Enkhuizen to Sneek: via ferry to Stavoren

April 27, 2012

WEATHER: sunny, strong tailwind

We got up at 6:30 and were mostly packed when John brought up another good breakfast at 7:00. We were glad to have been able to spend two nights at this very pleasant B&B, and we're not surprised that they are completely booked up during high season in the summer. The ferry for Stavoren left at 8:30 and we had to buy our tickets at the tourist office just before departure. (For some reason they hadn't allowed us to buy tickets a day ahead ). It was a beautiful sunny morning with a southwest wind, which would be perfect for riding on to Sneek in Friesland (our fourth Dutch province) after the ferry trip. From the B&B to the tourist office was only a five-minute ride, and the ferry landing was 50 metres beyond that, so of course we had plenty of time. The ferry, which operates from mid-April to October, is for foot passengers and cyclists--no cars. About 15 cyclists showed up with all kinds of bikes and gear and a couple of foot passengers with suitcases. The ferry ticket cost 10 euros per person one way, and there was an additional 5 euro charge for each bike for the 80 minute ride across the IJsselmeer.

Boarding the ferry at the dock near the tourist office in Enkhuisen.

The bikes were secured tightly against the aft railing for the crossing. Everybody went inside out of the wind and sat in the bright, airy upper salon which was set up with tables (and tablecloths). Shortly after we took off, a crew member came around to take orders for food and/or drink. We ordered coffee, which was served in real cups and saucers, and it was very pleasant to sit there looking out at the sailboats as we made our way across the lake. We chatted with a long-time resident of Enkhuizen who was setting off on a week-long cycling and camping trip. He had recently turned 70 and last summer had cycled to the top of Mt. Ventoux in France. Dutch bicyclists are hardy folk!

The bright and comfortable upper salon on the Enkhuisen-Stavoren ferry.

All the bikes are safely lashed together on the rear deck of the ferry as we cross the large shallow lake.

The ferry reached Stavoren right on time, and unlike all the other cyclists, we headed north toward the villages of Hindeloopen and Workum. These villages and others that we planned to visit, were all on the route of the Elfstedentocht, a 200 km ice skating race on frozen canals that pass through eleven picturesque towns during any winter when the ice is deemed to be thick enough. It's a rare event which hasn't happened very often in recent years.

Our ride started out through fields, and soon joined a path along the inside of the main dike that bordered the Ijsselmeer. As we pedalled north, flocks of sheep were grazing both above us on the dike and in the fields to our right. We cycled through Hindeloopen with a stop to view the scenic harbour and then carried on through more fields filled with herds of cattle all the way to Workum.

Sheep, grass, blue sky and water lurking everywhere characterized the day's ride.

The first cafe we stopped at in the centre of Workum didn't work for lunch because of the surly demeanor of the manager, who didn't want to show Eva a menu before we sat down. (This was a real anomaly in the Netherlands--the only time we experienced such rudeness.) We walked across the square to another cafe and had a good lunch. Al had finally regained most of his appetite.

The main street of Workum seemed to have a lot of art galleries, which we passed on our way out of town. A few kilometres further east our planned route included a short bicycle ferry ride, but when we got close, we encountered a sign announcing that the ferry stopped for lunch between 1:00 and 2:00. It was 1:25, and we didn't want to wait, so we consulted our bike route map and discovered an alternate route that would bypass the ferry and take us around a lake. This turned out to be a good choice because we had a strong tailwind and the scenery was surprisingly interesting. The only slight downside was that the bicycle path was only a metre wide and we had to be careful to not be blown off it on curves and corners. If a cyclist came towards us in the opposite direction, we just got off our bikes and moved to the side. In places the wind-driven waves were lapping at the edge of the path.

Friesland had a slightly different feel from parts of the Netherlands that we had seen so far.

The last part of the ride into Sneek was on a bike path parallel to a busy road and was not very interesting. The town of Sneek itself was a disappointment. We had booked the Hotel de Wijnberg in the centre of town, and the room turned out to be the worst of our trip--such a contrast to the lovely B&B in Enkhuizen. The only window was high up and of frosted glass, so we couldn't see anything outside. The room was clean enough, but everything was quite shabby and worn. Sneek's downtown shopping area contained all the North American chain stores and not much else to redeem it. The nearby Walrus restaurant (a Netherlands chain) where we went for dinner was extremely noisy, and Al's Thai soup was so salty that it was inedible. To be fair, the main course of duck with potato pancakes was quite good and they didn't charge us for the soup, but it was so loud there that our ears were ringing when we left. All in all, the ride to Sneek was great, but Sneek itself was not memorable, and we'll be glad to move on tomorrow.

Today's ride: 42 km (26 miles)
Total: 426 km (265 miles)

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