Day 26 - Valkenburg to Sint Pietersberg, Oct. 7

We made it!!!! 492 km in 26 days! From the very top of Holland to the bottom.

There was a heavy drizzle when we left Valkenberg this morning. But it is Holland so we should expect some of this. After a terrific breakfast we were pumped to walk our last day. It was quite hilly here and there so we soon were pretty hot under our rain gear. There were three cups (cafes) on the map but each one was closed! Could not believe this. 

Onward we trudged through forest and meadow and even past lime stone caves. Soon, the spires of Maastricht came into view and we could also make out Sint Pietersberg in the distance.

It is fun to gradually enter a city. It got busier and busier but we were helped along by the white and red signage that faithfully guided us from the beginning. Maastricht's city centre has the look and feel of a small Paris or London. Very ornate buildings, narrow allies, cobble stones and the Maas River running through it. On top of that we passed the ruins of Roman walls. In the middle of the city!

But we had to keep going. Up and up the small mountain. At last we reached the end. There was a couple we met yesterday and we took each other's photos. The Pieterpad turns into the GR 5 and this will take you to Nice, at 1800 km. All in all it was anticlimactic because there's not much there except for a stone with a bit of writing on it and the pole with trail directions. But we know that it's the journey and not the ending that counts. We did get a certificate of completion at a restaurant near by called The Berg Rust.

Tomorrow I will try to summarize the whole experience with one more blog entry.