Fantastic cycling today. Probably the most enjoyable day so far. Much less wind to
contend with and a trail through wooded forests, over man-made engineering
wonders, meandering through small towns, over sand dunes and into coffee shops
afforded a fantastic Dutch cycling experience.
This marvelous bridge is visible at many turns along our
route today.
The morning coffee shop was one of the best so far. Any order seemed to include this little
morsel of whipped cream and a delicious liqueur in a small shot glass. Nice touch.
Zooming down a hill and rounding a corner was a perfect way
to be dazzled by these impressive sand dunes. Everyone stopped and had a good
look before we pressed on.
Next we came to an engineering marvel of the world. The Dutch seem fearless when it comes
to doing battle with the sea.
After a devastating flood in 1953 it was decided to build a system of
adjustable concrete pistons that could be lowered to the sea bed to stop a
fierce sea from breaching the dyke.
This is our first view of this astonishing structure.
Here you can see the adjustable pistons, which are only used
when danger is imminent. The rest
of the time they remain open to avoid disturbance of the natural flora and
fauna dependent on free movement of the tides.
We stopped for lunch at a restaurant overlooking a sweeping
expanse of sandy beach.
Here are a few of my nature pictures over the last day or
two.
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| Eurasian Jackdaw.. similar behavior to a crow. |
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| Two Gulls.. maybe Black-backed?? |
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| A black headed gull screaming about something. |
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| A spider's overnight workout. |
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