Today we left the Netherlands after nearly 1,000 km ridden in this wonderful country.

The weather, still trying to not let us go, headwinds and likely rain.

Tempting to stay!

Nevertheless we had our breakfast, put on our wet weather booties (go over our cycling shoes to keep our feet dryer and warmer).

Middelburg was a busy place today, after being quiet as a mouse last night. Soon we were following the canal to Vlissingen.

It was maybe 7 km or so and we were at the ferry terminal. It was about a 45 minute wait and we were on the ferry for about 20 minutes.

The bikes are well looked after. The bikes are tied to the rails.

The ferry is a catamaran and crossed the slightly rougher waters in the wind fairly smoothly.

We chatted with a group of Dutch friends, some living in Geneva. They had hired e-bikes to look around Breskens.

Soon we were on the road again, passing through villages including Groede.

We deviated around Sluis, riding along the old rampants, on a gravel path. It had been raining and I wondered what as going through Tony’s head. Gravel, rain, bikes = messier bikes. 😳😝

Soon we were back in town. Sluis was largely destroyed by Allied bombs near the end of WWII. The city ramparts, belfry and windmill make the town seem historic though.

Close to the North Sea coast, just a few km to the south is Belgium.

The skies opened again in the centre and we went into a small restaurant with covered outdoor seating close to our bikes.

We ordered a fruit smoothie and a ham and cheese pancake. It was huge!

We chillaxed here for a while, as today was short, relative to our usual days.

Sluis sights.

On the outskirts of town we headed out following the canal, there are a series of old fortifications. I walked through them. You need to use your imagination as to how they would have looked in their day.

Look, the sun has started to shine! Still a headwind but, the sun is shining and it’s not raining.

We ride across that bridge.

Within a short distance we are in Belgium. No signs and we are not certain exactly when we crossed, but the residents cars along the canal all have a B instead of NL.

So no teary farewells.

This was interesting. It is a little punt you can operate to cross the river. If it was not so windy with rain forecast, we’d have given it a go.

Scarecrows.

It started raining heavily as we approached Damme, a former major European port. Must have been a lot of land reclaimed since.

We take shelter and keep moving when the rain eases.

Some sites around the town. Lots of cobbles here. Not my favourite surface particularly when they are wet.

The bat cave.

We cut our ride short today by 10 km heading to our hotel on the outskirts of Bruge. I had routed 10 km wandering around the city.

Dark clouds were threatening and it was going to rain again. The wind had dried us quickly and we were keener to arrive dry. we took shelter under a building foyer as another downpour bucketed down.

Then the sun come out and we moved on.

We are at a bike hotel tonight. We were able to check in 90 minutes early too.

Wonderful bike storage and everything is themed bikes.

After an hour or so, the forecast showed no further rain.

We walked nearly 7 km into the centre and back.

Bruges is one of the best preserved medieval towns in Europe. It was declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 2000.

Of course, everyone knows that Matilda of Flanders was born here. Who? The wife of William the Conqueror (King William I).

The famous belfry.

The belfry of Bruges is from the 13th century. It houses a carillon of 47 bells.

We will likely come back into Bruges on Saturday on our way to Ghent.

Today was a short 51 km, but after yesterday’s headwinds, a reprieve of sorts.

It was a SW headwind again today but only into the lower 30’s kmh, and without the exposure of the bridges and causeways.

Tomorrow we have a longer day ride planned, can be tweaked if weather dictates.

We enjoyed a lovely dinner in the restaurant here. It’s nice to get a lift and find dinner vs going on the prowl, when I sing one of Willow’s songs ‘ we’re going on a bear hunt’ changing it to ‘food hunt’.

Today’s route. Thanks for reading ❣️🚴😁

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