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Day 1, Wednesday May 5th 2010, Zwolle – Ommen
Distance: 42 km
Weather, sunny, cool
Camp site: Nature camp De Wolfskuil, Ommen
Route:
Zwolle, Langenholte, Haerst, Berkum, Broekhuizen, Ankum, Engelland, Welsum, Vilsteren, Ommen
And at last the day has come! Yesterday I came by bike from Zeist to Zwolle and for a moment I thought we shouldn’t go. It was so cold yesterday!
Only because warmer weather is forecast, but otherwise ... Erwin couldn’t care less. He even doesn’t mind rain, that’s heroic!
We leave at ten o’clock, waved off by mother Jannie and sister, Bertine. Luc, a neighbour’s boy, comes along for a bit.
When we leave the district, Luc goes home. Now, we’re really under way! Erwin knows the first part. It is a lovely cycle path, running north of Zwolle, and he has skateboarded here too. I don’t know it so I let Erwin show me the way.
At the Agnietenberg*, we take the ferry across the Vecht to Haerst.
(*Agnietenberg: Berg = mountain, in Holland usually only a hill!)
It is a really nice ferry, still operated by hand. The ferryman holds a sort of truncheon with a groove in it. This is laid onto a steel cable which runs from one bank to the other. With his two hands and his full weight, he hangs on it and thus pulls the ferry to the other side.
It is May 5th. There are activities everywhere*. In Ommen, there is a huge procession of horse-drawn carriages, right to the bridge across the Vecht. It is some time before we can get through and carry on to Ommen. Here we look for a Supermarket, as we need something to eat tonight. We choose Erwin’s favourite meal: brown beans with apple sauce.
(*May 5th: Liberation Day in Holland, a public holiday every 5 years.)
It is only a short way from the Centre to the camp site, the nature camp De Wolfskuil. I had first thought of stopping in Vilsteren but when we got there at the beginning of the afternoon, we thought it was much too early. We both wanted to cycle further. We have now reached the camp site, having done 42 kilometres today. Not bad for the first day!
There are two fields for tents and a sort of lodge. To Erwin’s disappointment, the fields are completely empty. We put up the tent together and I can see that Erwin is experienced. I hardly have to explain anything. I have a large tent for three people and the outer tent is very roomy, so that we have a very big space where we can store our stuff and even sit in it if the weather gets bad.
Erwin may stay up late, of course, and we play a game of Scrabble in the tent. And guess who won? Exactly. Erwin had 135 points and I had 115!
