Cycling in Gouda
Around Gouda the Groene Hart is at its widest: meadows, ditches, lakes and low dykes, with little in the way of gradient and a great deal of sky. This is cycling where you can see a long way.
Six routes run through Gouda. They follow the Reeuwijk lakes just northeast of the city and pass through the tree nurseries around Boskoop, where the landscape suddenly turns dense and green. To the south lies the Krimpenerwaard, with its pastures and ribbons of farmhouses. One route links Gouda with the silver town of Schoonhoven, another follows the Rottemeren, and a third comes in from Alphen aan den Rijn.
What stands out is that nearly all of them run through the centre of Gouda itself. So you ride not only through open country but past the old town, which makes a good excuse to stop.
Along the way you pass Sluipwijk, Reeuwijk-Dorp, Haastrecht, Stolwijk, Boskoop, Bodegraven, Waddinxveen and Vlist. Lengths run from 35 to 46 kilometres, comfortable day distances.
Start at junction 09, 10, 11, 16, 29, or 40 to 43. The network here is dense, with 51 junctions within five kilometres, which makes Gouda a good place to build something yourself: pick your starting point in the route planner and click your own loop together. For a break: Berg's Bakery.