Showing posts with label Amersfoort. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Amersfoort. Show all posts

Sunday, 2 February 2020

Cycling between cities in the Netherlands part 23: Amersfoort to Amsterdam via Hilversum

I'd enjoyed my time in Amersfoort, it has a lovely almost car free city centre, filled with narrow streets leading to large squares. Beyond the city centre it is dominated by 1970s housing which may not always be the prettiest but it does have a huge network of cycle tracks, roundabouts and bicycle streets, making it safe and easy for people of all ages to cycle anywhere. I hope to come back one day.

I crossed over the road outside my hotel onto a bidirectional cycle track running along the other side of the road, and then crossed a road to turn right onto another bidirectional cycle track. Almost immediately I came to a large supermarket so stopped to pick up some supplies for the day, and briefly causing mild panic for myself by leaving my bike keys at the checkout. After attempting to thank some fellow customers in Dutch for helping to  retrieve my keys I cycled away from the supermarket on a cycle track alongside the road and then continued directly on as the road ended, cycling up and over a bridge that went over a road underneath, and then down the other side again. At the end I turned left at a roundabout onto a cycle lane on a road and then soon turned off onto a cycling bridge over a waterway. At the end of the residential street this lead me onto, I turned left at a roundabout via a bidirectional cycle track which then lead me under the N199 road, and then right onto a cycle track running alongside the road


I cycled under the A1 motorway and then almost immediately turned left into a narrow lane signposted as a through route for bicycles only. This went through fields, where the smell of manure was very strong, and then past where a barrier should have been to keep out motor traffic, but had been removed.


I soon came to the end of this lane and then turned left onto a road where I met the A1 motorway again, although I turned right just before it to run on a very wide cycle track alongside the motorway, over the river Eem.


As I cycled over here I couldn't help but think how well engineered this cycle only bridge was, just as good as the motorway alongside. Of course this is nothing exceptional to the Dutch who do build cycle routes to the same quality as the roads alongside, but I guess I'm used to the UK where cycle routes are often bolted on at the end of a project, perhaps with a couple of shared footway signs, if you're lucky. The cycle track bent round and the swung down to a crossing of the exit and entry slip roads to and from the motorway. I then cycled along a road which quickly bent to the right away from the motorway as painted cycle lanes appeared. After a short while I turned left onto another country lane, signposted as a route for bicycles or tractors only, and cycled along here through fields for the next couple of kilometres


At the end of this lane there was a cycle crossing over a main road to a service road running alongside, which took me under the motorway again and then became a cycle track round the corner, which lead to a couple of parallel "horse and bike" crossings


I was briefly on a service road alongside the main road leading from Baarn to Hilversum, but this then quickly became a cycle track. I cycled along here for the next couple of miles, a pleasant route mostly setback a fair distance from the road, and mainly through woodland. I briefly rested and ate alongside a lake before I entered Hilversum. The bidirectional cycle track became unidirectional, and so I was directed onto a tiled cycle track on the opposite side of the road. This continued on through the suburbs, until I turned off onto a block paved residential street which lead directly to a cycle track passing underneath Hilversum station


From the station I cycled around the ring road which circled the centre of the city - one way for motor traffic but with cycle tracks in both directions. Originally I had planned to spend a little time in the city and explore it on foot but, perhaps unfairly, I decided there was little for me to see in Hilversum and carried on, heading west out of the city via a cycle track alongside a main road. This continued on to the edge of the city where I crossed over and cycled south alongside another road, turned right to bypass a roundabout and then continued on to cross over the road shortly after another roundabout.

I was now cycling on a bidirectional cycle track alongside the N201 road heading west away from Hilversum and just happened to be cycling behind three young women, cycling three abreast at a relaxed pace as they all chatted to each other. Occasionally they would have to break that formation, such as when overtaking this man on his mobility scooter, but on the whole they cycled three abreast in a relaxed manner in front of me for the next 15 minutes, way out of Hilversum deep into the countryside whilst motor traffic zoomed past at a high speed on the road alongside
This isn't a particularly unusual sight for the Netherlands, often when I'm cycling in rural areas miles from a town or city I see groups of people cycling in their normal, everyday clothes and I often wonder where are these people going? My question was answered after a long cycle as the three girls all stopped to lean their bikes up against a tree, alongside many other parked bicycles alongside the cycle track

This was a local beach, if you can all a long section of grass by a lake that, and there were a lot of people swimming in the water, or sunbathing alongside and most had clearly cycled from miles away to get here. I sat on the grass myself for around 30 minutes for some food and rest, and as I did so a group of four teenage boys all stopped on their bikes alongside me. I was expecting to hear them speak Dutch but they all started to speak English to each other in British accents. I then noticed one of them had a "International school Hilversum" jersey on; these were all British children living and going to school in the Netherlands. Almost certainly they would have just cycled the six miles from their school along the same road I had just used, probably cycling four abreast most of the way. Would they have done this if they were still living back in the UK, on a typical British A road mixing with vehicles travelling at 60mph or more? I doubt it. 

 I continued on along the same cycle track alongside the N201, bypassing a turbo roundabout altogether, and then crossing the Vecht river. At a set of traffic lights I turned right and briefly cycled along the road into the village of Vreeland and then very quickly turned left into a narrow lane signposted for cycles only, meaning I was only in Vreeland for about ten seconds. I cycled along here for about the next mile through the polders

with the road filtered halfway along. I then came to the Amsterdam-Rhine canal and turned right to cycle alongside it. I had last cycled alongside the canal back in 2015, cycling from Utrecht to Amsterdam, however back then I was on the other side, using a bicycle priority road. Along this side of the canal I just had a narrow bidirectional cycle track. After cycling along here for a few miles I came to the reason I had purposefully diverted this way - the Nigtevecht cycle bridge

This had opened the previous summer and I had followed its construction with interest, and also read about it on Mark Wagenbuur's blog. It certainly was very impressive up close as it towered high above me. I cycled over it to the other side of the canal 
and then cycled back again, behind two kids cycling home from school who seemed amused I was taking pictures - for them this was just a bridge to get home and nothing out of the ordinary whatsoever 
The view from the top of the Nigtevecht Bridge 
Once back over the otter side again I continued along the canal for another couple of miles until I reached the village of Driemond where the path came to an end and I was directed onto the road through the village. As I did so a whole class of schoolchildren passed me in the opposite direction and I was surprised to see they were all wearing helmets and high viz for some silly reason; probably none of them had done so on the cycle into school that day! I then met the N236 road and cycled alongside it on a bidirectional cycle track until I reached Gaasperpark a short distance on. I then cycled through the woodland on some narrow twisting paths and then through parkland on some very wide straight paths.

 I cycled under the A9 motorway and then up and over a gigantic tunnel under construction. This is a huge project where the motorway is being buried underground to make the surrounding environment more pleasant for residents living alongside by eliminating the noise of the traffic. The space above the tunnel, as well as the former motorway alongside, will eventually become a public park
The A9 motorway running along the left and the roof of the new tunnel it will run in alongside 
I cycled back down the temporary cycle track above the tunnel and then cycled through Bijlmer for the next few miles on direct and wide cycle tracks, all separated from the road network.

I then cycled alongside the canal on a very wide path which came to an end at the base of skyscrapers and became a cycle track leading me directly through the business district and into the Centre of Amsterdam 

 Distance: Approx 55km / 35 miles
Time: approx six-and-a-half hours
Map of the route
Photos taken: 635
Gallery: 80 photos here

An analysis of this trip by Jitensha Oni:


Previous Posts in this series:

2015:
Part 1 - Hook of Holland to Rotterdam / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 2 - Rotterdam to Gouda via Delft / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 3 - Gouda to Utrecht / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 4 - Utrecht to Amsterdam / Photo Gallery of this journey
Part 5 - Amsterdam to Hook of Holland via The Hague / Photo gallery of this journey
2016:
Part 6 - Hook of Holland to Breda / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 7 - Breda to Eindhoven via Tilburg / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 8: Eindhoven to 's-Hertogenbosch / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 9: 's-Hertogenbosch to Nijmegen / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 10: Nijmegen to Utrecht / Photo gallery of this journey
2017:
Part 11: Hook of Holland to Gouda a via Delft and Zoetermeer / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 12: Gouda to Utrecht, via a different route / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 13: Utrecht to Nijmegen via Veenendaal, Ede and Arnhem / Photo gallery of this journey
2018:
Part 14: Hook of Holland to Leiden / Photo gallery of this journey

Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , ,

Wednesday, 29 January 2020

Cycling between cities in the Netherlands part 22: Zwolle to Amersfoort via The Veluwe and Harderwijk

I had cycled from Zwolle to Amersfoort a year earlier, on my way from Zwolle to Utrecht, and the hour that I spent in Amersfoort on that trip was enough to persuade me to return. The Fietserbond Routeplanner suggested the exact same route I had taken the previous year between the two cities. However, wanting a different route I stuck a "via" pin in a random place in the forests of The Veluwe south of the city, and another in the city of Harderwijk to bring me back north and then set off along a defined route via two random points, as an experiment to see what kind of infrastructure I would come across.

I started my journey through the centre of Zwolle on the exact same route I had the previous year. However back then it was early on a Sunday morning and so I didn't see another person at all; this time it was mid-morning on a Wednesday, so the city was very busy with people getting about. After following the same bidirectional cycle track I had used last year I turned left to cross the road to use a service road on the other side, which is used as an access road for businesses alongside, although surfaced with red asphalt to emphasis this is a through route for people cycling. I then turned left to cycle under the railway line via a wide underpass


and then quickly looped back to join the fast Zwolle to Hattem cycle route alongside the railway line, which Mark Wagenbuur has written about previously here. This route was almost exclusively being used by young students making their way to or from lessons, continuously passing me in small groups from a few to 8 people.


As I approached the IJssel river I joined a cycling bridge attached to a railway bridge, which was busy and being used by many people of all ages. There was a great view of the river from the top, as well as a road running underneath on the other side of the river, with a cycle track alongside it.


I continued alongside the railway line for a short while, the path then turned left and at the end I turned right onto a road out of Hattem. I then joined another road and entered the forests of The Veluwe, with trees along both sides of the road. I then turned onto a road with cycle tracks along both sides of it, before I turned left onto a cycle path which led me through the forest for the next couple of miles


I crossed over a road to use a cycle path running along the other side of the road and then turned left onto another cycle path alongside a different road and continued along here for another couple of miles. I then turned onto a road where, by now deep in the forest, there were only trees along both sides of me as far as I could see. It was here that the road also became a bit hilly, nothing by UK standards but it did allow me to freewheel for quite some distance


Passing a picnic area I briefly stopped off for some food and then continued for about half a kilometre before a cycle path appeared to the left of the road, so I left the road to join it. I was thankful it appeared - for the last few miles I had been cycling on the road with cars. Whilst I'd had perhaps only one or two cars per minute coming up behind me it did leave me anxious every time I heard the sound of a motor engine as to whether it would be a close pass or not. Whilst there were no close passes on the road, here on the cycle track I didn't have to worry and could simply ignore the sound of car engines alongside and just enjoy the ride. And what a delightful ride it was! Initially cycling alongside the road but the path then moved away from it, fairly deep into the forest alongside, a really lovely ride cycling through the trees listening to the birds singing

I crossed over the N309 main road and continued along a smooth cycle path through the forest, which had a rough road for service vehicles alongside it. As I approached the N795 main road I turned right to cycle on a cycle path alongside. It was a fairly busy road with a near constant stream of motor vehicles using it but I enjoyed a lovely ride alongside at a relaxed pace

quite a contrast to what a horrible ride this would be were it on an equivalent busy A road in the UK!
After a short while the cycle track ended and I was now cycling along a service road alongside the main road, although all motor traffic kept to the main road alongside. The service road soon ended to become a cycle track again which continued on via a level crossing and a roundabout decorated with  large bicycle statues, for some reason. I was now cycling into the town of Nunspeet, initially on a cycle track, which became a service road for residents access alongside, filtered at the end to then become a cycle track again. I turned onto a residential street, filtered to through motor traffic halfway along and then cycled up a street that was one way for motor traffic but allowed cycling in both directions with cycle lanes on both sides of the road, leaving a very narrow space in the centre of the road.


I came to a roundabout and turned left onto the main road through the town. It had cycle tracks along both sides of the road with pedestrian and cyclists having priority at each roundabout. As I approached the outskirts of the town two young boys were cycling side-by-side in front of me, chatting away, perfectly safe from the motor traffic on the road alongside
I continued on for the next six kilometres along this road through Hulshort with cycle paths either side of it, mostly rural but still a steady stream of businesses and properties alongside, as well as a constant stream of all kinds of people cycling.

The woman on the other side of the road has stopped to have a chat with the gentleman in the wheelchair ahead of me

I passed another roundabout and then the cycle path I was using became a bidirectional cycle track. This continued, separated from the road by a hedge, with also a wide cycle path on the other side, wide enough for people to cycle three abreast on, also separated from the road by an identical hedge.


Just before the next roundabout I crossed over the road to cycle on a bidirectional cycle track on the opposite side of the road. Whilst the road came to a T junction at the end, the cycle track continued on along the side of a residential block to a residential road behind it, which was filtered at the end with another cycle track. This then lead to an underpass beneath the ring road.


On the other side, despite it only being a short access road to an industrial estate, there was another bidirectional cycle track. I had cycled on an almost straight line from the fields on the outskirts, right into the centre of Harderwijk. I suspect this was the main road for many years, but had over time been filtered and downgraded to become the main route in for bicycles, with motor traffic sent on bigger, faster roads on the edge of the city instead. The route planner had advised bypassing Harderwijk altogether, but as usual I wanted to spend the opportunity to explore part of it. I initially considered cycling on the cycle track under the Veluwemeer Aquaduct, but decided against it. I then looked at the map and considered two options; cycle to 'Markt" which is likely where the medieval historic centre of the city would be, with the usual bars and restaurants to relax in, or head to the main train station. I decided to head to the train station, although at the time I was unaware that the entire area around it had been rebuilt, with the main road leading to the station moved from a level crossing to the east of the station into an underpass underneath it, with the former road now filtered to through traffic. The new cycle infrastructure built here was certainly very impressive but so was the whole landscaping of the area, compare it to many upgraded train stations in the UK, designed for drivers only!
From the train station I cycled in a direct line through a housing development and under a railway and a couple of roads to what was once the shoreline of the Zuiderzee but was now the edge of the Wolderwijd Lake, following the Zuiderzee Works in the 1960s. I turned left to cycle on a path alongside the lake


I then decided to take a detour to cycle over a bridge crossing the motorway to the neighbourhood of Drielanden on the other side. Impressed with what I saw, I then filmed myself cycling back to the other side

I looped back round to the cycle path alongside the lake, although was by now some distance from it. The path soon ended and I was then cycling on the access road to a man made beach, where many people were partaking in water sports, so I briefly sat on the sand to rest and watch. I cycled away from the beach and back along the access road exiting it via a bypass around the barriers, where car drivers had to pay.


I passed by a Mcdonalds, which as is typical in the Netherlands, had a huge amount of cycle parking. I briefly joined a cycle track, alongside the access road from the motorway, before rejoining another access road to another beach. Once I passed the car park a cycle track appeared and I was cycling alongside the motorway for a short while before the cycle path bent away from it by quite a distance


It then bent back round to the motorway again as I passed a large bicycle statue, and then I joined another access road to another beach, and again I bypassed the payment booths for the car park. After cycling along the road it eventually bent away from the motorway again and then became a cycle path, with a sign I'd never seen in the Netherlands before
There were some great views from this high cycle path but it was very narrow. I passed a couple of other people on touring bikes and we both had to slow down and move to the very edge to the path to be able to pass each other, and our luggage still brushed each other.

After a coupel of miles I cam to the N301 road and had been here before - this was the point where I had crossed from Flevoland into Gelderland the previous year. Had I carried on staright ahead I would have cycled on the exact same route onto Amersfoort as last year. So, to make it a completely different route altogether I turned left and cycled on a cycle path alongside the N301. I crossed over the A28 motorway and was now on the outskirts of Nijkerk, on a smooth and very new looking cycle path. I soon turned right and ended up on the main shopping street in the centre, accessible for people walking and cycling only. I then made my way back out of the town again via a cycle path, an under-reconstruction cycle track and then another very smooth and new looking cycle track


I had already spotted what looked like the perfect example of a new development, Coelaer, on my map with a network of cycle routes through and around access only residential areas. It was exactly what I expected - a choice of numerous direct cycle routes through parks, directly past houses and with priority over the roads. I came to a roundabout with bidirectional cycle tracks around it at the edge of the development and then turned off here onto a fietstraat


This was essentially just a country road through farmland, but with red asphalt. I didn't come across a single motor vehicle along this road but there were plenty of people cycling, I was surprised how busy it was for somewhere so rural. Although I guess this is the most direct route to cycle between Amersfoort and Nijkerk. After a couple of kilometres I came to another new development on the outskirts of Amersfoort; I had again joined the exact route I had taken the previous year and so now it was a familiar cycle round the corner past Amersfoort Vathorst train station and then a familiar ride into Amersfoort.

Distance: Approx 78km / 50 miles
Time: six and a half hours
Map of the route
Photos taken: 695
Gallery: 98 photos here

An analysis of this trip by Jitensha Oni:


Previous Posts in this series:

2015:
Part 1 - Hook of Holland to Rotterdam / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 2 - Rotterdam to Gouda via Delft / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 3 - Gouda to Utrecht / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 4 - Utrecht to Amsterdam / Photo Gallery of this journey
Part 5 - Amsterdam to Hook of Holland via The Hague / Photo gallery of this journey
2016:
Part 6 - Hook of Holland to Breda / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 7 - Breda to Eindhoven via Tilburg / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 8: Eindhoven to 's-Hertogenbosch / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 9: 's-Hertogenbosch to Nijmegen / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 10: Nijmegen to Utrecht / Photo gallery of this journey
2017:
Part 11: Hook of Holland to Gouda a via Delft and Zoetermeer / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 12: Gouda to Utrecht, via a different route / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 13: Utrecht to Nijmegen via Veenendaal, Ede and Arnhem / Photo gallery of this journey
2018:
Part 14: Hook of Holland to Leiden / Photo gallery of this journey
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Sunday, 3 March 2019

Cycling between cities in the Netherlands part 19: Zwolle to Utrecht via Amersfoort

I did consider splitting this trip into two days but after some thought I decided to go ahead with cycling from Zwolle to Utrecht in one trip. This would be a long ride of about 100km, which I knew I would be able to do with no issues, but I knew it would take me most of the day to do as it simply isn't possible for me to ride at any significant speed on my heavy Dutch bike. My main concern was the weather; my previous longest ride, Utrecht to Nijmegen, was plagued with heavy, torrential rain and what should have been a lovely trip filled with views through the forests and countryside became one where I could barely see five feet in front of me, whist being soaked to the skin. Accommodation is booked months in advance and so the date of this ride was fixed, and so I prayed for some decent weather. As it turned out my entire holiday had so far had warm weather and the forecast in the days leading up to it predicted this to be the hottest yet, with temperatures possibly higher than 30c.

When planning a 100km cycling trip in the Netherlands there are many different routes you can choose from; such as direct cycleways alongside motorway and main roads or filtered roads and cycleways through forests and countryside. In the end I chose to cycle back into Flevoland, in order to cycle alongside the water in an effort to stay cool.

I left Zwolle early on a Sunday Morning as I hoped to have time left to explore Utrecht at the end of the day and wanted to get some miles in before the midday heat arrived. I cycled through an almost deserted and silent city centre on cycleways before they turned into a service road. I then turned right into a residential street which was heavily filtered at the end; it would be a struggle to get a cargo bike through here. I then turned left onto a cycleway which took me under the N337 road


As I came out of the underpass the cycleway curved round to run alongside a main road which took me out of Zwolle and onto a bridge over the IJssel river, out of the province of Overijssel and into Gelderland


From here I had a great view of the river and of the A28 motorway that crossed it. I continued to cycle alongside this road, under the A50 motorway and then into the village of Hattemerbroek as I used a roundabout and a floating bus stop, complete with cycle parking. I turned right into a filtered and narrow country road which took me over the A28 motorway and I then turned left onto a road through farmland


A cyclepath appeared to my left and so I was able to use that for the next kilometre, whilst the road ran parallel alongside. This brought me to the N308 road so I turned right and cycled alongside it on a bidirectional cycleway


I continued along here, with the cycleway bending away from the road in order to cross side roads away from the junction. Housing then began to appear on each side of the road as I entered the town of Oldebroek and then I started to see other people, all of them on bikes. This was the first time I had seen anyone (except those in cars driving past) since I had left Zwolle over an hour earlier. The cycleways briefly became painted cycle lanes as I passed through the centre of the town and as I passed a garage the digital display outside read that it was 23c, despite that it was not even 9am yet. The cycleway soon reappeared as I exited the town and continued on through farmland


I entered Elburg, cycling through a built up area alongside the main road, and then turned right at a roundabout to join a service / residential road with the main road into the town from the roundabout running parallel alongside. Here there were many people of all ages cycling, almost all of them well dressed and many wearing suits. The constant sound of church bells also rang out across the town, as if I needed any clues as to where they were all cycling to this early on a Sunday. The cycleway then became cobbled as it joined up with the cobbled street through the centre of this well preserved medieval old town


The surface for cycling was, however, much smoother than it would be for those driving through. As I passed through the town all of the bars and restaurants were busy laying out dozens and dozens of tables and chairs on the street. This is clearly a very popular tourist destination for obvious reasons; I'd like to come back and have look around here myself one day, ideally when it isn't 9 o'clock on a Sunday morning! I passed under the city gate, which was filtered to motor traffic, and the only route north out of Elburg ensuring no motor traffic can use the centre of the town as a through route


I then cycled around the marina on the other side, which brought me back onto a bidirectional cycleway. The cycleway changed from cobbled to asphalt, with access maintained for motor traffic to park alongside the cycleway, as I cycled past dozens of moored boats and then out of Elburg, back onto a cycleway which only allowed cycles to use it.


The cycleway soon joined alongside the N309 road as it approached the Veluwemeer lake, which I then crossed over on a bridge. I was now exiting the province of Gelderland and entering Flevoland again and I immediately turned left to cycle on a cycleway constructed of concrete slabs alongside the N306 road.


I turned left onto a road heading back towards the lake and then turned onto a block paved road on top of a dike running alongside the lake. I was really not keen on this bumpy route especially as I saw how far it stretched into the distance, but it was then that I spotted a cycle track running between it and the beach alongside. I briefly stopped at the beach for water, food and to top up sun lotion before joining the cycle track to run between the beach and the road, shielded by trees from both of them. It continued like this, with the odd glimpse of the beach or road through gaps in the trees, for the next three kilometres. The road then turned away to the right so the cycleway ran on top of the dike with nice clear views either side.


A couple of kilometres later the cycleway dipped down to the left and the old cycleway was clearly visible, but had at some point in the past been turned into car parking


However, rather than have to cycle through the car park the cycleway seamlessly continued on between the car parking and the beach with people making their way down from their cars to the beach across the cycleway. There was also plenty of cycle parking located alongside the cycleway, although it was fairly empty but I didn't expect that to last too much longer. The N306 road then reappeared to my right but the cycleway moved closer to the lake, with the road elevated to my right. This was a really lovely part of the journey as I enjoyed a nice cool breeze whilst watching various people taking part in watersports alongside


After about five kilometres the view was interrupted by a large apartment complex and then a marina and beach resort meant that the dike, and the cycleway, turned further away from the lake to run inland for a short while before returning back to the water. The cycleway then ran back alongside the N306 road to pass the Gemaal Lovink pumping station. After bypassing a roundabout via a cycle crossing I passed a large group out for a ride on road bikes before bypassing the next roundabout via an underpass


I then came to a T junction and, instead of turning left, to cycle back into Gelderland and visit Harderwijk via the world's shortest underwater tunnel I instead turned right to cross over the N707 and then turned left, to cycle alongside it on a a cycleway for the next three kilometres.


As the road took a sharp turn to the left I stopped at a bench to eat some food under the scorching sunshine. I then crossed over the road to cycle on a cycleway alongside the Wolderwijd lake for around the next three kilometres


As I entered Zeewolde the cycleway turned to the left so as I was cycling directly into a strong headwind. Somebody had thoughtfully placed large mounds of sand alongside the cycleway exactly at this point and so I was then cycling through a fierce sandstorm.


I covered my eyes, closed by mouth, put my head down and tried to battle through as thousands of grains of sand hit me directly in my face and, despite my best efforts got into my eyes and throat. I stopped for a few minutes to recover from this and then continued into a very strong headwind. I rose to my feet, put the bike into the highest gear but could still only just get up to a snails pace as I battled as hard as I could to move the bike. As I got to the top of a small incline and the wind slowly eased a large group of men dressed in lycra at the side of the cycleway all cheered me on as I made it to the top, and I duly fist pumped the air in celebration, as if I'd just won the Tour De France.

As I entered the centre of the town the cycleway turned into a service road alongside the main road, back to a cycleway and then another block paved cycleway running parallel to an almost identical looking road alongside. The main road then turned to the right but the cycleway continued on, elevated above an access road to the beach which ran below us to the left.


The beach alongside was already very busy but groups of families on bikes arrived via the cycleway and service road, the crates on the front of their bikes stuffed with bags of towels, swimming clothes and inflatables. As the sandy beach ended the cycleway continued on top of the dike alongside the coast


After a short while the cycleway suddenly stopped, whilst the dike continued ahead. This was a bit of a surprise as I had somehow mapped my route to continue along the dike. Never mind, after studying a map I decided this was a good opportunity to go "off grid" and explore the forest alongside to see where I ended up. I cycled along a twisting path through the trees, which was a welcome experience as it relived me of the hot sun for a short while


As I cycled through the dense forest I once again thought how incredible this was the sea a few decades ago. The path soon became a road and then passed alongside fields, before I turned off onto another cycle path that led away from the road alongside a car park. I then climbed back up onto the dike and down the other side to ride on a path alongside it. A series of busy beaches then appeared to my left, along with a cafe. I parked my bicycle up with dozens of others outside to eat lunch on the terrace, with a view of a packed beach with hundreds of children enjoying themselves in the water and playground alongside. After lunch I returned back to the cycle path


and then crossed over a road to cycle alongside it. This path soon widened and as I passed under Nijkerker bridge some roadworks diverted me onto a temporary cycleway. As I needed to cross the Nijkerker Bridge I cycled on a long loop and then crossed over the route I had just used as well as the Nijkerkernauw lake to finally be back in the province of Gelderland again. I descended down from the bridge, then turned right at a roundabout to cycle along a country road on cycle lanes.


A cycleway soon appeared and I was directed onto it. It was very narrow and elevated above the road and it was no surprise to see some people on road bikes ignore it and use the road below instead. I soon needed to turn left onto another road so cycled down from the cycleway to join it. For the next four kilometres I cycled on country lanes, with no shade and the scorching early afternoon sun beating down on me. I briefly cycled alongside N806 road on a cycleway and then turned onto more country lanes for a few more kilometres, this time with some much needed shade.


This road would take me out of the province of Gelderland and into the province of Utrect. At the end I came to a waterway so the road turned sharply to the left, with a large sign on the road indicating this was a fietstraat. To my right over the water was what looked like a brand new development, which I now know is called Vathorst. From the other side of the water I could see how the streets were built as access only streets, I could see bicycle only bridges linking the neighbourhoods, I could see children playing in the street, people on bicycles and no cars driving in it at all. I'd seen this in other new housing developments over the past week and so vowed to write about it when I got home and try not to get too annoyed the next time I visited the Olympic Park. The road curved round the new development with lots of new apartments to my right over the water and water pipes and utilities being built under soil to my left, where people will live one day. There were bridges connecting this road to the new development from this road but only for those walking or cycling. The road was filtered at at the end and I was lead onto a cycleway alongside Amersfoort Vathorst railway station.


I was directed to the other side of the road and a filtered road alongside the main road. There was a strange mix of new developments and old farm houses. The filtered road through Hooglanderveen was clearly once a country lane but was now a major cycle route from the new development to the city centre, as a filtered road.


I cycled on some residential streets and then on a cycleway past new housing developments and other housing under construction on my right, with football and hockey pitches on my left where dozens of teenagers were playing hockey and football. I bet pretty much all of them got there by bike! I cycled around a roundabout which had a bidirectional cycleway around it and then climbed up and over the A1 motorway on a cycleway alongside the road


After freewheeling down the other side I turned left to cycle on some residential roads and service roads that were filtered at junctions. I then crossed the road to cycle underneath Amersfoort Schothorst train station, before turning around to film as I cycled back under the station again
I then continued on this cycleway from the train station around the corner to cycle under another railway line which took me to a cycleway running alongside the railway line

The cycleway continued alongside the railway line and as both it and the railway line crossed over a canal and road I looked down to see cycleways on both sides. The cycleway ended as it turned round the corner to link onto a street which took me into the historic centre of the city. As I cycled on the streets in the centre I was amazed at how beautiful it was, every corner I turned each street seemed to look like a postcard.


I was also struck by how many parked bicycles there were, including lots in temporary bicycle parking stands. It was only when I tried to access the main square in the centre that I realised there was a huge festival on so the centre of the city was closed. At each entrance to the square were stewards, all with "Fiets Steward" on their backs to stop anyone from cycling in. I was tempted to go in but didn't want to carry my heavy panniers around with me and, as they contained my laptop and passport, was not keen on leaving the bike locked with the panniers on either. Instead I sat outside a cafe and enjoyed coffee and apple pie, where I could hear the music perfectly but not see any of the performers.

After picking up supplies I cycled away from the centre of the city via a couple of canal lined streets  and then a cycleway alongside the railway line to the main train station and the abundant cycle parking outside
I crossed over the road and then cycled out of the city on a cycleway alongside a main road to another cycleway that ran some distance from another main road and took me south of Amersfoort. My time in the city was short but I liked what I saw, from the high quality cycle routes in from the suburbs to the beautiful city centre; I'll definitely be back. From Amersfoort my journey would be a direct one alongside the N217 for the next 15 kilometres to take me directly into Utrecht. I cycled alongside on cycleways, service roads, very wide cycleways that I presume must have been a road once upon a time, and around the back of petrol stations. These routes were all being heavily used, by people of all ages.


Eventually I made my way into Utrcht via Biltstraat and a busy city centre. My 19th cycle between cities in the Netherlands was the longest, hottest, most varied and the most enjoyable.

Distance: Approx 100km /  62 miles
Time: Approx eight and a half hours
Photos taken: 1,013
Map of the route
Gallery: 130 photos here

An analysis of this trip by Jitensha Oni:


Previous Posts in this series:

 2015:
Part 1 - Hook of Holland to Rotterdam / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 2 - Rotterdam to Gouda via Delft / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 3 - Gouda to Utrecht / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 4 - Utrecht to Amsterdam / Photo Gallery of this journey
Part 5 - Amsterdam to Hook of Holland via The Hague / Photo gallery of this journey
2016:
Part 6 - Hook of Holland to Breda / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 7 - Breda to Eindhoven via Tilburg / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 8: Eindhoven to 's-Hertogenbosch / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 9: 's-Hertogenbosch to Nijmegen / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 10: Nijmegen to Utrecht / Photo gallery of this journey
2017:
Part 11: Hook of Holland to Gouda via Delft and Zoetermeer / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 12: Gouda to Utrecht, via a different route / Photo gallery of this journey
Part 13: Utrecht to Nijmegen via Veenendaal, Ede and Arnhem / Photo gallery of this journey
2018:
Part 14: Hook of Holland to Leiden / Photo gallery of this journey
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels: , , , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)