On 20-24 June 2013 54 riders embarked on a 300 km charity ride to Gelderland, the SE region of Holland bordering on Germany and Belgium.
The ride was broken down into 4 legs / three and a half days, commencing in the village of Rhenen, about 20 miles South East of Utrecht. We cycled to Tiel on the north of the River Waal, crossing the Neder Rijn (Lower Rhine) on route.
On Friday we followed the River Waal on the south side to Nijmegen (the oldest town in Holland) where we crossed the Waal again. Then we pushed on to Arnhem, first crossing the Lower Rhine again, and over the John Frost Bridge (an arch style bridge) made famous in Second World War and in the movie "A Bridge Too Far". We finished in Oosterbeek, a suburb of Arnhem with WW2 significance. On the way we stopped for lunch beside the magnificent Doornenburg Castle and for an afternoon snack at the beautiful gardens and orangery of Rosendael Park. We then headed north through the forests and massive old sand dunes of the Veluwe National Park. This is the hilliest bit of Holland. Yes, there really are hills in Holland. Most of the landscape of the park and the Veluwe was created during the last Ice Age.
On Saturday we headed north back through the old sand dunes of the Veluwe National Park and on to Eerbeek for our morning stop alongside an old railway station. We also stopped at Twello and Elspeet on route to Harderwijk on the shores of a large inland sea called Wolderwijd.
On Sunday we cycled West to Amsterdam to the south of a string of lakes, called Wolderwijd, Eemmeer and Gooimeer. Our afternoon stop took us to Naarden fort, a perfect example of a star fort, complete with fortified walls and a moat.
The scenery in this part of the Netherlands was stunning; from the ancient sand dunes to the primeval forests to the lakes and rivers, this trip had it all. We cycled through some crazy weather; rain, hail and storm force 8 winds! The wind and rain as we travelled alongside the totally exposed lakes on Sunday are known in Holland as the “Dutch Mountains” as you really feel like you are climbing Everest battling through such strong winds. It certainly made it more of a challenge and a feeling of achievement to have made it to Amsterdam!!
The team effort
Everybody in the 63 strong team pulled their weight to make it all work
…….biking, buttering, heaving bags and bikes, first aiding, bike mechanicking, truck driving, navigating, reccying, food shopping, clearing up after the stops, chatting, marking, leading, back marking and last but not least, fund raising.
Fundraising
This year’s target was £40,000 and amazingly this has already been achieved at just over £45,000 with more sponsorship still coming in!
