Category Archives: out and about
Around the Zuiderzee museum at Enkhuizen
![]() Paulus Potter sketching a goat… |
|||
3rd September: if it’s Tuesday, it’s washing day
Elly realised that marinas may have laundry facilities for customers berthing there. The interesting question was whether random visitors could use these facilities. So we went to Oudeschild to find out, and then on to de Waal to encounter a museum of local farming. Sheep seem to fulfil more roles than just eating and being eaten.
2nd September: to den Burg, then de Koog
Today was a shopping and sightseeing day. Cyclemeter map for now, photos below.
Den Burg sheep-market
At the ‘Flora’ shipwreck and beach-combing museum
![]() Jutter boat, previously used by Texel jutter Sil Boon. (A jutter is a beachcomber or scavenger.) |
|||
1st September: round Texel
OK, it’s an island and it has tarmac, so Bruce has to go around it. Fortunately, Elly isn’t averse to a little cyclo-circumnavigation, either, and so off we went. Of course there was headwind both ways, so please don’t laugh too much as the speed on the cyclemeter map.
But we had 37 miles of being tourists, hence a lot of photos! Continue reading
Stars and bars
So we are at the hotel 14 Sterren, on Texel. It’s a Saturday afternoon and there is the sound of a wedding in the background. It’s going on at the restaurant in the buildings next to where we are staying. We have had a short but fun ride to get here, and that was yesterday, cycling from Alkmaar to here.
Today’s very short cycles were into the centre of town and back:
Cycling without luggage was welcome. I don’t think we are at the full strength of former years at the moment. That is, we could have done the 36 miles from Alkmaar to our place in Texel in a morning or even the full 58 from IJMuiden to Texel, (i.e. IJMuiden to Alkmaar and Alkmaar to Texel) in a day if we had wanted. But we didn’t want. This is holiday, which means we don’t have to strain our bahookies. Continue reading
Alkmaar to Texel
Alkmaar ambulations
Hello world! We are in Alkmaar’s main square, by a canal. So stereotypical, I suppose, but I am loving still being able to have such holidays. Elly is faster than me, and my left foot still tingles if I sit down too long doing nothing to distract my mind. (Hence blogging helps me ease tingles as well as being able to say hello to my audience.)
So where are we saying hello from? Well the canal is called Voordam, and we are in the main square next to an about-to-close cheese museum. So that’s a thing to do tomorrow, as is returning to this square tomorrow morning because there will be a cheese market. Personally, I am looking forward to miles of tarmac at my admittedly slow pace. However, I am currently not wearing Lycra, just sitting and enjoying.
Not many miles today: here’s the Cyclemeter map: https://cyclemeter.com/dd47ea6f33590baa/Cycle-20190829-1012-08925
There has been no rain, unlike yesterday. We got wet yesterday on the way to North Shields, then froze waiting to be let on the ferry. That was after the traditional 10 miles from Newcastle: https://cyclemeter.com/dd47ea6f33590baa/Cycle-20190828-1318-84841, and of course earlier the fun cycle along Princess St: https://cyclemeter.com/dd47ea6f33590baa/Cycle-20190828-1020-86136
So total cycling so far is 32.5 miles. That’s enough for now! Photos are below the cut. Continue reading
We’re off!
Slow and painful
Yesterday I was at Delib‘s Practical Democracy project session 8 in Glasgow. I’ll blog about the event later. However, after several months of almost no exercise, I decided to cycle back to Edinburgh.
Usually, there is a tailwind when cycling this way. However, there was a strong headwind. That partly explains why I took over four hours peddling (over 6 hours including stops) to cycle 43 miles, why my phone’s battery went flat after 35 miles, why I took drink and toilet-breaks every 10 miles, and why my leg-muscles turned to cast iron before I got home. However, most of the explanation is I am a fat, unfit git.
Photos are below the cut. Continue reading









































































































