LF Maasroute, stage 1: Maastricht → Venlo
On stage 1 (Maastricht → Venlo, 116 km) the best month is September: 78% of days were dry with highs of 10–30 °C, and riding Maastricht → Venlo meant an average tailwind of 3.8 km/h (ERA5 2006–2025, 9:00–18:00).
Weather by month
| Month | Good days | Rain days ≥ 1 mm | Rain, mm | Avg high | Days ≥ 30 °C | Days < 10 °C | Daylight, h |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8% | 27% | 70 | 6 °C | 0% | 85% | 8.4 † |
| February | 19% | 26% | 61 | 7 °C | 0% | 71% | 9.9 † |
| March | 45% | 26% | 57 | 11 °C | 0% | 45% | 11.7 |
| April | 71% | 21% | 42 | 15 °C | 0% | 15% | 13.8 |
| May | 72% | 27% | 66 | 19 °C | 0% | 2% | 15.5 |
| June | 71% | 25% | 68 | 22 °C | 5% | 0% | 16.5 |
| July | 63% | 29% | 79 | 24 °C | 9% | 0% | 16.1 |
| August | 66% | 27% | 76 | 23 °C | 8% | 0% | 14.6 |
| September | 78% | 20% | 57 | 20 °C | 2% | 0% | 12.5 |
| October | 72% | 23% | 71 | 15 °C | 0% | 8% | 10.6 † |
| November | 36% | 26% | 64 | 10 °C | 0% | 50% | 8.8 † |
| December | 13% | 26% | 72 | 7 °C | 0% | 77% | 7.9 † |
Best months are all months within 3 percentage points of the best one. † less than 11 hours of daylight — long stages get tight.
Wind by month
| Month | Wind Maastricht → Venlo, km/h | Headwind > 15 km/h, Maastricht → Venlo | Headwind > 15 km/h, Venlo → Maastricht | Better way |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | +7.8 | 2% | 28% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| February | +6.1 | 5% | 25% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| March | +2.9 | 5% | 17% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| April | +0.4 | 5% | 11% | either |
| May | +1.1 | 3% | 12% | either |
| June | +1.8 | 2% | 10% | either |
| July | +4.3 | 0% | 13% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| August | +4.9 | 1% | 13% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| September | +3.8 | 2% | 14% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| October | +6.2 | 1% | 21% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| November | +7.7 | 1% | 27% | Maastricht → Venlo |
| December | +8.9 | 2% | 31% | Maastricht → Venlo |
Along the route (sections of about 25 km)
| km | Heading | Tailwind in September, km/h |
|---|---|---|
| 0–25 | N | +3.5 |
| 25–50 | N | +3.6 |
| 50–76 | NE | +3.9 |
| 76–101 | NE | +4.0 |
| 101–116 | NE | +3.9 |
Other stages
- Maastricht → Venlo 116 km
- Venlo → Lith 127 km
- Lith → Dordrecht 108 km
- Dordrecht → Rotterdam 121 km
How to read the numbers
Wind is the 10 m wind of a 25-km grid cell, daytime hours 9:00–18:00 local solar time; at saddle height in a sheltered valley it is weaker, on a coast or ridge stronger. A positive value is a tailwind. ERA5 slightly over-counts days with ≥ 1 mm of rain (by about 5–7 percentage points) and underestimates daily highs by 1–2 °C. Good day = less than 1 mm of rain between 9:00 and 18:00 (riding hours, local solar time) and a high between 10 and 30 °C; rain at night or in the evening does not spoil it.