The Netherlands: Zuid-Kennemerland hiking and Haarlem biking

This is Part 2 of 2 of my mini-mini-travelogue from Europe last month.  Check out the link to Part 1 of my story.

Stories and photos from other recent overseas trips and hiking/mountain climbing adventures are on the way!

Setting off from Haarlem on my bicycle to Zuid-Kennemerland last month. #travel

A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on May 19, 2015 at 5:20pm PDT

From my new Instagram page: Bicycling from Haarlem to Zuid-Kennemerland, the nature reserve suggested by my Twitter friends Martijn and Antonette from we12travel travel/outdoor adventure blog.

The title of last month's on-location post (drafted on the plane ride over the ocean and uploaded in the  Amsterdam airport), The Netherlands: Bicycling to Haarlem, was a bit off the mark.  Turns out that "Bicycling FROM Haarlem" would've been more accurate.  Chalk that up to optimism and an unrealistically ambitious itinerary.

The bicycle rental didn't actually happen until Haarlem, where I began my ride.  This was because back in Amsterdam, a couple of delays had forced me to tweak my plans to maximize my daylight.  And nothing would deter me from bicycling to my destination: Nationaal Park de Zuid-Kennemerland.



To make up for lost time, I hopped a train from Amsterdam to Haarlem instead.  This quick European daytrip would be over before I knew it.

Jetlagged train ride from Amsterdam to Haarlem (I changed my mind after telling a friend I wouldn't share this photo-- You know who you are!)

Haarlem train station, inside and out

It didn't take long to spot a bicycle rental shop near the Haarlem train station.  Friendly owner Mustafo only spoke about 20 words of English, but he helpfully walked me through the quirks of his of his prized storefront model.

Mustafo draws up the paperwork

Navigating my bicycle across town to check in at the hostel was pretty easy once I got my bearings.  Learning to keep that fixed gear bike stable while balancing a luggage bag on my back... well, that wasn't exactly among my most graceful moments.

A new set of wheels

Two-wheeled rush hour traffic in Haarlem

The Gravestenbrug over the River Spaarne

The Corrie ten Boom Museum

Vine video of the Gravestenbrug:  Snipe the "unmute" button above to hear the sound of those church bells ringing out over the River Spaarne

The clean and stylish Local Botique Hostel was still, for a few more hours, a ghost town when I rode up and parked my bicycle.  There was already a full house booked for that night, but I had checked in too early in the day to round up new friends (my typical routine when I arrive at an overseas hostel) for the day's adventure.

The Local Botique Hostel-  Love the friendly staff!

After dropping off my bag in my dorm room, I climbed back onto my bicycle for the ride out of town.  Some residential navigation was necessary to locate the highway.  Curse those confusing roundabouts!



Once on the highway, the route to Nationaal Park de Zuid-Kennemerland was an easy ride.  And as Anto had told me the day before, the park itself was wonderful.  The wild animals were out playing, though I missed the "Scottish cattle with the big horns" that she said I should've been watching out for.

From my new Instagram:

Beautiful Dutch #hiking. The Netherlands could use a few more hills, though. #travel

A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on Apr 18, 2015 at 6:56pm PDT

The Netherlands- Bicycling to the shoreline of Oosterplas last month

A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on May 18, 2015 at 12:13am PDT

Alarmingly, time quickly got away from me.  I'd been frequently hopping off my bicycle to hike trails that were too rough for my tires.  All of that extra hiking time added up, and I found myself at the far end of Kennemerland park with less than an hour before the bike rental shop closed.

I raced down the highway, back to Haarlem, and returned my rental bicycle just as Mustafo was closing up shop at the dinner hour.  We bid each other "vaarwel" as I walked outside to continue my sightseeing on foot.

Later that evening, I met some friends who were in town at Tapas Bar El Pincho to wind down for the day.  The staff was kind enough to let us enjoy their cushy, open-air patio seating until long after the sun went down.

**********

The following morning's sunrise was beautiful as I checked out of the Local Boutique Hostel.  I took time to enjoy the quiet walk back to the Haarlem train station.  For once, there would be no rushing to catch my mid-morning plane back to the States.

Yesterday's morning run from @helloimlocal Boutique Hostel to catch the train. #travel

A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on Apr 19, 2015 at 7:12pm PDT

Back at the Amsterdam airport, a single Business Elite seat remained open for the flight home to Portland.  I was flying standby.  Despite a couple of extraordinary circumstances that should've sent me to the back of the plane (but hopefully not stranded in Europe), I was awarded that seat up front.

Variations of "You're extremely lucky" were echoed by several of the flight attendants and one of the gate agents as I was assigned my seat.

Alternately, the head purser serving my side of the cabin walked past my seat and whispered, "It's a miracle,"


I prefer to think that it was the latter.

Beginning next weekend on Garth's Blog...

Recent hikes in the U.S. and abroad...

Visiting family and climbing in Bend this weekend...

...And last month's climbs on Mount Hood!

The Netherlands: Bicycling to Haarlem

Updated pic from Haarlem this morning; I ended up bicycling FROM Haarlem instead

Seoul, South Korea was once again the goal for this overseas day trip (our kids had been out of town for a couple days). Had the Seoul flights been too full to fly standby on like last month--and they were-- the alternate plan was to visit a few friends in Singapore for the day.

But prior to yesterday morning, I hadn't even CONSIDERED coming back here to the Netherlands again until sometime next month. Yet here I am.

Plan C it is, and I'm solo on this one. My Dutch friends are currently scattered around visiting the coast, the U.K., and Germany. And a couple of my Twitter friends in Arnhem have work/travel schedules that keep them hopping.

Business Elite cabin view of the Netherlands this morning

If it's convenient to rent a bicycle here in Amsterdam, I'll soon be on my way to Haarlem to drop off my backpack at a hostel. From there, I'll ride to Nationaal Park de Zuid-Kennemerland in search of a bike lock and some hiking trails.

My new ride. #netherlands #travel

A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on Apr 17, 2015 at 2:50pm PDT

4/20- Thought I'd drop a pic from my new Instagram page that I created last week, too.

Thanks to Martijn and Antonette from the we12travel outdoor adventure blog (link also on the sidebar of Garth's Blog) for the suggestion for today's upcoming adventure!  I'll add links and maybe another photo or two to this post when I'm not limited to mobile phone blogging. [4/18- Links and pics added]

I plan to continue today's story from the Netherlands before featuring other recent travel/outdoor adventure outings on Garth's Blog.  But either way...

...More to come, when I get back to the States!

Run - Hike - Climb

Back in my giant beard days (last month, that is): Taking Lena and our newborn Levi on the first hike of his life; More on that in the coming weeks!

The post below is yet another share from my other blog, originally drafted as a response to the U.S.A. athletes competing at the Winter Olympics in Sochi.

But no more stalling, and no more slacking...  An original "Garth's Blog" post is finally coming here on Wednesday: A play-by-play of baby Levi's birth!

Barely 30 total miles in January. Pathetic. Recording my hiking and running miles via my preferred GPS sports tracker app last month was quite an eye opener for me. Seems I cover a fraction of the miles that I used to.

Granted, January was anything but typical. A typical month would have fewer missed hiking opportunities due to wimping out in the face of nasty weather. And then there was the minor, itsy bitsy issue of taking a couple weeks off to have a baby boy.

But it's clear that I'll need to step up my game if I'm gonna train this year, as planned, to:

• climb a couple of the Pacific Northwest's highest peaks
• run that marathon relay race with our team in Cincinnati (and maybe a mud run or two?)
• get back in shape for my TV commercial/photo shoots
• carry Lena and Levi on some backpacking trips, and do more hikes with our students
• outperform and outlast my former self on the wake board, surfboard, snow skis, bicycle, kayak, and whatever else I can find the time to ride

So much training to do, so few calories to work with. At least, after my raging metabolism has its way with those calories.  Plus, there's always the matter of hitting the free weights harder to add a bit more meat to this embarrassingly lean body frame.





But all of this is secondary to what is really important-- prioritizing time with my family, as well serving the needs of the wonderful people whom God has placed in our church and my life. I could definitely stand to spend more time training for both. Couldn't we all?


24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Tokyo Drifting 3: Fleeing Sumida

CameraZOOM-20120612123724889_orig_1_Salomon.jpg, a photo by gkhamilton on Flickr.

The Tokyo tokkyū limited express train is a splurge. Good thing I’m made out of Yen, right?


At last… I present the breathless (for me, anyway) final hours of last month’s quick trip to Tokyo. Will this live up to the melodramatic teaser ending from my previous Tokyo Drifting 2: Senso-ji Temple post? Let’s pretend it will.



A friend from the journey recommended that I seek a peaceful contrast to my previous evening of Tokyo nightlife craziness. Sumida Park fit the bill.

In about four hours, my flight home to Portland would depart from Narita airport. Being mindful of the time, I followed up my tour of Senso-ji Temple with a walk down to the Sumida River. The nature park that stretched alongside the river banks would be a relaxing place to unwind before beginning my train connections to the airport.



A young Japanese gal rode up to me on her bicycle as I gazed at the flowers growing along the footpaths of Sumida Park. She must have assumed I was interested in the bike-friendly aspects of the area. We walked over to the specialized bicycle tire grooves carved into the stairway of a nearby underpass, and she enthusiastically demonstrated for me the ways of a seasoned recreational bicycler.


At some point, it finally dawned on me how long I had been standing there, struggling to understand her. In less than 10 minutes, my train was scheduled to depart from Asakusa Station. The problem: Ever since I left my capsule/hostel that morning, I had been walking AWAY from the direction of the train station.

I abruptly excused myself and began to run as though my life (or at least my job back home at Delta Airlines) depended on it. The beautiful scenery of the park blurred past as I frantically sprinted through it for several minutes. No way would I catch that train.



I leaped down the stairs of Asakusa station, clutching my small backpack and gasping for air. There was still time to catch a number of local trains to my next stop, but I had blown my connections to Narita airport. Painfully resisting my budget backpacker traveling sensibilities, I slapped down the big Yen at the kippu jidō hanbaiki kiosk to purchase a premium express train ticket, direct to Narita Airport.

The tokkyū limited express train [photo at top] sped to Narita Airport in just under an hour, which put me back on schedule.


My friend Kevin, flying home on standby from the Philippines, was waiting at the airport gate when I checked in for the nearly full flight. His boarding priority dwarfed mine. Despite shrewdly (or foolishly) using one of my S-3 low priority seating requests I was assigned one of the last seats in the Business Elite cabin before the flight doors closed, with Kevin and I onboard.

After nearly 3 days overseas with virtually no sleep, I flew home from Tokyo in Delta's Business Elite cabin. Somehow the traditional Japanese meal course that I ordered on the flight home managed to be even better (Fresher ingredients from Japan? More irradiated?) than the one I ate on the flight over to Tokyo.

With a belly full of French caviar, crab, scallop quenelle, grilled chicken, cod roe, wasabi tofu, and marinated tuna… I slept.


Bonus pic:
On Kathy's birthday, Lena plays with the Japanese toy I bought for her in Tokyo’s Nakamise-dori street fair. I hope that Lena will come along with me for my next visit to Asia this year.


Lena can pick out her own souvenir toy next time!