Nijmegen Vierdaagse
Days Two and Three

Day 2 is known as the Day of Wijchen. On the official website the route description is "experienced as heavy and dull by many." This did not energize me. My foot was so painful from the blisters that I had difficulty hobbling to the bathroom. My joints and muscles felt great – no stiffness, no problems. I had fulfilled my first goal – to finish one day of walking. My other goals for the trip were to represent the Discovery Walk Festival at the meetings on Friday and Saturday, and to report on the event for you on this website. I decided that walking would mean I couldn’t complete the rest of my goals, as I would be crippled up from massive blisters.

And so I joined the statistics on the Barometer - the prominent sign that lists how many drop out each day.  The first day drop-outs like me were 1467. 

The sky also looked threatening. I waved goodbye to the Austrian and Canadian delegates who were at the hotel. Instead, I went shopping for a blouse and sandals to wear to the more formal events and toured through the downtown.

Tables and chairs lined all of the pavement, awaiting the eating and drinking throngs to come in the evening. They also got plenty of customers this day as the walkers passed through in the afternoon, cheered by the onlookers who enjoyed a Heineken. Nijmegen gets 1 million visitors during the Vierdaagse – to watch the walkers and to enjoy the Zomerfeesten (Summer Festival).

I happened to find the store where the on-route photos were posted from the first day. I remembered the number they flashed as I went by and found three photos I was in. Naturally, I ordered a 5x7 to be mailed to me!

The Vierdaagse website lists that on Day 2 there were 1404 treatments by their Red Cross workers and 1194 more did not start on Day 3.

Day 3

The Day of Groesbeek promised the most scenic route. I could walk much better today and at the suggestion of a KNBLO official, I decided to join in for the final 10K of the route. This is the Zevenhuegelenweg – the Seven Hills Way. Nijmegen is built on some rolling hills.

Groesbeek is the final checkpoint for the walk, and I got off the bus there at 11 am. All of the different distances come together here. My Canadian friend reported that the 30K route was pretty dull until Groesbeek, since it diverged early from the 40K and 50K routes, and so had no vendors or cheering crowds.  At the checkpoint, workers punch the card for each walker passing by. 

In Goesbeek, the hospitality as out in force. NUON, the local power company, had waterboys out filling waterbottles from their backpacks. Children and adults along the route offered sliced cucumber, candies, marshmallows, and cups of water to the passing walkers. This generosity was genuine, nobody was seeking coins or stickers.

The hills were relieving – they weren’t especially long or steep, but worked a different set of muscles and area of the feet from the flat walking. Again I used the British military area for a pit stop.

We arrived in 5K to the town of Berg en Dal, and crowds lined the way and bands played for the walkers. I bought a hotdog at a stand for lunch. On the way into Nijmegen we passed the campgrounds for civilians.

Before I knew it, I was back at the Julianaplein and the finish. I noted the finish procedure for the day – you hand in your start card and your barcode card, and they scan it with a handheld scanner. I also noted that at the International Marching League booth they were stamping IML Passports as well as souvenir wandelbooks.

I had enjoyed my short walk – as long as I usually walk! And I headed back to my hotel as a cold breeze came up, making me buy a Vierdaagse sweatshirt at a reasonable price.  The Vierdaagse website tells about the traditional ceremonies today at the Canadian military cemetery, visited by the military route.

Continue:
First Day: the Day of Elst
Final Day - the Via Gladiola
About the Vierdaagse
Registration, Lodging, Travel

Net Links:

Vierdaagse Official Site
Gemeente Nijmegen: the City of Nijmegen site
Europe for Visitors at About.com
International Marching League Events
International Walking Event Net Links

Photos © Wendy Bumgardner.
Full Disclosure: Wendy Bumgardner attended the event as an IML delegate, with some expenses paid by the hosting organization.