Amsterdam to Dunkirk - advice needed

[barnesy]

I have a flight booked for the 18th of April to bring me to amsterdam, i am then going to cycle down to dunkirk and i want to see Bruges on the way.

On previous tours i have navigated by road and map but in researching this one i have read about the easy to understand LF1 cycle path that will bring me all the way.

Problem is i cant understand it, mainly due to the sites being in dutch and also as i cant see in any of the maps the route being in Amsterdam, more along the coast past it. And does the route follow the coast tightly as some of the maps seem to show?

Im sure the route will be easy to follow when im there and can see an on road map etc but i cant figure it out at the minute. Anybody who has done it before got any suggestions? I plan to stay in a hostel in Amsterdam and Bruges and London but everywhere inbetween i plan to camp, are there many places to camp along the route?

 

[zealand]

hi there, iv done most of this ride , take a compass as it will help alot and if you can,t find a camp sit just wild camp were no one can see, but found a lot of camp sits in holland

 

[snorri]

Ijmuiden is the closest place to Amsterdam on the LF1, and the route does follow the coast closely. You could easily devise a more direct route to Maassluis where you would join the LF1 and catch the ferry to Rosenburg. Navigation is relatively easy in NL with lots of options. Do be aware of signing on the LF1, southbound the route is designated LF1a, northbound LF1b. It is the same route, the a and b suffix just ensures you go in the right direction.
Also wild camping is illegal in NL and out of sight sites will not be easy to find unless you have had military training.
Googling LF1 Noordzeeroute gives a lot of info on the route, I don't think the language will present any problems once you get started.

 

[Brains]

I've cycled this route, the first word of warning is the wind!
You are on the coast most of the way, there is always a wind, going Amsterdam to Dunkirk you will be into what can be an unrideable headwind all the way.

Second issue is Dunkirk ferry port is actually almost at Gravelines, which is about 10 miles west of Dunkirk, closer to Calais than Dunkirk, so I'd suggest bypassing Dunkirk itself by going inland otherwise you end up with a very very long ride, into a massive headwind (which reduced two of our experienced cyclists to walking) through the back of the port of Dunkirk.

Maps:
We used the very good Bikeline Esterbauer book, it's in German, but you don't need to understand a word of German to read the excellent maps
http://www.esterbauer.com/db_detail.php?buecher_code=NORD1
We also used a Michellin 1:100,000 to work out the French and Belgian section of the route

Route
We more or less kept the sea on our left all the way (we rode south to north and then back by train),
We went Bergues (s. of Dunkirk, interesting defended town), Diksmunde (vast WW1 war memorial and interesting museum), Tourhout (well worth a stop), Brugges, Ghent, Antwept, Delft, then onto the North Sea Route northbound, the route is mostly within 1km of the sea all the way (but there are exceptions, hence the bikeline map) we then continued well north of Ijumenden before turning right for Hoorn and then entered Amsterdam from the north.

Campsites:
We found them as we went along, and they are marked in the book, it was not really an issue, we also spent one night in a Youth Hostel, and one night in a hotel that had closed for the season when they took pity on 6 frozen cyclists caught out in a sudden unseasonable snow storm (it was early October!)

 

[willem]

Did you try this bike route planner: http://www.fietsrouteplanner.eu/content/view/104/109/
Willem

 

[Fietslogies]

If the weather is a bit coldish, why not overnight with 'Vrienden op de Fiets'? Plenty of addresses in the Netherlands and Belgium. For only 19 euro a night. Even in Dunkirk one family joined, thus allowing you to finalize your trip with only a few kilometers on the last day of your bicycle trip through the low countries.

 

[barnesy]

Thanks for the info so far guys, the link above looks interesting, i have heard about these guesthouses who take in cyclists. Has anybody here used this system? Basically i sign up with a donation and it gives me access to addresses of guesthouses, i can then contact them to see if they are free ona given night to take me in, i then pay them 19 euros, is that fixed or may it be changed? Do you get a bed/ toilet or is it a sofa in most places?

I suppose i like the freedom of camping, i dont have any town or accomodation to make it to and can camp when i feel i want to stop. Its fun too, but i know we have all been trying to put a tent up on a cold, windy evening as its getting dark after a long day cycling and its then that a bed, shower and plug socket can work wonders

 

[andrew_s]

Second issue is Dunkirk ferry port is actually almost at Gravelines, which is about 10 miles west of Dunkirk, closer to Calais than Dunkirk, so I'd suggest bypassing Dunkirk itself by going inland otherwise you end up with a very very long ride, into a massive headwind (which reduced two of our experienced cyclists to walking) through the back of the port of Dunkirk

Agreed.

Signposting between the centre of Dunkirk and the ferry is just about non-existent, and a GPS or 1:25k/50k map would be advisable.
The simplest approach from the east is inland via Bergues, Brouckerque, Craywick and Loon-Plage. The ferry is approached from the big roundabout at the west side of Loon-Plage.

 

[Fietslogies]

Thanks for the info so far guys, the 'Vrienden op de Fiets' info above looks interesting, i have heard about these guesthouses who take in cyclists. Has anybody here used this system? Basically i sign up with a donation and it gives me access to addresses of guesthouses, i can then contact them to see if they are free ona given night to take me in, i then pay them 19 euros, is that fixed or may it be changed? Do you get a bed/ toilet or is it a sofa in most places?

Membership is 8 euro in the Netherlands, and a bit more if living outside (mainly because of the amount of stamps they have to add to cross the channel ;-) 19 euro is what the hosts may ask, never more, sometimes less. But so far I never got a lower price. They always give you a separate room with a bed. In most of the houses, you will share a/the bathroom (unless you see 'ap. gedeelte') in the concise description of every address. In the morning, they'll serve you a healthy breakfast.

 

[barnesy]

I can't see a link to donate on the site, can you pay by card or only by post?

 

[spokes101]

I don't think the language will present any problems once you get started.

 

[calibanzwei]

Also wild camping is illegal in NL and out of sight sites will not be easy to find unless you have had military training.

First comment, fine; second, rubbish - I've camped in the open, as long as it's off the beaten track, set up after dark, leave before it's light and have some light discipline (red filter). No issues and no training

 

[snorri]

Maybe I missed out a smiley there, but many of us need more hours of sleep than there are hours of darkness in summer.

 

[calibanzwei]

lol sure, especially after taking in the local greenary

 

[barnesy]

Things are going well, gonna end up in or near
Middleburg tonight, planning to stay in a hostel in bruge tomorrow, does snybody know if the lf1 takes you inland to Bruges?

From Bruges to Dunkirk, is it far? I'm hoping to do it in a day, again is there anywhere to camp in dunkirk or do you know if it is possible to sleep in the ferry port, like an airport that stays open 24 hours