Day Four

Day three was covered in the last post, along with Two. On my fourth day in NL I had fresh baked bread for breakfast, having stayed the night at Erik and Saskia's house. I had previously wired money to an account that Erik had set up for me over there to pay for the Versatile, shipping, and my expenses while there, and Saskia took me to town to get some more cash. Later in the trip I also used my ATM card to get some from my checking account at home. The itinerary Erik had set up for me had me riding accross the dyke from Lelystaad to North Holland, up the coast and across the Aufsluitdijk to Friesland, then to Zwolle, Assen, and finally Almere, after a trip to Ligfietshop Tempelman to pick up my suitcase. In Almere, Franz Van Schoot would lead me to the shipping company at the airport.

Today I am heading to Tempelman's shop to have some problems with the VM corrected. The shocks are not working the same and need to be adjusted. The computer doesn't work, the rear tire feels out of round, and I will have a second battery installed. The wiring is there and it seems like a good idea to have a spare. As I approached Dronten on the fietspad (paved bikepath) I met another VM rider in a Blue Quest. As it turned out he was taking a test ride, and since he would be returning later that afternoon, and was headed to Lelystaad afterwards he offered to lead me to my next camping spot.

Velomobiel NL is just around the corner from Ligfietshop tempelman. My guide, having returned the Blue Quest was riding his Challenge Hurricaine. I really slowed him down turning an easy hour ride into over two hours. I don't think I ever would have found camp Opertje without him. Once you get to Lelystaad the houses all look exactly the same in any given section and even have the same street names. My guide must have stopped people for directions 20 times before we finally wound our way through the residential area.

The nicest thing about Camp Opertje was the kiosk around the corner from my campsite, where dinner was being served as I arrived. I really needed food, and the biologische burger I had was good enough that I bought a second, and washed it all down with a couple beers. A nice hot shower required a 50cent Euro coin, and rule #1 about camping in NL once again proved itself true. Bring your own toilet paper!! I learned enough from my first camping experience in Elberg, that I swiped a little bit from the B&B before I left. While Holland is most well known for tulips, the most common vegitation is actually the Stinging Nettle. Not a single photo Op. or remote bathroom break seemed to transpire without meeting one of these. My first experience was on the first day on the way out of Dronten.

I don't know what is inside those little flowers, but it feels similar to bee venom. They are EVERYWHERE so even when you know what to look out for you still get nailed. I noticed that my stomach is going away. Nothing like riding all day to get you in shape.