To Meppel

August 4, 2023

Through lovely little towns and beautiful countryside

The Fletcher Hotel at the Zoo was very comfortable and if we had felt so inclined we could have bought an endless number of stuffed zoo animals. It was again raining when we woke but the aps told us that if we waited till about 9am to leave we shouldn’t get too wet. It did say that the wind was coming from the west which was the way we were travelling. However although persistent it wasn’t nearly as strong as yesterday.

Leaving Emmen was easy and it wasn’t long before we were going through beautiful little villages/towns. They all varied quite a bit but all had a distinctly Dutch look (not surprising seeing we are in the Netherlands). We were now in the area where a lot of the houses, especially the fancier ones are thatched. One of the things that really intrigues me are the houses that are half thatch and half tile.

Most cows seem to be in barns but these lucky ones were enjoying fresh grass

We were in the region of thatched houses

Solar panels at the end of the vegetable garden

I was surprised by how many horses we saw

A seventies John Deer still very much in use

In these little towns there were places to stop for coffee but it was judged too soon. Next we came to what seemed to be really big farms There were fields of sugar beet, potatoes and corn but also large fields of grass. this was clearly an area of dairying but there were few cows in the paddocks however as you passed the huge barns you could smell that characteristic sweet smell of silage. By now we had done over 30km and would really have liked a cup of coffee. We came to a small settlement but just glancing through the side of it. We went off route and eventually found a bakery down a side street, they didn’t have coffee but kindly made us one to have with our pastries. Only outside chairs though and it only rained lightly but we felt revived. Naturally a couple of km latter we came to the larger town that this was a dormitory suburb of. It was very clever how our route managed to avoid the town and we rode for ages along the canal on a marvellous path of compacted tiny gravel. We enjoyed watching the people on their pleasure boats going about their business. There is sure a lot of water in the Netherlands and I cant help wondering what the drowning rate is.

Storks. They must be ready to start their migration

A field of Blueberries that were just beginning to ripen

Houses beside a canal. Hydrangeas are a real feature of the gardens and they come in a great array of colours

The path we were riding along was tiny compacted gravel and surprisingly good to ride along

They looked like Belted Galaways but were brown. Such a dear little calf - a pity he didn’t turn to show his belt

It was easy getting to the City Hotel in Meppel. Unfortunately the owner had neglected to send me he code for the room and bike storage. That however ended up to be a good thing as when he saw me walk he changed our room to a downstairs one so we didn’t have to go up the stairs which were about as steep as a ladder

Sometimes we shared the cycle ways with horses who didn’t seem at all spoked by bikes

Today's ride: 60 km (37 miles)
Total: 295 km (183 miles)

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Robyn RichardsYou've had a good day - and the countryside and villages very much like what we saw.
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9 months ago

Tricia GrahamTo Robyn RichardsYes it was even though we believe tail winds dont exist. Hope you are close enough for your park run
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9 months ago