Bike Travel in the Netherlands: Part 8 (Ups & Downs)

We're now three weeks into our Netherlands bike tour, and it's been mostly incredible. My favorite parts have been riding in the morning sunshine, full of energy, and relaxing and knitting at beautiful campsites. Happily, the trip has been mostly ups. But, like every adventure, this one has had it's share of downs too. We've had some rain in combination with a leaking tent, some kids stole our food and dumped out our stove fuel, we've crashed our bikes together, and we've been to the emergency room, among other minor disasters.

The worst thing by far was a mysterious allergic reaction I had shortly after we left Amsterdam. I got a rash on the backs of my hands that eventually started to blister. I went to the doctor and received some antihistamines, but decided to bike to a big city emergency room the next day when the pain got considerably worse. The much stronger medications they gave me cleared it all up in just a few days, but it meant we stayed put for four nights while it healed. I've never had anything like that happen before, and the doctors weren't sure what caused it. We suspect I may have developed a nut allergy, so I'm avoiding nuts until I can get home and get an allergy test. It's a bummer not to be able to eat nuts while traveling, though. They're such a great, lightweight source of protein! Overall, I'm very grateful to the Dutch healthcare system and happy to be rid of whatever it was.

Nothing else has been as serious. Trying to avoid a passing car, we misjudged how wide our bikes were (those panniers make a very large backside!) and collided. All we got were a few scrapes and some bent hardware that was easily muscled back into place. My trusty Doc Marten boot took the worst of it. That was a rough day, but it could have been worse.

 

 

We've tried to be security conscious - always locking our bikes, taking our valuables with us everywhere - but last week, someone got into our stuff anyway. After setting up camp, we headed into the city for some sight-seeing, and when we got back, our stuff had been opened and our food containers were open and empty, strewn around the campsite. Our fuel bottle (we have a simple alcohol stove) was empty too, which worried us - hopefully no one drank it or poured it on anything flammable. Nothing but food was stolen, and it seemed more like vandalism than anything, but it definitely made us feel uncomfortable and vulnerable. We left that campsite the next day.

Most of our gear has held up really well, but a few things have failed all at once. Last night as I was getting ready for bed, I realized that the valve on my inflatable sleeping pad was cracked, leaving it hissing and deflated. And this morning one of my flip flops fell apart on my way back from the showers. Both of those things were already pretty old when they started the tour, but I think three weeks on the road also takes its toll. For now, we've used duct tape to patch things up, and I'm hoping they hold on just a little longer.

We've got about a week left of travel before we head back to Amsterdam for our flight home. Here's hoping the rest of the trip goes smoothly!