Euro Tour Day 0 to 6: London to Dusseldorf
After spending the summer in Seattle, it was time for a new adventure. I packed up my bike and gear and flew to London, where I met Dave & Ben and our host Amy. It was my first time packing and traveling with a bike.
Over 6 days, we rode to Harwich where we took a ferry to Holland and cycled along the Rhine River across the Netherlands and into Germany. Along the way, I caught up with several travel and camino friends, which was a highlight for me. The cycling has been great, especially in the Netherlands, truly a cycling paradise. As we approached Dusseldorf, we were met on the trail by my friend Matt, who lives in Dusseldorf and hosted us for a few days.
Day 0: London, 19 km
After 3 months in Seattle, time for a new adventure: a European bicycle tour starting in London! It was my first time packing up and traveling with my touring bicycle and gear (~100 lbs total). Thankfully, the bike arrived in good shape and reassembly was straight forward. With our wonderful London host, we rode a loop around Central London, visited some popular sights, ate pie and curry, and made some necessary hydration pub stops.
Day 1: Colchester to Chelmondiston, England, 36 km
I took a train from London north to Colchester, where I met up with my friend Mark and we cycled to his home. Mark and his wife Karen are great friends that I met on my first Camino in 2017. It was such a wonderful reunion, where we reminisced camino memories and caught up on past 2 years. It was a perfect way to start this new adventure.
Day 2: Chelmondiston to Harwich, 42 km
Mark rode with me to Harwich so I could catch the overnight ferry to the Netherlands. It was a short stay in England, just enough for a couple of short hilly rides to warm up the legs and to visit friends. Just have to remember to switch back to riding on the right side of the road.
Day 3: Hook of Holland to Schoonhoven, Netherlands, 81 km
After the overnight ferry, we arrived the Hook of Holland, where the Rhine River meets the North Sea. The plan is to cycle up the Rhine River. First stop was Rotterdam, where I met a dear Camino friend Renny, where we caught up on life over the past two years. Then continued up the Rhine and camped at Schoonhoven, where I met my friend Danielle, who I met in Colombia, and had a nice Dutch dinner together. So wonderful to meet friends in their home countries that I’ve met all over the world. It’s one of my most favorite things about traveling!
Day 4: Schoonhoven to Oosterbeek, 94 km
Today alternated between rain and sun all day. It was very windy but luckily, it was at our backs most of the day so we were flying. Camped near Arhnem where my Camino friend Marcel invited us to his home for dinner and a really lovely evening with his family. Absolutely loving the cycling infrastructure in the Netherlands. Never seen anything quite like it.
Day 5: Oosterbeek to Xanten, Germany, 68 km
Crossed into Germany from the Netherlands at this very secure border crossing. Definitely no cattle getting through.
Day 6: Xanten to Dusseldorf, 101 km
Cycled 101 km with rain and headwinds all day into Düsseldorf and met my friend Matt, who I met in Myanmar in 2014 and have subsequently traveled with on 3 continents. Matt lives in Düsseldorf and has graciously offered to host 3 wet, stinky cyclists for a few days.
