Tuesday. 25th. June. Vinkeveen to Schiphol return. 64km.

We went to the airport to make sure that they had plenty of bike boxes in stock (they do), and also to confirm check-in arrangements. We would be in all kinds of trouble if we were to arrive at the airport and find that there were no bike boxes available. We had to cross a canal by self-powered pontoon on our ride.

Monday. 24th. June. Utrecht to Vinkeveen. 40km.

It was a very pleasant, short ride through some lovely suburbs and expensive-looking homes. We went past the floating brothels again - they didn't look very busy. We are now just outside Amsterdam, and only 30km from Schiphol Airport. Stayed at Hotel Plashoeve.

Route: Utrecht - Maarsen - Baambrugge - Vinkeveen.

Sunday. 23rd. June. Wijk bij Duurstede to Utrecht. 44km.

Another lovely ride. We are feeling a little sad that our big three month ride is nearly over. We got a bit lost in central Utrecht, which is a really charming city. It's a bit like Amsterdam, but cleaner, less crowded and much more greenery. Stayed at Holiday Inn Express - very nice.

Route: Wijk bij Duurstede - Zeist - Utrecht.

Saturday. 22nd. June. Arnhem to Wijk bij Duurstede. 60km.

As we left Arnhem, we came across literally hundreds of cyclists on racing bikes, who seemed to be in some kind of death-defying race on a circuit which included part of our track. We were pleased to eventually part company with them. It was very windy today, which didn't bother us while we were riding through the forests, but the last 10km of our ride were into a 35kph headwind - really tough. Stayed at De Gouden Leeuw - nice.

Route: Arnhem - Oosterbeek - Heelsum - Rhenen - Amerongen - Wijk bij Duurstede.

Friday. 21st. June. Kerhum to Arnhem. 64km.

Windy today, sometimes in our favour and sometimes not. It was nice to be already familiar with the Dutch checkpoint number system. It's really easy to find your way. The Dutch people are as cheerful and friendly as always.

The Sonsbeek park in Arnhem is superb. We stayed at Antonius Bed & Breakfast - excellent.

Route: Kerhum - Appeldorn - Honnepel - Grieth - Duffelward - Millingen - Huissen - Arnhem.

Thursday. 20th. June. Orsay to Kehrum. 49km.

Tomorrow is the summer solstice in Europe, and tody we seemed to be riding through low-lying clouds for most of the time. I think that it was about 23 centigrade today, and it will be the same tomorrow, when we continue down the Rhine and into Holland. Our maps are a little out of date, because of the upgrades to the routes, so we had to rely a little on our smartphone to find our way to our hotel. We were delighted to find cycle paths alongside even the smallest back roads. Stayed at Landhaus Beckmann - very nice.

Route: Orsay - Rheinberg - Buderich - Xanten - Vynen - Marienbaum - Kehrum.

Wednesday. 19th. June. Dusseldorf to Orsay. 57km.

It was about 34 centigrade and humid today, and for once we didn't mind the minor northerly headwind as it helped to cool us off. The route today took us through Duisburg, which has a lot of industrial areas, so not so pretty, but still interesting. There were a few places where the cycle route signs were either missing or incorrectly placed, but we have become quite good at spotting anomalies straight away. We have found the German people to be very friendly and helpful.

Route: Dusseldorf - Wittlaer - Huttenheim - Duisburg - Baerl - Orsoy.

Tuesday 18th. June. Cologne to Dusseldorf. 57km.

DUSSELDORF IS QUITE A MODERN CITY.

What a difference in the weather! In the 2 weeks we've taken off in Vienna and Cologne the days have suddenly warmed up. We've had two and a half months of pleasantly cool weather, and today it was sunny and very warm, which meant that we had to ride a little slower than usual.

Before we left Cologne we went for another walk across the main bridge to look at all the "sweetheart" locks left on the railing.

The ride to Dusseldorf was pretty in places with some nice shady lanes, but not as picturesque as upriver from Cologne. Stayed at Hotel an der Oper, Dusseldorf. Very nice.

Route: Cologne - Merkenich - Leverkusen - Monheim - Himmelgeist - Dusseldorf.

Friday. 14th. June. Cologne.

We have enjoyed exploring Cologne and surrounds. Went to a lunchtime concert by the Cologne Philharmonic Orchestra, and today cycled a 105 km return trip to Konigswinter (via Bonn), where the "castle alley" starts. The Rhine really is a beautiful river.

On our ride, I saw a 40 year old Mercedes 4-5 truck (in mint condition), similar to the ones we used to have in the army. So many of them were destroyed by landmines, such a waste of excellent engineering.

We came across a lovely field of poppies just outside of Bonn. There seems to be almost a carnival atmosphere in Cologne at the moment, maybe because the floods have receded and the sunny weather has returned.

Wednesday 12th. June. Cologne.

Cologne is not as majestic as Vienna, but it has a very nice feel about it. There are lots of young people and tourists around, and everybody seems to be cheerful. The Dom Cathedral is like a mountain when you get close up. I think it is the largest Cathedral in Europe, and I'm told that is was the only building left standing in the area after the bombing raids in 1945. We did a short ride up the north side of the Rhine, but are planning to do a big ride up the south bank on Friday.

The area west of the Dom is a lovely maze of pedestrian malls leading to the Belgian Quarter - very nice.