Gone cycling to Meerdaalwoud with Laura

From now on I will rather call it "Gone walking and cycling". With the weather holding I have spent a lot of time on the bike or walking and neglected posting here formidably.
My granddaughter Laura phoned me on a sunday just after noon to ask me to go cycling with her. Her parents are not cyclists at all and this child loves it. It was not convenient for me to go just then, call it lazy, but the time slot in the day was badly chosen.
By Monday I felt really guilty and decided to go cycling with her on wednesday. School is out by 12 and then we have time enough.
Alex and Eliza were not allowed to go with, because they had to go to the logopedics and we might not be back by then.
Going from my home to them is not that far, it looks far and feels far with a false flat route cycling there, but then I have a false downhill when I come back. Apparently it's only 5km one way, but I can swear it's more though. I see it as a good excersize for my legs, next week I'm back in the mountains and need it after a cold winter which I spent mostly indoors.
Laura is a great cyclist and being only the two of us, we did quite a route in Meerdaalwoud. My son and his family live between two big forests, Heverleebos and Meerdaalwoud, what a choise!
The woods were quite dry, I was looking for anemones but didn't find any.

After winter, spring seems to like starting with a splash of colour, specially a warm colour like yellow.

Gone walking (Abdij van Park)

A bleak day like you only get these dark, overcast days in Belgium. It didn't rain.
The intention today was to walk to the Abbey and from there to my son Michael's house which he renovates, a good intention.
Today I chose to go through the cemetary as I wanted to look at a grave. With the trees trimmed it looked quite dreary. Today there were not any special birds to be seen either.

What a sad grave.

Then my way goes over a cycle and pedestrian bridge over the railway lines.

Brugstraat or Bridge street, I wonder why?

Entrance to the gardens between two houses, but I wonder who the room above it belongs to. The curtain is closed on exactly the split between the houses.

The way I'm going to the Abbey today I have to cross another pedestrian bridge, all just to walk a bit further.

The Abbey from the bridge. Even though it's such a dark day, it's not cold and just look how green the grass already is. Again I'm wearing too much clothes. Everytime I start I feel a bit cold, but soon after leaving I realise the folley of too much clothing. Before leaving I weighed my backpack and it was not too heavy, about 3 kg with my binoculars and camera. No water or any drinks, I'm not going that far.

Everywhere the signs of spring can be seen, the first wild flowers. Mostly they are the small ones close to the ground. This year I especially enjoy to see spring coming. Never before it was such a great comfort to have a sunny day or see the new flowers or the young green leaves. The first leaves on the trees have such a tender green, making the world look so fresh.
Some type of witch hazel.

Then my battery of my camera died, not very clever of me to leave without loaded batteries.
Birding was good and I saw all the ducks and geese which is normally there, heard some of the birds like chaffinch singing already on the top of their lungs.
When I reached the part where they bred fish years ago and which is overgrown now, I saw a few birds fall into the shrubs. I could not make out which they were. I was sure it's not the birds I normally see around the Abbey. At first my mind went out to Common redpoll Carduelis flammea, but at home according to my book it was the Linnet Carduelis cannabina.
My walk was cut short by this bird, I was too curious to see what it was and returned home. Just before I left the Abbey I heard it singing and then saw the Black redstart Phoenicurus ochruros. That was a first for this season!

Gone Walking (Leuven to Wilsele-Putkapel

I sit too much.
Since my son finished the Dodentocht (Deathmarch) without practising for it, there has been this idea in my head to at least try it and next year when I turn 60 I think it is a perfect age to do it. With two young children and work and just all day life keeping him too busy he never got round to practice and he did it! He had only one minor blister on his foot.
The Dodentocht is 100 km and you have to finish in min. 10 hours and max. 24 hours.
So, I started my first practice walk. It was something between 5 and 8 km. I consulted various internet maps and they all give a different distance! This started out well!
If it was 5km, I did have to retrace my route at some point so in the end it can be 8 km. For a starting walk, I’ll say I did 8km.
Even though it was quite cold, maybe 2°C or less, walking in the sun was very warm and I had to sweat a lot, which is not the right way to go about it. Too much clothes, too much baggage I dragged along for in my backpack I had my camera, cookies, purse, mittens etc.
Then my shoes! I really need shoes specially for walking. This distance was exactly far enough for me to see what I need.
When I finally reached my daughter’s house the first thing I did was taking my shoes off. My feet felt quite battered and that at such a minimal distance.
I left home at 14:39 and reached my daughter at 16:10 and only stopped for about 30 min to make photos. Maybe if I really want to walk I must not take my camera with and concentrate on walking.

This is so a sign of spring coming.

Just imagine how pleasant it must be living here, far from the city noise.

No notes anymore, just take a pic of a name and it is even in sequence with the other photos you make.

Remy, when I see this tower I know it's not far to my daughter, the last curve.

I can't walk by the reeds and not take a pic.


In the distance I saw someone standing :)