ITR25 was held at a campsite near Barchem, Gelderland in the Netherlands. We decided to ride from home again, for our second foray onto the continent this year. As before, Harwich was our departure port of choice but this trip would be a little different, as we planned to meet up with John and Sheila Ward (J&S) at Harwich and ride together on the Dutch side. Sheila is the Membership Secretary and Regional Officer Coordinator for the Tandem Club.
Before the trip, Sheila and Bob decided on a plan for the outward and return routes on the Dutch side. Bob planned the outward and Sheila the return, along with accommodation. This proved quite successful, as we ended up riding through very different landscapes. Once at the rally, we shared a chalet for the week.
After routing through Reading and Marlow back in the spring, on our way to TT25, I decided to revert back to heading for Lewknor for our first stop. The Mecure Lambert hotel isn’t bad and it’s pretty much the perfect distance from home for us. We crossed the Thames at Streatley/Goring and stopped for a coffee just over the bridge. After that we took the Thames Path for Stoke then turned to follow narrow lanes through Ewelme. The last stretch is on the main road through Watlington.
Setting off from Lewnkor, we headed for Princes Risborough but turned to climb into the Chilterns at Bledlow Ridge. Passing through the Chilterns is always the hardest day of our rides to and from Harwich.
Leaving Welwyn GC the easy riding continues as we can make use of the Cole Green Way as far as Hertford. Hertfordshire and Essex are easier going. In Braintree we were booked in to stay at the White Hart in the town centre. It’s another place we’ve stayed at before and I get discounts on any meals as a Veteran.
We could have carried on to Harwich as the ferry is an overnight one and leaves at 23:00, but it makes for a long day in the saddle, so we stopped at a hotel in the University of Essex campus. We arrived too early to check in so went for lunch in the up-market restaurant in the hotel and booked a table for our evening meal there too. We had time to sort out our luggage so, once on the ferry, we could take just one bag each up to our cabin.
One of my pedals had been complaining for the past couple of days and it was getting worse, so we first headed back in to the Colchester town centre to find a bike shop for some new pedals. No need for SPDs when we are touring with a trailer – flats are fine.
As we had plenty of time to get to the port, I picked a route that avoided busy roads and took in a bit of countryside we hadn’t ridden on previous trips. I did make the mistake of using what looked like a good ‘green way’ near Manningtree which was fine to start with, but gradually got less and less ‘loaded Pino-friendly’. Fine for mountain bikes but it was tricky for us. Later we stopped at an old pub that has been given a new lease of life as a community hub.
At Harwich we were due to meet up with Sheila and John. They had mentioned a pub where we could wait and have an evening meal before heading for the ferry so we found it and parked up the bike to await their arrival. Fed and watered the four of us rode to the ferry terminal for our overnight crossing to the Hook of Holland. Having eaten in the pub earlier, there was no need to leave our cabin but it was nice to have a shower and just chill for a while before turning in.
It was about 08:30am by the time we got off the boat, through passport/customs and were on our way. The route followed the waterway into Rotterdam then ran beside the Lek to Schoonhoven. Stopped for a coffee and apple pie in Schiedam and again for some lunch at Krimpen aan de Lek. Very pleasant, sat in the sun for an hour or so. Had to dash back after a few minutes as Karon had left her jacket there. All good. We’ve done this route a few times now and it’s surprising and a little disappointing to see the amount of industry springing up on both sides of the waterway. In Schoonhoven we stayed at the Belvedere, right beside the river. Karon and I went down to the restaurant a little early for a pre-dinner drink and Sheila and John joined us after a walk around the town. Nice meal.
After a good breakfast and loading up the bikes, we headed away from the river to cycle among the polders to the north. We covered several miles following narrow waterways with houses and farms on both sides. We rejoined the river Lek to the south of Utrecht and then followed it the rest of the way, with much of the route along the top of riverside dykes. It was a pretty breezy day which made for some hard work at times, even with the motor.
Our Hotel/Restaurant at Amerongen was a little different from many places we stayed – more of a pub than Hotel with a few rooms up steep stairs, in the roof space. Our room was large but you had to watch your head on the beams. We secured the bikes overnight to the rear of the pub, behind a high fence, where the staff had a table and smoking area. It required a bit of re-arranging to get the bikes under cover.
Spent the day away from the river. It was a very different terrain to the previous day, which had been across open land and atop dykes. Today, after buying some snacks at a local supermarket, we entered forest pretty much straight away then crossed open farmland before riding under the trees again. Some of the tracks were sandy but had hard-pack or surfaced strips for easier going.
Our ‘digs’ for the night was a B&B, so I had booked a table at a restaurant about a kilometre away, on the edge of the forest. It proved a good choice with a great atmosphere (open kitchen) and good food. J&S walked there but as it was uphill and Karon would have struggled, we took the Pino. There was a function on in the breakfast room of our B&B when we returned, and as we had arranged to keep the bikes there, we had to wait until the guests departed.
Velp sits beside a rare hilly area and it had been recommended we ride through it. Evidently it’s a bit of a mecca for any Dutch cyclists who crave some contours. There’s a good network of surfaced cycle paths that wind their way up through the trees to a café and open area at the highest point. J&S opted to take the more direct and flatter route along the road, so we arranged to meet at a café once we were back to the road.
Wednesday was a rest day with an organised trip but Karon wanted to revisit Borculo as she had spotted the crystal museum there, so we took a leisurely ride, locked up the bike and spent some time in the museum.
raid over Cologne.
In remembrance of:
Sgt-pilot Peter Gordon Arthur Malin (23), RAF 1180129
Sgt-observer James Herbert Holmes (29), RAF 1181184
Sgt-airgunner Leonard Frank Cooke (19), RCAF R70432
Sgt-wireless operator/airgunner Ronald Peel (22), RAF 1053426
Sgt-airgunner Raymond Catley (25), RAF 1305765
Sheila had planned our return to the Hook of Holland route and booked the accommodation. We had kept the chalet fairly tidy so there wasn’t a great deal to do and we were away at a reasonable time. We headed south-west to cross the Waal by ferry and stop just short of Nijmegen. Rather than rigidly stick together with J&S, we tended to cycle at our own pace and meet up for coffee stops along the way.
There are lakes and wetlands (De Bijland) on the north bank which we rode around before arriving at the groyne that the small ferry departs from on the north bank. We were well ahead of J&S, so we crossed, then found a table at the ice-cream café that overlooks the river from the dyke on the south bank.
Our hotel for the night was in the small town of Ooij, a few km short of Nijmegen.
Next morning we set off to follow the Waal along the south bank. As we came into Nijmegen there was a floating community under and beside the Waal Bridge.
Our overnight stay in Zaltbommel was a B&B so Sheila had booked a table in a Brasserie, a short walk away. In the morning, our host delivered breakfast as we had the breakfast table in our ‘apartment’ and John and Sheila, who had a room upstairs came down to join us.
Day 18 was a day of ferries! We set off from Zaltbommel following the south bank of the Waal as far as Brakel where we crossed to the north bank with the route following the riverside dyke into Gorinchem. As luck would have it, there was extensive works all along the dyke from Vuren almost all the way into Gorinchem, so we were forced to detour along roadside cycle paths. At Gorinchem we met up with J&S for a coffee stop in the main square before taking ferry number two back to the south bank. Sheila had planned to ride through the Biesbosch, a large wetland area and nature reserve. It was here we took ferry number three – a very small affair, just big enough for the two tandems.
It was quite pleasant meandering along beside the waterways on one side and reed beds or crops on the other. The main crop here seemed to be red cabbages. There is a visitor centre and café at the Dordrecht end which J&S decided to stop at. As Karon’s blood sugar was high, we pressed on to the fourth ferry of the day to put us on the approaches to Dordrecht. Navigating unfamiliar towns is always a little tricky but we managed to find the hotel and check in. Having done that and dumped the bags, put the batteries on charge and showered etc., we went for a walk to find a bar before meeting up for an evening meal in a nearby restaurant.
Before breakfast I almost bumped into John as he returned from the bike park, but he warned me to keep a distance as he was not feeling 100% and didn’t want to pass anything on.
Sheila’s route took in the Kinderdijk but to get to it we had to double back a little and catch a ferry. At the ferry terminal Karon and I jumped on the wrong one, which put us on the wrong side of Papendrecht, which necessitated a quick detour to pick up the planned route. At the Kinderdijk the path literally runs along on a narrow strip between two waterways, along which the windmills sit. It’s very popular with tourists and the closer we got to the visitor centre and café, the busier it got and the more people walking we had to skirt around. We briefly stopped at the café but it was very busy inside and as we discussed options, John came out from inside but we decided to continue riding and find somewhere less busy. If nothing came up, there’s a place at Maassluis that we have stopped at before and like.
Cycling through Rotterdam isn’t too difficult. It’s innevitably busy with lots of junctions to negotiate. We pushed on through without stopping as Karon’s blood sugar was ok but once through, we stopped at the Grand Café ‘t Hoofd in Maassluis, as planned. Too chilly to sit outside under the awning this time but being mid afternoon, it wasnt busy inside. Ordered some bitterballen and a drink. Later J&S came in and sat at a different table as John was still feeling under the weather – but looked better than he did first thing!
Once at the Hook of Holland, we had time to kill before boarding so popped in to the ‘Harwich’ pub – another place we are familiar with – for a drink and loo stop. Later Sheila messaged us with the location of a place they were going to stop at, so we headed for it and sat at the next table for some nibbles and drink. On a nearby table were some friends of theirs who were heading home too.
Once on board there was no need to wander and we were both ready for a shower and bed.
I was awake before the early morning call and disappointed to open the blind and peer out through a rain splattered window at a rain splattered port. Said our goodbyes to J&S as we untied the bike, re-attached the trailer and got ready to disembark the ferry. Luckily, by the time we did get off, it had pretty-well stopped raining and, once clear of customs and control, we set off for Manningtree where we hoped to find some breakfast. Once there we spotted a place but still had about 15 minutes before it opened. The nice lady opening up let us in early to sit and wait inside in the warm until they were ready for our order.
The ride to Long Melford was pretty uneventful but we dodged several showers. Having started the ride pretty early and despite our breakfast stop, we were still to early to check in if we got to the Crown Inn in Long Melford, so we stopped in a café in a small industrial estate for a light, late lunch. Returning to the bike, we discovered the trailer wheel had punctured. Took a lot of huffing and puffing to get the tyre off the rim!
At the pub (inn), I managed to get the bike under cover and fairly secure for the night and after changing and relaxing for a bit we went down to the bar for drinks and food in the restaurant later.
Woke to the sound of rain on the window (again) and the rain radar on my iPhone suggested it should move away at 10:30. Whatever did we do before mobile phones and their mini-computer abilities?!
Checkout was until 11:00 so we took our time over breakfast and I moved the bags downstairs ready to load up. Sure enough the rain stopped bang on time and we loaded and set off. Our route for the day was determined by the first of two BCQs that we wanted to pick up on our way across country.
It was another day of passing showers and at one point we stopped to avoid the rain inside a bus shelter but though the skies looked ready to dump, they never did, so after 10 minutes we carried on.
Our first BCQ was at Saffron Walden but before that we stopped at Haverhill for some lunch. As we entered the town, we got chatting to an old fella on the pavement. He recommended a ‘new’ place in the High Street, so we took his advice and looked it out. Very busy but we were given a table. Just as we set off again it started to rain. My 3/4 length ‘troos’ were soaked but they dried out pretty quickly once it stopped.
Our room for the night was in an old mill with rooms and a restaurant. It seemed that much of their business was wedding parties but luckily not that night. We found a table that looked out over the mill-pond and garden and enjoyed a drink before dinner. I tried sketching the scene but it was a bit of a disaster. Still, the ducks provided some entertainment and we even spotted the colourful flash of a Kingfisher diving for his supper.
Next morning we sat at the same table in the restaurant and were pleased that we had blue skies overhead.
Not long after setting off we saw a large memorial by the side of the road. The fields to the south were an airfield during WW2 and a base for both RAF and US aircraft.
A little further on and we bagged our second BCQ of the trip at Ashwell. There was a stiff climb out of the village after – the first big climb on our return leg. As we headed for Luton the hills became bigger and more frequent.
The ride into Luton wasn’t great but it was made a little easier by a stretch along the Harpenden-Luton Greenway. In the hotel, I’d asked for a ground floor room but they obviously thought us disabled and the room had a wet-room/wc. Not the best we had… by a long way, but at least I didn’t have to lump bags up stairs. No covered area for the bike but it was behind a gate and I padlocked it to some fixed garden furniture. Food and service in the evening was great – Italian.
Lots of contours today as we left Luton to cross the Chilterns. Our hotel was close to the town’s fringes, so it wasn’t long before we were back on quieter country lanes. At Ashridge we turned off the road to grab a coffee at the café near the Bridgewater Monument, but it being the weekend, it was heaving with a long queue, so we made use of the loos and carried on, dropping into Aldbury and passing a previously collected BCQ. Progress out of the village was slow, as there were so many vehicles on the narrow lane and we were following a horse-box which caused lots of hold-ups.
There was a wedding on at the hotel, and the chap behind the desk rightly didn’t want the bike parked within sight of the garden proceedings. Fortunately we had time to leave it outside the accommodation block while we unloaded and some of the early guests took an interest, so I spent time chatting with them. Then I tucked the bike away in a spot we’ve used on previous stays, under cover and out of sight.
We were now on very familiar roads and lanes for the entire day, though I still managed a wrong turn in Watlington. This was almost a return along our outward route on the first day of the trip, almost a month before. At Goring we stopped at a café for coffee/cake/loo and the bike once again attracted some interest. This time from a chap on a folding e-bike who was on a mini tour.
Our final stop of the day was at the Rowbarge pub, at Woolhampton, for a celebratory drink before we tackled the last climb of the ride up ‘Back Lane’ and through Baughurst into Tadley.
In all we covered 842 miles over the 24 days, with 85 and a half hours of riding and climbing 20,200 feet, averaging 9.8 mph.