42km on the bike, up and down the island

Oh, we are such cruel parents. (Somewhat inadvertently) we made our two oldest cycle almost 42 km on this particular day (they were only 11 and 8!).

The first stretch of the outing was a mere 3km to Kaap Skil, a coastal museum in Oudeschild, on the east coast of Texel. From there, a cycle path runs the entire length of the island, on the top of the sea dijk (more fabulous Dutch water management!) and I thought that would be a lovely ride to take up to the lighthouse at the northerly tip. (The photo here shows Amber and Robyn, cycling along said path).

Upon reaching the lighthouse, we enjoyed a cup of tea/cake/hot chocolate, flew the kite on the beach, gasped at the mudflats in low tide (going for what seemed like miles - they are a UNESCO world heritage site due to the unique value of the nature there!) and the huge sky. We then cycled back on the cycle path through the dunes and farmland.

It was only when we were out for dinner (and the girls seemed particularly tired) that we totted up the distance we had ridden. It had all seemed quite easy at the time, particularly aided by the fact that almost the entire journey was done on cycle path.