How we came to be in Spakenburg

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Last time we wrote we were in Sneek for the afternoon. Now we've made it all the way to Spakenburg. Here's how it all happened.

We left Sneek and headed towards Lemmer. We just happened to leave Sneek right as school had ended and so we found ourselves trapped in a mass of children heading home for the day. This was rather annoying as they tend to be loud and obnoxius, as well as slow. With a bit of effort we found our way around them all and continued on south.

The country side here is much like it is anywhere else in Europe. Small towns are spread apart by many farms and pastures with a few bigger cities here and there. On the way to Lemmer we passed the usual sheep and cows and windmills again.

Lemmer was a nice town, right there on the water. We rolled in rather late, so we didn't get a chance to walk around town much. We were, however, the first Americans the receptionist had welcomed to his campground. That took us a bit by surprise. We hit they hay rather early as we had a long day ahead of us. A day which would end up being longer than we expected.

We left lemmer bright and early at 9am. We would first head inland toward the East, then turn south eventually ending up in Elburg. We expected a good 45 or 50 miles, but that ended up being more like 60. We managed. On the bright side there were some great sights.

First and foremost we must mention Kalenberg. This little town was perched right on a canal and looked like it paradise. Nice little houses each with a boat garage right off the canal, and little bridges over each "driveway" canal. We stopped for a bite to eat only to find ourselves swarmed with ducks. I guess they're used to being fed by tourists. We resisted... for a while.

Later on the ride we came through another little town. It was nice, but the real excitement was what we think were hills. Now don't think big. These were no Seattle hills. It seemed almost like biking on Lopez Island... only not quite as hilly. Still, the first sight of hills that weren't man-made dykes.

After riding through Kampen we finally arrived in Elburg and hopped into the grocery store. We bought some groceries and off we were to our campsite just outside of town. This was a strange place. It seemed like it was supposed to be hip and happening with all kinds of kids and teenie boppers. But not in September. This place was dead. Big fields with hundreds of spaces for campers, RVs, and tents. That night it was just us and a few old people who acted as "field managers."

Today we woke up late. We didn't head out until 11am. Now it's nearing 4pm and we're in Spakenburg. Just 10 more miles or so until we hit our campground.

In closing, we having a blast. Things couldn't be better... except the mornings could be warmer and less dewy.

Until next time, we'll keep on traveling.

-Paul and Sara

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Photos

Ducks in Kalenburg
Our duck friends who watched us eat our lunch.

In the Harbor
Us right in town in Bolsward.

Sara in Spakenburg
At our lunchbreak in downtown Spakenburg.

Bikies in Spakenburg
The trusty steeds take a break while we eat.