Located just an hour from Amsterdam, Nijmegen is the location of the annual road marching event known as the Four Days March. Teams from around the world meet to take part in a 100 mile march, spanning 4 days. There are a range of festivities each day and a great spirit amongst participants and spectators alike.
Day One – On Your Marks
We set off late from RAF Northolt by coach and arrived in the afternoon of the following day. On arrival at Nijmegen, we were shown to our room. After a swift tour of the base, we were keen to head into the town!
After a short bus journey, we headed straight down to the river, and got the first round of beers in. We then proceeded up to the Shamrock; an Irish pub and the only one in Nijmegen to sell cider. There we had a few drinks, before going for a wander around the town.
We came across a bar with €1 shots, so we went in and had a few Sambuccas. A decision we would later come to regret!
We then went to ‘the square’ where there was a large stage and several bars, and live musicians played. We had a few flugels, which are ‘mild’ shots at only 10%, and enjoyed the diverse Europop music.
Late that evening, we hopped onto the bus back, but our night wasn’t over. When we got to base, we went to the beer tent for 20 minutes. Here we socialised with other armed forces from around the world, and a Canadian bagpipe player made an unexpected appearance! Some time later, we eventually retired for the night.
Day Two – Get Set
A second day of preparations began, as we embarked on a culture tour of the local area.
We got the bus into Nijmegen and then got a train ticket to Oosterbeek. There we went to the Airborne Museum. This looked at Operations Market and Garden and the effect they had upon many different nations.
Afterwards, we headed to the Arnhem cemetery, where we walked around the headstones and paid our respects. Then we headed back to the train, before going back to Nijmegen.
We spent a short while going around the town shopping, before having dinner and heading out for a few drinks.
We went back to the Shamrock pub, then into ‘the square’ to dance and drink. It seemed to be the night of selfies, as my phone is now full of photos with Dutch, Swiss, Germans and Canadians, as well as some random street drummers.
Day Three – Get Set…
The final day before the event really began, gives more time to acclimatise to the warm Dutch sun…
The day began with a brief with the rest of the BMC (British Military Contingent). This lasted for around 40 minutes, after which our team leaders had a separate briefing.
While waiting, the Scoobies came out (90s throwback) and had lessons on them. We all made our own one which we attached to our bergens for marching.
When the leaders returned, they briefed us and gave us our wristbands which we will use to clock our times. It was then time for a quick change of outfit, and onto the bus into Nijmegen.
In town, we headed straight to get food, before having a wander around the shops and stalls. We picked up some water pistols, food and any other last minute bits, before heading back to the base.
We sat down for our last meal as a team before the main event! In true Dutch fashion, we had meatball soup to start, followed by chicken in a creamy sauce.
After eating, we went back over to our accommodation to sort out our marching kit. The weight carriers (me included) needed sufficient weight, camelbacks had to be filled, and souveniers for children along the way needed distributing.
Day Four – Go!
We woke just before 03:00, and got dressed for breakfast, all eager to begin the march! We were the 2nd BMC to depart, so there was plenty of ground to make up!
The 25 miles (40 kms) were varied. It was mostly flat, however the occasional ‘hill’ came in as we passed over some of the bridges. As we marched, the streets were filled with civilians walking either a 30km, 40km or 50km route, each one slightly different to the military 40km route. There were Dutch residents in the streets, cheering everyone on, giving out high fives and food. Small children held pots of marshmallows, cucumber, liquorice sweets and loads of other bits of food which they handed out.
As we marched we handed souvenirs to some of the children in the form of UK military insignia.
We marched back into the base just after 13:00, straight into the beer tent to a nice cold pint. We stayed for a while to clap in some other teams, before heading back for second day kit prep.
Unfortunately, my feet took quite a pounding as I didn’t tape them properly and I had a few blisters. However, our team leader sorted them out and I hoped this would help for the remaining 75 miles. I hoped…
Day Five – Reaching Halfway
The earliest start of the week, with a 02:30 wake up. We threw on our uniform and went to breakfast. My feet having been taped up properly the day before, still hurt, but the pain was bearable. After breakfast we got our kit and formed up where we had to. We then had to wait for 30 minutes before setting off, due to delays, but at 05:00 we were off.
My feet were hurting from the start, but with mind over matter I made it through. One member of our team almost dropped out at the last rest stop, but after some motivation she agreed to carry on the last leg.
We arrived back at the finish, and passed through as the first team to finish. This was a great achievement as it meant we had overtaken a lot of other military teams from a range of nations and maintained a solid pace. As we were the first team back, we had a free round of beers, which tasted great after a very hot day and lots of water! We had a couple of drinks then went back to shower and get changed. We then returned to the beer tent to clap in the other marchers.
Day Six – Over the Brow
For the penultimate day, we were in the last contingent to leave. This meant a lovely lie-in! We set off just after 06:30, for the ‘hill’ day. Compared to the hills of the UK, these Dutch inclines were nothing!
The march went relatively quickly; we spent the day shooting water pistols at by-standers and other marchers, singing a lot of songs and giving out souvenirs to the crowds of people. We got into the beer tent for the last time (the final day’s march ends in the centre of Nijmegen) and we had a beer before doing the usual evening activities.
As I walked back from the beer tent, I hobbled quite a bit and a few Dutch soldiers made small talk with me. I got back to the room and 5 minutes later, they turned up with a Dutch corporal rank slide for me, which was pretty cool.
Our team leader then went off for a brief at 18:30 and then he came back to feedback to us the final day’s plan. As we were one of the fastest British teams, we were to leave in the last contingent. This is so that we aim to get the entire BMC to the centre of Nijmegen together for the final march past and finish.
Day Seven – Home Straight
The last day’s marching began at 04:00. We ate then formed up outside, behind Thames Valley Wing, who won the best team award in the entire BMC. The team were also close to ours, as we spent time in the evenings together, as well as supporting each other as we came in from marching each day. They trained every single weekend since the New Year, and are notorious for being the fastest team. As we marched off, we decided to stay with them for a bit, all singing and enjoying the morning.
Sticking with Thames Valley didn’t last long as we ended up not being able to stick to their 8km/h pace, and we dropped off slightly for the rest of the day.
The atmosphere wasn’t like any of the other days; the people on the streets were of a much larger number and even from 06:00 in the morning, they were drinking and celebrating. In Nijmegen, people get a bank holiday for the 4 days of the Nijmegen march, so it’s a big event!
We went through the day, before arriving at Charlemagne field at 14:00. Here we had our wristbands scanned, and were presented with our medals. We had an hour wait there before forming up with the entire BMC and marching the final 5km of the march, with our medals on our uniforms. The streets were packed with people. Some were stood on roofs (yes, actually on the roof) and others lined the route clapping and cheering. We were given drinks as we marched, and the time flew by! Before we knew it we were passing the finish line.
I really thought that I’d have to pull out at some point along the way as my feet were, in the word’s of my team leader, the worst feet he’d seen in the last 12 years of doing Nijmegen! Nevertheless, the whole team finished, and were awarded our medals.
We then ran (very painfully) to the bus to take us back to camp, where we showered and went to dinner.
After dinner I went to the medical tent, where an Army medic cleaned up my feet, popped the rest of my blisters and taped up my feet properly with padding, before heading back to the accommodation.
Once packed, we went up to the beer tent one last time for food, a couple of beers and socialising. A fantastic way to spend a week in the Netherlands, however a great challenge in its own right!