Sabbatical Day 19 – Ommen to Hellendoorn (21k)

Sunday, May 19, 2024
Today we have a 21k walk to Hellendoorn. This rhythm is becoming normal to us by now. We’ve developed a routine for each stage of the day. One change to our previous pattern is not going to church. There is thankfully no guilt for this; rather there is a release. Besides not understanding it, if I was sitting in church I would be comparing, contrasting and considering the hows and whys and — my head would kick back into work-mode. For us today, this is a gift day, our own kind of Pentecost, where we can experience the freeing presence of the Spirit of God as we walk with Jesus through this place.

The first gift of the day is the ride by our host back to our starting point. We’d rather not walk the extra 2k. The town of Ommen is quiet after an evening of revelry (the weekends of Ascension Day and Pentecost are holiday weekends here. It is 8:45am and we are among the few that are awake this early in the morning.
Today there are more hills. On top of the first small slope there is a tower. Valerie is wise not to waste her strength on climbing the tower, but something in me cannot pass this up. At least I took off my backpack before going up. From up there I see… trees, fields, barns, a few steeples, gentle sloping hills… Pretty much what we see down here too.
The hills are not mountains, but they still take effort, especially with our packs. The rough and rutted paths also make our stepping more challenging, and our sensitive feet feel every twist and turn. The angled slope stretches our muscles differently, and our feet start to ache. You have to pay attention to where you are going, or like me – staring at the landscape – you turn and trip on a tree stump and feel the muscle pull in your back. Ouch, this calls for a muscle relaxant pill.
At the top of the highest hill, we talk with a hiker. Turns out he has family in Schoonloo where we stayed, who owned a bed and breakfast. Turns out the lady we stayed with is his cousin. Bingo!
Most businesses are closed for today. In Lemeleberg we find a restaurant patio that beckons us because they are closed – their day of rest becomes our opportunity to rest comfortably. One step up from a bench, and two steps up from a log.
At the halfway point we find an indicator that we have only 305km to go!
There are a lot of cyclists today. One family walked behind us, though their kids biked far ahead of them, and usually just ahead of us. Crossing roads, train tracks, canals, we wondered that the parents were so free to be so far from their kids. We met some Pieterpaders who were duly impressed that we were hiking the whole Pieterpad with our kids… Those are not our kids!
It has been another beautiful day, and as usual we are ready to be there – our feet, legs and backs are tired. The sign to Hellendoorn is a welcome one. Our BnB is right on the route! Our plans to get groceries at Albert Heijn is thwarted – they never close, except on holiday weekends. There is a restaurant open, and we get there just in time to be sheltered from a heavy 50 minute downpour of rain. Rain is OK, so long as it comes after our walking.
Today we walk a total of 22k. We look forward to a few shorter walks in the coming week.