After a night of great rest in a very comfortable bed (yes…I did take a photo of the mattress label 😂) I was ready for the day. Not ready enough, as it would turn out.
I did a quick walk to a nature reserve about ten minutes away, and it was very misty. Rather disappointed I turned around to walk out of the park and would you believe it…a little critter appeared.
It was a red squirrel! I was super pleased, as in the UK they’re pretty rare. I’m not sure how common they are in Belgium.
By 10.45 the bike was loaded up and I was ready to go. Now…here’s a tip for motorcyclists…. remember to take your bike chain off the front wheel before you ride off. If you leave it on, with a fully loaded bike, you are likely to think the bike is a bit lethargic due to the weight…rather than the lock binding up on the front. Then…if you’re not careful you’ll drop the bike. Which is what I did. It fell slowly onto its left hand side and luckily was saved from any serious damage by the crash bars on the front and the pannier on the back. I felt like a right tit. Luckily I knew how to get the bike back up. A fella walking his dog stopped by to see if it was ok. I was fine…but very annoyed with myself.
For some reason the bike wouldn’t start. I checked for any external issues…nothing. It seemed the battery was flat. Even though it had started fine moments before. One trickle charger purchase later from the local garage, one hour of charging time at the Airbnb I was hoping to have left, and still no joy.
I wheeled my bike to the garage. I was on very good terms with the proprietor at this point 😂 He suggested someone might stop by with a car to jump start it.
Moments later a fella appeared on the forecourt, with a brush and pan. He wandered across and between language barriers he disappeared to return with a jump start pack. After a few minutes of getting the connections to the battery, the bike was running perfectly. It turned out he’s been riding bikes for 48 years and his was round the corner…a big old Honda currently undercover.
Turns out that folks in Ghent are pretty helpful! 😊
Finally…at 2pm…I was ready to set off…with at least 5.5 hours of riding ahead.
Happily, the bike was fine, the weather was great and the roads were generally clear. Being able to filter through traffic was certainly helpful getting around Antwerp!
Riding through the Netherlands was lovely. The landscape is so flat. The scenery almost looks like a table display of farmland and woods. Delightful.
One fuel stop at Vanenburg presented a lovely sunset. Just what you need at a motorway services!
Hours later….somewhere deep in the German woods I pulled over for a moment. It was obviously very dark! Someone pulled over too, to see if I was ok. Turns out people in Germany are helpful too!
So..today…320 miles…Ghent….via Zwolle in the Netherlands…to Bremen, Germany.
And…no I haven’t seen Bremen yet 😂 Hopefully I’ll have time in the morning. Tomorrow I’ll be heading North out of Germany to Denmark via ferry.
Thanks for reading the “what a plonker Rodney” exploits of day 2! Hopefully tomorrow is smoother! 😂💛
Leave a Reply