Day 5 - Sint-Genesius-Rode

If it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest one first. - Mark Twain

For today's ride I start at 8am by eating two big frogs, by which I mean climbing two big bergs. The dreaded Muur up to Oudeberg was just manageable, it felt like the bike had no traction front or back as I skittered over the rough cobbles at gradients going up to 20%.

"De Muur" is celebrated with a number of information boards; photos from last night's walk.

The cobbled Bosberg is the second climb and comes when I have had just enough recovery. I am rewarded for my early start in finding a coffee and croissant coffee shop by 9am. In addition to road markings that give you the name and statistics on the climb there is a line drawn at the bottom with the words Strava Start and at the top a similar line with Strava Finish; Belgium has managed to make a game of its cycling heritage. Strava is the cycling app that has the concept of a segment (a defined stretch of road) so you can compete with others.

I am missing the medieval churches you get in France when I realise that the Low Countries simply don't have the building materials to hand and it was only when bricks started to be produced that a lasting architecture was possible. Here are a couple of churches.

Hallé.

Despite the rather dreary report, today was another amazing bike ride through the Flemish Ardennes close to the border with Wallonia. Because I am just below Brussels people speak French though the route squeezes through a narrow bottle neck between the Brussels region and Wallonia so I stay in Flanders.

Index

A daily index is provided with some introductory notes. Introduction Day 1 - Zonnebeke Day 2 - Wervik Day 3 - Avelgem Day 4 - Geraardsbergen Day 5 - Sint-Genesius-Rode Day 6 - Jodoigne Day 7 - Borgloon Day 8 - Elsloo Day 9 - Genk Day 10 - Lommel Day 11 - Kasterlee Day 12 - Antwerp Day 13 - Ghent Day 14 - Bruges Day 15 - Dunkirk Nodemapp.com

Introduction

Bergs and cobbles might be what spring to mind when you think about Flanders and that was certainly the inspiration for this tour despite the fact that I can't manage sharp hills and I dislike cobbles. Just so we all know where we are, Flanders is the Flemish/Dutch-speaking region of Northern Belgium in contrast to Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Southern Belgium; a third smaller region is Brussels and its surroundings. You may be wondering who speaks Flemish and its a fair question as the word Flemish can be used to refer to the Dutch spoken in Flanders or any number of non-standard geographical variants. Oh, then there is the small region in the South East where German is the primary language. Bergs are the notorious short sharp hills that with the notorious cobbles define bike racing in Flanders. Names like Koppenberg, Patenberg and Muur van Geraardsbergen will be familiar to those who follow cycle racing. In France the climbs can be long with manageable gradients from ...

Day 11 - Kasterlee

The right word may be effective, but no word was ever as effective as a rightly timed pause. - Mark Twain A rightly timed pause for this tour would have been Leuven, that relaxed city I passed through earlier. However, tomorrow I reach Antwerp and get the first of my three pauses, the other two being days off in Ghent and Bruges. Today is also a pause as there is only 40km involved and the terrain is easy and flat. The day starts with a ride along the Kanaal Dessel-Schoten . I linger over the view and just as I start to leave the bridge goes up. Passing through Dessel the main attraction is the water pump, now a monument. My destination today, Kasterlee, is reached easily after 40km. A true rest day which ends with a restored windmill. Index

Flanders by Bike

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