The Final Leg

The Final Leg 


Magnifique had gone through a lock before we boarded yesterday. I was hoping to go through it, although it would have been time-consuming and I was looking forward to another ride. Sad that it was our last one. 

We meandered along the Kanaal Gent-Oostende most of the time, often on the path below the the dikes on the opposite side from the river. Riding on the dikes offers no shelter from the winds and the North Sea was not far away. 

We chanced upon a castle in a pretty, quiet village. It had recently sold for the bargain of one million euros to the owner of a winery as a fixer upper. The 13 in our group contemplated splitting the cost or starting a Go Fund Me campaign to purchase it. But we decided the upkeep over time would be prohibitive.  


 A greenhouse strawberry operation had a roadside self-serve kiosk. I have rarely tasted strawberries so sweet. 


Our lunch stop was at a cafe that has been in the family for 5 generations. The current owner took us to an out building. Inside was a wire mesh "cage". We wondered if it was a WWF wrestling cage??? He showed us a game that the villagers love to play. 

Similar to bocce ball, one "bowls" a large dinner plate shaped disc on its edge. It has been carved with one side being concave The object is to throw the disc which must naturally curve due to its design and try to hit a wooden plug about 6 metres away. I came close. Kevin was the only one of our group to hit the target. Three times in a row the owner bowled and the disc stopped beside the plug and fell on top of it! I'm thinking he earns his beer money at that game. 

Evidence of the war still exists in the countryside. This bunker has been closed off for safety reasons. 

A mangled Canadian Military Vehicle


We rode into Bruges Markt Square for a short tour before boarding the boat for our last supper and sleep. 






An old and very popular brewery was faced with a dilemma. The city passed a law restricting vehicle weights in the Centre due to wear and tear on the cobblestone and brick streets. The trucks carrying the beer exceeded the limit. So the brewery constructed a 3.270 km beer pipeline and built a new bottling plant outside the restricted zone. And the beer tasted pretty good. 👍



We said our goodbyes to our international friends after another wonderful meal. Following breakfast the next morning we bid farewell to our two fun-loving guides, Corinne and Mariella 

and hauled our luggage 2 km over bumpy cobblestones to our hotel. A new group would be boarding for their Bruges to Amsterdam adventure at 2 pm. It was already hot. We didn't envy those cyclists as the temps would hit 35 Celsius for the next three days. Good luck to them. 

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