Veronica 5

La Gatine to Voves
Breakfast was in the conservatory and was good. I especially enjoyed the cream cheese on my bread.  I am eating as much as I can manage at breakfast to power me on my way.   The company was convivial with one French gentleman very keen to use his English which he spoke very well.  As we cycled off he took photos of us, 'French TV 'he joked.
We rode again with some rain and head wind over a plateau of vast fields.  In the distance below we saw the Cathedral of Chartres and remembered our visit there years ago.  There are huge grain silos on the horizon. I think they are cathedrals too when I first spot them as they look tall and elegant from afar.  It didn't rain hard and the sound of it pitter pattering on my cap and the wind whooshing under my hood was pleasant.   I was pleased I had packed  my cap, it keeps the rain out of my eyes.  I bought it a couple of years ago in France when my Coromandel sun hat flopped over my eyes while I was biking causing a safety hazard
Our planned route skirted Maintenon but we deviated and visited.  Willem stayed there last year on his trip, just over the road from the chateau built by Louis XIV for his mistress.  We had coffee in a bar,  cosy out of the rain.  Willem asked about the old lady who was there last year, he remembered her having a very bad cough which he attributed to too many cigarettes.  There are an astounding number of smokers here in France.   The young woman who served us said it was her mother and she was in the kitchen cooking!   The poor woman didn't smoke at all she has very bad asthma.
The bar provided a loo stop as well as coffee. There is a dearth of public toilets here. I have seen only one and then I didn't need it. Men are so lucky much easier for them. Not so for us lady hikers and bikers. Finding a secluded spot free from brambles and stinging nettles is a challenge n'est pas?  One day I even managed to cover the inside of my bike pants with sticky seeds which I then had to pluck out.   However the open air is sometimes preferable as toilets in bars are often shared and a bit unpleasant.
We arrived in Voves still rather damp and pleased to find a cosy hotel with a bar and very nice restaurant where we enjoyed drinks and a meal.

Voves to Beaugency sur Loire
Our clothes had dried overnight but we set out again in the rain.   This time quite heavy but at least less wind and a much more gentle terrain.  ' Rain before 7 clear up by 11' didn't quite work but it was better by midday when we stopped for a bite.  A man came up to us to offer coffee which we declined and showed him our thermos. He then returned with a large red tomato and shallot for us. People are kind. We had several call out ' Bon courage' again as we biked through the rain. They probably meant 'you fools what are you doing?'   When the rain stopped the wind came and so again I hung on gamely to Willem's wheel calling out periodically 'slow down' which he did of course.
Our clothes were almost dry when we arrived at this pretty medieval town in sunshine and I had enjoyed the journey.  I spat at lots of white horses and touched my ankle once Pete S, for your mother,  though I could find no references on google to ankle tapping with white horses but lots to spitting!
Our rest day in Beaugency has been lovely.  Though we did rather grumpily wish for a good flat white.  A sentiment echoed by an Aussie couple who are doing a bike tour of the Loire.
Tourists eh!
The hotel is comfy and central. Once again unlimited free WiFi which is fantastic and puts NZ accommodation to shame.
In the afternoon we walked over the bridge to a nature reserve. We saw two egret and some butterflies and a fox. He was a young sleek thing and streaked over the path in front of us.  The first fox I have seen in years apart from those which regularly visit Angie and Martin's garden in Highgate. This one was much more handsome.   I was interested to reflect that I was enjoying the vegetation but if I had been walking through the same vegetation in NZ I would be cursing the weeds.  'A plant in the wrong place' and all that. 
Later we ate at an Italian restaurant for some more familiar flavours. Speaking to a man as we left he asked if we were from England. When I said New Zealand his eyes glazed over and he said in English 'land of the beautiful ferns, dicksonia.....'
I had a nice surprise this morning.  The lady who owns the hotel gave me a teapot , all wrapped up just as we were leaving!   The little dining room had four teapots on the buffet bar and the first morning I used one for my tea. It was only after I sat down that we noticed teapots on every shelf and surface. Were they just for display we wondered and had I committed a faux pas. In my best French I asked if it was OK.  It was fine and she has no idea how many she has, some are still in boxes.  So I guess she was pleased to give one away to someone who will appreciate it.  It could be useful on this trip if there is not one in the villa Shalini.

France 3

Our first B&B will probably be our last, the place has a 9.2 rating out of ten, but we did not want to be spoilsports to give them a bad writeup. The people were nice enough, but I wonder how practical they are. They are manicuring the little hedges and garden but seem unaware that the place itself needs some maintenance too. For instance the curtains were badly connected to the rails, the wardrobe and bathroom had sliding doors, so with one open the other was blocked. They needed maintenance as the wardrobe one was nearly impossible to move. I could have lost Veronica locked in the bathroom. The french doors were the only source of light, they had no opening windows and no ventilation and in need of a coat of paint.

The breakfast was ok with extra baguettes and even a small cup of yoghurt. The best part of that was meeting a large Frenchman, who was very keen to talk English, which he learned in England where he was sent by his father 60 years ago. He was staying with an English doctor in Eastbourne, and I reminded him of the doctor, because I am his spitting image! He must have thought I was the doctor, reincarnated! 

We left under dark skies and it did not take long and we were biking in the rain, all the way to  Voves. The ride was much flatter, over a large plateau, with huge farms and fields full of crops, from maize, sunflowers, serials, potatoes and onions. There are no small holdings here.

The B and C roads we ride on are agricultural access roads and with the rain, the mud left on the roads by the large farm machinery etc is quite hazardous at times. It does not make the bikes or our legs look good in this weather. We managed to find shelter for our refuelling stops and were pleased to get to the hotel. 

Voves we were told,has nothing to offer, as it is nothing but farms, which is true, in fact it reminds me of middle America with it's vast open spaces and planted fields as far as the eye can see. But that has a charm of it's own and the town of Voves including the hotel were a pleasant surprise. The garden and paving around the hotel were in need of some attention, but the hotel itself was modern, clean and very cozy. The town was attractive too as we rode through the next morning, despite the rain.

We were due a rest day, but decided to push on to the Loire river and the medieval town of Beaugency. We had regained the day lost earlier on by doing a few extra km, but now discover that in my planned itinerary, I have this rest day on the same day as the ride to the Loire river, so we are one behind again!

The ride to Beaugency was very wet, the wind was strong and blew the rain into the most awkward places. It stopped about 10 km before reaching the hotel so we were almost dry again by the time we arrived. After a cleanup and unpacking we walked into town in bright sunshine. Things we take for granted most of the time.

The hotel is called Le Relais de Templiers, which was a staging post for the crusaders a thousand years ago. Little did they know it still goes on today with latter day saints crusaders Bush and Blair. 

The town has some interesting relics from the past, the remains of a large Roman Tower, a fifteenth century castle and a 450 m bridge. For centuries this was the only place between Orleans and Blois where the Loire could be crossed. It has seen many battles in its time, it was partly blown up to slow the enemy in 1815, 1870 and 1940 and Joan of Arc captured the town from the English, which is a well known episode in the history of the area.

A more recent addition to the area are two giant cooling towers, a few km down stream, of the nuclear power station, built in the 1960's on an artificial island.

 

Hotel

The roman Tower

The bridge 

The view from our room

France 2

We left St Omer en Chaussee after our enjoyable rest day and continue, as do the rolling hills and the unsettled weather. We have "managed" to avoid most of the rain, but not the wind. I am use to having Veronica "sitting on my back wheel"so to speak, most of the time, except when climbing. So far we have biked in our rain jackets every day as the temperatures barely rise above comfort level. Mind you Veronica manages to sweat or glow as ladies do, after some of the climbs which reminds me, to not under estimate the effort required.
The GPS taking us the shortest route and avoiding major highways, tends to cut corners and takes us through the most unusual places, through farmyards and fields, approaching our destination from unexpected directions.
The ride into Seraincourt was one of those, telling me we were approaching our destination on the left, coming down a farm track, then loosing the plot and showing it to be behind us, when in fact it was 100 m ahead of us.
The hotel was all shut up and if I had been on my own, I would not have waited around. But it all turned out ok and we met some lovely people in the process. After the bar opened and we enjoyed a beer ( yes Veronica too ! ) a large dutchman arrived who is biking from Holland the pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. He carries a lot of gear and had already broken 2 spokes. He would have to stay till Monday to get it fixed in the nearest town and send half his gear home, including his camping gear.
We left this morning in beautiful sunshine and we rode for the first time without our jackets on. Plenty of climbing early on and it was a puzzle to get through the city of Mantes Jolly. The GPS maps are out of date and did not know about the large shopping malls that had been built. First it sent us into a building site, followed by several rounds of a large carpark.
We managed to find our way to the river Seine and the bridge to cross it. The view of the cathedral is spectacular from the bridge as you can see. The confusion did not end there as it twice tried to drive us into a building telling us there was a road there. However we came out of the other end ok and arrived at our first B&B mid afternoon. It is in a large thatched house with 6 or 8 rooms and beautifully maintained. Unfortunately there is no restaurant nearby so we have to eat our emergency rations tonight, and no alcohol ! Our ride tomorrow will takes us on a route between Chartres and Orleans to a small town called Voves.

Mantes Jolly Cathedral

La Gatine B&B at La Boissiere Ecole

Lunch at Bazainville

Veronica 4

Beauvais Cathedral

45 m high choir

Mistletowe

Notify OHS ?

Marie-Laure

St Omer en Chaussee, Friday our rest day. We slept well in our little room.  A walk to the village revealed not much. Though it is useful to know that the boulangerie opens at 7am.   After lunch we caught the train to Beauvais a town 15km away.   We visited the cathedral of St Pierre which is beautiful but It has a long history of problems.  The choir was destroyed by fire in 1225 and rebuilt over decades. A large part of a wall collapsed in 1284.  In the 16th century the transept was added,  and a very large tower, which collapsed five years later.   The tower was never rebuilt.  More damage was caused during WW 2.   In the late 20th Century the part of the choir left standing in 1284 started to collapse. Major work is now underway with much bracing evident. There are amazing stained glass windows , the oldest chiming clock in the world and a 12m high astronomical clock. The Gothic choir is 48m high, the highest choir in history apparently.  Stunning to look at. Willem was looking up to see where they (the choir) sat!!   You can tell he is not a church going man. Next we visited the Musee d' Oise with some interesting wood and stone carvings. There was also a large exhibition of the work of Mario Avati an engraver specialising in mezzotints which is said to be one of the most demanding mediums. Apparently Escher tried it but said it was too difficult.  Most enjoyable and 'gratuite'.  On the way back to the train Willem spotted a man painting an upstairs window. Standing on a small stool on the window ledge. He was wearing a safety harness but I don't know what OSH would think of it. Hope the photo is good.   It was a  lovely afternoon. Walking back from the station to the hotel I noticed trees with lots of balls of mistletoe. Something I have never seen before
Dinner again was delicious. A glass of champagne to begin to celebrate our first 600km. From the  €32 set menu ( in English ) I chose a salade with gizzards,liver,potatoes and nuts, salmon with white butter sauce and of course creme brûlée.   This is only the start. With our champers we were give a small dish of tasty nibbles then an amuse bouche of half of a cherry tomato and a tiny piece of mozzarella. After the gizzard salad came an apple sorbet with plum liqueur. The salmon was small but good and the creme brûlée excellent.  And  now to  bed.....

Saturday. On the road again. A really lovely route  with some big( for me) hills.  'Not much of a hill' Willem said to me encouragingly at the start of one of them. But at each corner it just kept going up. .They were steeper going up so at least we had some really nice long descents.  On one hill a lady driver waiting  patiently to turn after I had passed,
opened her window and called out 'courage!'  That made me feel better,  I had been wanting applause from the people driving by but they didn't seem to notice my effort.   After some searching we found our hotel. Locked up and no one to be found..... We were saved by the neighbours.  I asked a man if he knew where the owners were. He spoke no English but his friend, a lady appeared,who did.   She invited us in. She tried the three phone numbers on the hotel door, no reply.   She made us coffee and fed us cake and we talked in a mix of English and French.  Eventually Daniel,the man said that someone was home. We said fond farewells to him and to Marie-Laure and booked in to the hotel.
It was old fashioned  but OK and the bar was lively when it opened about 5pm.  People coming in and shaking hands with everyone including us. I like that courtesy.

France 1

Our first stop in France was Arras, and the second day without following the "knooppunten" network. We relied on the GPS to take us along the back roads as I had programmed in to avoid motorways and major highways, but allowed narrow trails and unpaved roads. It certainly made the day interesting.
We were led across farm tracks and several long stretches of cobbles, or "pave" which gave the bikes a baptism of fire. We rode them very slowly as I feared a serious breakdown. I decided to change the settings to also avoid unpaved roads and tracks. That fixed it.
We had a little rain early on, but it was dry the remainder of the day, quite windy, against as usual. The area is quite poor and has been extensively mined, the evidence is plain to see by the odd shaft structure and the many large slag heaps around the villages.
After a good night sleep in a brand new hotel, the cheapest to date, located near the motorway we rode off to Amiens at 8 am.
The countryside is quite rolling with long climbs of up to 7%, which was quite taxing for Veronica. We rode past numerous cemeteries, mainly from the Commonwealth forces who died in the first world war.  They are beautifully maintained and are a credit to whoever is responsible for them. We spotted one sign to an Indian and Chinese cemetery, I had no idea that they were also involved in the battles of the Somme.
To see so many graves with so many crosses is quite a sobering experience and makes one sad that things haven't changed that much today.
The next day we rode from the hotel around the south of Amiens, avoiding the city all together. We got to the "green route" at Nampty and carried on South to the planned Village of Le Grand Marseille. There was no accommodation so we ended up in St Omar en Chaussee, in a delightful small hotel in a converted water mill. The new owners for just 6 weeks, are the most delightful and helpful people. We have our rest day here tomorrow, well deserved for Veronica, who has been coping with the hills well. It is day 10 on the bike and we have past the first milestone at 622 km and have climbed over 1600 vertical meters so far.

Veronica 2

 I'm getting into the swing of things, learning what goes in which of my bags and no longer having to consult my list. This just isn't me being obsessive . The weight of the two bags needs to be fairly equal to make the bike stable.  The days of riding with my sunglasses on most of the time have left me with panda eyes. I look especially fetching when I am hot and have red cheeks. Getting up and getting on the road as early as possible each day is good. I always function better early in the day. This morning though at 8am it was7c!
The ride was through lovely rolling country , read hilly.  As I pedalled my way up the hills. I watched Willem's shapely legs doing the same.  We are riding on roads with cars and trucks now and I am delighted and amazed at how considerate the drivers are.
There were huge fields and lots of farming activity.   Most of cereals are harvested. Still some wheat much of which has been flattened by the storms. Maize and sugar beet are still growing. Straw is being baled and fields now being ploughed and disced.  There had been, to use a good English farming term, muck spreading on the fields. To my farmers nose I'm sure it was porcine in origin!
There are many cemeteries. So sad, so many young men, 'known only to God'
There are not many places to sit for breaks in the countryside. It was past midday and just as I was rejoicing that Amiens looked down hill all the way, the GPS had us turn left up a hill. It was down to the lowest gear for me. When there ahead on the outskirts of a village was just what we were looking for. I was so relieved to see it I was inspired.

Ode to the bench seat

Oh long awaited resting place
I thought you'd never come
It's lunch time and I need some food

And a place to put my bum (that isn't on a bike seat)

We are staying on the east side of Amiens, thus missing the city, the traffic and unfortunately it's wonderful cathedral etc. However biking is the thing on this holiday and this is the best place to stay for our route south.

Across Belgium

Our first stop was in Sint Niklaas where we met up with our friend Hilde again, which was great.
Biking through Holland and Belgium is easy because of the so called "het knooppunten netwerk" which is a network of bike ways, consisting of trails, paths and small quiet country lanes. Each intersection (knooppunt) has a number, so one can plan a route by listing the numbers of the intersections and then physically following them.
They are not always the shortest route between towns, but they usually go through the most scenic and interesting places.
The numbers are displayed at regular intervals and the intersections are between 500m and 8 km apart. They are not displayed in a standard fashion, so they could be high or low on an existing pole, have its own little pole or could be on either side of the road. After a while one gets the hang of it and realises early on when a sign is missed and the going back to the last known sign is not too far.
We encountered some interesting obstacles on our way across Belgium, at Wetteren the route went across the river Schelde, much narrower here, over an elevated footbridge. I had to push the loaded bikes up a channel beside the steps and down again on the other side. These are the times that Veronica is particularly happy that she is a girl !
The second time she was so happy again, was after we ignored the signs that the track was blocked, and I ended up having to lift the bikes over some large steel beams laying across the path. It was fortunate it happened on a Sunday, as the workers would certainly have send us back. Which would have prevented us finding "knooppunt 28" and we may have been lost for ever !

However we found our way and ended the day in a small hotel in Horebeke, next to the church. The clock chimed every half hour which caused a frantic exit from the tower by the resident crows and pigeons. You'd think they would have found more suitable places to roost by now.

The restaurant and bar in the hotel was shut till 18.30 and the only place open apart from the church was a small pub in someones house. I enjoyed a good Belgian beer there but did not get the impression that they see a lot of tourist.

The next day was another day of battling the wind and dodging the showers, and the temperature hardly rose above 15C, which is comparable with our NZ winter.

We again encountered some serious stretches of Cobbles called "Pave" and  the hills of the Ardennes with some long climbs and descents, but also long bits called "fals flat" where the road rises enough
to slow one down, but not steep enough to notice. I wondered if I had a name change as Veronica kept calling me "Slow Down" but realised that she was not being nasty. She is doing well though and keen to get going each morning.

We arrived in Tournai, the oldest city in Belgium going back 2000 years. The Notre Dame cathedral is a world heritage site and being repaired after a tornado in 1999 shifted one of the 4 towers by 80 cm ! The outside is completely surrounded by scaffolding which in itself would have taken years to erect.

Tournai also has many museums of which we visited a few on our first rest day.

The city is like most old cities in Europe and has a fortified old inner city. The river passes through the middle of it and it still serves as a living highway for transport.

Quite big self propelled barges negotiate the winding course and fit beneath most elevated bridges. Few need to be opened, but one in particular is interesting as the whole 2 lane section is lifted vertically on 4 legs rising out of the banks.

Some pictures from Belgium

The river Schelde just before Antwerp, the nuclear power station, the ferry from Lillo to Doule and the traffic on the river....

Veronica's perspective

Riding on real Pave on the Tour of Flanders Course !

The wind was so strong I could not stand still !

Now we have left the comfort of family and friends in Holland and we are on our own.  It was wonderful with them and we were very spoilt by everyone. We had two days biking then two days off.  In Belgium so far we have had reasonable weather but also some nasty rain and lots of wind (against).  We have biked some of the bike race route Ronde van Vlanderen and the hills while not as steep as Coromandel are long and are still taxing for my inexperienced legs, especially into the wind. Willem is doing a good job sheltering me as best he can. This requires good concentration as if I don't watch out I will get too close then...crash!  Also I am getting lots of advice on gear changes. I should be a much improved biker at the end of this.   My quads are a bit stiff today after yesterday's effort in the wind and rain. My backside is toughening up though the sections of cobbled road are not very comfy.   Willem so far has booked our hotels the night before and we have been pleased with his choices. So good to have a nice room, shower and someone else to cook dinner. En route we make coffee with hot water in a thermos. I look forward to that first stop usually after about 20km we start looking for a good spot to stop. I tuck in to raisin buns, biscuits or whatever we have for the day.   There are not always places to eat at the time we need it so take food for lunch too.
We gave just had our first rest day in Tournai in a very nice hotel close to the Cathedral.  Washing has been done and dried. Very important as we have a very limited selection of clothes. So far I have to say I am pleased with the choices I have made. I will be very tired of them by October I expect. Today we decided to walk along the river to find a place for coffee and something to eat we had skipped breakfast.  It is Monday and lots of places are closed. We found a little shopping centre with a bar. Bars sell coffee too. It was about 10am and already a man was at the bar drinking beer and an old lady playing  the pokies. However friendly and good coffee.  No food though. We proceeded to search for a boulangerie and there bought raisin pastries.  Over the road was smother bar so we ordered more coffee and ate the pastries. This is perfectly OK here if they do not sell food. We had a good day sightseeing .  The wonderful cathedral is undergoing huge renovations so we could only see the nave. The museum of Beaux Artes was a little disappointing but the Folklore Museum was wonderful.   Lots of interesting things very well displayed.  So it has been a good day and I am ready for tomorrow hopefully no rain and back wind.

The first week in Holland

1600 km bicycle challenge, the first week in The Netherlands.

We left the comfort of Frans and Ellen's home on Saturday the 9th of August as planned.
We biked through the forest of the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, which is a natural sandy ridge rising well above sea level, which forces the large rivers South and West to the North Sea.
After a couple of weeks of perfect biking weather during our training and getting use to our new bikes we were lucky to miss the rain and thunder, but battled a fierce wind against, the left over of the cyclone Bertha which hit the Caribbean islands recently.
We stopped for the night in Gorinchem, an old walled city, where I served the majority of my compulsory military service over 50 years ago, after 67 km.
The following day the wind blew unabated with rain added a few hours later. We rode along the river Merwede to Dordrecht, another historic city and jumped on the waterbus, a twin hulled fast ferry service for commuters who work in Rotterdam City. It takes an hour from here to the Erasmus bridge in the city centre. A great ride and interesting to see the heavy engineering, shipbuilding and general activity along the shores of this busy waterway.
We sheltered in a waterside cafe for lunch and watched my local football team Feijenoord win a game for a change on TV, while waiting for the rain to stop before we rode to Poortugaal, a suburb of Rotterdam to visit brother Arie and Sylvia and family.
On Tuesday the 12th we rode south, ferried across the river again battled the wind and rain, with Veronica getting skilled at drafting, which is sheltering behind, for the non biking readers amongst you. I keep my eye on her in case she looses contact or get too tired, but I don't think I need to worry, as she out sprinted me when suddenly the bells started ringing and the barriers closed behind us while crossing a bridge which was about to open !
Later on as the rain started to hit us horizontally we dashed into someone's open garage just before the owner of the house arrived home on her bicycle with a very small infant in a seat on the front, both dripping wet. They bring them up tough around here !
We had planned to ride to cousin Kees and Diny in Zeeland in one day but the strong wind slowed us down so much that we decided to stay the night in Steenbergen about half way there. The next day we rode around the city of Bergen op Zoom, through forests and heather to avoid the windswept route along the water's edge to Rilland to a warm welcome. While there we visited aunt Nel who now lives in a home for the elderly and is 95.
To make sure we were actually leaving, Kees and Diny biked with us along the river Schelde to the Belgian border, via an old smugglers route, converted to a cycleway. The river mouth is in the Dutch province of Zeeland so all shipping bound for Antwerpen passes through The Netherlands. It is a large busy port and from the boarder, the river is lined with heavy industry, chemical plants and a nuclear power station. The pollution is very visible and disturbing.
Before we reached Antwerp we crossed the Schelde on a free ferry from an old fort called Lillo to a small village called Doule. It is largely derelict and deserted, with one house still occupied with a sign saying "NO MORE DOCKS IN DOULE".
A lone principled protestor perhaps.
We are now in Belgium, after 241 km in Holland and Veronica is still smiling and talking to me!


The old walled town of Brielle,

Just as well the dykes are holding !

Protection within the city of the yacht harbour.

From Holland to the South of France 2014, training in Holland

We have arrived in the Netherlands, after a 2week flying visit in a Fiat 500, to Family and friends in England.

We suffered very painful throat infections after the flight followed by coughing fits, which are now slowly subsiding. The positive side of it is that despite the initial pain and discomfort we did not feel unwell or as far as we can tell were not contagious.

We sailed from Harwich to Hook of Holland on the overnight ferry, where we met my younger brother Arie. He drove us to the cycle shop to collect our folding bikes, which are the only folding bikes with racing bike wheels. They are an American  design called Montague and I am relieved to say they exceed my expectations in quality and performance thus far.

This bike tour is different from my previous tours, because Veronica is riding with me from Holland to St Dezery in the South of France, a distance of around 1500 km.

We plan to arrive there around the middle of September at a leisurely pace, enjoying the scenery, food and wines of the regions we pas through.

We carry a minimum of gear, packed into 2 front panniers each, sleep in small hotels, B&B's  

or the local police cell as a last resort.

The folding bikes including carrying bags are a necessity as well as an insurance policy, we do not have time to bike back to Holland before flying home to NZ, or if weather, mechanical breakdown, physical limitations or marital upheavals force us to abandon we can pack up and get on a train to catch our plane home or prevent an irretrievable situation.

The reason for riding to the South of France in the first place is a 60th birthday celebration of my cousin Willem's partner Shalini, with family and friends for 9 days in a luxury vila called Mas de Pinet in St Dezery near Uzes.

We moved to Scherpenzeel, staying with our friends Frans and Ellen to prepare for the tour.

I set up the bikes, strapped the NZ designed carriers to the carbon front forks to carry our waterproof Ortlieb panniers.

We are training and testing the bikes by riding with our gear the beautiful bike trails which criss cross the National Parks, forest, heaths and some small deserts of the central provinces of Utrecht and Gelderland. 

Our planned departure date is 9 August, when the blog will start in earnest.

The folding mechanism, simply fold it in half by releasing the lever on the crossbar

Assembling the bikes with Frans in Scherpenzeel.

Veronica ready to go !

A training ride in Gelderland.