MTB Route Zeist

The official route near Zeist tends to get enthusiastic reviews on the MTBroutes.nl site, so  when I got the chance to ride it yesterday, I was intrigued to see what it would be like. The reviewers were right!  The creators have really done their best to make it as interesting and challenging as possible within the constraints of the landscape.  It is very twisty, and you really have to do your best and keep concentrating to stay on the path.  If your mind wanders elsewhere you can be sure that your bike will also end up elsewhere as well.  Even though the land is pretty flat, they have still managed to create enough local elevation difference to gives some challenging slopes.  It was very dry, having not rained for a weeks, so on some uphills my bike wheel just spun and I could only walk. And coming down was a constant challenge to focus and keep from slipping over.  It is on the 'Utrechtse Heuvelrug', which is a glacial moraine, which means that it does have some natural slopes, and also that it is a dry sandy forest.  I was having to focus so hard on my steering that I could not spend a lot of time looking at the forest (you cannot have everything), but it was clearly a nice forest, with patches lilly-of-the-valley next to the path and the distinctive shrill call of goldcrests above my head as I went through some pines. The other positive point was that it was not too crowded. There were lots of mountain bikers and other cyclists around when I started, so I feared the worst, but (probably aided by by the one-way recommendation (clockwise)), once on the track I only saw two other groups. It is very different from the more natural trails on the Veluwe, feeling very man-made, but very enjoyable.

MTB route Zeist

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