Sunday, June 28, 2026, Day 19 – Mons to Dinant – 63 miles, 3000′ elevation gain
Last night, there was huge thunder and windstorm in Mons. We saw the impact of that today. There were a couple of times that a low spot on the bike path resulted in us having to bicycle through water that was up to our pedals for about 30 feet.
Our agility was also tested a few times as we had to navigate over fallen trees by someone climbing over them and then handing bicycles over them followed by us riders climbing over or under the fallen trees:
This area is near where the Battle of Bulge occurred in WWII. The forests and river valleys of the Ardennes between Mons and Dinant was where one of WWII’s most dramatic and strategically decisive moments came when in May 1940 German Panzer divisions drove their armored columns through the supposedly impassable Ardennes forest that French planners had confidently declared tank-proof, crossing the Meuse at Dinant and Sedan in a lightning thrust that cut behind the Allied armies in Belgium and trapped the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and French forces in a vast encirclement, forcing the Dunkirk evacuation and the fall of France in a campaign of stunning speed.
At Dinant specifically it was the young tank commander Erwin Rommel, then commanding the 7th Panzer Division with a reckless personal audacity that became legendary, who forced the Meuse crossing under fire on May 13th 1940, personally leading his men across a weir in rubber boats while under intense French fire, his division advancing so fast and so far ahead of its supply lines that it became known as the Ghost Division – moving too quickly for even German headquarters to track its position on the map. It was this crossing that effectively broke open the entire French defensive line and set in motion the chain of catastrophes that collapsed Western Allied resistance within six weeks.
Fittingly, we traveled along the Rue des Allies:
Over the last few days, I noticed lots of Belgian flags displayed. Maybe that’s due to Belgians having pride in their country. Or, maybe it is due to the fact that Belgium is playing in the World Soccer Cup that is ongoing in the U.S. But since I have zero interest in the World Cup, I am not sure if that is the case. Either way, there are Belgian flags in every little village and town:
Although we encountered many streets with those uncomfortable cobblestones again today, most of today’s ride was characterized by quiet roads and bike paths. Now I am in Dinant where it is 85 degrees in a nice room except that it lacks air conditioning.
My view includes a massive rock citadel above Dinant, which has watched invaders cross the river below since the medieval times:
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