Day 12, September 4, 2012  Rotterdam to Breda, 52 miles, total mileage: 338.2

We left our hotel at 7:45 on the bike path right out the door.  Once again it is obvious that commuting by bike is part of life in Holland.  So is the water.  We have spent time near or next to the water everyday since our arrival.  Today was no exception.  What was different about today was how many rivers we crossed.

 Rotterdam has its shares of canals and the Nieuwe Maas River.  Some canals merely drain water from the fields, others are home to house and pleasure boats.

 The Nieuwe Maas River is used by barges to move goods.  What is fascinating here is the fact that the huge spans that cross a river of this size have bike lanes.  There were commuters traveling in both directions in the two lanes of the bike path that ran parallel to the regular traffic.

 After crossing the river, we pedaled along until it became necessary to cross the river again.  This time we took a ferry ride across the Lek River to Kinderdijk.

 In Kindedijk there are 19 working windmills.  Not only are all of the windmills in working order, there are different types of windmills. As we pedaled through the Nieuwe Waterschap, it obvious that windmill come in different styles.

 Yes, this is Noah's Ark!  As we saw this huge ship in the distance near the confluence of the Oude Maas River and the Beneden Merwede River it appeared liked an ark, but how could that be?  It is a tourist attraction and we went to investigate but did not go in.

 After we left Dordecht-home of the Ark and other interesting sights-we enter the Biebosch National Park.  As we pedaled, we felt completely removed from civilization.  The bike path wandered about and we enjoyed the ride.

After leaving the park and some farmlands, we had to cross the Hollandsch Diep.  Once again there was a bike lane on both sides of this very large bridge.  As the traffic flew by, we were able to cross this river.

After crossing the Mark Canaal, and pedaling a few miles, we reached Breda.  It is a lovely small city with a mix of modern and antiquity and a mix of people.

Around the corner from our hotel was the central square.  After a walk around, we settled on a restaurant and ate dinner in the square.  A lovely end to a great and varied ride.