Cheese, Canals, Crops, and Cows
Netherlands (Friesland): Stage 03 Alkmaar to Den Oever 50 Km (Fri 14 July 2023)
Weather: 21⁰C min – 23⁰C max, fine but overcast
“When you come to a fork in the road, take it!” ~ Yogi Berra
When bicycle touring you have to accept that some days, such as today, are less exciting than others. Setting off under a grey sky, I accepted that it would not be a good day for photography and the lack of photographic opportunities did not help either.
Apart from the ubiquitous canals, scenery consisted mainly of endless crops of potatoes, needed to make the frietjes (potato fries) which seem to be so popular here. Frietjes appear on every menu and I must say are the best I have ever tasted … I haven’t worked out yet whether this is because of the potatoes or the way they are cooked. Perhaps this is the national dish of Holland?
And of course there were lots of cows, busy chewing grass to produce the milk for all those round blocks of Gouda cheese I saw at the Alkmaar cheese festival this morning. It was worth delaying my ride so I could witness the festivities that start at 10 am every Friday.
Towns were non existent today, so I am glad I had my coffee in Alkmaar before setting out. With no coffee stops and few photographic opportunities, I made good time and arrived in Den Oever well before the 3 pm check in time.
Den Oever is a tiny village with a small harbor, a couple of restaurants, and nothing much else (unless you are into exploring the area’s flora and fauna). For me Den Oever is just a stepping stone to Friesland via the Afsluitdijik, a 32- kilometre-long causeway that separates the Wadden Sea from the IJsselmeer Lake.
When planning this trip I was looking forward to riding over the Afsluitdijk, a 32 Km long dam wall built in 1932 to protect the Zuiderzee region from flooding. The Afsluitdijk connects the provinces of Friesland and North Holland, and changed the saltwater Zuiderzee into the freshwater IJsselmeer. Now, with the prospect of rising sea levels, the Afsluitdijk is no longer considered adequate protection against the sea. To comply with what is known as the ‘new Delta norms’ the dam is currently being raised two metres, with the work due to be completed at the end of 2025. Meanwhile, the Afsluitdijk is closed for cyclists, who have been provided with a free bicycle bus from Den Oever to Kornwerderzand (carries up to 30 people and a maximum of 15 bicycles).
Hopefully tomorrow will be a more interesting day in the saddle.
Hope you did not eat too much cheese
I’m sure that tomorrow will be a different day. Look on the bright side of a ride my dear!! Some parts of the Nadarland is very beautiful like riding around the canalI love the C.C.C.C
Wow – did you score yourself one of those enormous cheese wheels? Lovely wildflowers, with your favourite red poppies predominating. Hoping for blue skies soon for you!