Traveler’s Journal: Packing light for the long haul in the Netherlands
Published 5:30 pm Tuesday, March 10, 2026
We have been culling extra stuff for a few days, refining our load before setting off on our next trip. Did we wear that jersey last time? Can we do laundry a little more often? Do I need that many pair of socks? Was I too cold? Will it rain more by the end of the trip?
It’s not just weight though. Things take up space. Space means luggage or pockets, or more to wear. Space on the airplane. Space on the bike. More bags to carry through the airport or stowed on the train. Handling a bike and luggage can be awkward, getting it all up a few steps through a narrow doorway with a car full of commuters is stressful.
We travel in spring or fall, sometimes into the winter, though the most dramatic in that season wasn’t entirely by choice. That’s another story though. Traveling while schools are in session is our basic criteria. Accommodations are more flexible, fares less expensive, seats more available. We don’t have to plan as far ahead. We can linger in a pleasant place with people we meet versus being forced by the next reservation to travel on. However, some places close for the off-season, and daylight is shorter.
It’s also more likely to present challenging weather. Various forms of wet and various levels of windy. That means packing for contingencies, which means more to carry.
As part of the Traveler’s Journal series at the Dungeness River Nature Center on March 12, we will be presenting how we have learned to pack and travel for long rides. Bikes, racks, bags, equipment, clothing and the other stuff, accommodations, planes and trains. Mistakes we have made and most importantly, the people we have met that made it all worthwhile.
We will present a travelog from 10 weeks in the Netherlands visiting north, east, south and west. Pausing to enjoy, studying the how and why of cycling in the Netherlands. What can we learn from the Dutch and from each other. We will also be packing for our next trip to Denmark.
About the presenters
Steve Durrant is a landscape architect and former owner of a firm specializing in bicycle infrastructure. He is the director of the Puget Sound to Pacific Collaborative, an initiative of the Peninsula Trails Coalition, North Kitsap Trails Association and the Bainbridge Island Parks & Trails Foundation dedicated to completing gaps in the Olympic Discovery Trail and Sound to Olympics Trail to connect the ferry terminals on Puget Sound to the Pacific Ocean at La Push.
Chris Carlson is also a landscape architect. She retired from a career leading the National Park Service Rivers Trails and Technical Assistance Program in the Pacific Northwest, Metro Portland Parks and the University of Minnesota.
In addition to their riding in the Pacific Northwest, Canada and the Midwest, Carlson and Durrant have cycled together on extended trips in Finland, Denmark, England, Ireland, Belgium, France and The Netherlands.
About the series
Traveler’s Journal, a presentation of the Peninsula Trails Coalition, raises funds to buy project supplies and food for volunteers working on Olympic Discovery Trail projects. Shows start at 7 p.m. Thursdays at the Dungeness River Nature Center, 1943 W. Hendrickson Road.
Admission is a suggested donation of $10 for adults.
For more information, or to offer to be a future presenter, email Arvo Johnson at amjcgj@gmail.com.
