Mechelen-Boom route

The last day in Flanders is dawning! It's a shame, because we would love to cycle to Antwerp, Ghent, Bruges and everywhere else! 🥰 We feel right at home between the old brick houses, the green oases of peace and the many other cyclists and could definitely stay in Flanders for longer.  But today's tour is definitely a fitting end, because it combines everything that we now associate with cycling in Flanders: perfect cycle paths through small nature reserves, red brick houses, historic breweries, quaint pubs and of course boat trips along the canals.  Right at the start of the tour, two highlights await us: the Anker and Batteliek breweries. Anker produces the traditional beer "Gouden Carolus", which we tried the evening before and found to be very good! But what really blew us away was the Batteliek microbrewery, which also produces lemonade and gin. The building is a former church and when we enter the room, we are already captivated. Where the altar once stood, the brewing kettles are now steaming and where you would expect to find the organ pipes, the finest gin is now distilled. Modern art adorns the walls between the colorful church windows and we can't stop being amazed. Here, with a great sense of aesthetics, opposites were played with until a really cozy brewery/restaurant was created that you won't want to leave any time soon! With an enormous tailwind, we cycle along the river Zenne, which crosses the beautiful, natural Zennegat area. We hardly have to pedal for 27 km/h - that's fun! When we arrive in Boom, we take the ferry to Klein Willebroek and only then realize that we have just passed the festival grounds of the legendary Tomorrowland festival! 😃 On the other side of the river, we head straight into the idyllic Blaasveldbroek nature reserve. There are numerous lakes, ponds and swamps here that are home to birds, frogs and water lilies. Easily navigable gravel sections lead through the dense greenery and there are always comfortable places to sit and rest. We continue on, always on cycle paths or small side roads with very little traffic. In the rural suburbs of Mechelen we marvel at the renovated brick farms that exude so much coziness. We pass a small botanical garden and head back to the Leuven-Dijle canal. If you want to take a shortcut, you can cycle straight back to Mechelen here. We make a small loop along the canal and enjoy a few fast kilometers together with many other cyclists. Back in the city, the tour ends again in front of the Anker brewery. Ideal for rewarding yourself with a good drink and refreshment in a historic setting! Departure: We start the journey home by train from Mechelen to Brussels. This is also easy to do by bike. Alternatively, there are of course also good cycle paths to Brussels. ;-) You can find the Mechelen-Boom tour here: https://www.visitflanders.com/de/flandersfinestradwege/tour-mechelen-boom