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Fairly basic accommodation on the previous night, no coffee and emergency speculaas for breakfast. Early start and 45 km before stopping for koffie times 2 in Hoegaarden. On past the brewery (part of the InBev empire) then stopped in the village of Meldert to watch the Whit Monday procession for local Saint Ermelinda.
Small cobbled climb then through beautiful Meerdalwoud.
My planned route mets its Waterloo near Groenendaal due to a large road/rail construction site - geographically appropriate for the site of Bonaparte's defeat just a little further south. On through beautiful forest south of Brussel and to Goik. Interesting accommodation: loft in an old barn, WC in a shed, and an al fresco shower.
Into Overpelt to a little bakery open on Sunday morning with a dozen locals queueing for bread and pastries, rijstaart making the perfect cycling breakfast food.
Onward eastwards, briefly over the border into the white village of Thorn, then turning south into the centre of Maaseik - bric-a-brac stalls busy on the middle day of their Whitsun market. Continuing near the Maas/Meuse river and parallel Zuid-Willemsvaart canal. On near to Maastricht then up the first climb in four days: 50 metres and 16%, and the start of more rolling countryside, through cobbled Tongeren to Heers.
Into Lier for breakfast of raisin waffles and koffie. Cobbled streets full of market stalls, lots with seasonal white asparagus, even asparagus shavings.
Continuing along more jaagpad and wooded lanes before a detour north to the extraordinary enclave-in-enclave of Baarle Nassau/Baarle Hertog - a buzzing town with tourists taking photos standing across one on the many Netherlands-Belgium border lines, notably one where the border runs through a house door. Continued on to Overpelt for overnight stop.
Leaving Gent then following the gradually widening river Schelde on the excellent jaagpad canal service roads: three cars all day, and hundreds of bicycles, a 50:50 mix of young racers and older couples on Dutch-style e-bikes. Onwards and crossing the Schelde by free foot ferry at Mariekerke, then a second ferry across the Rupel, before a well-deserved beer at De Musette cafe at the Boom velodrome, and on to accommodation near Duffel.
Several years ago, I came across a guidebook for the Flanders cycle route ("Topogids Vlaanderen Fietsroute"), an 830 km loop through the five Flemish provinces, and finally I have been able to undertake the journey. It did not disappoint: Flanders has been ranked as the top region in Europe for cycling infrastructure investment (European Cyclists Federation, The State of National Cycling Strategies in Europe, 2022), and the evidence was everywhere.
Using the guidebook and information from www.fietsroute.org I used cycle.travel to split this into GPX segments for my cycling computer. And so, starting by following the red line into Dover Eastern Docks before sunrise, ready to catch the early ferry for Dunkerque, I had a smooth two-hour crossing then picked up Eurovelo route 12 along the coast before latching on to the Fietsroute at Koksijde. The route followed well-signposted cycle paths or quiet roads, often in agricultural areas (this is potato country: the frites of tomorrow) but alas there was no hiding place from the unusual strong north-east headwind - welkom in West Vlaanderen.
From Blankenberge the route turned south through Brugge to Beernem. Alas, mobile phone roaming problems and finding no-one at the accommodation I had booked, I continued on the next day's planned route into the centre of Gent and was relieved to find the excellent Gent Centrum, an outpost of the French B&B Hotels chain. Total on day one: 178 km or 110 miles, very weary!
Made in the Cotswolds. Published by Éditions Système D Ltd.
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