We traveled from Arnhem to Emmerich today with fewer problems than yesterday. We now understand the Dutch cycling routes and it is a relatively simple system. The Dutch don't label bike paths but rather destination points. Each destination point has a number. When you want to get somewhere you plot the route and write down the destination points along the way. As you are riding, you look for these destination points and follow the signs that lead you to you destination point. Doing this meant we were able to quickly move through the country side.
The routes are made up of various different types of paths. They are a combination of bike paths, roads, and dike roads. Some of the routes are dedicated bike paths much like the WO&D. All the roads we have have traveled have bicycle paths of some sort. Some roads have a dedicated path that is separate from the road surface like Fairfax County Parkway. Generally roads with high vehicular traffic have this arrangement. Some roads have a bike paths between the road surface and the sidewalk. Generally there is the road surface, a curb, a cycling surface (often a red brick) and a walking surface often white. Many roads have this arrangement. Other times there are cycling lanes painted on the roads. Mostly this is done in city centers where there is little room for a dedicated bike lanes. On all the roads, cars expect to have cyclists. When there is a dedicated cycling path drivers will look and stop for cyclists on the bike paths. We have assumed the cars would not stop and it has resulted in one or two awkward moments where we are both waving each other on. I would hate to see what would happen if a Dutch or German cyclist assumed the cars would stop while traveling on Fairfax County Parkway.
Dike roads are roads that are on top of dikes and therefore the road surface is only about one and a half cars wide. The road is marked with two bike lanes, one going in each direction. This means that the road for cars is a single lane road. Cars will pass cyclists and use the opposing cycling lane to provide space. If there are two cyclists going in opposite directions, the cars will wait until the road is clear. Since traffic is light rarely do two cars traveling in opposite directions meet. If this does happen, they squeeze by each other by using both cycling lanes.
Overall the cycling has been very pleasant and safe compared to the US or Canada.
Today we cycled out of the Netherlands and entered Germany. There was no boarder crossing or even a marking saying that we were moving from one country to the next. Now that we are traveling in Germany it means a few different things. First, we need to learn a new cycle path system. So far there has been a well marked path along the Rhine but I'm not sure if this continues. It also means I can read street signs again.
There were far fewer difficulties today and we arrived much earlier at our destination. Each time we traveled through a city we made at least one wrong turn. These were not costly since we quickly noticed that the route signs were missing and doubled back until we found our mistake. Never the less, turning around a fully loaded tandem is a chore and we would like to avoid it if possible. We saw what seemed to be and advertisement for a detailed cycling map. We will see if we can purchase this map.
We were worried about it being hot but so far the exact opposite has been true. This morning it was in the lower 60s and we had a few brief showers. They were only about fifteen minutes long but were enough to make the ride cold for a while. We could have used a base layer for the first hour of riding this morning. Also the wind was quite strong in the morning. We spent some time heading straight into the wind and some time with it as a cross wind. A tandem with panniers has a significant surface area and difficult to steer in a cross wind. In the afternoon it was sunny with temperatures in the high 70s and low 80s. The wind was still there but was now a tailwind! Very comfortable cycling whether. Another interesting observation is that the sun is not nearly as strong here as in Canada or the US. We forgot to put on sunscreen today and all of us have a slight burn on our faces after spending the entire day in the sun. The last couple of hours warmed up to the point where we removed our jackets and our arms are not sunburned at all.
Now that we have left Holland, we can make a few final notes. The people were warm and friendly and the cycling was great. I have never seen so many farm animals before. Every available piece of land has a cow, goat, sheep or horse grazing on it. We cycled past thousands and thousands of animals. In the small towns there were farm animals within the city. We saw chickens, goats and horses in tiny back yards. I sounds strange but the dairy products are outstanding in Holland. Cheese, yogurt, and quark should not be missed if you travel here.
The kids are doing well and clearly learning a lot. I can say that already I have had a great time talking on the long rides through the Dutch country side. The kids are asking a lot of questions and really have not complained other than when we were lost.
We are staying on at a B&B on a farm just outside of Emmerich. Very nice place and reasonably priced. Tomorrow we plan to take a rest day and spend the day in Emmerich. This depends on availability of the B&B on Friday night. So far we are on schedule but we will see what happens over the next week as the mileage increases.
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