July 15, 2013
Day 4: De Haan to Valkinesse
Last night's sleep was amazing. We awoke refreshed, and my morning coffee, taken whilst lounging in the shade on our seats, was just what the doctor ordered. On the other hand, neither of us is very impressed with the Vango inflatable pillows that we brought with us. We've had to pump them up manually several times each night. They might be going back to Amazon. Penelope went off for her shower, and I aired the tent, and admired the majestic LHTs as they stood, basking in the sun.
We headed off after breaking camp at 10:30, and stopped for a quick sandwich in Wenduine, sitting on the promenade to eat.
We took time to reflect on what an amazing time we are both having. Penelope was dreading the physical exertion, and she has found it hard, but the sheer enjoyment of cycling peacefully through a country that takes cycling seriously. We were heading into Zeebrugge, when I felt the rear of the bike start to 'fishtail', and my heart sank. That's right: a puncture, and of course, it had to be the rear wheel! I was a little bit pissed off, but Penelope, zen as ever, managed to calm me down and so with a sense of resignation, I removed the panniers, flipped sophie over, and got to work. Half an hour later, she was as good as new...
Onwards ...
At about three PM, we stormed triumphantly across the border again - this time into the Netherlands. Unlike on Consolidation - The Three Nations Tour (France - Belgium - Netherlands), we didn't have to stop and ask someone, because Penelope was watching her GPS intently, in order to know when we had left Belgium. I am dismayed to note, however, that there were no crowds lining the streets to congratulate us.
What there was, on the other hand, was a sudden overdose of pedestrians and cyclists. Far too many of them. Given the choice between noisy, smelly cars and bicycles, I will always take the latter, but when there are two hundred or more bikes within a mile or so, it's just too much. By four PM, we had arrived in Breskens, and had spent 3.90 EUR for a couple of tickets across the water to Vlissingen. TC and I had done this very same crossing in 2010 - what a strange feeling!
It was an easy crossing to Vlissingen, and we had been expecting a campsite pretty soon after getting across. Alas, we had to cycle around ten miles, and eventually arrived at Valkinesse, and set up shop next to a very cute Dutch couple.
Today's ride: 41 miles (66 km)
Total: 118 miles (190 km)
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