If you've read the title you know this is going to be a lot of a post. So you can relax, sportsfans, grab yourself a cuppa, or a nice comfy 4 star hotel room, where I'm writing this from now (note that tent is in the title), and enjoy the last two days.
1. Pancakes
We left gorgeous Bruges on the 21st on the most glorious bike bath that felt like I was in an old Flemish Masters painting - majestic tree covered canal with easy path alongside, enjoying the wonder and beauty of it all. We got to the halfway point, Sluis, where we'd crossed the border into The Netherlands, and of course pancakes were on my mind. The Netherlands do AMAZING pancakes. So we stopped in this very picture postcard town for pancakes and they did not disappoint. Yum Yum. It also felt great to be back in The Netherlands where the people are friendly, the frites are superior to the rest of the world, and the pancake rules supreme. And the day got better with a TAIL WIND all the way to the ferry we had to catch to get to our first camping site, let me repeat, a tail wind! Oh the tail wind - an elusive and rare event in my cycling career...I relished every glorious moment of it and experienced what it must be like to be one of those electric bikes that keep whizzing past me. We made our campsite after 44km of a pretty great ride.
2. The Tent
I suspect this is the post most of you have been waiting for. And it doesn't disappoint. We chose a cute little spot, it's called Mini Camping here where it's not one of the huge camping places with super facilities, it's a little spot with probably about 20 sites and bathroom and kitchen facilities. It was only about one third full, and we chose a nice spot next to a dried out pond and amongst some trees. Mike was a legend and whacked the tent up pretty quickly and easily - I was in awe of his prowess, and was feeling pretty confident - there seemed to be heaps of space in our 3 person orange number we've named Sally. I was ready to enjoy a night of being lulled to sleep by the local birds and the breeze. And then shit got real. First, we had to unpack the bikes - and my beautiful container of a tent became full of EVERYTHING - clothes, shoes, food bag, electrical cables, books, toiletries, there was shit everywhere. How on earth do you find anything??? And then it really dawned on me that I was going to have to get down and always crawl around everytime I was in there - wtf!!??! Sally soon became a bloated, messy, chaotic, teenager's bedroom where you can't stand up or swing a cat. Hmmmm. Dinner would help. Mike cycled to the local supermarket to bring back some salad and ham and cheese for our roll we didn't eat at lunch (cause we had pancakes) - and we sat on our little picnic table and ate. It was pretty good, and helped. Though it was getting pretty cool - about 10 degrees - but hey, that's the camping life. We had showers (where there was an incident, discussed next), so nice to have the hot water (and wear shower thongs), and we sat and chatted with some nice guys from Bath who were having a cycling week together. Then it was time for bed. Bloody norah. We got in and got settled - I was cocooned up in my sleeping bag - a supply of tissues and throat lozenges next to me (along with everything else I seemed to own) - and was ready for sleep. It was pretty cold by this time, and it taken me a good 10 minutes to get myself comfy. But I did. And I was surprised how comfy I was. Then it happened. I had to go to the loo. FARK. I had to get out of the sleeping bag, out of the bloody tent, off to the loo, back in, back in the sleeping bag, and back to get comfy again. Now you may have remembered last time we did our cycling trip we stayed in campgrounds - but we were in the trekking huts which is like a bloody 5 star resort compared to the tent! So, I lasted the night. I slept very little. As you'll see below, my lurgy had started so my throat was like razor blades, so I was sucking down Panadol and sucking on the lozenges during the night to make it through. Again, I was surprisingly warm and comfy, but I was pretty miserable. Neither of us slept very much - there was a lot of huffing and puffing, and from me a fair bit of swearing. And then when it got light for some reason I was able to doze off and got a couple of hours of good sleep. I woke up with the lurgy fully on, feeling awful, Mike was a gem and packed up all the gear and tent while I sat in the rec room with the heater on, by this time it had started raining so we had the fly of the tent out to dry in front of the heater, and we waited out the rain to see if we would head off. I was scoffing down more Panadol and honey and lemon lollies to keep the sore throat tolerable, and we waited. Would we get going today? Will I die from a sore throat? Will Sally ever see the light of day again?
3. Ticks
We'd been warned over and over by docs in Oz about tick in Europe. I didn't even know it as a thing. And apparently it's a big thing. We got our tick encephalitis vaccines in Cambridge when we were there because you can't get them in Oz, and just as well we did. Mike came out from his first campsite shower and said "I'm a bit freaked out". He'd found a tick. On his belly. We both sort of freaked out - only 4 days of riding and we're having our first tick experience. Bugger. Luckily, Nurse Ratchet here is very thorough in her first aid kit prep, and like an overachieving traveller I'd actually brought with me a tick kit - so back we went to our table and chairs and I did surgery with my scary looking tick remover and antiseptic cream, and we got that sucker off - and I can't believe how hard I had to pull to get it out - but I got it out in one go - and though I felt like ralphing, I was also pretty proud. Tick is ticked! I'm happy to say Mike is recovering nicely, and we've been given guidance by the English cyclist on what to look out for Lyme disease, and it looks like he'll be AOK. We have now instigated a daily tick check, and we'll definitely be booked in for our second tick vaccine in a week's time.
4. Lurgies
We both have one. Mike got one first a few days ago, and now I'm in full flight (I'm wiping my nose as I type). Just the usual sore throat then head cold. But it bloody sucks when you're on the bike, especially as it's pretty cold and windy. But we're tough (and have been dosing up on Codral and cough lollies) and soldier on - but I've got to tell you doing the Bridge of Death with a sore throat is pretty epic.
5. The Bridge of Death
So let's go back to yesterday, we were back at the campsite, wondering if the rain would stop and we'd be on our way - we knew we couldn't do a back to back tent event. Mike had plotted a course forward, if we were up to it, to either stop before or after what we have called The Bridge of Death. This is an 8km bridge, it's a tidal barrier that maintains the water levels in The Netherlands - it's huge, and is broken up with a small island in the middle. It's exposed to all the elements, is pointed straight into what was a 35km head wind, and is the host of the Dutch Headwind Cycling Championships (and I'm not joking, that's really a thing). So, when the rain stopped, we decided to head off with a handlebar bag full of tissues, Codral and cough lollies (and those bloody cough lollies got me through) and with a massive hand wind, to see how far we'd get. We stopped for lunch 5 km before the Bridge of Death to not just have an AMAZING hamburger, but to check in just how bloody brave we are. It was a no-brainer. We were going for it. We were resolved and took the bold decision to book a posh hotel on the other side of the bridge for the night. Off we went. I sucked down a lolly every km to ease the sore throat, the wind almost knocked us over many times, the place was desolate, freezing, we were in jumpers and jackets, and it was freaking AWESOME! Half of the bridge was dedicated to cyclists which was incredible, and there were a few other crazy people out there too doing the ride (though most were on electric bikes), it was thrilling and crazy, and hard, and it was exactly why we are here - to do stuff we normally wouldn't do at home, and I got to see how far I can push me. It was fantastic. The sense of triumph as we finished the bridge was immense, and the doddle to the hotel was magic - and here I am after a great night's sleep, doped up with Codral in an enormous and comfy bed about to have another long hot shower and get ready for the ride today. We ended up riding 34km yesterday, a lot of it in headwinds, but the rain had gone, and it was sunny and cold all the way. And I feel triumphant.
Leaving Bruges 2 days ago
You are superstars! Yew!
ReplyDeleteI skipped past pancakes straight to the tent story! Good job, you made it. And the 1st night of any camping trip is always dodgy and crap. You'll find your camping mojo x
You are hilarious! Brendan and I may just be laughing out loud a little over breakfast as we read about Sally and your adventures. These stories are the ones you'll be so glad you have in a year or so. I can see you getting to love Sally... although was thinking about setting up a link on your blog to a go fund serena an electric bike - that was, until I read about your Bridge of Death Feat! If you have braved the Bridge of Death, I think you can do anything. Your story has everything so far - adventure, laughs, great food and plenty of tension - are their legs sore after the Bridge of Death? Will Mike develop Lyme Disease? I hope you both get well soon and I look forward to the next thrilling installment. xoxo
ReplyDeleteYou should get a medal for making it across the bridge of death, particularly if you're both carry a cold! But a spectacular start to your adventure, we are loving living a holiday vicariously through your brilliant blog. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou were not selling it … until the bridge of death . A sentance I never thought I would write.
ReplyDeleteWell. Pancakes are the best, Sally is adorable and you are the bravest of the brave! Keep the stories coming, and the ticks away!
ReplyDeleteWhat an adventure! I was ready for a nap just reading about the bridge of death.
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