Day 37: Welcome to the Netherlands

Today we biked along the vehnbahn (the rail trail we have been following) through the Ardennes to Aachen, Germany. From there we biked to Maastricht, Netherlands to make for another long 120 km day.

The rail trail made the route through the Ardennes very scenic and much easier than it should be in the terrain. We passed many rolling hills but stayed on a 2% grade the entire time.

That being said, we were surprised how much a 2% grade affects the speed of the bikes. We were able to go 10 km/hr faster on the down hills than the up hills. It maybe due to some sort of psychological difference but to any Newtonian physics buffs reading, feel free to weigh in.

We passed many pine forests and rolling hills, the trip it quite a nice one for anyone looking to bike through Europe. It was also really well travelled which was a surprise to us. Mark and Matt were able to get some pictures as well.

After arriving in Aachen we set out for Maastricht and some food vendor (a restaurant would not do based on how bad we smelled).

After just coming into the Netherlands we found a small market and stopped to buy some food. The food was really cheap! Four cartons of strawberries for 2 euros! The vendors were are yelling out in Dutch to try and sell their products but obviously we had no ideas. Besides strawberries we also grabbed some Stroopwaffles (a Dutch favorite of the twins) as a small pick me up.

After the market we continued on the Maastricht. As a warning to others who bike through the Netherlands, it is definitely not flat near Maastricht!

Our campsite is a couple kilometers south of the city but has free showers so we're all happy campers. Upon arrival Mark went off in search of gas and Matt and Nate went to get groceries.

Of note: Nate was actually carded at the grocery store, in a country where the drinking age for beer is (we believe, but have not double checked) 18. The cashier actually apologized to Nate after he handed her his passport. I guess that beard isn't doing the work he thought it was.

Dinner was brats, bread, noodles, and vegetables along with some of the left over strawberries. After finishing our dinner and getting clean in the shower it's bed time after a long day of hiking.

Tomorrow is our last rest day and will be spent exploring Maastricht.