On the eve of Transcontinental Race No9 I hurried to Belgium to avoid the rain. I did not go as far to Geraardsbergen, no sir! I rode through the Kempen, visiting Hoogstraten and the St. Catharina church, Sint-Lenaarts and Kalmthout. The Kalmthout Heath at moments was other-wordly. My next destination was Bergen op Zoom. A town with a beautiful city centre were it looked like the actors were on strike. Through Moerstraten and Kruisland I travelled to another big church in Oudenbosch. This smaller copy of St Peter’s in Rome still dominates the settlement. I then rode to Lage Zwaluwe where I passed last week to cross the Moerdijk bridge. This time I waited for the ferry into the Biesbosch. What an experience! Water all around me. Another 80km to reach Loenen again. 😺
Leaving Den Bosch behind me. Looking west from the Drongelens Pad into the fields between Den Bosch and Vught. I passed Tilburg to the east following the Wilhelminakanaal. Housing developments like these are everywhere in the Netherlands. If it’s a city, there are high-rises. Style-wise it’s often utterly boring bordering on ugly. The fields of a conifer nursery just outside of Hilvarenbeek. View from the Roovertsedijk, a sand road with a paved bike path that leads to the border. Still waiting to pass the border. Turns out I was already in Belgium! I made a detour on the ‘Smuggler’s Route’. This signage made clear to me I was in fact across the border: information overload Belgian style. Entering Belgium for the second time. A zeppelin by artist Luk Van Soom on the shore of the river Mark that forms the border. Both a gathering and a miraculous procession were going on at St. Catharina church in Hoogstraten. My first travel mark: St. Catharina church in Hoogstraten. The Hoogstraatsebaan towards Sint-Lenaarts. Crossing the road to Loenhout. Having a break in SInt-Lenaarts with a view on the Sint-Leonardus church. Temperatures were mild and I had some sun on my trip. Only the tiniest bit of rain. The smooth surface of the towpath along the Dessel-Turnhout-Schoten canal was a treat, since most bike paths in Belgium are made of rough concrete slabs. Just outside of Sint-Job-in-’t-Goor: cars heading for Antwerp on the A1 motorway. ‘Military domain’: I saw this only after I jumped a ditch to empty my bladder. What a tourist I am. 🫣 The path to Kalmthout with the aforementioned ditch. A WWI memorial next to the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk in Kalmthout. Just outside of Kalmthout, the constant cool southwestern wind stopped suddenly. A view of the Kalmthout Heath. Runway lights of Woensdrecht Air Base. The wind picked up again, and I paused in the woods for a moment to take shelter. No need: my shower radar app only showed a few drops. The fortifications of Bergen op Zoom. The Lievevrouwepoort in Bergen op Zoom. It dates from the 14th century. Under the gate looking into the Lievevrouwenstraat. The tower of the Gertrudiskerk, affectionately known as the ‘Peperbus’ (pepper pot). It’s not like I waited for people to disappear. There were some on the main square, but other than that Bergen op Zoom did not look like your typical city centre on a Saturday. I hope they know what they’re doing. Another kind of motor procession in front of a big church, this time the Basilica of Oudenbosch. I am used to seeing squares in front of large churches, not busy streets, but maybe it’s just me. A side portal for the Basilica of H.H. Agatha and Barbara in Oudenbosch. Leaving Lage Zwaluwe on the ferry across the Amer. Across the water: the dyke where I met some polite sheep last week. We are supposed to be looking into the Biesbosch, yet it looks pretty industrial over there. An impression of the sheer expanse of water. As I was holding on for the waves I did not risk to film a full circle. On the other side on the peninsula of Anna Jacominaplaat. On the Deeneplaatweg looking east into the Biesbosch. I was cycling north from the Biesbosch into the Noordwaard. The Merwede bridge to Gorinchem that I am going to take. Waiting for a train east of the Merwede canal.
