Hook of Holland to Amsterdam next spring

The family are going to Amsterdam for a weekend. It occurred to me that I might cycle there. Has anybody done this ride? is it nice? I heard that there is a ride through or near the dunes for th emost part...is thta right? Are theri tulips and windmills? Are the women friendly and do I have to wear SPD cloggs?

 

you cna do it in a day. It's very easy and yes, a lot of it is on proper cycle paths along the coast and through the dunes.

I did it in June. It was part of a sponsored ride so they stretched it out over 2 days. We went around the top of Amsterdam and in from the North.

 

Do you have a copy of th eroute you took? Where did you overnight? Is there a camp site there? or should I book up a windmill?

 

Leave the SPD shoes, helmet, lycra,gloves and goggles at home or all the locals will stare at you shrug their shoulders and mutter about crazy tourists
There are countless route options to choose from between The Hook and Amsterdam, when you get off the ferry ask for directions to the ANWB shop where they will sell you a 1:100.000 (1cm=1KM) map of Zuid Holland, and you can easily devise your own route.

 

The simplest thing to do is to get off the boat, turn left and pedal along the coast until you see a signpost for Amsterdam. The LF1 national cycle route (part of the North Sea cycle route) runs along the coast and you could follow the signs for it (although it does not go to Amsterdam, you would have to turn right at some point such as Zaandam). If you want to plot your own route (e.g. to visit Delft, Leiden, Haarlem or other historic towns ) you can follow the "mushrooms" or the cyclists' red or green signposts (the green routes, where avaialble, are nicer but slightly longer). Both the signposts and the "mushrooms" give directions and distances for cyclists and the "mushrooms" are numbered and shown on cycling maps. If you do buy a cycling map, don't forget the Amsterdam is in Noord Holland province and Hook in Zuid Holland.


A direct route from Hook to Amsterdam (not along the coast but through towns and therefore more difficult to follow) would be about 50 miles, the coastal route would be about 80 or so. There are campsites at most towns along the coast if you need to break your journey and depending on the time of year (spring/early summer is best) there are tulips galore in the Lisse/Noordwijk area.

 

Last went this way about 15 years ago and some of the cycle paths had stretches of cobbles and block paving. You'll be OK on a road bike but I wouldn't go using 23mm tyres or anything like that. Wider the better IMHO.
Best not leave a decent bike on the street in Amsterdam, unless it's insured to the point of windfall. Also, spacecake is not an appropriate mid-ride snack

 

Here's the route. It's a screen grab from SportTracks -I had my Garmin on so have the route saved as a file if you want it and know how to use the TrackLogs software.

This was day 1 (86km)-


...and day 2 (~100km)-


Both days were amazing scenery. Out through the dunes, then inward through the grids of fields with the odd windmill. Day 2 would have been better if it hadn't pelted down all day, but it takes in some great little towns (including Edam) and then a nice long stretch alongside the dyke around the Yselmeer, and then into Amsterdam from the north, approaching on the ferry to the site of Central Station.

We left our bike locked up for two days on a canal bridge in Amsterdam and no-one touched it.

the first night was spent here-



It's a youth hostel. With a moat! Great accommodation, with a good bar in the hostel.

It was an amazing experience and one that I plan to repeat one day.

If you want any more information let me know.

 

Or to save the second day of cycling on Mister Pauls' route, hop on the Flying Ferry at Velsen, it takes you in to Centraal Station Amsterdam for E4.95 +E2.40 for your bike.
http://www.reiziger.connexxion.nl/web/show/provinvie=8/id=66901/contentid=8321

 

excellent info..many thanks. Unfortunately I dont have a gps, but I can use your maps to plan a route on a paper map.

 

You are worrying too much about this.
There is clear signposting, but you can always ask along the way, the natives are friendly and nearly everyone speaks English.

 

Whatever else you do, make sure you try applecake with cream. It's the best apple cake in the world and it makes you cycle twice as fast to the next cake shop.

 

Would that be Appelgebak met Slagroom?

Slagroom being the word for whipped cream. A linguistically ungifted mate of mine thought it meant brothel and couldn't understand why all the cafes had adverts for brothels chalked up on the placards outside.

 

Has anyone any recommendations for the best place to stop off approximately half way to Amsterdam? I realise that the distance is do-able in a day, but we're looking to take a small group on a charity bike ride. Cheers.

 

We stayed in a hostel that looked like an old castle with a moat. It's more than half way there, but we then took a longer route on the final day.

I'll see if I can find out what it's called tonight.

 

Here's the boy-

http://www.stayokay.com/index.php?pageID=3207&hostelID=356045