spanned by a pair of wooden bridges. Didn't see any birds but it was pleasant to walk around.<br />
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I then continued up the Knardijk, a long, elevated<i> fiets</i> expressway beside a brick surface road for cars. To the left the expanse of the wetlands reserve, to the right the Hollandse Hout. I descended to the latter to sit at an isolated picnic table and read <i>A Clockwork Orange</i>. I then continued along the dike until the end, the Markermeer. Here I turned right, wind driving me most pleasantly toward Lelystad, alongside auto traffic.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Batavialand, Lelystad</td></tr>
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<i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 24 -> 25 -> 30 -> 33</span></i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Batavia</td></tr>
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I then flew to the harbor zone. The first place I encountered was a sort of great open square with a giant white head in the center, upon which stood an explorer. The face of the big white head had vaguely Asian features. Just beyond this stood a modern outlet mall full of designer shops, most of which were empty. A few groups of youths wandered around. I reached the central court, occupied by a McDonald's, and turned around, then proceeded north along the shoreline. I then realized that this was Lelystad's tourism center, known as Batavialand, no doubt an integral part of the plan for this new city. There was a replica of a Dutch East India Company ship, the Batavia, which according to my guidebook sank off the coast of Australia in 1629. Near this were a couple of giant museums, now closed. One of them is devoted to ship archaeology.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nieuw Landroute</td></tr>
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It later occurred to me that Lelystad is also the departure point for a bridge across the Markermeer to Enkhuizen, like an inner <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afsluitdijk"><i>afsluitdijk</i></a>, which extends 29km or so.<br />
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From this point on, the ride was a non-stop delight.<br />
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<span face="" style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; display: inline; float: none; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><i>kp 33 -> 35 -> 36 -> 42 -> 43 -> 48 -> 50</i></span><br />
Basically a continuous strand of woods. First the Tuindersbos which skirts the north side of urbanization, then toward kp 42 threads north through Zuigerplasbos. On the way out of town I found a divine turnoff--a strand of sand alongside a canal with a sun-drenched lawn for a bank. I sat in the sun and watched swans and ducks slowly glide over the green detritus.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g4Y1Iknfi3o/Xd27NxSSRaI/AAAAAAAANtM/II74-hpZt1kBUXD8N0Mbc_-CWPhnBIIdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/8B9A59A0-1537-468E-BA51-F5DD58B68562.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="302" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g4Y1Iknfi3o/Xd27NxSSRaI/AAAAAAAANtM/II74-hpZt1kBUXD8N0Mbc_-CWPhnBIIdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/8B9A59A0-1537-468E-BA51-F5DD58B68562.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 50 -> 62 -> 88</span></i><br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cDDK6cSgEtc/Xd27MuJMnEI/AAAAAAAANtI/EQYduSz6WFotlCsc0K0L1cU9K_-GGIsdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/C3E170C7-BEA5-4BB3-A6C8-B87D8A22DBAC.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cDDK6cSgEtc/Xd27MuJMnEI/AAAAAAAANtI/EQYduSz6WFotlCsc0K0L1cU9K_-GGIsdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/C3E170C7-BEA5-4BB3-A6C8-B87D8A22DBAC.jpeg" width="200" /></a>At kp 48 I left the LF-20a (which continues northeast through the polders of Flevoland to the Noordoost polder and the former island of Urk, and onward via Heerenveen, Friesland, to Groningen), and went through the Paardenbos and the Gelderse Hout, down tree-lined paths flanked by fields, then along a canal, the Oostervaart, the whole area left alone though within close proximity to the city. Like Almere, urban planning at its best.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Natuurpark Lelystad</td></tr>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lAJYUnwfVl0/Xd29kvB2pcI/AAAAAAAANt0/liy2bjrVz1wxTuVIftKj1Y2Tyu9fujHFwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/BF6B5DC7-977D-41EF-A6DF-6196A2FAB311.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1596" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lAJYUnwfVl0/Xd29kvB2pcI/AAAAAAAANt0/liy2bjrVz1wxTuVIftKj1Y2Tyu9fujHFwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/BF6B5DC7-977D-41EF-A6DF-6196A2FAB311.jpeg" width="200" /></a><br />
<i><span style="color: #38761d;">kp 81 -> 86 -> 85</span></i><br />
Then I could've cut the tour short and headed west into the center of town but I wasn't tired and there was still an hour or two more of daylight. So to complete the tour I went over the A6 and continued south to the Natuurpark Lelystad. I remember thinking as the pavement ceded to white packed sand, "This is like riding over velvet." The route threads through a series of lakes, with now and then a bench perched at a glorious outlook. The guidebook says that the park contains <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Przewalski%27s_horse">Przewalski's horses</a>, "the world's last species of wild horse," apparently native to the steppes of Central Asia. I may have seen a few.<br />
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<br /></div>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-16771778865861774312019-12-22T12:43:00.005+01:002020-09-06T23:02:06.523+02:00Lage Vuurscheroute<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAXXMOJL48agej5PXTbAO3fZ-5ucZpTmxVkEfDnskf0QagZHPopbQa5bdWzOiLpPNwbDhoDACFUBbR938hzuYSAv0FndKj1Rrr17KSOw84_9xQCx9gjlhSubogSWt7hPiCyaKajwEe1JD5/s1600/IMG_2184.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAXXMOJL48agej5PXTbAO3fZ-5ucZpTmxVkEfDnskf0QagZHPopbQa5bdWzOiLpPNwbDhoDACFUBbR938hzuYSAv0FndKj1Rrr17KSOw84_9xQCx9gjlhSubogSWt7hPiCyaKajwEe1JD5/s400/IMG_2184.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br /><span style="font-size: large;">After a prosaic start skirting the urbanization/farmlands of Baarn and Soest, this route snakes through the pine-studded dunes of the Soestduinen, then proceeds pleasantly along a broad tree-lined path, finally entering deeper woods south of Hilversum. </span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i></i><br /></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Route</span>: Hilversum - Soest - Den Dolder - Maartensdijk - Lage Vuursche (via LF-9) - Baarn</span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Distance</span>: 46km</span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>•</i> <span style="color: blue;">Train access</span>: Hilversum, Baarn, Soest</span></span></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(original date of this entry: Sept 13, 2018)</i></span><br />Nice late summer day. Took the train to Baarn, southeast of Hilversum.<br /><br /><span style="color: #274e13;"><i>kp 64 - 65 - 67 - 71 - 70 - 84 - 60 -59</i></span><br />The first part of the tour—the eastern flank—has been underwhelming with lots of traffic. Now on my way to kp 59, I finally enter the forest, a nice packed sand trail, and here I am at a little desert, a sandy bowl dotted with heather and edged by hillocks with stubby pines, the ground littered with cones. The sun is still bright at around 5 pm. This is<i> openbos</i>, that is, sparse forest. I am at the edge of Amersfoort, and the traffic drone is now distant.<div><i><span style="color: #274e13;"><br /></span></i></div><div><i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 59 - 58 - 57</span></i><br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nAKAHulYrSE/Xf9U_fS47rI/AAAAAAAANwA/fFYQ2c-qAM4pinbmOytbr5bz5Usrni5ugCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/holland_map.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="524" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nAKAHulYrSE/Xf9U_fS47rI/AAAAAAAANwA/fFYQ2c-qAM4pinbmOytbr5bz5Usrni5ugCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/holland_map.png" style="cursor: move;" width="173" /></a>The change is abrupt—from roads full of traffic to woodlands populated only by the occasional dog walker or fietser. The trail is superb, rolling and winding over the hillocks, splashes of sunshine through the pines and oaks. It's a joyous ride. This is the Soestduinen. The trail goes through it, interrupted momentarily by the N413, winding sinuously, guarded by pines like posts.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4_ycN2NcZYA/Xf9SuZShiDI/AAAAAAAANv0/c8HeZ0bMPq8NjRaIjrix27o4JtS6NnoeQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Scan_20191222.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1329" data-original-width="1600" height="330" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4_ycN2NcZYA/Xf9SuZShiDI/AAAAAAAANv0/c8HeZ0bMPq8NjRaIjrix27o4JtS6NnoeQCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/Scan_20191222.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lage Vuurscheroute</td></tr>
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<i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 56 - 8</span></i><br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wiSlJys2_ro/Xf1bqu7zBQI/AAAAAAAANvE/bb99KI-vlXoJGi_3D1S0sR5Rzx9uC2zHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2181.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wiSlJys2_ro/Xf1bqu7zBQI/AAAAAAAANvE/bb99KI-vlXoJGi_3D1S0sR5Rzx9uC2zHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_2181.jpg" width="200" /></a>Here the trail straightens out, still traversing woods, and skirts the railroad, which is comforting in a different way, especially when the occasional train powers by. You go under a massive tunnel, which cuts below the eco-duct—from the guide, one of the few that people can walk across, making it a "recreo-duct." You can cycle over it too (to kp 26).<br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;"><i>kp 95 - 96</i></span><br />
Suddenly I hit the urbanization of Den Dolder, a busy place, but speed through it, pop over the N238 via a narrow bridge, then reach the woods again and a smattering of low buildings which according to the ANWB is a longstanding mental health facility, started in 1905 as the Willem Arntz Hoeve, today under the umbrella of the Altrecht health organization.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kkG0J-LGoAU/Xf1byHa67-I/AAAAAAAANvQ/spv-aUR6McUHKGjWM-LXdYd91x3XWl2TQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2182.jpg" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; clear: left; color: #0066cc; float: left; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eIONn-XT_YA/Xf1botpAZJI/AAAAAAAANvA/EQZTIb_X8PQjyTb8atlxRxSMe-ZYZbTJACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2183.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="243" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eIONn-XT_YA/Xf1botpAZJI/AAAAAAAANvA/EQZTIb_X8PQjyTb8atlxRxSMe-ZYZbTJACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_2183.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Princes Maxima stables, outside Den Dolder</td></tr>
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The Den Dolder funny farm seemed to sprawl, an agglomeration of little brick houses in the woods. I saw a few people, at the doors of houses or out strolling, who looked normal enough. Then going by a little field I noticed a black man by himself bellowing at the world. At the edge of the complex is the Princes Maxima stables.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KhvjuV9i_lQ/Xf1bxCxuEDI/AAAAAAAANvM/ZtgEh8wYjoU-vvNDX0bLJ5GBmMdbXBzRACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2185.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="304" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KhvjuV9i_lQ/Xf1bxCxuEDI/AAAAAAAANvM/ZtgEh8wYjoU-vvNDX0bLJ5GBmMdbXBzRACLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_2185.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kkG0J-LGoAU/Xf1byHa67-I/AAAAAAAANvQ/spv-aUR6McUHKGjWM-LXdYd91x3XWl2TQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2182.jpg" style="clear: left; color: #0066cc; float: left; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kkG0J-LGoAU/Xf1byHa67-I/AAAAAAAANvQ/spv-aUR6McUHKGjWM-LXdYd91x3XWl2TQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_2182.jpg" width="150" /></a>I hit some more traffic from Bilthoven to Maartensdijk, running alongside the N234, but soon returned to the woods, following a slender dirt path which then opened to flank a horse trail. Generally the<i> fietspad</i> was flanked by straight rows of trees like a grand boulevard. This went on for 10km or so, the woods here and there opening on sandy heath or cow-grazed meadows, through the Maartensdijkbos, then the Lage Vuursche, the place I investigated once on <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2014/06/heide-en-bos-tussen-hilversum-en-laren.html">a ride from Hilversum</a>. The guide says it is one of the most visited forests in the Netherlands, though much of the way was mine alone.<br />
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Back at Baarn station, 8 pm, and there's a train home at 8:08. I opted not to take the last bit to the renowned Groenveld castle but to head straight into Baarn, as the sun's gone down and I've cycled enough—around 35km I guess—beyond the urbanization of Baarn/Soest, every bit a pleasure. What's so impressive is how after all this time I can select a random tour from the ANWB guide and it turns out to be a superb ride that I've never done before. It's always been there of course. It again proves I was right to move here.<br />
<i></i><i></i><i></i><i></i><br /></div>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-66976622738754624502019-11-22T22:41:00.005+01:002023-01-11T23:02:03.156+01:00Staverden Route<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cO_2EaTRxow/XdhVz3V4PuI/AAAAAAAANr8/tCWMS38IujEotroj6Wd52ziza0lwrKfzgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2216.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cO_2EaTRxow/XdhVz3V4PuI/AAAAAAAANr8/tCWMS38IujEotroj6Wd52ziza0lwrKfzgCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_2216.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-size: large;">The circuit is named for a castle in the Veluwe. Beginning at the town of Nunspeet, it enters the western corner of that vast forest, then reaches significant patches of heath. Near the village of Elspeet are the remnants of a Jewish hideout from the Nazis. A road leads west to the castle, beyond which the route strikes north through a dense, mysterious wood known as the Leuvenumse Bos, and concludes with a thrilling ride over an undulating trail. </span></span><br /><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Oct 22, 2018)</span></i></div>
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;">Today is Monday and I'm taking one more ride. Significantly cooler, around 14 degrees C, and cloudy. But it's the last day of decent weather. So I'm taking my</span><i style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;"> keuzedag</i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;"> (day of free travel on NS rail) and traveling all the way to Nunspeet (between Amersfoort and Zwolle) for a tour of the Veluwe forest.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="color: #274e13;"><i>kp 13-29</i></span><br />
This skirted the A28 but at a reasonable distance and made for a nice initial jaunt, the sun dappling my head through the trees. I didn't mind the highway drone. <br />
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<i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 29-18</span></i><br />
Here you enter the forest proper, though it's a bit too well-tended to be called a forest. More like a large park. A straight strip of asphalt flanked by rows of birches. At 18, I stray off the route and go a bit further south to visit "Het Verscholen Dorp." This was a hideout in the forest for<i> onderduikers</i> (like Anne Frank). I got to see one semi-underground hut in a good state of preservation. An explanatory board says some 80 to 100 Jews and other families resided here from 1942-4, taking shelter in a set of nine huts. As a monument back along the main route attests, the Nazis found out about it somehow—tipped off by the locals, perhaps —and eight were shot in the vicinity. They had to dig their own graves first.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">This neck of the woods must be some kind of tourist attraction: the place was busy with families and dogs.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Staverden Route</td></tr>
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<i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 18-16-15-14-40</span></i><br />
Vierhouten is a holiday center in the middle of the forest. A few cafés were open but nothing appealed to me so I kept going. Outside Vierhouten the landscape opens on the typical sandy wasteland/heath of the Veluwe and other Dutch national parks. <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">The forested bits are carefully managed here with stacks of pine logs which emit a pleasant aroma.</span> I cycle through the Elspeetsche Heide for a while and it's sunny and open. Midway I come to another of the area's low-key attractions: a reproduction of a prehistoric tomb that was located here.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">The town of Elspeet was dull and noisome. Besides, the <i>knooppunten</i> are confusing and you have to mix it up with large vehicles.</span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
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<i><span style="color: #274e13;">kp 89-87-86-67-83</span></i><br />
West of Elspeet the route then skirts a road and passes the Kasteel Staverden (the eponymous route title) with associated brasserie. At kp 67 I finally left the dull drone of traffic behind and entered a rather forlorn rural landscape. kp 83 is at the edge of the Ermelosche Heide.<br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;"><i>kp 83-84-85-51-42-53</i></span><br />
At this point, I was already tired and hungry and a little cold. But this was the real forest, the Leuvenumse Bos, still and deserted, dense, the path littered with dead leaves.<br />
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Then I go over the A28 and could head for Harderwijk (6km) or Nunspeet (8km). I choose the latter to complete the circuit, and it's a lovely stretch along meadows and up through forest.</div>
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-17900136999654530842019-11-10T02:11:00.000+01:002019-11-10T02:20:07.456+01:00Maastricht - Nijmegen - Arnhem (pt 7)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-djiWk9VVSKk/Xble5jwydFI/AAAAAAAANow/aCG5ADpj218BESNxCdxlzl_ajanioSoUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2152.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-djiWk9VVSKk/Xble5jwydFI/AAAAAAAANow/aCG5ADpj218BESNxCdxlzl_ajanioSoUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_2152.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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In Maastricht. The day is picture perfect with a taste of autumn. Hanging by the Maas at the <a href="https://www.bonnefanten.nl/en/">Bonnefanten Museum</a>'s missile tower, observing the <i>fietsers</i> as they zip by. After marveling at the Maas and basking in the sunshine, I got to work editing a translation (on the recent Mexico quake), first inside and outside the Bonnefanten café, then at the Bibliotheek Ceramique.<br />
<a name='more'></a><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Aug 28, 2018)</span></i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fun Maastricht</td></tr>
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Later it clouded over and <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">some kind of big fest was going on in the center of town, everyone in designer jeans and leather top coats. A</span>fter investigating the soused cafés around the Onze Lieve Vrouwkerk and drifting through the <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Vrijthof, I grabbed a falafel at at a Turkish joint and ate it in the lovely Stadspark by the scaffolded ramparts. </span>Then it started raining. The peaceful park made a nice contrast with the noise of the Vrijthof and I read <i>In a Free State</i> by VS Naipaul. <br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qutS54Ol8-I/XblgDMkdK_I/AAAAAAAANo8/Iq5JxIPoKmgO1ncRBubSqqGThptlWcmmACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_2165.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qutS54Ol8-I/XblgDMkdK_I/AAAAAAAANo8/Iq5JxIPoKmgO1ncRBubSqqGThptlWcmmACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_2165.jpg" width="200" /></a>Cycling around, I later found a gallery of vivid graffiti art, then discovered a 'coffeeshop' on a boat called Mississippi. Pretty lively below deck. But I was denied entry, as I didn't possess a local ID. "If you even step into this place, the authorities could come and shut us down," I was told.<br />
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The next day I went to Maastricht station and got an NS train to Roermond, and from there an Arriva train to Nijmegen: 11 stops including Venlo and Boxmeer.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nijmegen</td></tr>
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Maastricht is ok but I prefer Nijmegen. Though I've been here several times before, I have no recollection of the central shopping district which is lively and gezellig, lacking the snooty vibe of places like Breda, Den Bosch or Maastricht. I'm at the Café De Deut, one of a string of cafés on Koningstraat, a pedestrian plaza with a little fountain, all manner of <i>fietsers</i> and strollers coming through at around 5 pm. It's relaxing to sit here on well-worn cushions as a couple next to me play mah jongg. I sip my <i>koffee verkeerd</i> and watch all the beautiful and not-so-beautiful characters passing through in such randomness.<br />
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The last day of my<i> fietstocht</i> looks to be a good one. What a grand beginning. Around the corner from my Vrienden op de Fiets, Miryam & Marcel and son Luka, the River Waal, the freighters and tankers and barges plying the muddy waters of this vital waterway. It's warm and the sun is peeking through the clouds. I can see at least three arched bridges from here, trains rolling across the one to the west.<br />
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Return visit to the Fiets Museum (last time was 7 years ago!), return to the Oortjeshekken café, return to Bisonbaai beach, today practically deserted though it is warm and sunny at moments. <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">It feels splendidly remote. Some hikers came through, not many cyclists. </span>What a delight to swim in the cold clear water and lie in the sun.<br />
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The way out here looked the same as it did then: swamp, lakes and marsh scattered in parallel with the big river, populated by many birds. This is the Oude Waal.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nijmegen to Arnhem via LF-3</td></tr>
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I've just rounded the point where the Waal splits, the northwest branch being the Pannerdensch Kanaal, which channels into the Nederrijn, Arnhem's river. (In turn the IJssel splits off the Nederrijn at Arnhem.) I am simply following the LF-3b, a spectacular ride for much of the way. </div>
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After swimming I rode back to the café, stopping for a moment to check the map. Just then, Mirjam, my Vriendin op de Fiets, popped up. She was just out for a spin.<i> Wat een leuk toevaal!</i> We cycled together along the Waal and conversed in Dutch. Mirjam is patient and conversant, if not exactly talkative. She takes it as a given that I speak Dutch, even if I stumble and often ask for help. Mirjam pointed out that the Waal is exceedingly low at the moment. Due to this, the ferry service between Kekerdom and Doornenburg has been discontinued indefinitely. Then she took a turn off the main route through a forested bit to the <a href="https://millingertheetuin.nl/">Millinger tea garden</a>... </div>
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What I am now riding along is the Groene Rivier Pannerden, essentially a great oval excavation (dating from 2015) which handles the overflow from the rivers in times of high water. It is also supposed to function as a sort of "nature recovery" zone, a truly Dutch concept. Now the overflow threat seems distant indeed, it's been so dry. Though my route skirts both the Groene Rivier and the Pannerdensch Kanaal behind it, all I see is an endless flat green field dotted with occasional grazing horses or ducks. I am heading for Arnhem.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coming into Arnhem</td></tr>
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It was easy to get there though not as inspiring as the previous section along the Waal. The exception was the approach to Arnhem (following LF-3 to <span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">kp22 </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">below the "bridge too far" aka John Frostburg bridge). As usual in Holland the countryside transitions seamlessly into the urban area--none of your American/Mexican franchise blight at the city's edge. You're going down the Nederrijn valley, cows grazing on the banks, cyclists and walkers on the trails, and the arched bridge comes into view. Then you exit the LF (to kp35) and slip right on to the bridge. At the other end is the brilliant cycling rotunda, then you're going right through Arnhem's car-free shopping district. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Just then the saddle started wobbling. It appeared the support had snapped. Well, better then I guess than cycling along the Waal with 20km to go. But it marred my grand return. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Arnhem -> Amsterdam Amstel under an hour's journey!</span><br />
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<br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-42434786283091067002019-10-24T01:03:00.000+02:002019-11-10T02:14:41.374+01:00East Vlaanderen to Limburg (pt 6)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N0AfbvWe_Ks/Xa2NuP1oEoI/AAAAAAAANlw/ie2WhTlmehQsDnFoIhqbviZv_chtktP8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7947.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N0AfbvWe_Ks/Xa2NuP1oEoI/AAAAAAAANlw/ie2WhTlmehQsDnFoIhqbviZv_chtktP8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_7947.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sint-Truiden markt</td></tr>
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The street market in Sint-Truiden was a real eye-opener. All the abundance of Europe on display … the supermarket pales in comparison. There was even a tobacco stall! And a giant seafood vendor with beautiful girls in aprons doling out mussels from stacks to wizened women. I got a pickled herring and a chicken cutlet, plus some of the land's famous apples.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Aug 25, 2018)</span><br />
I spent the morning cycling up and down hills from Brustem to Aalst to Kerkom--about 5km-- before it occurred to me that I was going in the wrong direction. Anyway, now, after going back to my start point at Brustem, this time lagging behind a group of dozens of family members on a cycle jaunt, then navigating my way through a deserted construction site, I am finally moving in the right direction--up a woodsy lane to an apple orchard. The day is blustery--big clouds moving in on the sun. A storm is passing north of here and it could rain a bit. Chilly and windy.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8dpgGhpxbg/XbFu4O54j2I/AAAAAAAANoA/vBxBbfqFZN8JxuHaczwdJBut8CQgsdXqgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/belgium.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="550" height="128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8dpgGhpxbg/XbFu4O54j2I/AAAAAAAANoA/vBxBbfqFZN8JxuHaczwdJBut8CQgsdXqgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/belgium.png" width="200" /></a>So I've lost time but, based on yesterday's ride, I am confident this one will be excellent as well. And now the sun's out again.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">LF-6 Sint-Truiden to Maastricht</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #274e13;"><i>> kp 161</i></span><br />
The hills are getting higher, the climbs longer, the descents more dizzying as I approach Limburg. Or I suppose I already am in Limburg, Belgische Limburg. The clouds part for the warm sunshine, the wind propels me onward. This is bliss. Yet aside from that family group this morning, I could count the cyclists I've seen on the fingers of my right hand, all of them racers. If Limburg is the <i>fietsparadijs</i> the tourist board boasts it to be, not many know or care. Which is alright with me. This is my fietspad today.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x9agi5gmcuo/Xa2v64zhurI/AAAAAAAANmI/Qa8Zvg2zW007VgIAlP0YmlG4K9Nk4EftACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7906.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x9agi5gmcuo/Xa2v64zhurI/AAAAAAAANmI/Qa8Zvg2zW007VgIAlP0YmlG4K9Nk4EftACLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_7906.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="400" /></a><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_aPeHnQ07Hk/XbAg7yCXXPI/AAAAAAAANm4/Uxj2nQKPXXMdB0N_FZ1kTG0XWvurG-gOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7927.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_aPeHnQ07Hk/XbAg7yCXXPI/AAAAAAAANm4/Uxj2nQKPXXMdB0N_FZ1kTG0XWvurG-gOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_7927.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
I've seen a fair number of cars though. Also just now a little band on pokey motorcycles wearing grim expressions under their helmets. These hills<i> roll</i> so I am climbing (usually in 1st gear), then flying down. A bit nerve-racking but once you get into the rhythm of it it's alright. No need to go fast key as I ascend these hills. Finding my speed, then locking into it.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2RvXxX0AqwI/Xa2N6-xa9-I/AAAAAAAANl0/gmhL4ebMPh0afMUnP7bdBBL2bzbBg-jRgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7895.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>In Limburg you can actually enjoy vistas of the surrounding countryside, rows of apple trees threading the hills. Strangely, the only person I've seen in hours, a dog walker, just passed with … a border collie. Are animals here to give us messages?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stables at Tongeren racetrack</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bilingual pub</td></tr>
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Seems I've embarked on the best part yet: the Jekervallei running east of Tongeren to Maastricht. Some kinda green corridor along the Jeker, aka Geer, river. All places have two names here as it is the<i> taalgrens</i> between Vlaanderen and Wallonie. I just experienced this linguistic phenomenon in a pub by the racetrack--for trotters, ie, jockeys who ride behind their horses. I watched them running round the track from this side. The vintage pub with wood ceiling, orange globe fixtures, solid wood tables, was populated by fans (with racing forms) and jockeys alike, one of whom was a girl of 15 or so. Like them, I suppose, I'd ducked in from the rain, though in a moment sun poured through the windows. The geezers in front of me drinking cokes were conversing in French, and this was also the language used by the fellow over the loudspeakers at the track. An unanticipated cultural experience. I'll now move on up the valley; the trail is flat here. </div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"> It's continued to threaten rain, might be tapering off now though there are still big clouds on the horizon. It's that sort of day where the weather keeps changing. </span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">Now, toward kp 114, a forest corridor opens on flat green fields.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sluizen</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">Then coming into Sluizen I followed the LF-6 route to kp 87, climbing a steep hill to emerge on a vast field of nothing, then realized I wanted to continue up the Jeker/Geer valley so flew back down to Sluizen, following signs to kp 114 -> 407, which winds through the whole valley. It rained again, then stopped, though it remains quite cool. I now follow a woodsy stretch along the Geer. Despite the errors and weather, this is a brilliant tour by any standard. And at 6:30 pm, the sun shines once again. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeker valley</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeker to the Maas</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">The river, which "has its source in the Luikse Haspengouw, streams through the flatland by the town of Tongeren." At Bitsingen (aka Bassenge), the valley was made deeper to join the Maas valley. The river meanders through a string of villages, </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">ducks floating at still bends, </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">hills rising on either side to enhance the valley effect. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">At kp 432 I continue up the valley, a splendid stretch. I rode along a ledge above meadows, the sun an orange ball to my left. Then I reached the final village of the valley, Eben-Emael. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Over the Albertkanaal to the Netherlands</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">The trail traverses more rural splendor, then drops me at the Albertkanaal, the broad waterway that crosses Vlaanderen. I suppose this is where the Jeker drains into it. It was already 8:30. I sent a text message to my Vriend op de Fiets, Helena Swart, saying I'd be late. "<i>Geen probleem," </i>was her kind reply. I took the bridge over the Albertkanaal and suddenly everything felt familiar. I was back in the Netherlands: the surface of the fietspad, the fietspad signage, the volume of fietsers. I like Belgium but its continental complacency sometimes annoys me. This is where I belong. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">As dusk fell, I was cycling a green corridor beside a community, then reached a busy road. Crossed it and I was rolling over the cobblestones of old Maastricht on my way to kp 1. What a sublime sensation to cycle upon the Sint Servaas bridge over the grand Maas river. It was Saturday night and many people were strolling into the center of town, speaking different languages, against a backdrop of deep blue, pink-tinged skies. I headed south along the main thoroughfare, somehow found the way over the freeway/railroad and found the Heeg district with the subdivision that contained Poelgaard. My host, Helena, was very kind and welcoming. I had my supper—the remains of my pickled herring sandwich—and we conversed. I learned that she lived in Turkey for 12 years and raised her children there.<i> </i></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/11/maastricht-nijmegen-arnhem-day-7.html"><i>Continued...</i></a></span><br />
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<br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-82471028538649350282019-10-20T15:52:00.000+02:002019-10-24T01:09:19.919+02:00East Vlaanderen - pt 5<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7uGeMU3JA_4/XadOv9eISrI/AAAAAAAANkA/5zxbWtTIfeMiAJX-Ct0tzEifNioRrWvJACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7837.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="993" data-original-width="1600" height="250" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7uGeMU3JA_4/XadOv9eISrI/AAAAAAAANkA/5zxbWtTIfeMiAJX-Ct0tzEifNioRrWvJACLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_7837.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hoegaarden</td></tr>
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Where I am now: at the bottom of a field near Meldert, west of Hoegaarden. From Leen's place near Korbeek-Lo (east of Leuven), I headed south and over the A3/E40 to reach Neervelp, where I picked up the LF-6 east. I could've taken a more direct route to Sint-Truiden via<i> knooppunten</i> ("LF is passé," said Luc in Boeschout), but I suspect the LF is more scenic and traffic-free. Leen Rosseel didn't know. Though she's lived here 37 years and is an avid cyclist and walker, she never took it. So far the route has gone through dull deserted villages and along roads with trucks, but just outside Meldert a strip of asphalt branches off through a field and now it's a truly rural scene. Signage is good and here again the LF often follows its own route, independent of the knooppunten. I haven't seen a single cyclist; I guess the LF<i> is</i> passé. The day is sunny, rather cool and quite windy though the wind is at my back.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Somewhere around Meldert</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.8px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Leen, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.8px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Korbeek-Lo</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Aug 24, 2018)</span><br />
Just crossed over the A3/E40 (again) east of Outgaarden and south of Tienen, the major city in this area though I won't see it; the LF-6 runs south of Tienen. Not only is there the highway but also the railroad, though this is not shown in my fiets atlas. Unlike at other highway overpasses, I didn't have to climb to this one; it just appeared on my left, a sturdy, rusty bridge, the deathly roar of the road below. On the other side of the bridge I find a picnic table shaded by sycamores. The day and the tour have turned out splendid. A blissful ride through fields atop a plateau with a gentle roll, the wind pushing me forward under sunny skies. I reach Hoegaarden, where they make <a href="https://hoegaarden.com/the-beers/">the beer</a>, a substantial town with a few impressive old brick buildings and a<i> biercafe</i> or two. Next its little sister, Outgaarden, then more fields and the highway. It's good that I took the trouble to list the knooppunten corresponding to the LF. Where the LF signs don't appear, I follow the knooppunten, and that's worked out fine.<br />
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According to Lannoo's, Tienen is in Vlaams-Brabant. South of this, where I now cycle, is Brabants Haspengouw, where they speak Luiks Haspengouw, an intensely agricultural zone of wheat and sugar beets.<br />
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I better keep moving: storm clouds are bunching up on the horizon.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JihPVFbR2bg/XaxhCs6yuII/AAAAAAAANk4/vp0MjoJkrDEHduib1OJzCCpwzHHaSPzHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7846.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JihPVFbR2bg/XaxhCs6yuII/AAAAAAAANk4/vp0MjoJkrDEHduib1OJzCCpwzHHaSPzHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_7846.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">Despite my concerns about distance and the topography of the region, I am really flying, propelled by a hefty tailwind and some downhill stretches <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">down broad lanes </span>through vast fields where I reach perilous speeds. Then a sudden turn south and I climb for a bit, then continue to zoom eastward. I must be near Laar (kp 88) which means I've almost reached my destination. </span><br />
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The ride continued speedy and bracing. I knew I was coming into Limburg territory when I began to see a profusion of apple and pear trees. Also stacks of giant crates, wooden or plastic. I wondered who picked all those fruit. Then I noticed a series of day packs and shopping bags leaning against the fence, then heard foreign voices and could see a few day laborers, Romanians or Polish perhaps. </div>
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Before long I noticed 3-digit knooppunten and I was just outside Sint-Truiden. I had made good time. Too good in fact. I said I'd show up at my Vrienden op de Fiets around 7, and it was a little after 4. I found a bench in a park-like strip on the north side of town. A sign warned against drinking alcoholic beverages here. The first person I noticed was an <i>allochton</i> with a can of beer. Some Moroccan boys were sitting on the grass. <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">It wasn't just allochtonen. There were various blonde Belgians as well. But they didn't linger--they were on their way somewhere. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leuven to Sint Truiden via LF-6</td></tr>
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I made myself a tuna sandwich and then checked my email (free ambient wifi in Sint-Truiden). Briggite Bruggers in Nijmegen told me she had no room on Monday night. I then sent off 3 more Vrienden op de Fiets requests to Nijmegen and got one acceptance--from a certain Mirjam Rodolphus. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sint-Truiden, in kermis mode</td></tr>
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My first impression of Sint-Truiden is that it's a noisy town full of poseurs driving around to flaunt their affluence. The cafés are filled with overweight cigarette-smoking loudmouths, the promenades with families strolling around. As usual I may as well be from Pluto. On the other hand it is lively. Well, there's a <i>kermis</i> going on. The kids--not just white kids but immigrants as well--crowd the rides and scream with glee.<br />
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My Vrienden op de Fiets hosts in Sint-Truiden, Marisse and Johan, were quite representative of the town's population. Big cheerful middle-class people without the slightest interest in anything ''alternative." <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">She handles the kitchen and ministers to the guest, he sits in front of the TV to get filled in on this week's disaster--now it's floods in Hawaii--and fiddles with his tablet. There's an RV in the yard and they've got a border collie--the second one I've seen this trip. </span>They are the only VoF'ers in Sint-Truiden though, and I'm glad they're here. <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/10/east-vlaanderen-to-limburg-pt-6.html"><i>Continued...</i></a></div>
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Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-39561074245557392932019-10-16T12:26:00.002+02:002019-10-20T03:00:03.060+02:00East Vlaanderen - pt 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ar1QHP-Wbd4/XaLjXqotUkI/AAAAAAAANiE/4o_4Xf5Hli0uei3ujN8NbPUSIvv7-Vb8QCEwYBhgL/s1600/IMG_7771.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="224" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ar1QHP-Wbd4/XaLjXqotUkI/AAAAAAAANiE/4o_4Xf5Hli0uei3ujN8NbPUSIvv7-Vb8QCEwYBhgL/s400/IMG_7771.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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In Leuven. It's a hot day and I have nothing to do. Right now I'm sitting on a sort of grandstand by the Entrepot, an in-town dock where there's an old market or depot turned into a tony café. Ariane, my Vrienden op de Fiets host, says this part of town is being converted into a café zone.<br />
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In October, Ariane says, the population of Leuven doubles with the influx of university students. Now it is rather sleepy. My tentative plan is to look around town, then take a ride out to where my next Vrienden op de Fiets hosts are, a place called Korbeek-Dijle, southwest of town. Tomorrow I'll stay in yet another place, east of Leuven. This is fine; on a trip like this, it's good to keep moving.<br />
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Ariane's apartment is quite near the center of Leuven, a functional flat with large windows overlooking a playground occupied by swarthy locals. She's lived there for the past three years.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leuven</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Aug 22, 2018)</span><br />
Leuven is an attractive bourgeois town, and unlike Ghent there are few tourists. After the Entrepot, I had a look at the Kleine Begijnhof (old residential complex for unmarried women), then found a bike repair store where I had my creaky pedals replaced. Next found one of those French-style terrace cafes and had a Stella Artois, which is brewed here. I could have sat there all day but instead took a look around the center. Like Mechelen it has a madly baroque structure, though I have no guidebook to tell me what it is. The Oud Markt is a sea of cafés, probably getting busy about now. But I have to leave town since my hosts are a ways out of town. </div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><a href="https://www.boon.be/en/content/oude-geuze-boon" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "courier new", courier, monospace;">Geuze Boon</a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> is a sour lambiek beer of Brussels. It can only be made in that area since it is fermented from the bacteria of that region. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">This I learned from Maarten. He and Tine are Vrienden op de Fiets in Kordeel-Dijle. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--VCECnZ5mmM/XaLmcpkIk-I/AAAAAAAANio/Vrim_x6HCLYHxW1-_6ErMyGhqc-hhs0WQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7798.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1393" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--VCECnZ5mmM/XaLmcpkIk-I/AAAAAAAANio/Vrim_x6HCLYHxW1-_6ErMyGhqc-hhs0WQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_7798.jpg" width="175" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arenbergpark</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">The ride down to their place was very nice. To get to kp 74 you need to go down through a graffitied tunnel. On the other side you're directed through the beautiful Arenbergpark, which skirts the Dijle river, then toward kp 13 open fields and a patch of dense forest. Finally, toward kp 2 you make a substantial climb to go over the A3, the one that now drones in the distance, and fly back down to the first left, Ormandweg. About 250m on is Tine & Maarten's place. It's quite simple but there's no place to eat out here; I wisely had dinner in Leuven, at <a href="https://www.deoptimist.be/">The Optimist</a>, Ariane's recommendation. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">To the bike tunnel</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">It is quiet out here but the highway makes a continuous drone. </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Tine and Maarten are unusual for Vrienden op de Fiets, rather young, and they have two kids and a border collie. It's </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><i>gezellig</i></span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"> but they don't seem to feel like conversing. </span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Tine is a small, perky woman with luminescent eyes that she's passed on to her daughter. Maarten is an easygoing, somewhat shy, long-haired dude. While he was getting the kids off to "creative camp," he put my breakfast on the table: granola, yogurt, fresh grapefruit juice, good coffee, a jar of homemade jam, bread. They live in an old farmhouse</span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"> that belongs to Tine's family, </span></span><span style="color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></span></span></span>upgraded to modern design standards. The bathroom has a rainshower that resembles a Star Trek beam-up station; I couldn't get the water to reduce from scalding hot. Anyway I'm glad I stayed there because it gave me a chance to see another, rural side of Leuven.</span> </span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qTnmhwvURWs/XaLl18jzTXI/AAAAAAAANic/0pr3XCu7gUsgYCGOQZGSFgeQCd8fe-cpwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7802.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="623" data-original-width="1600" height="249" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qTnmhwvURWs/XaLl18jzTXI/AAAAAAAANic/0pr3XCu7gUsgYCGOQZGSFgeQCd8fe-cpwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/IMG_7802.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Aug 23, 2018)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cool, overcast morning, and I've been wandering the area southwest of Leuven. Kind of misty and forlorn. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fQC_1pOow-U/XabrEF2ZS2I/AAAAAAAANjg/2LCVIpqNp14rVKCy4s0s85y-dExWzcHHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Oud%2BHeverlee%2Bmap%2B%2B2019-10-16%2B120254.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ErP_MPYHVHk/XaLn5vpiKNI/AAAAAAAANi4/P1puVxYtgZovNsGrODj32LLz6fxSHtnAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7807.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="524" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ErP_MPYHVHk/XaLn5vpiKNI/AAAAAAAANi4/P1puVxYtgZovNsGrODj32LLz6fxSHtnAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_7807.jpg" width="104" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">The next few days should be cooler and rainy--just in time for my two-day jaunt eastward to Maastricht. Today I just want to cycle through the forests--Meerdaalbos, Molendalbos and Heverleebos--then return to Leuven for a beer and supper, then head east to my Vrienden op de Fiets in Kessel-Lo.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leuven - Oud-Heverlee - Leuven</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The ride from Ormendalweg to the village of Oud-Heverlee was great, a dirt trail that follows the Dijle river. (It appears to be on both the LF-5 and LF-2.) The town of Oud-Heverlee seems dull and suburban, and I escaped into the forest (-> kp 79), an old still patch with tall trees. I then attempted to follow part of the suggested route from Lannoo's <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lannoos-dicht-bij-huisgidsen-Fietsen-grensstreek-Vlaanderen/dp/902095489X"><i>Fietsen in de grensstreek van Vlaanderen</i>,</a> but did not venture far beyond Sint-Joris Weert, with a little train station. I tried to find the<i> "natuurgebied</i>" by a lake to the south without success. Sint-Joris is downhill from the forest and you can actually get some views of the countryside, not unlike Limburg. The book was published pre-<i>knooppunten</i>, and the knooppunten in my Vlaanderen fiets atlas seem totally out of date. There seem to be a number of new knooppunten. The best source is <a href="https://www.fietsnet.be/routeplanner/default.aspx">fietsnet.be</a> but you've got to be online to use it. Everyone uses GPS these days except me. I still like old paper maps with an occasional glance at <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/citymaps2go-offline-map/id408866084">citymaps2go,</a> which sometimes works offline in unlikely places like Oud-Heverlee.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">A brilliant dash through the woods on a slender packed-dirt trail ends up at kp 78 with directions to kp 77 (east toward Mollendalbos) and 82 (north toward Heverleebos), though neither appears on my any map--not even the posted ones. I decide to go north (back toward Leuven) on the Nethense Baan.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Heverleebos</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">» kp 82 » 76</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">To kp 82 is a lovely broad rolling path through the forest, which then heads east to reach old fields. Then it's a left to kp 76 and down an old gravel lane across from a farmstead. The whole ride is a joy. This route appears to be along the LF-6b. At kp 76 you can go to 1 (back west where I came from) or 70 (unknown), which corresponds to the LF-6. This way is along the Herendreef, which on citymaps2go goes a long way north through Heverlee forest. If I'm going in the right direction, I should go under the thruway. Let's see now … </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">My hunch was borne out as the drone from the A3/E40 increased in volume and soon I tunneled under it--the tunnel a metal tube with floor lighting. Much easier than going<i> over</i> it toward kp 1, which involved a serious climb. Then I continue north on Herendreef toward kp 75 and continue through the Heverleebos. Excellent woodsy day trip. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Free parking, Leuven</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Going back to Leuven, I made a wrong turn: to the LF-6 rather than the LF-2. This took me alongside the highway, then underneath it and soon I was riding in the countryside again. Back to town, back through the long underpass, so dark I could not see in front of me toward the middle. Then toward kp 10, through the graffiti tunnel, and I was back in the center of Leuven. I like the vibe of the town, relaxed, a bit cosmopolitan, cyclists everywhere. I browsed a comic book shop, then had a few beers at the Café Metafoor on Parijsstraat, just below the Oud Markt, and just watched the fabulous pageant of cyclists who weave by the pedestrians. Now it's time to find my crib. <i>Continued...</i></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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</span>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-11328854069620819202019-10-12T13:02:00.001+02:002019-10-16T12:27:35.026+02:00East Vlaanderen - pt 3<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-atIHT3BGy7s/XaGoKqSIgUI/AAAAAAAANhI/AYcNqnS8Qook3XNTE2Hv9Xuc8JdYowOWgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7638.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="934" data-original-width="1600" height="235" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-atIHT3BGy7s/XaGoKqSIgUI/AAAAAAAANhI/AYcNqnS8Qook3XNTE2Hv9Xuc8JdYowOWgCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_7638.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nete river</td></tr>
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Every trip has its ups and downs, and today is a big up … so far. I just had a sandwich of pickled herring w/onions on fresh pumpkin seed bread plus summer cherries--all from the Tuesday market in Duffel--sitting in the extraordinarily pleasant Park 's Heerenbeemden, at around 11 am. The park is by the <i>blauwebrug</i> (blue bridge)--which crosses the Nete on the way south.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading for the market, Duffel</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_8_VYjTKgTM/XaGmE2wRLQI/AAAAAAAANg4/pBc126Hc5JgefWan3uX05CZh4v3E2Ag1QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7624.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_8_VYjTKgTM/XaGmE2wRLQI/AAAAAAAANg4/pBc126Hc5JgefWan3uX05CZh4v3E2Ag1QCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_7624.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luc, host in Boechem</td></tr>
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To get here, I followed the instructions of my Vrienden op de Fiets host Luc (in Boechem, outside Lier). Actually he accompanied me to the Nete, where he took off at twice my speed, on his way to see his 93-year old mom in a town 39km away. He says he can do it in 1-1/2 hours. He makes this trip every Tuesday. From there I followed the Nete to Duffel where I crossed the river to the market, bubbly today with lots of old folks. There was a corner café that seemed much more French than anything in Holland.<br />
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Then I continued west along the Nete, the path going right through the middle of the river. A beautiful stretch on a beautiful late summer morning. At Walem, I crossed to the north bank, as Luc had instructed (the south bank was closed for construction), then proceeded underneath the N109 to a broad bend in the river and spotted the blue bridge.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gHCeNread6g/XaGwdoIsaSI/AAAAAAAANhs/tMMifI-3-wcwgxmUNH3IDW1ZH2jaseA-QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/belgium.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="550" height="128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gHCeNread6g/XaGwdoIsaSI/AAAAAAAANhs/tMMifI-3-wcwgxmUNH3IDW1ZH2jaseA-QCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/belgium.png" width="200" /></a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the Nete, from Lier to Mechelen</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bridge over the Dijle</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">kp 94 ➢ 97 </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(39, 78, 19); color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">➢</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 57</span><br />
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The blue bridge consisted of two components, crossing over two rivers--the Nete and the Dijle. Then you go over a canal with sluice gate, and, toward kp 97, traverse a wonderful wetlands reserve with lots of birds. You are then routed seamlessly into Mechelen beneath a massive highway interchange, then the yellow silos of a factory and some kind of old port building can be seen on the opposite bank.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mechelen</td></tr>
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Then suddenly you're in the center of the quaint, affluent town of Mechelen, with a vinyl record store and supermarket (Match). Across a metal bridge is the Vismarkt where, following Luc's suggestion, I had a goblet of Gouden Carolus triple (triple has more alcohol than double; triple is light, double dark), brought to me a slim young woman in an orange summer dress. This time I've noticed the Belgian accent. Their Dutch sounds childlike, singsongy with a halting lilt, as if they're speaking a second language. I've also noticed a slight difference in cycling culture. Seems there are a lot more racers here, both male and female, in helmets and lycra. I guess it's the national sport.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaving Mechelen...</td></tr>
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I had a little tour of the Grote Markt, with some fine gothic buildings, then headed out of town east along the Vaart (to kp 80), taking the south bank. On the map (and according to Luc), I can follow this broad straight waterway all the way to Leuven, and on this hot summer afternoon that's just fine with me.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...coming into Leuven</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #274e13;">kp 54 ➢ 77 </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(39, 78, 19); color: #274e13;">➢ </span><span style="color: #274e13;">20</span><br />
The Vaart continues, straight as an arrow, occasionally crossing a road with lots of cars. Then on the way to kp 20, it feels a bit more remote.<br />
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This ride is pure bliss, an endless idyll along a broad still canal, whether in the hot sun or the cool shade. Not a ship to be seen but many fietsers. At 7pm, I've reached kp 32, on the outskirts of Leuven. The sluice gate opens creakily at Tildonk, yet I see no ship. <i><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/10/east-vlaanderen-pt-4.html">Continued ...</a></i><br />
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Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-79728983244449586052019-10-12T01:19:00.000+02:002019-10-12T13:04:08.208+02:00East Vlaanderen - part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've been cycling through the section of Vlaanderen that is south and west of Hoogstraten. It is dull and empty. Nothing but cornfields, cows and agro-industry, interrupted only by the highway. The air is permeated by the stink of chemical fertilizer; can't be healthy to keep breathing the stuff in. Finally, at kp 98, <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">somewhere around Malle, </span>I hit a canal with a picnic table. A rarity in this landscape. So I take a break.<br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Aug 20, 2018)</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Church of Hoogstraten</td></tr>
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The big canal is the Kanaal Dessel-Turnhout-Schoten. Now I suppose I'll traverse some more tracts of cornfields–how can anyone live in such a monotonous landscape?–on my way to Zoersel, then Zandhoven. The weather is good for cycling: warm but overcast with a light breeze. I just shared my picnic table with three middle-aged racers who had stopped for crackers while I chomped Spanish chorizo and sipped red wine. One of them told me they would ride some 85km today, just going up and down the canal. One had an Eddy Merckz racer, another a Trek.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Kanaal Dessel-Turnhout-Schoten</span></td></tr>
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Now I'm heading for Zoersel (kp 61), south of Westmalle. Here it feels rather suburban: late-model Audis plying the roads, the houses modern brick blocks with slight "country" touches. If anything, it's even more complacent and bourgeois than Holland. Fietsers here wear helmets. <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">In general the route sticks to country roads, never detouring through forest. So kinda dull. </span><br />
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I noticed a <i>knooppunt</i> variation: in stretches, the LF (9) follows its own trajectory, not coinciding with any knooppunten.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hoogstraten to Lier via LF-9</td></tr>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yoUABv3WFRQ/XaEBU7DVGSI/AAAAAAAANfU/ZnJp9MLBkU0uR7gnpfPuQI0CBOz5XUa_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7612.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yoUABv3WFRQ/XaEBU7DVGSI/AAAAAAAANfU/ZnJp9MLBkU0uR7gnpfPuQI0CBOz5XUa_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_7612.jpg" width="112" /></a>Zoersel was just a blur of traffic. I went over the E34 to kp 7, mistakenly headed for kp 95, then turned around and went for kp 6 (on LF-5), and for the first time since entering Belgium, I am in the forest, this being the Pulderbos. The silence of the place is soothing. <span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px;">The serene woods end at Vorselaar.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Albertkanaal, south bank</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iPT9Wht5h7E/XaEDJGmPF_I/AAAAAAAANfs/0UJksWidZsMGlVd1i_XdXkmjViyQ4BPowCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7622.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="906" data-original-width="1600" height="181" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iPT9Wht5h7E/XaEDJGmPF_I/AAAAAAAANfs/0UJksWidZsMGlVd1i_XdXkmjViyQ4BPowCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_7622.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New knooppunten to Lier</td></tr>
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Just as total exhaustion set in, i<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">t started to get good</span>. I had no choice but to keep moving. At the Albertkanaal, I climbed the ramp and went over the big arched bridge. It was already after 7 pm. On the other side I went back up the canal east, then followed a side canal (Netekanaal) southwest toward Lier (-> kp 75). At some point the trail deviated from this long straight canal to a winding river (Kleine Nete). This path went on and on, the river to my left fringed with purple flowers, rows of pines to my right, whose lower parts had been denuded for some reason. What a beautiful ride, even though I was exhausted and stressed that I'd still need to locate my vriend op de fiets.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFGwP0cWoFzMJ-diJRWUQ9bJA48HJkdk3QSsVgKUyerguYwkzeY0NxMHECLyJrd4FmeD8LMAzBak0M0qb393G_qVTP3pDER-XQdRuIV9WkHv1Q4Wz6EjifZ8bJuQqzfBC0viyqI7kw7Zuf/s1600/IMG_7621.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="922" data-original-width="1600" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFGwP0cWoFzMJ-diJRWUQ9bJA48HJkdk3QSsVgKUyerguYwkzeY0NxMHECLyJrd4FmeD8LMAzBak0M0qb393G_qVTP3pDER-XQdRuIV9WkHv1Q4Wz6EjifZ8bJuQqzfBC0viyqI7kw7Zuf/s400/IMG_7621.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kleine Nete</td></tr>
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Finally I reached a bridge at kp 76. A sign indicated that new knooppunten had been installed and I contemplated this with another fietser, a good-looking man with a mane of white hair. We both opted to continue along the south bank of the Netekanaal to kp 93, but he darted off before me. Another 15 minutes of pastoral canal cycling, then over a railroad bridge to kp 88, then over another (kp 89), into Lier. I had made it, but the journey wasn't over. <i><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/10/east-vlaanderen-pt-3.html">Continued...</a></i>Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-2901936170569531262019-10-11T14:22:00.000+02:002019-10-12T01:20:58.175+02:00East Vlaanderen - part 1<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JiNg79HVpro/XZz5Ss3goNI/AAAAAAAANdI/rOlwvacq0PkSV6HsBuTO_2vI5tMA4GWSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_3121.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1180" data-original-width="1600" height="236" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JiNg79HVpro/XZz5Ss3goNI/AAAAAAAANdI/rOlwvacq0PkSV6HsBuTO_2vI5tMA4GWSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_3121.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Park Valkenburg, Breda</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Got the train to Breda, and here I am in the wonderful Park Valkenburg. Quite a bit of low-key activity: cyclists on the paths between the stately oaks, groups of youngsters picnicking on the grass, old folks strolling, delinquents getting high in front of the fountain. Valkenburg has not only ducks, pigeons and swans but chickens too. One fine orange-capped specimen squawked thunderously at a scrawny interloper. It was so loud it drew the attention of passersby. The church bell chimes 7. It's blissful and I'm glad to be here.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 13.33px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">(original date of this entry: Aug 18, 2018)</span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Lyvonne (formerly </span><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2010/09/rondje-salland-en-vechtdal-day-1.html" style="color: #0066cc; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Yvonne</a><span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">) isn't here; she went to France for an indefinite period. But she offered her flat. So I'm spending the night in Breda, then heading for Belgium in the morning. Destination: Hoogstraten, which isn't far. </span></span>After dropping off my stuff at Lyvonne's, I went back to the park, on the way noticing a sign for a bike shop called Appie's. It's a simple shop run by Moroccan brothers. They fixed the issue of the rear rack attachment, replaced the batteries on my rear light. After a maintenance check (faulty right handgrip replaced at my local bike shop in Amsterdam) and a blowout repaired (at Amsterdam Central Station), I am now ready to roll through Belgium in style</span>.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GaVPQSB_HdI/XZtHdexhB9I/AAAAAAAANc8/yksJvLSgUYEH2EFSSWTYGADcO4CqgEjoACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7544.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1223" data-original-width="1600" height="244" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GaVPQSB_HdI/XZtHdexhB9I/AAAAAAAANc8/yksJvLSgUYEH2EFSSWTYGADcO4CqgEjoACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_7544.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sint Annabos</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(Aug 19)</span><br />
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The plan is to go to Hoogstraten in Belgium, not far from the border. Rather than heading straight for the border at Meersel-Dreef, I'm taking an eastern loop in the Netherlands, since Hoogstraten doesn't appear to be far from the border. To get to this point from Breda, I took the usual route to Ginneken, the southern district, where today a big flea market was happening, then the Mark valley south, where people were setting up their easels for the <i>plein-air</i> event—all the poets, Buddhists and crackpots. At Ulvenhout, rather than continue south as I usually do (through the Mastbos), I turned east toward kp 36-84 (LF-13a). The plan is to loop around at kp 59, then cut through the Strijbeeksche Heide.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jaVVMg_56JQ/XaBx82awxgI/AAAAAAAANfI/ugac5yl6TGgCZWHFjwza0ZyTkn4wQQOdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/holland_map.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="524" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jaVVMg_56JQ/XaBx82awxgI/AAAAAAAANfI/ugac5yl6TGgCZWHFjwza0ZyTkn4wQQOdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/holland_map.png" width="172" /></a><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1505" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BZUC4td5MKY/XZz9cHiHpZI/AAAAAAAANdk/GPdaZnb_SIIyM0LtbL2AWACO1QxiwPsowCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_7547.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="376" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chaamse Bos, east of Breda</td></tr>
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Though it was forecast to be quite warm today, it is actually overcast, breezy and cool, rather humid. The sun is peeking through at this moment, southeast of Breda at the threshold to the Sint-Annabos, which is the start of an uninterrupted stretch of forest all the way to Alphen via the LF-13a ('a' in this case is east). Del Rey and I took<a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2013/03/bike-ulele-tour-part-5.html"> this route</a> in the reverse direction from Tilburg. Today I'm alone.<br />
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The Sint-Annabos, which I now enter, "dates from the 16th-17th century and has a large variety of needle and leaf trees," whereas the Boswachterij, Ulvenhout-Chaam, is a younger forest of oak and beech. I should also a bit of the Prinsenbos, which consists mostly of evergreens. As I recall from the Mastbos, there are a lot of chopped trees in stacks. Pruning the forest, I guess.<br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">kp 59 ➢ 60 ➢ 49 ➢ 47 ➢ 93</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-19SLcL3Sfpo/XZz96mvr_eI/AAAAAAAANds/Ovams6UM0oQJoc6r6nE6H4-885uY5tCQgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7549.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; color: #0066cc; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="903" data-original-width="1600" height="111" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-19SLcL3Sfpo/XZz96mvr_eI/AAAAAAAANds/Ovams6UM0oQJoc6r6nE6H4-885uY5tCQgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_7549.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vinyl Outlet, Chaam</td></tr>
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The skies have cleared and now it's as warm as predicted though it remains hazy and muggy. From the new pines of the Chaamse Bos, I left the LF-13 and headed into Chaam, which seemed not at all quaint. I did, however, run into an interesting record shop with loads of LPs and 45s, run by Eric, who brought me coffee. He also had a nice selection of old turntables, and I bought a Dual for €50, which he's going to mail me.<br />
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The route through Chaam is just a busy road, but on the west edge there's a turn to the south (<span style="caret-color: rgb(39, 78, 19); color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">➢</span> kp 93), a rural bit with cornfields and plenty of <i>fietsers</i>—and now a sort of caravan of young white people on scooters.<br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">kp 92 ➢ 44 </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(39, 78, 19); color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">➢</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 91 </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(39, 78, 19); color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">➢ </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">43</span><br />
This is an area of heath, now in purple bloom, and according to the map, a few scattered lakes though I haven't seen any. Very peaceful. I took a brief detour toward kp 40, a dirt trail through the woods, and found a nice picnic spot.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zb-5HIF4ryU/XZz--VX3H2I/AAAAAAAANeA/ci4gUnidV94r0gEzpg5OrGAjJWf9V8qfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_7555.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; clear: right; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zb-5HIF4ryU/XZz--VX3H2I/AAAAAAAANeA/ci4gUnidV94r0gEzpg5OrGAjJWf9V8qfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_7555.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Borderline</td></tr>
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From Meersel-Dreef, I took the east side of the Hoogstraten tour from my Around Antwerp cycle tour guidebook, seeing the patches of forest on the map. But in fact it was nothing but cornfields and dull communities, all deserted. I thus missed a supposedly splendid stretch of the Mark. I was, literally, "off the Mark." Mine was also the longer route and a punishing first-day jaunt.<br />
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The one bright point was my <i>vriendin op de fiets</i> in Hoogstraten, Greet Voet, all by herself in a big Le Corbusier-influenced home that she and her ex-husband built. She was having the facade redone and the small rectangular swimming pool in back rebuilt. The place was in some disarray, and my little room upstairs had a piece of plastic covering the window which rustled with the wind.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the Mark</td></tr>
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Greet bears a striking resemblance to the actress <a href="https://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/lists/jeanne-moreau-10-essential-films">Jeanne Moreau</a>. I almost mentioned it to her. After I took my rain shower, unable to reduce the water temperature below scalding, I went down the spiral staircase to find Greet at her Mac. She was going to suggest someplace to eat—there were many places along the main drag—then said she could make me dinner, to which I immediately assented.<br />
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Turns out Greet is a pianist, in both classical and jazz styles, a singer in a choir, and a music teacher at the local school for the past 35 years. So this lovely woman breathes music and we had plenty to talk about on that score. She has a daughter in Utrecht. She went through a painful divorce three years ago after being married to her husband, also a pianist, for the past three decades. <i><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/10/east-vlaanderen-part-2.html">Continued...</a></i><br />
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Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-3652159291914025552019-10-07T14:40:00.000+02:002019-10-07T14:40:30.929+02:00Gooiroute<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimL2xrHbhIlvArc9wr7CM9o5Mdrp727QBz88TZn21WwRA8QVx0fVy_PF5G9nZlXQS48PFK1PwFVy9_WRZGHr-M1GqGqIW_G7aM4XrdA8zrPBzH_2q9LUerZB5GTxocQfG7eyrOMZXRmq_c/s1600/IMG_7454.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="926" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimL2xrHbhIlvArc9wr7CM9o5Mdrp727QBz88TZn21WwRA8QVx0fVy_PF5G9nZlXQS48PFK1PwFVy9_WRZGHr-M1GqGqIW_G7aM4XrdA8zrPBzH_2q9LUerZB5GTxocQfG7eyrOMZXRmq_c/s320/IMG_7454.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hilversum</td></tr>
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Hilversum is just half an hour from Muiderpoort, my local station, on the Sprinter bound for Amersfoort. The 'Gooiroute' is a 40 km jaunt via Hilversum, Naarden, Huizen and Laren, with forests in between. I'm sort of training for a late-summer tour, which will probably be to Belgium. Is it already mid-August?<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Aug 14, 2018)</span><br />
A nerdy woman (black-frame specs, black sneakers) chatted me up on the train, offering random tips on the route. At Hilversum station she told me I should leave by the front of the station. Instead I exited at the rear and took the fiets tunnel to the front.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dudok's triumph, Hilversum</td></tr>
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kp 54 - 55 - 11 - 10<br />
This route takes you through the town of Hilversum up to the iconic town hall (1931), by the architect Willem Marinus Dudok, whose bold contours looked good in the bright sun. Warm and sunny, but as predicted, it's clouded over. A turn toward kp 11 takes you into Dr Costerus forest, then continues through the woods to the Spanderswoud. This is between Hilversum and Bussum. So far it is ideal cycling, along a sandy path through a serene patch of birches and oaks. A fair number of touring fietsers are on the trails today.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Naardermeer nature reserve</td></tr>
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kp 37 - 34 - 33<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Naarden Fortress</td></tr>
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To the west of Bussum is the Naardermeer. Emerging from the forest you hit flat fields of grass, then enter Het Naardermeer Natuurreservaat (kp 37), where you turn right to traverse an old rural landscape of swamp and fields of swaying reeds that fringe the lake's east bank. Quite a pleasant landscape, particularly on this warm, humid, overcast day tempered by a steady breeze. Then enter the town of Naarden (an urban appendage of Bussum), and at kp 33 the old star-shaped fortress, which contains a museum. The complex is truly massive, another link in the Stelling van Amsterdam (Defense Line of Amsterdam), the next one west being Muiden. I've cycled almost this far from Amsterdam (to Muiderberg). Here I pick up the LF-23 east to skirt the Gooimeer en route to Huizen.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gooiroute</td></tr>
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kp 33 - 78 - 77<br />
This is turning out to be a terrific ride, close to home but unexplored territory for me. At kp 33 you don't just see the fort but ride right through it, skirting the moats under rows of trees. The main gate holds a tourist info shop with some good maps of the region. Leaving the fort complex, you go along a narrow path atop a dike, then tunnel under the A1, then follow a slender dirt path at the edge of the forest, reaching kp 78; from here it's 6km through a green corridor to Huizen.<br />
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As depicted on the map, the route is a superb woodsy corridor alongside a horse trail. The sandy path is a nice ramble; turning left at a 'kinder-farm' it turns to a narrow dirt strand with a gentle roll. Then you emerge at the bank of the Gooimeer, which seems vast from this angle. Convenient benches at this fine lookout, about 2km west of Huizen. An island of coots on the rippling surface of the lake. What a lovely spot.<br />
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It's clouded over and turned cool and breezy, feeling like autumn. Despite the beauty I feel morose and cranky. The typical demographic on the fietspad is taciturn middle-aged couples on matching bikes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Admiring the heath</td></tr>
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Now 3.8km east of Hilversum at 8:11 pm. The sun has emerged under the clouds and there is a golden glow on the lindens. This crossroads appears to be a gateway to the heath. A Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) stands beside the gateway and the bench next to an English oak. After I finally found the way to kp 80, all was well again—back down a sandy path through the forest, which then turned to little cobblestones and inclined downhill. I went zooming into the dull outskirts of Laren. It being late, I kept going, seeing the spires in the distance. The route continues toward kp 51 south of town reaching this left turn through the heath.<br />
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<br />Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-71257342615196387512019-09-28T01:13:00.000+02:002019-09-28T01:13:28.394+02:00Blauwe Kamerroute<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o6UyVhZzY2o/XUyRgurOBwI/AAAAAAAANXk/zA_if-fGxWwD-F75XkyGLWN5GCVcYvs0wCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_5640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1159" data-original-width="1600" height="290" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o6UyVhZzY2o/XUyRgurOBwI/AAAAAAAANXk/zA_if-fGxWwD-F75XkyGLWN5GCVcYvs0wCLcBGAs/s400/IMG_5640.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A fall ride: the Blauwe Kamerroute.<br />
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The station is at Ede (though it's called 'Ede-Wageningen'). You can rent touring bikes for €7.50 there (shop closes at 7pm), and OV-Fiets bikes are available 24 hours.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Oct 14, 2017)</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2egTLVP-KxY/XUyPDyjaW2I/AAAAAAAANXA/VQVJY12FvxcgxGFfhGUOdPA3JBDaDa7kQCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_5630.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1315" data-original-width="1600" height="264" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2egTLVP-KxY/XUyPDyjaW2I/AAAAAAAANXA/VQVJY12FvxcgxGFfhGUOdPA3JBDaDa7kQCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_5630.jpg" width="320" /></a>Ede is at the southwest edge of the vast forest known as the Veluwe. The first bit (kp 66-88), north of the railroad tracks/A12, is superb, running along the margin between De Sysselt, a hilly forest now all aglow in autumn foliage, and the Ginkelse Heide, a big flat tract of straw. Weather is summery, conditions are ideal. </div>
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kp 88 - 89</div>
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Just before kp 88 there's a tunnel under the highway. Then you reach the railroad tracks at kp 88, a crossroads for Arnhem (east), Renkum (southeast) and Wageningen (southwest). Picnic tables and an <i>ijsjes</i> cart. Then continue along an asphalt path through the forest till the Landgoed Panorama with a cafe but no panorama. Shortly beyond you enter Dikkenberg forest: upright pines, still and warm.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blauwe kamer route</td></tr>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QAc2NOpxqio/XUyP9i31-jI/AAAAAAAANXQ/-qoy-iUPATkqgzIlmf080VKfMYmJW66sgCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_5636.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QAc2NOpxqio/XUyP9i31-jI/AAAAAAAANXQ/-qoy-iUPATkqgzIlmf080VKfMYmJW66sgCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_5636.jpg" width="240" /></a>kp 89-41-80<br />
This continues to be superb cycling. At kp 41 the asphalt turns to dirt. There's a gentle roll and curves that keep it interesting and slightly challenging. At kp 80 I'm at the edge of Wageningen, which backs up on the Nederrijn.<br />
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kp 80-61<br />
This winds downhill to the river and now (to kp 83) I am overlooking the meadow that forms the northern bank of the Nederrijn. Nearby is the ferry to Zetten. I'll now head west toward Rhenen, skirting the river.<br />
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kp 83 - 73<br />
This is a fine stretch up on a dike overlooking the meadows and streams down to the Nederrijn. Aside from being the "land of life sciences," Wageningen is a port of sorts, with factories and a mill by a harbor. This stretch is rather busy now and atypically many of the cyclists and strollers are young—university demographic here. I'm about halfway through the ride. Now return north to Ede.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wageningen by the Nederrijn</td></tr>
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kp 73 -> 32 -> 31<br />
This is, as described, a varied route. The dike continues to kp 32 at the edge of Rhenen, with broad meadows and lots of fat sheep. Some cars play the dike, and at the turnoff north there's a road with plenty of traffic. Suburban/rural/affluent Holland. The route leaves the road and drops to a creek, skirting this all the way to kp 31, chopped up fields at left. Then toward kp 28 big farms, open fields.<br />
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Heading north, kp 92 -> 91 follows a creek with orange mushrooms sprouting on the bank. Darkness fell, and I was riding up the road back into Ede. Even this bit was fun, as the bike paths on either side of the road (N304) were illuminated and, it being a warm, dry evening, plied by plenty of cyclists. It gives you the sense that the place is actually inhabited by people rather than the lifeless equivalent in, say, Germany or Maryland, where only machines drift by holding obscure souls. </div>
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I went too far up the road and missed Ede train station. Turned around, asked a young man in flaccid Dutch, <i>"Waar is het station?" </i>(Even got the article right.) "Go to the second traffic light and turn right," he said in clearly enunciated English. I followed his directions--the second traffic light was a bike signal--and pulled right up to Ede station, I had just missed the Amsterdam train, waited around 12 minutes for the train to Schiphol, which stops at Amsterdam-Zuid. So a bit more pedaling to get home. </div>
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I ought to mention here that I've become a Vrienden op de Fiets <i>gastadres, </i>on the prompting of Breda hostess Yvonne Lewin. I am somewhat uneasy about the prospect of hosting cycling guests, but Yvonne is supporting me. </div>
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Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-40149902423685602312019-07-10T12:16:00.002+02:002019-07-10T12:20:22.560+02:00Antwerp → Bergen op Zoom<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">76 cyclists so far today</td></tr>
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Though I'd originally planned to take the train from Antwerp back to Amsterdam, I changed my plan and decided to cycle up to Bergen op Zoom, the Dutch town near the border, then catch an NS train from there.<br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Original date of this entry: Aug 23, 2017)</span><br />
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I had told my hosts Etienne and Madinneke that I'd take the train and so requested an early breakfast. But as I stepped outside there was a cool breeze blowing and I decided to hit the <i>fietspad</i>. I would take the LF-2 north, reverse of the trip I made from Bergen-op-Zoom a few years earlier. I remembered <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2015/03/amsterdam-antwerp-v.html">that trek</a> to be complicated, as I kept losing the trail. But I didn't have good maps then. Today I missed a few turns due to missing signage but managed to correct myself promptly each time, and now I'm on the LF-2 through the forest. Cyclists out in droves today.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outskirts of Antwerp</td></tr>
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The route was straightforward enough leaving town. I made a stop at De Haize for bread, cheese, juice, directed there by a kindly workman on a bike. Many orthodox Jews pedaling hard and determined. Down at the Schelde, I turned right and headed north out of town through industrial zones and residential outskirts, over a significant canal. When I reached Ekeren, I lost the LF-2, so headed for kp 77, just outside Brasschat. I stopped into a bike shop and asked the bearded mechanic to replace my handgrips. He didn't have them in stock but fastened the right one by simply turning a screw. Then I asked him about the LF-2. He had no idea what that was. "Well, I thought, this being a bike shop..."<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fNaNAPxkC8o/XSW6CFAkK7I/AAAAAAAANVU/GLF8VLOd6vkrvOtubcP6h7BJuYGjBtdNACLcBGAs/s1600/holland_map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="524" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fNaNAPxkC8o/XSW6CFAkK7I/AAAAAAAANVU/GLF8VLOd6vkrvOtubcP6h7BJuYGjBtdNACLcBGAs/s200/holland_map.jpg" width="173" /></a>"We don't know everything," he said, and helpfully went to look it up on his computer. The <a href="https://www.groteroutepaden.be/en/route/95/lf-2-stedenroute---deel-vlaanderen.html">Stedenroute</a>—337 km from Amsterdam to Brussels. That's ok, I said, and went to pump up my tires with their compressed-air pump.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Antwerp to Bergen Op Zoom via LF-2</td></tr>
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At kp 77, I made for kp 76, on the way to Kapellen. It seemed to be the same direction as the LF-2 but I wasn't sure. When I reached the train station, of Hoevenen I think, I lost the <i>knooppunt</i> trail and ventured pointlessly into this unattractive, now overheated, town. Consulting my Belgian knooppunt atlas, I saw that the route skirted the railroad track on the east side, and found it there. I then proceeded alongside the railroad track for about 4km. I remembered that bit from my ride down three years previous. Voila, I was back on the LF-2. This took me through Kapellen and up to Kalmthout. A left turn and I reached the gateway to the great heath reserve. I am now near Putte where <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2016/03/netherlands-guidebook-research-noord.html">Esther Plutzer is buried </a>under a refurbished tombstone, thanks to my efforts—just in time to show my aunt, Esther's sister, before she died.<br />
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It's very warm but here in the Kalmthout forest rather nice under the trees. Clouded over a bit and the breeze is like a caress. The spot, a picnic table not far from the Kalmthout town entrance, is encircled by conifers with pine cones strewn upon a bed of needles. I'm pleased with the drink I just concocted—a bit of Bourdeaux wine with cold Spa Rood that I picked up at the Frituur Heide near the station of the same name—not Kalmthout but 'Heide,' where there's also a tony restaurant whose terrace is crowded with pumped-up racers.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kalmthout Heide</td></tr>
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I visted the Kalmthoudse Heide visitor center, which contained a fine museum devoted to bees and beekeeping. The nice middle-aged woman at the counter, Lida, gave me a little tour in English, first pointing out the demonstration by the resident beekeepers clad in protective suits. One of them showed me a honeycomb drawer no filled with honey. One room contained active hives which could be viewed. Lida pointed out the queen; she had a little yellow disc implanted in her forehead with the number 38. All of the bees skittering around the hive were hatched from eggs laid by that one bee. Bees can live as long as five years if they manage to survive the weather, though the fertility of a queen deteriorates after two. After the males perform their functions of reproduction, pollen gathering and care of the queen, they are shunned and left for dead. This doesn't take long, like six weeks in the summer. Over the winter the hive community diminishes around 80 percent, from 50,000 to 10,000.<br />
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On my way out I asked Lida why bee colonies are disappearing in the US—"and in Europe," she added. Aside from the chemicals widely used for monoculture, there is a parasite—she deferred to the resident beekeeper to shed light on this—the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varroa_destructor">Varroa destructor</a>, "a mite that attacks [certain] honeybees and can only reproduce in a honeybee colony. ... A significant mite infestation will lead to the death of a bee colony. It may be a contributing factor to <i>colony collapse disorder."</i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kalmthoutse Heide</td></tr>
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From Kalmthout, the return ride was predictable, as I'd done it once before and I was surprised to find how well I recalled it—down to the marsh-side spot where I'd sat on a bench (today occupied by a silent couple). The tour of the heath, though pleasant to ride through, did not impress me so much this time around—a lot of it is a wasteland, albeit fringed by purple sprays. Then, continuing up the LF-2, a long stretch of flat fields, after which the warmth was pushed aside by cool winds that cleared the leaves off the trees in an autumnal effect. Crossed the border (marked by a bomb-like post), then a roadside trail through the Wouwse Plantage, then a 5km stretch west—which I recalled as a splendiferous interlude but now just appeared as rustic farmsteads and forest—into Bergen op Zoom.<br />
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Unlike <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2015/03/antwerp-amsterdam.html">the last time I rode to Bergen op Zoom</a>, in a disoriented frenzy, this time it was pretty straightforward, and the Intercity Direct to Amsterdam arrived about six minutes after I did. I'll be back in my town by 10:30 pm. This worked out well. I've had about enough, yet the fact that I started and ended in Holland gives the trip a certain symmetry. Essentially I cycled an arc: Middelburg-Ghent-Antwerp-Bergen op Zoom. Taken together with the previous ride, Zandvoort → Rockanje (with a frenzied <a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2018/10/lf-1-hoek-van-holland-to-voorne.html">last dash to Schiedam</a>), it adds up to summer '17's grand tour.Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8570473641414084531.post-30224963091045838292019-03-26T01:26:00.001+01:002019-07-10T12:18:25.474+02:00Antwerp<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dageraadplaats, Antwerp</td></tr>
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After yesterday's intense ride, today, Tuesday, I'm taking it easy in Antwerp, rediscovering the city. This is at least my third visit since I moved to Amsterdam and I'm starting to love the place. I could easily live here. I like the trams that lumber through the streets, the Jews on bicycles. It seems a less self-conscious place than Amsterdam.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(original date of this entry: Aug 22, 2017)</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vrienden op de fiets hosts Etienne & Madinneke</td></tr>
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I chose to spend a third night in Antwerp and Madinneke (actually Maria Danielle) and Etienne are cool about that. I appreciate that Etienne insists on making me a second cup of coffee. Today, over a good breakfast of cheeses, cold cuts and hard-boiled egg we chatted about his career as a photographer and he showed me a slideshow of a recent event he documented, the 99th birthday of the mother of a former colleague, when Etienne was working as a customs officer at the airport. He also showed me some of his Photoshop mashups. A bear of a man with a white beard, so far he has been clad only in his blue bathrobe, sometimes open to reveal his chest and Madinneke hastens to cover him up. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside <span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">De Koninck brewery</span></span></td></tr>
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Last day of the tour and I'm hanging at Maritiem park on the west side of the Schelde. A path above the bank gives fine views of central Antwerp's skyline which consists of several church spires and a few office towers. It's a hot day with a slight breeze. Perfect. Behind the path is a lower lawn shaded by mighty oaks where I am now most pleased to sit. Tomorrow I'll return to Amsterdam. I've been 10 days I'm on the road, seven of them in Belgium. This has been a good tour in most ways despite an accident and a thunderstorm. </div>
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From Koning Albertpark I cycled to the center along Mechelsesteenweg, which runs into the Leopoldplaats with an equestrian statue of, I suppose, <a href="https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-395-75924-0">the savage ruler</a> who murdered multitudes in Congo. Or was there another King Leopold? When I reached the historic core I parked the bike for a short walk down a shopping street. As in Amsterdam, the tourist zone seems tired, played out, especially on a hot day like today. I went as far as the grand plaza where tour groups were being led along. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TtM28A-hA4I/XFl2zvx93qI/AAAAAAAANH4/j8z-JOSD8u0yac0TQOL2nwrFwpztCkVXwCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_5489.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1368" data-original-width="1600" height="272" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TtM28A-hA4I/XFl2zvx93qI/AAAAAAAANH4/j8z-JOSD8u0yac0TQOL2nwrFwpztCkVXwCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_5489.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sintannatunnel</td></tr>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NeHsUHM8YJw/XJll0xgDYqI/AAAAAAAANNs/IBhOD9KtUNoTeyKY6WezIEXpeqzoUAtXACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_5484.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NeHsUHM8YJw/XJll0xgDYqI/AAAAAAAANNs/IBhOD9KtUNoTeyKY6WezIEXpeqzoUAtXACLcBGAs/s200/IMG_5484.jpg" width="200" /></a>I knew there was some kind of bicycle tunnel and wanted to take it. A cyclist by the waterfront told me to turn around. It was entered through that brick deco building on the square. This is the Sintannatunnel, constructed—as a pedestrian/bike tunnel I suppose—in 1933. An amazing achievement that I've somehow overlooked till now. Cyclists and pedestrians descend two levels of ancient escalators with stained-wood bannisters and yellow-tile walls dotted with small tactful ads. The tunnel can also be reached by elevator. Then the people flow through the long ovoid tube—"<i>wegens zijn kleine afmetingen wordt hij ook wel de 'konijnenpijp' genoemd"—</i>which goes on and on and is noticeably cool. It's a "shared space"—by an unwritten social contract cyclists ride at a moderate pace behind and around pedestrians. It must go on for a kilometer. At the "left bank" another pair of vintage elevators redolent of early industry convey you to the sunny exterior behind the restful Maritiempark. And now, we proceed ...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bike/pedestrian ferry to central Antwerp</td></tr>
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From Maritiempark I headed for kp 46. The riverfront parklands stretch on and on, with a fair level of activity today. Then I came to a ferry with a crowd of <i>fietsers </i>and pedestrians waiting to cross the Schelde. Farther along is Sint-Annaplage, but this "beach" seemed to consist of a lawn on the riverbank and a big municipal pool. Back on Thonetlaan, the boulevard that skirts the river, I lose the <i>knooppunt </i>trail—for the first time—and turn right instead at a marker for the "Sint-Anna route." This takes me down a dirt path through a serene deserted green area with a bunch of ravens, then up on this riverbank perch.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4g55ghHWEnuOj_dzUqSmVsLzEb8ovoPH1gxr53CDHeIyE98E4NuKPc0ZSkaRavvJQX6lWbu9W-wj4dOMClzB3A8GS1hdvknsbuPLQQtxbmO5yNoHVXV7YmXTwJ2heM3OuwSrnfQ8slC8_/s1600/IMG_5504.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4g55ghHWEnuOj_dzUqSmVsLzEb8ovoPH1gxr53CDHeIyE98E4NuKPc0ZSkaRavvJQX6lWbu9W-wj4dOMClzB3A8GS1hdvknsbuPLQQtxbmO5yNoHVXV7YmXTwJ2heM3OuwSrnfQ8slC8_/s400/IMG_5504.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Industry on the Schelde</td></tr>
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Yesterday's tour was rather strenuous. Today it's all about lounging. And I'm granted plenty of options for it like this shady spot facing the Schelde, right past the point where the river bends abruptly west. It now occurs to me that on my last ride from Antwerp back to Bergen-op-Zoom (which ended in a desperate scramble at nightfall), I took the trail on the opposite bank, which traverses the petrochemical refineries that I can now glimpse across the river. It's such a delightful spot that I feel uninclined to move. Cyclists drift byfrom time to time, in obvious bliss, a screen of riverbank vegetation between me and the droning factories. <i><a href="https://netherlandsbikeways.blogspot.com/2019/07/antwerp-bergen-op-zoom.html">Continued...</a></i></div>
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Fiets-Cary-D'ohhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008449850262178267noreply@blogger.com0