City-suburb-rural, a full day loop (Day 19 Netherlands)

Our local plan-gineer, Ronald, took us on a bike tour that started in Utrecht, went out to the suburb-built-with-bikes-in-mind of Houten, still farther out into the rural lands to swim in a lake, and back to Utrecht. All in all, I biked somewhere between 31-33 miles. Famous Dutch pancakes awaited us at Theehuis Rhynauwen Pannekoeken closer to the city on the way back.
What I noticed most on this day-long tour was how easy it was to bike so far without needing to pedal fast. (That and the one time we shared the road with a giant construction truck of some kind on a stretch with very little wiggle room.) We very rarely stopped due to network design elements (such as traffic lights). Now and then we'd come upon a road intersection where we needed to yield, but that happened less as we exited the urban areas.
I don't know that I'd necessarily pedal myself out to the lake for a swim if I lived in Utrecht, but I might go if a couple of friends came along too.

Ah, the pancake. I went with the most dessert pancake possible. Pancake with raisins, apple rings, and Grand Marnier cooked in, then topped with toasted almond shavings powdered with sugar and a lil' bit of cookie dough ice cream itself topped with whipped cream. The other pancakes in this pic are a half apple/half bacon option and a mushrooms with cheese option. The empty plate was a classic plain pancake with butter.
Next up: The travel triumvirate 

Random pic of the day: This goat dutifully clipping the grass short but not putting in too much effort.

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