Pieterpad,  Lemele to Hellendoorn

305 km to Sint Pietersberg

For the introduction to this (hopefully)480 km journey, please click on the heading,’Walking the Pieterpad’ in the black bar above.

I’ve walked about 175km by now. Just 305 to go. But this has never been about competing or achieving anything other than completing the trip at my own tempo whenever that may be.

This was a Monday, the 4th and last day of this leg. I started to have trouble with pain on the top of my foot. I can’t seem to warm up to my new Lowa hiking boots. Walking was doable, but not relaxed.

autumn path by small man made stream

The road was varied and pleasant on a perfect autumn day. I was thankful for the occasional spots to sit and rest. There are sometimes long stretches without them, when not even the side of the road is available to sit safely. Here is one welcoming bench I made use of to have lunch and take off my boots.

welcoming chunky bench

It is sometimes thought that the Pieterpad is an old pilgrim’s route, but it was conceived and mapped out by two elderly Dutch women between 1975 and 1981. In the 35 years of its existence, about 1,000,000 people have walked it.

So it isn’t surprising that people along the path sometimes offer refreshments or rest stops. So far these have all been charming. In one place, there was a picnic table with a cooler beside it and a long typewrittten message. This family has a dairy farm with happy cows whose milk is used for Beemster cheese as well as Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. They started a ‘dessert table’ on the path, offering fresh dairy products for hikers. You just take what you want out of the cooler and pay in the little box provided. They obviously care about their cows and products and have a ‘Caring Dairy trademark for sustainable dairy farming. You can get yoghurt, cheese or fruit juices from the cooler.

the dessert table

dessert table message

I encountered yet another sign of Dutch hospitality further on. A bicycle parked on the side of the path (in this case a road) was an invitation to pause at this welcoming little rest stop.They didn’t have a toilet (some do) and had a vehement sign asking people not to pee or anything else at the side of the little hut!!!

(I got quite expert at ducking into dense, highly growing corn when I needed to pee urgently and there was nothing else in sight. I always took a plastic bag for my used TP-  it is so disgusting to come across other hiker’s used TP in various out of the way spots. )

rest stop to the right

for making tea and coffee

nice touch on the outside table

rest hut interior

welcoming rest stop

This is likely the last Pieterpad post for this year. I’m far enough down into the middle of the country that getting to my next starting point takes me 3 1/2 hours on public transport, (same for getting back after a full day of walking!) . And with the evenings growing dark so early, it is less relaxed for me generally. All being well, I’ll start out again next spring.

I’ve gained so much from this experience so far. Much more self confidence in finding my way, and in solving normal travel dilemmas involving transport and accommodation. I’ve learned that I have to have these kinds of challenges and movement in my life to be happy. And that my world is so much bigger than I’d thought during the years when I felt trapped close to home because I don’t drive here. I’ve also learned a lot about certain parts of the country and the people living there, and how much I need both nature and social contact to feel whole. So I’m really looking forward to the next 305 km.

Pieterpad, Ommen to Lemele

public flowerbed in Ommen

For the introduction to this (hopefully)480 km journey, please click on the heading,’Walking the Pieterpad’ in the black bar above.

The third day of this walk was a Sunday, the weather was perfect and everyone was out in nature. The Dutch are fanatic cyclists and there were myriads of brightly coloured bike club members racing by. There were families and couples and groups out walking on the paths and by the river. Normally, walking the Pieterpad can be quite solitary, so I loved all the activity.

Sunday in the Vechtsdal

The woman who’d put me up in Hardenberg the day before was sweet. After I returned from dinner in the town we sat talking together well into the evening. She confided to me that she had lost a child of 5 to illness when she and her husband were working in Indonesia, and that 2 of her remaining children were gravely ill, one possibly with the same rare illness that the daughter had had. Her husband had died long ago, there were a few photos of them together when they were young. Despite all this sadness, she was very open and not at all self pitying. She said she had a good life there in the neighbourhood, and she had friends.  I left there grateful to have met her.

When I arrived at my accommodations in Ommen the following evening, and got to talking with my hostess there, in a strange and sad synchronicity, she, too had lost a daughter. Her daughter was an artist who became ill in her late 30s and died soon after. Her artwork was all around the house and it was good. This woman’s husband was there as well, but was dealing with cancer. She told me of the things they used to do together and what they have had to release as far as travel etc. This woman too was grateful for what she still had and not embittered by what she’d experienced.

Needless to say, I left there thoughtful, and counting my blessings that at this stage of my life, my husband and I are both healthy and can do so much together.

This part of the walk was varied and social, as I met a lot of people along the paths. While I was taking a tea break at a roadside café, one of the bike clubs whooshed in, and all these vital 20-30 year old men in their coloured nylon outfits poured in joking with each other and the waitresses. It was a pleasure to be around all that vital energy, you could see these guys were loving their Sunday and the fleeting freedom from family obligations and being in suits at work the next day.

 Below are photos from that day. There weren’t any of the usual accommodations available, but I was lucky to get a whole caravan to myself for a bargain price.

my host’s garden

quiet road

woodpath

fresh green in autumn

caravan view 2

caravan view

Next post will be the last about the Pieterpad for awhile, winter is closing in and the days are getting shorter. Not a problem until the evening, now dark, when I usually have to go out either walking or a loaned bike to get some dinner in an unknown environment.

Pieterpad, Hardenberg to Ommen

approaching Ommen

For the introduction to this (hopefully)480 km journey, please click on the heading,’Walking the Pieterpad’ in the black bar above.

The first part of this walk- Friday, Gramsbergen to Hardenberg, was all done in a constant drizzle. Everything was damp and uncomfortable, but that is part of long distance walking.Saturday, after taking leave of my sweet hostess, I started out in mist, but around 2 hours later, the sun broke through. For the next 3 days the weather was beautiful.

Misty beginning

Sunny path

Each province has its own feel. In my walk I’ve reached Overijssel. There, like in the other parts of the country, is a local pride in the area. The Vecht, more a river than the usual canals, runs through here, and there are several small towns on its banks- Hardenberg and Ommen being the main ones. The river valley is an important wildlife reserve and the Dutch government is active in preserving habitats and managing the river so that flora and fauna can flourish. It is a large recreational area with campgrounds, walking and cycling routes. I like the feel of it,it is relaxed and welcoming and the paths are really well marked here.

on the Ommen bridge

Ommen street

Where I live, in the north, the people have a reputation for being rather gruff and closed. They are salt of the earth and when you get to know them they are loyal and honest. (Of course these kinds of generalisations are dangerous, and there are exceptions). But I must admit, that the further south I walk, the warmer and more open the people.

One of the main reasons to walk this path was to form my own physical and emotional bond with the country where I’ve lived, but not truly rooted in,  for the past 30 years. And it is true that taking every step of this walk forms a new relationship with the land I pass through. But what I didn’t expect is the new relationships with the people. Because I sleep for the most part in private homes, I get a chance to know the residents in a way that wouldn’t have been open to me previously. More about that in the next post.

Here are a few shots from this part of the walk:

morning webs in the heather

Sandy area, artificial

Rheeze, a small village along the way

more webs

dewy web