Another’s day, another few dozen fields. Such is the way of the Pieterpad.
When I left my B&B this morning, I had no idea where I was actually going to finish tonight. The place I contacted last night hadn’t replied back, which left me with two alternatives: another B&B in 20 km, and a campground in 22 km that’s a kilometer off the trail. Not the greatest options, but I’ve had to deal with worse.
Starting off this morning, it was bit cool, cloudy, and breezy, but not too bad for a walk. While still in town, I saw my third little robot lawnmower, a beefy version of a Roomba with blades instead of brooms. I guess it’s a reasonably popular thing here, but either way, it is certainly a lot easier to have a little robot thing automatically cut your grass, than do it yourself or pay for a lawn service.
Not really surprising, but the morning was a lot of following roads and zigzagging around the perimeter of farms. One place, the trail went down the driveway of a farm, passed all their support buildings, and continued off the pavement to join a dirt road around a field. Along the way, a friendly farm cat came up to me and rubbed against my leg.
Past that, the trail crossed over a canal and became a rough track chewed up by tractor treads. It was a little slow and muddy for a short while.
Leaving the dirt and climbing up to a sidewalk along another canal, the trail entered Coevorden.
Turning off from the canal, the trail entered a park vaguely in the middle of town, with a lake and many walking paths.
The town seemed a little busy, and the park definitely had quite a few people walking and cycling through it. But I’m not sure there is really a whole lot to say about Coevorden; it seems like many of the other Netherlands towns I’ve walked through so far. But, on the way out of town, it really smelled like there was a giant waffle bakery somewhere nearby, so that was nice.
After leaving town, the trail actually got its first meaningful hills. It wasn’t very much, but after almost a week of walking on extremely flat land, my legs were both surprised and relieved to be asked to go uphill.
A couple of small goat and sheep pens dotted the top of what generously could be called a ridge. The animals, of course were content to munch away on the grass as I walked past.
The trail eventually left the hills, returning to the natural flat level of the land, and began following a canal. Initially, one side of the canal was a field full of some kind of crop, and the side that I was on had a giant expanse of short grass, with a few trees for character.
A little further on, trail began following a corn field, and then turned to split between the corn field and relatively recently built solar farm. There were also a few wind turbines, making for three completely different kinds of farms next to each other: corn, wind, and solar. And, the solar panels were elevated enough to allow for sheep grazing (though I didn’t see any when I went past.)
Following a trail through grass near a canal, rather than on the top of the berm above it, thanks to some unclear trail markers, I came within 300 meters of the border with Germany. (The trail later will briefly enter Germany.)
Taking a break at a picnic table near a bridge crossing the canal, I called two different B&B’s, with no luck. One was full tonight, and I got no answer from the other. So tonight’s plan collapsed to a campground a little bit off trail. Which honestly is fine, it’ll certainly be way cheaper, even if my feet really didn’t like the extra walking on pavement.
Later, the trail crossed over the Vecht river. As if right on cue, a train passed over the railroad crossing shortly after I did.
The trail crossed through Gramsbergen, and I made a slight diversion to a grocery store to get breakfast for tomorrow.
Just after exiting Gramsbergen, at another crossing of the Vecht, a small observation platform gave a slightly elevated view of the river, and its confluence with a canal.
Shortly after, in Abe, I turned off the trail to go to my campground. I passed a house with a large decorative stork carrying a baby, with “It’s a Boy!” banners strung throughout their front yard.
At the campground, De Kleine Weide (The Little Meadow), a small car campground mostly populated with trailers, I got checked in and got my tent set up just as it started to rain, nearly perfect timing. The rain stopped sometime before dinner, so I was able to get a shower and cook without getting (extra) wet.