tksindel

When you have a long, sunny weekend in the Netherlands, better take advantage of it.

I decided to jump on a train south from Amsterdam to Maastricht with my bike, two small bags and a rough sketch of a plan to cycle 240 km between Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.

The Bike

The Route

Day 1: Maastricht to Malmedy (100 km)

I arrived in Maastricht on Friday evening and booked a bunk at the The Green Elephant, so I could take full advantage of the upcoming three day weekend.

With no real itinerary planned out, I sought out a final destination each day and would figure the rest out along the way. The destination for Saturday was the DAFT Hotel, a haven in the Ardennes for music creators and creatives.

So after a full breakfast and a brisk morning of exploring Maastricht, I set off south towards Malmedy, Belgium.

I straddled the border of Belgium & Netherlands for the first half of the day, following the Meuse River. Easy riding, minimal detours and a beaming sun.

First stop on the route was Spa, famously known for its stop on the Formula 1 Grand Prix tour. The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamp is the longest track on the F1 calendar (7,004 km), and is beloved by drivers.

Turns out the track isn’t exactly in Spa, and a bit more of a detour than I bargained for, so I’ll save that visit for another time.

The nice part of this region was being able to mix in hills, which is tough to do near Amsterdam when you are below sea level. After going uphill for an hour straight, a Stella Artois at the Cafe Ardennais was a welcoming sight. The 1,60€ price point was welcomed too.

The final push to Malmedy. After arriving at the DAFT Hotel, it was a rewarding feeling to finish the longest leg of the weekend, and celebrating with local Belgian beer was in order.

I wrapped up the day with dinner at A La Truite Argentée, a Belgian restaurant known for its silver trout in cream tarragon sauce. An honest effort to speak in French to the waitress quickly turned to German, forgetting how close I was to the border.

Shoutout to the friendly couple who offered me a ride back to town, who shortly rescinded their offer after realizing I arrived on bike, by choice.

Day 2: Malmedy to Schmidt (55 km)

Easter Sunday. Where to go?

I ended up heading east towards Germany to a familiar destination, Schmidt. I visited this region in 2014 with my Opa (grandfather in German), to see the memorials and battlegrounds of World War II. Having that navigational familiarity brought back a lot of great memories.

It’s a powerful area to visit that I would highly recommend for anyone to see, especially by bike, where you can really feel all the history beneath your feet.

I picked up the Vennbahn, a perfectly maintained cycling path on a former railway track. Winding through farm fields and forests, I was blown away by the scenery and infrastructure.

On the last leg into Schmidt, I ran into the Biker Ranch Eifel (think Harley Davidson). Sun was blazing, and it was a perfect place to setup shop for Easter lunch. I settled on the Schnitzel spezial, exhibit A below.

After settling in at the hotel in Schmidt, I started reading Riding in the Zone Rouge by Tom Isitt.

It’s a phenomenal book about the The Circuit des Champs de Bataille, a 2000 km cycling race that took place in 1919 right after World War I through the battlefields of the Western Front. To have such rich history in your backyard really opens your eyes to endless possibilities of what to explore.

Inspiration for the next adventure..

Day 3: Schmidt to Maastricht (81 km)

The final stretch, I had a one pit stop in mind: Les Trois Bornes, the meeting point of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. Along the way, I meandered through the Hürtgenwald, by foot and by bike.

After getting out of the woods, I picked up the Vennbahn once more for the final leg into Aachen. Cruising below the city limits, it was a short ride to Les Trois Bornes.

My expectation for Les Trois Bornes was maybe a monument with the flags of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands (true). What I failed to realize was the full blown attraction this place was, with restaurants and bars, a lookout point and loads of people. Either way, it was perfect timing for lunch and to map out the last part of the trip.

Only 1.5 hours away from Maastricht, I started to search for trains to get back home. With the train departing every 30 minutes to Amsterdam, it made planning easy.

After lunch, I set off towards Maastricht in the blazing sun. What felt like cycling through molasses, I took a pit stop at the FC Gulpen Match to shed a layer.

Thinking I was on the home stretch, I stumbled on the biggest surprise, The Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial.

Arriving 30 minutes before closing, I had just enough time to visit and wow, it was spectacular. Set on a hill looking over the countryside, cherry trees starting to blossom next to the 8288 graves, it hit all the feels.

Leaving the cemetery full of pride, it was smooth sailing back to Maastricht. On the train again to Amsterdam. Life is good.