Where I'm walking this week: Alkmaar - Bergen - Duinen

The starting point for my walk today was Alkmaar, a quaint city about 45 minutes north of Amsterdam most known for its cheese market, which I apparently missed by only an hour. Bad timing! Or maybe it it's better that way, otherwise I would have been weighed down with a kilo or two of cheese for the rest of my walk.

I started out in the touristic center and was eager to make my way out of the city and away from the busyness. Once outside Alkmaar, I walked through pastureland to a village to the north called Bergen. I saw approximately 500 lovely houses that I wouldn't mind living in, if only they were in Amsterdam instead of Bergen.

After Bergen I walked through the Bergerbos (Berger Forest), which transitioned into sand dunes, and eventually, the beach along the shores of the North Sea. Again, I hardly came across a single other walker and the dunes were particularly desolate. I poured out a quarter cup of sand from each shoe once I made it through that area. Now, I admittedly have horrible navigational skills but I thought the whole area was poorly marked. Today was the first time I walked with my new iPhone and if it weren't for Google maps I'd probably still be wandering around in the dunes. I am happy to have the option of using Google maps now, but I also hate spending more time looking at my phone than at my surroundings.

Final Destination

Once again, this walk ended up being shorter than planned and I was only able to squeeze in 9 miles in the time that I had. I walked an additional 3.5 miles this morning though, while walking the course for the upcoming Mom in Balance Run for Pink Ribbon. I think next week I will stay close to home again so I can get a long walk in without losing time traveling.

This week's walk: 

Distance: 9.3 miles (15km) + 3.5 miles (6km)
Time: 2 hours 30 minutes (first walk of the day wasn't timed)
Weeks Left: 6
Amount Left to Raise: $478