June 13: Gouda to Dordrecht via Kinderdyke

Henk volunteered to guide us out of Gouda via his favorite back roads to the small Beerdienst ferry at Krinden Aande Lek, just 1 euro for cyclists. We crossed a small Rhine tributary and cycled to the west end of the Kinderdyke bike trail. 

In general, we pretty much ignored the Organic Maps and Google directions and explored quiet roads through the polders. A polder is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes.

Henk explained that most of The Netherlands is covered by 18 meters, (60 ft.) of peat over sand. To build, they drive piles deep into the sand layer. The peat soil is waterlogged and much of western Holland is under sea level. 

Henk at home.

Departure.

Manure Truck. Large trucks collect animal manure and haul it to the polders to spread as fertilizer.

Morning fish market cart in a small village.

Henk Insisted. Proper way to eat raw herring. Do as the locals do!

Government Muskrat Trapper

Muskrats were imported from Canada, then classified aa an invasive species. The Netherlands Government employee professional muskrat trappers to eliminate/control them. All potential pelts must be destroyed.

Demonstrating traps. All trapped animals must be killed in a humane manner. He was demonstrating how the trap works. Traps are placed outside dens and checked daily. The flag marks the trap location. With ideal growing conditions, the 3-foot tall flag can be obscured by new growth within a week.

 Various trap sizes.

Official trapper vehicle. No expensive 4WD SUVs here.

Henk rode alongside Kevin with a running travel log.

No fencing required, as plots are entirely surrounded by water

Farewell at the 1 euro ferry crossing.

Talented Duck. Kevin tossed a piece of bread for this duck outside the Kinderdyke welcome area. No 10-second rule invoked; never touched the pavement.

Mandatory Bell. While not enforced, bike bells are required. Kevin picked up this Gouda cheese bell at the Kinderdyke welcome center shop.

Kinderdyke

The Kinderdijk windmills are a group of 19 monumental windmills in the Alblasserwaard polder, in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. Most of the mills are part of the village of Kinderdijk. Built in 1738 and 1740, to keep water out of the polder, it is the largest concentration of old windmills in the Netherlands and one of the best-known Dutch tourist sites. The mills are listed as national monuments and the entire area is a protected village view since 1993.

Kinderdijk lies at the confluence of the Lek and Noord rivers. Problems with water became more and more apparent in the 13th century. Large canals were dug to get rid of the excess water in the polders. However, the drained soil started setting, while the level of the river rose due to the river's sand deposits. Most of the current mills were built in 1738 and 1740.

After a few centuries, an additional way to keep the polders dry was required. They built a series of windmills, with a limited capacity to bridge water level differences, but just able to pump water into a reservoir at an intermediate level between the soil in the polder and the river; the reservoir could be let out into the river through locks whenever the river level was low enough. The river level has both seasonal and tidal variations. Although some of the windmills are still used, the main water works are provided by two diesel pumping stations near one of the entrances of the windmills site.

Multiple tour groups from the large docked Viking River Cruises ship. I once thought a Viking River Cruise might be OK but not after seeing this. Count me out.

West Entrance

Windmill in high wind. 

On the road south of the Kinderdyke.

Baby Goat of the Day

Paradise for Swans, Geese, and Ducks. Water everywhere. 

Dordrecht Passage

Renske Our Vrienden Host. 85 and still cycling, she mentioned a 60 km ride last week. Renske still has her regular bike but added a quality Swiss-made eBike that she uses for most rides.

Renske was born in 1937, lived through WWII when no one had any money. She became a skilled seamstress, working for 30 years in The Netherlands, then 30 years teaching sewing and dressmaking skills in Africa. She returned to Dordrecht when she retired at age 65, bought a home, is active in her community, and still climbing the stairs in her home. A model of how to age.

Typical Dutch staircase in Renske's and many multi-story homes. I remember similar stairs in the Anne Frank house, yet we have encountered them in all of our Vrienden host homes except the last one, which is 30 years old but quite modern. With a high population density and limited available land, most homes share walls, have compact back yards, and steep stair cases.

One of the neighborhood trio.

Cat of the Day.  Renske, our Vrienden host, also routinely hosts a trio neighbor's cats. This one rested in this chair for 3 hours without moving.

We had a late lunch in Dordrecht and thanks to Kevin's web skills, quality take out for dinner from a specialist gourmet market. Worth the 4-mile round trip.

Rough approximation of our route

Cycling miles: 30 today; 200 total.