Day 14- from Nijmegen to Wanssum

Tuesday, June 1, 2021

60 km, 2 locks

We left Nijmegen under bright sunshine and followed the Rhine for a short distance, speeding along with the current. But shortly after Nijmegen, the current no longer supported us. We left the impressive and wide Rhine in this area and turned south into the Waal-Maas Canal. We continued southward through Venlo to Roermond. Although the Waal-Maas Canal is only 13.5 km long, it reduces the waterway to Belgium by 100 km. Before the construction of the Maas-Waal Canal in 1927, ships traveling from Maastricht to Nijmegen had to take a detour of 100 km. Anyone traveling at less than 10 km/h knows what that means. After about an hour, we landed back on the Maas River.

The Maas River flows through beautiful landscapes in the southern direction, with many green meadows, some wooded areas, and livestock farming along the banks (cattle and sheep). There are several small villages, as well as many campsites and summer houses, all with boat docks. So the canal is well used in the summer. We had actually planned to reach Venlo, but progress upstream was slow, so we decided to stop earlier. According to the map, there is an industrial and sports boat harbor in Wanssum. There was also an available spot, and when we asked if there was something to eat, the answer was, 'Yes, there is a snack bar nearby.' So we went there without knowing what to expect. The entrance to the harbor took us at least a kilometer past a huge concrete factory, which isn't exactly cozy. Then we reached the sports boat harbor, which was nice but quite dead. The spot was good, but there was no harbor master in sight, and the associated café was closed. However, there was an open beauty salon! Michael went there, not to get any beauty treatments but to inquire about food. As I had suspected, the snack bar was closed, according to the friendly lady from the beauty salon. But there was still the Golf and Country club 'Geijsteren' with a restaurant about 2 km away, so that was an option. Since it was already half past six, Michael tried to arrange a taxi, but 'the nearest/only one was in Venlo,' and it would have taken 1.5 hours to arrive. So we decided to walk. Google Maps led us to a fence with a stream behind it, which was great. After a small detour, we arrived at the golf course around 19:00. We got a table with a nice waiter, freshly tapped beer, and very good food. By 20:00, it was closing time - Holland. The taxi driver must have returned from Venlo and picked us up. It cost 20 euros for a 3 km ride because he had to travel 20 km. There's nothing like a good argument. Everything was fine, we had a peaceful night, and we will always remember Wanssum.