Yet another beautiful sunny morning and we had a fairly early breakfast before heading south to Brugge via the very impressive Terneuzen tunnel (our only toll so far and the lady in the toll booth was so charming that we didn't mind paying it!). Our stay in Middleburg was delightful and we stayed at what appeared to be a newly refurbished hotel in one of the very large and impressive houses that surround Middleburg.
The Rijksmonument Hotel de Sprenck is definitely to be recommended and at only €79 a bargain. The view from the front of the hotel this morning was delightful.
Once through the tunnel, we sped on our way to Damme, with hardly any discord between the two lady navigators. We are staying for two nights at a lovely small hotel, Ter Polders, which is about 1Km north of Damme and situated right by the canal. At this time of year the hotel is just opening up and the restaurant is closed, but the lady in charge was there to meet us replete with numerous cycling maps of the area. The LLW looked rather concerned when she was extolling the virtues of the castle loop which involves a mere 41Km plus the 10Km to get into Brugge!
However, Ray had already planned the ride into Sluis just over the border into the Netherlands and off we went along the canal. It was very bright and sunny but distinctly cooler and with an increasing strong wind. The LLW resorted to physics to explain that if she reduced her cycling speed to 5mph from 10mph into a 20mph wind then that reduced the relative wind by 5mph from 30mph to 25mph. I can't argue with that logic.
We stayed at Ter Polders last year when we were on our way to Tiki & Nolli's 50th Wedding anniversary celebration; we cycled to Sluis then and were very impressed by the small town. It has not changed, except it was much busier this time, and we enjoyed a pleasant light lunch in the centre of the town.
Coming back, the LLW agreed to a slightly longer route through some very pretty farmland even though she was aware that the final section along a canal was very definitely straight into the wind! All was negotiated successfully and we retuned to Ter Polder (see photos below) for a well earned rest.
Now you may well ask why is your esteemed blogger showing the readers photos of a signpost? Well I have decided that now is the time to explain the excellent system used for cycle tracks in the Netherlands and also in this part of Belgium. The basis of the system is using numbers to identify where one is on the track so the sign below tells us we are at point 47. If I cycle straight on I will reach point 74 and if I turn left I will reach point 44. Initially the LLW was not impressed since the numbers are never sequential. However, once used to the system it is great. You look at the map and decide upon the route and then jot down the numbers of the junction points and follow the sequence - simple.
The junctions are well marked and many have sign posts showing the distance to the next main point of interest. The Dutch and the Belgians are obsessed with cycling and there are excellent tracks everywhere. Apparently the Dutch all own at least two bicycles.
Time for a short rest and then a trip into Damme for dinner. Being Monday evening we did not expect many restaurants to be open but there were enough and we enjoyed asparagus followed by a very large Cote de Boeuf!
Tomorrow the weather is forecast to change and apparently it will be dull, cool and breezy.
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