Monday 1st June - On Way

Well I’m on my way, in fact nearly 600 miles of it done!

A bit of a damp start that got wetter before it got better, but get better it did get and it was a lovely evening by the time I got the Shuttle from Folkestone to Calais. What an amazing system that is went straight through without a hitch.

For my younger readers I can confirm that Froggie is  travelling with me and was really excited to be on a train UNDER the sea! 

Was tired though so as soon as a decent motel came into sight - just outside Dunkerque - I took it and day 1 was complete.

I woke up to sunshine this morning and that is how it stayed all day. Knew it was going to be a bit of a drag across the industrial corner of Belgium through Gent and Antwerp to Holland and on to Germany but intended to have a break by calling at Arnhem to visit the “Bridge Too Far” the site of the battle to secure the Rhine crossing that took place in September 1944 and the small museum there.

Though my fears of heavy traffic were founded in places around the major towns and there isn’t much to say of interest about most of the drive, some of the smaller dual carriageways were absolutely beautiful with miles and miles of Rhododendrons along the sides and wild roses along the central reservation.

The Bridge after the Battle

The Bridge today

The museum at Arnhem is only a small place, just one room,  run by volunteers and the guide I spoke to was a local who’s family had been caught up in the battle.  On each of the four walls were more  personal accounts - with photos - from people who were at the battle for the Bridge, The British soldiers, Polish and American soldiers, German soldiers and, perhaps most poignant of all, the Dutch civilians whose homes were totally destroyed and who  then had to flee their city for 8 months until liberation of the Netherlands in 1945.  

Then, whilst reflecting on all that tragedy I stepped out of the museum to see this boat cruising down the Rhine. 

 It looked brand new and made me think that perhaps a Rhine cruise would be worth the incredible amount they cost but then the guide from the museum told me that it was in fact a boat run by a charity  that took sick and disabled children and adults on week long cruises. One of the decks had long floor to ceiling windows so that even those laying down could enjoy the views. That thought – and a coffee in the sun watching more boats on the river – cheered me up!   

Looking at the map I decided that Delden was a good place to aim for tonight – making it a 300 mile day - so I put that in sat nav. Now I always think that people who travel by sat nav and don’t carry maps are prats so  I was carrying plenty of maps, maps to cobble dogs with as they say, whoever they that cobble dogs are but, and here’s the rub, all my maps were of Scandinavia, north to south and in detail. None were of Holland so how was I to know there were two Deldens in Holland -  well, did you!?

I did know, cos I’d looked, that the Delden I wanted was on a main route to Bremen and Hamburg were I was headed so I began to get a little concerned when the roads became narrower and traffic quieter. That concern  grew when  came to a standstill behind the traffic – well two bikes and a car – held up by a farmer and his lad leading heifers along the road into a field. Oh, and a strange thing, the farmers – presumably Dutch - were shouting “walk on “ in English – maybe the heifers were English!

When I came to a lovely hamlet called Delden and Jane of sat nav fame told me I’d reached my destination the day could have gone down hill.

I must have been well and truly lost because I’m a man AND I stopped and asked directions!!!

So, after being put right by a man and his dog who spoke excellent English - that’s the man not the dog, although thinking about it the dog didn’t actually speak- and who googled or whatever on his phone I got on the right track to another bigger Delden, 38km away.  Well, sometimes it’s good to make mistakes because that 38km was through absolutely beautiful Dutch countryside that I would have missed otherwise.

And here I am in Delden Mk2, which is 100km west of Osnabruck, with a room for the night and my bike in the hotel garage with 30 odd push bikes – life is still good.