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Starting a bike ride from London to Amsterdam. 
Going through central London. Big Ben is covered up for renovations.
Stuck at the tower bridge.
At the Prime Merdian.
Riding through southern Kentish countryside.
Cottage pie and “courage” for lunch.
Crossed into Holland without knowing it.
OK. I am pretty bad about live-tweeting while I am doing something. Picking up this thread again and posting memories from this great bicycling trip.
After that lunch at the White Swan in Sevenoaks, it was hard riding over the hills in South Kent. It was nice to be on small country roads with no traffic.
With 20 miles still to go for the day, we decided to stop for coffee at a small Inn in Maidstone. We ordered 4 cups of coffee and sat outside at a picnic table. Two kettles of coffee were brought out for us with some biscuits and chocolates. All for £8. A pleasant surprise!!!
By the time we made it to the B&B, it was almost 8 pm. Turned out that the local pubs had shut down their kitchens. We were almost decided to eat Clif bars for dinner but, the B&B owner (bless his heart) offered to drive us 2 towns over to a pub that was still open.
Day 2 started with full English breakfast. That provided good fuel to tackle some more hills through Kentish countryside as we made our way to Dover.
The hedges along the roads here are much taller than any other place I have seen. In some places they are 8 to 10 feet tall.
Lots of farmland around here in Kent.
Made it to Dover. The ferry terminal for ferries going to Calais, France is huge. The biggest ferries I have ever seen-as big as cruise ships. The ferries here that go to Long Island and Block Island are puny.
There are multiple levels of entry on the ferry. There are cars, people and big 18 wheeler trucks. It is amazing how quickly they load and unload these huge vessels.
Beautiful views of the white cliffs as we departed from Dover harbor.
Decided to get out of Calais before looking for a spot for lunch. Stopped at a cafe in a small town called Marck. The lady working there didn't know any English but, was very helpful. Had a nice sandwich on a baguette.
As we got closer to Dunkirk, there was some road construction and we had to take a detour on a big highway with no bike lane but just a little shoulder. Of all the places, my friend had a flat on this most inhospitable place for bikes.
As it was a slow leak, we decided to pump it up, go to the next exit off the highway and take care of it in a parking lot. Thankfully, it worked out nicely.
Nice bike lanes along most of the roads in France.
Went by the huge cemeteries commemorating soldiers from different countries that died in WWII.
After riding about 40 miles in France, we entered Belgium in Vlaanderen or Flanders region that is famous for bicycling. As a coincidence, I live in the village of Flanders here in Connecticut.
After riding 10 more miles, racing against the rain clouds, we made it to our destination for the night - a town called Veurne.
Had some really tasty Belgian beer with Salmon and shrimp salad for dinner.
This little sculpture at the restaurant was quite nice. Four riders in our group.
Day 3 started off with thunder and lightning. We decided to wait for the rain to subside before starting from Veurne.
A lot of riding from this point onwards was along bike paths next to canals.
In Nieuwpoort, we saw this huge memorial for King Albert (WWI) and British soldiers who died in the battle of Antwerp (WWII).
On the way Bruges, a nice mix of old and new architecture and started to see lots of windmills.
Riding along the canal was absolute pleasure. The conditions were so perfect that we could have ridden all day long and that’s what we did.
A time lapse while riding.
Lunch in Bruges at a restaurant called Du Gaz.
Riding happily along the canal, didn’t realize when we crossed into Holland.
Another time lapse along the canal.
A sure sign of being in Holland.
Some more canal riding before getting out on the road.
Netherlands is the definition of flat.
Took a ferry from Breskens to Vlissingen. Our timing was perfect. The ferry started as soon as we got aboard. It was a nice break to have some coffee and chocolate.
Went through a town called Middelburg. We got disoriented with all the small streets. So, we stopped to look at the map and find a way out of town.
Two nice gentlemen came to help us. They just started to laugh when they heard our plan. It was 5 pm, we were 30 miles from our destination and our road went along the North Sea through an area that is always very windy. They predicted that we will not get any dinner.
Riding on N57 along the North Sea was indeed very windy and hard. This road goes over a huge storm surge barrier system that includes a man made island. A very impressive structure connecting two islands. The Dutch are ready for the eventual rise in ocean levels.
Lots of wind turbines everywhere here along the coast of North Sea.
Never saw a huge wind turbine like this before. It had at least 50 feet long wing span. Barely made any noise and there were no dead birds of any kind near it.
Finally made it to the hotel well after 8pm. The restaurant at the hotel closed at 9. So, ended up walking half a mile to Renesse town center to eat at “Het Wapen” which translates to The Weapon. More delicious Belgian beer and baked goat cheese salad.
Day 4 of the ride started in Renesse. It is amazing how there is no wind blowing through the town. Strategically planted trees and buildings guide the wind away from town. As soon as you get out of town, you get hit by that wind coming from the North Sea.
Back on highway N57 and another section of storm surge protection system. This barrier can easily hold off storm surges as high as 30 feet or more.
Big gates on these dams.
This and that along the way.
Lots of wind turbines and old wind mills along the path.
Time lapse
Lunch in Leiden along a canal.
After lunch, as we rode along the canal there was a nice tailwind that helped us reach outskirts of Amsterdam, faster than expected. Rode through a big park on the side of Schiphol airport on the way into the city.
Made it to Amsterdam.
Wonder what goes on in this building.
Amsterdam central train station
Van Gogh museum and Rijkmuseum
Celebrating the completion of bike ride. 325 miles in 4 days from London to Amsterdam. Cheers!
Street food in Amsterdam: herrings on a roll.
Typical Dutch architecture. Our Airbnb was in a slim building just like these. All of them have pulleys installed on the outside to bring furniture etc on the higher floors. Impossible to take anything on the stairs inside.
A group photo at the start (London) and end (Amsterdam) of the ride.
FIN
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