A ride to Luxembourg

• Part 1: 30.78 km, 432m, 1:26, 85 shifts
• Part 2: 73.08 km, 676m, 3:13, 126 shifts

Today we wanted a bigger training ride so Wytze worked out a loop that went to Luxembourg. After a relaxed breakfast we took off and rode south. We got to the border at 28 km, and as soon as we started seeing houses and buildings noticed how much more upscale everything looked.

After riding through Luxembourg for a little while we got onto a rail trail, that we would end up taking a long way. It was scenic and there were tons of cyclists. We crossed back into Belgium, then later the bike path veered into Germany for just a minute and my phone said “Welcome to Germany” briefly.

We stopped in the town of St. Vith, another famous Battle of the Bulge site. We had lunch at a bakery, then continued along the rail trail. They speak German in St. Vith, vs French in all the nearby towns we had visited. Eventually we made it to Malmedy, then Stavelot. We turned off and headed up the hill, with a brief steep section, finishing up the ride before 5 pm. Instead of a shower, Wytze and I soaked in the cool hot tub eating grapes – very nice.

We had a few projects to do before leaving. I was assigned to build a set of shelves so Wytze would have a place to store his beers. There was chain-sawing of firewood too. Then we set out for Holland. We had dinner in Stavelot at a great outdoor Italian restaurant. I had the best ever smoked salmon pizza and another special local beer.

It was after 8 pm when we finally left and we didn’t make it home until after 11 pm. I slept most of the way. My body feels fine and I think I’m ready for the “heavier” riding to come, starting in three days.