Let the Countdown Begin!

Less than 4 weeks, then we are off...this time on a 3 week bike tour through the Netherlands followed by 8 days touring west-central Portugal...by car. Cycling in the Netherlands has been in the back of our minds since 2000 when we spent a day cycling with our kids in the Domburg area in the southwest along the coast.

We pick up our bikes (with panniers) in central Amsterdam and will then find our way south to our first stop in the Utrecht area where we will tour the castle area and visit with family in Werkhoven...Annemarie's family home-village, complete with thatched roof! How cool is that?!

Touring along dykes and canals, past windmills (aka molen) with frequent stops at various watering holes (aka brown cafes) will commence in earnest as we work our way south to the Maas River (aka in Germany as the south arm of the Rhine River). We plan to follow the Maas up-stream to the German border before following it south to Maastricht where we hope to visit with Pieter, Regina and family and tour Limburg Province bordering Germany, Lux and Belgium...the dreaded hill zone! This is about as far south as one can go in the Netherlands, but its the wine area...so have to go. From there we will wind our way north via Eindhoven visiting with family along the way and then work our way northwest through Rotterdam and Den Haag to our final stop in Haarlem just outside Amsterdam. At least this is the general idea...

Not knowing how we will manage ~70km daily rides, we have only booked accommodation at the start and end. This will leave us with maximum flexibility allowing us to modify the route as necessary...and take rest days when our bums tell us its time! We have trained a bit for this adventure, and while most of the country is pretty flat my cousin Gord explains that the North Atlantic winds are the cyclists real enemy. Good thing Annemarie has finally become comfortable drafting off my rear wheel...guess I'll  have to find someone's rear wheel too?

So now we are into our final preparations and we would really appreciate  a few good weather days for training purposes. Annemarie suggested that we practice riding in the rain, but I kind of figure that if we are unlucky enough to find ourselves in that situation we will just pull on our wet gear and peddle...and get wet!! I'm thinking that there is no need to practice this maneuver...wet is wet!

Will have my net-book with me and will provide updates as we 'move' along. Excited to be on our way soon!!