Dordrecht – West Kappelle

It has to be said that we didn't actually pay for last night's stay in the end. Not really intending that that would happen, but more that it just didn't happen. There was no one in reception when we went to pay, we hadn't had access to any of their facilities because there wasn't anyone in reception last night when we went to pay and we needed access codes to the toilets, etc.....so, yes, we just drove off. Does that make us bad? Will there be police on the look out for us all over the Netherlands? Let's hope not eh.

So, this morning we decided to head off towards Bruges – with the plan that we will be sailing back to Blighty on Friday!!

We set off from Dordrecht (didn't see much of it in the end) and across the Dutch countryside towards the Belgian border.

The kind of countryside we were passing changed quite a bit – if possible I would say it got flatter and more open (it was already very flat), it definitely got more windy (this was being put to good use with all the windmills that we saw), and the land we were travelling over got interrupted a bit more by sea – and so there were bridges and thin strips of land with roads on and the like.

We stopped for lunch by the side of an inlet we were passing – it was an attractive looking place, although it was nowhere in particular. Also nowhere in particular was the small town we stopped in for a brief walk about, and, I suppose, the place we finally stayed the night in.

After a small detour to see the product of the largest sea protection project in the world (the Delta project), which wasn't really worth it (I mean – it's a big barrage, cool, but ultimately not so much to see really!), we decided not to push on to Bruges tonight but to stop by the seaside!

We ended up in a nice campsite at a place called West Kappelle, right by the seaside on – apparently – the most beautiful bit of coastline in Holland.

We went out for a run to check it out, and I have to say that it does definitely score highly in my list of most scenic places I have ever run. Sand dunes, sea views, sea walls, lighthouse, stunning sandy beach............ lovely. Jon wasn't finding it so lovely mind, but that's because I threw in a few hill sprints up and down the sea defence wall that ran around the 'corner' of the the bit of coast we were on. :) It's good for us. Apparently.

Had something healthy for dinner and no beer (or wine or other alcohol) in an attempt to redeem ourselves (hopeless cause really), and that was it. Nice.