GRAVEL BIKERS CAN ENJOY THEMSELVES IN WEST ZEELAND FLANDERS
With the cycling club or friends a ride on the road bike through the polders and villages, along meadows and fields, over dikes and along the coast with the most beautiful views over the Westerschelde. With, of course, a stop at one of the cozy cafes.
But recently, thanks to Gastvrij Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, you can also go there with your gravel bike! You have the roads almost to yourself and there is plenty of room to clear your head. The routes take you to the quietest spots of the vast West Zeeuws-Vlaanderen polder landscape, through picturesque villages and along historic fortified dikes. You cycle along country roads, cobblestone lanes and gravel paths. A kind of Paris-Roubaix and Strade Bianche experience in one! There are three routes:
1. A salty gravel adventure. This route gives you a 114 km adventure along the beautiful coastline of West Zeeuws-Vlaanderen and the quiet hinterland. West Zeeuws-Vlaanderen at its best from the Zwin to the Braakman.
2. Boundless graveling. During this relatively tough 97 km ride, you push your limits both literally and figuratively, continuously flirting with the Belgian border and even having to operate a ferry.
3. Paris-Roubaix of the Zeeland country. Lover of cobblestone lanes? Get your heart racing during this 89 km long spirited ride over the West Zeeuws-Vlaanderen cobblestones with often the wind as your main opponent.
All info on the routes with GPX-tracks and accommodations can be found on www.gastvrijzeeuwsvlaanderen.nl/gravelroutes.
Text: Rens Klaasse
Photos: © Ganna Creative Agency-Stijn Pappot
