Yesterday evening saw the passing of an enormously active thunderstorm in our regions. It turned pitch black around 6pm and then it rained with an intensity like I have never seen before. It was impossible to see further than 50 yards due to the heavy rain, which was swept along by fierce bursts of wind. At a pop festival in Kiewit, near Hasselt, 5 people died because one of the big tents collapsed due to this storm.
Today I rode out and it immediately became clear that the damage was enormous. Broken branches, fallen trees, lots of 'stuff' on the bikepaths and on the roads. In the lower areas the roads had been flooded by sand and mud. In Leefdaal I had to turn around because the fire brigade was still cleaning the road. I rode out at a leisurely pace, not expecting to do more than 40 or 50K.
But it turned out to be one of those rides where I just added more loops as I rode along. Starting over Heverlee, Egenhoven and then making my way into Leefdaal, where I had to turn around and follow another road to arrive in Neerijse. Here I followed the Sint Jan Bergsteenweg until I reached Huldenberg. Taking a little loop over Eizer I made my way into Hoeilaart. From Hoeilaart I rode towards Maleizen and Rosieres, and then through Tombeek towards Wavre. From the Ottenburg plains into Basse Wavre and then to Dion Le Mont and Gistoux. From Gistoux I climbed up towards Longueville and then down through Heze and Grez. From Grez I rode to Bossut and Hamme Mille. Another loop to finish off the ride took me to Nethen, Sint Joris Weert and Sint Agatha Rode. The river Dyle was almost filled to the point of overflowing. Some big trees had fallen into the river. Back to Sint Joris Weert and then to the Zoete Waters. Here also the ponds were filled to the brim and some big trees had toppled into the water by the force of the water and wind. After 4 hours of riding I was pleased to see 3 digits on my kilometer counter.

Endomondo track


Ride Stats : 101K and 765/805 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 4h01mins

8264/71810