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Stage 19 - Antwerp to Ghent 72km (18-Jul-2019)

It was back in the saddle today after a short 2 week break in England to catch up with our Miss (Jessie) and other family members.

On arrival in our accommodation in Antwerp, where we had stored our bikes, pleased to observe that everything (bikes and panniers) was in good order. Having not ridden for a couple fo weeks, weren't quite sure how the body would fare and must admit it didn't fare well. It was tough going, especially the second half as it was in a strong head wind. One compensation was that we were riding on smooth bike paths. In summary, there are days when you feel your age and today was was one of them for both of us.
Eager to get going, it was an early breakie and we were off; indulged our selves by asking one of the other guests tot take this photo of us. 


There was nothing pretty about the few kms out of Antwerp or on the outskirts, which was mostly industrial and/or wasteland compensated by the warm and dry weather and deserted roads and paths.
Not long after 20 odd kms we arrived at a point to cross the River Schiedt, which was in line with our planned route. The ferry to take us across had just pulled out so we rang the bell in line with the written instructions at the wharf and the waiting for it to arrive was a blessing as we were both in need of a breather by now. The ferry, duly arrived with a load of seniors and their bikes. We got the opportunity to chat with the ferry master, Jean who does this gig on one of his days off from his regular job as a Tug Master. He does 4 days of 12 hour shifts. According to him, there are 18,000 ships that come in and out of Antwerp Harbour annually.






Before long, another large group of seniors got on board; 6 guys, 6 gals and their 12 electric bikes; happy days as they were having a ball, laughing. non stop chatting enjoying their day out. Need to seriously consider joining a bike group on our return to Oz.




Moving along we rode through a lovely little village called Temse, where I took a photo of a statue of these 4 dudes with my beloved bike.


The ride took us through some beautiful fields and along canals




By now, the riding and the strong head wind was taking a toll on our bodies so stopped for lunch in Lokeren.



And then followed the F4 towards Ghent. Once again, fabulous bike paths, great infrastructure and lovely people along the way. So many bike riders, it seems this is the best way to get around Belgium as can be seen on this board capturing the daily count  of cyclists, 248 and year to date count of 76,367 using the F4 route from Antwerp to Ghent.




Check out this garden, someone obviously has a passion for it


The last 15kms or so of our journey seemed to drag on a bit, we were both tired and our legs were hurting, so finally we made it to our accommodation, where a lovely lady called Francine welcomed us warmly. A cup of hot lemon water and a hot shower did the trick and got us energised. Glad we have another day in Ghent, which we will use to explore as today we are both buggered.
No blog tomorrow.

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