Saturday, 11 May to Sunday 12 May 2019
We caught 2 trams from our hotel to reach our home for the next 10 nights – the barge Quo Vadis. We sailed out of Amsterdam at 1430 after meeting our crew of Captain Burt, 1st mate Franco, chef Agnes and Nayler, chefs assistant and housekeeping. Our cycling guides were Rikko and Andre. We had 18 cyclists on board – 5 Australians, 2 Americans and 11 Canadians.
We said goodbye to Amsterdam and made our way along the North Sea canal before entering a smaller canal towards Spaarndam. At 1630 our bikes were unloaded and we began a short 17 km ride to meet the Quo Vadis at Haarlem.
Day 1 Ride route Amsterdam to Haarlem – 17kms
It was 6 degrees when we woke up on Sunday morning and with a strong wind off the North Sea it felt even colder. We started with a tour of Haarlem including a Jewish memorial.
When it started to rain, Rikko assured us it wouldn’t last long but it was long enough to make us all look forward to our morning tea stop after just 10 kms. The sun was out for the 19km to Noordwijk on the North Sea much of the ride on tracks through the coastal dunes.
We had passed the Atlantic Wall Museum on the way so during our lunch break a few of us cycled back for a look.
The last 25 km to Leiden saw some beautiful scenery and a 1715 arrival back at the barge.
Another beautiful dinner followed by a briefing for the next day and then an hour and a half walk around the old town. A long but interesting day.
Day 2 Ride Routes
Haarlem to morning tea – 10km