Danube - Germany Aug 31

Regenburg to Pfelling

Another fabulous day.  We started the morning out a bit earlier than we have.  We were on the road before 8:30.  That was possibly due to the lack of sleep for the group.  The hotel was right in the center of town and on the main drag for all the bar crowd.  We had to have the windows open as it was warm when we went to sleep.  It cooled off but the lack of a/c in all the hotels has led us to be open window sleepers... 😳   There was a great deal of foot traffic starting after 1 am that was loud and obnoxious.  You would have thought we had front row seats at an amusement park.  Oh well, sleep is overrated.

It was even a bit chilly as we set out.  It was in the low 50s but it warmed up quickly.

The town of Regenburg as we headed out this morning.

We rode through the countryside most of the day.  We were on the levees and dikes and in the valleys.  We started to see the beginnings of the wine country with appearance of vineyards dotting the hillsides.

One of the picturesque valleys that we rode through.

We had the river right by our side most of the day.  As we rode along we would see the villages up on the hills overlooking the valleys.  The tour book the other day talked about the towns and villages being up out of the flood plain of the river.

We rode off route at one point to do a coffee stop.  This is the village of Worth an der Donau.  We had a nice break and I found a pharmacie to acquire some relief from the poor biking shorts induced issue... 😳

It was a great day.  We ended up riding just over 65k into the small town of Pfelling.  We had a great dinner of Schnitzel while overlooking the Danube.  And we were treated to... 

Sunset over the Danube...

It has been a really great trip so far.  We have literally laughed our way across Germany...  😂

Danube - Germany Aug 30

Ingolstadt to Regenburg

A picture perfect day!  Bright blue sun filled skies and a high of 76 (25C) degrees.  Weatherwise it doesn't get any better.  We set out in the morning about 9 and it was cool but not chilly.  We headed along the Danube for a great start to the day

The Danube is getting broader and deeper.  It is now more the river I always thought of.

As we set out we noticed that we had a smoking strong...  ha you thought I was going to say tailwind.  But nooooo it was a headwind.  We fought the smoking headwind most of the day.  It made it tougher but not that bad for the day.  Just a little added challenge is all.  😊

We rode along the river over dikes and through fields.  We came upon an area that had rows and rows of hops growing.  So this is beer country with its main ingredient being produced here in Bavaria.

We have come across the blue sign with yellow markings periodically on the tour.  It is the clam shell sign of the Camino de Santiago de Compostella.  The pilgrimage to Santiago Spain.  The poster above shows the route the pilgrims take across Europe, in this case it shows a starting point of the Czech Republic.  That would be a harrowing and arduous journey.  One that I cannot imagine.

We continued on and came to the village of Weltenburg on the Danube.  It is the site of a Benedictine Monastery that was established in 620 AD.  The church was beautiful...

Everything in the monastery church was amazing in its detail and ornate beauty.

The beautiful dome mural of the church.

The main altar...  I was treated to a wonderful experience.  While I was in the church the monks began a Gregorian Chant.  It was mystical.

From there we caught a ferry through the Danube Gorge.  It is a natural funnel spot that transforms the Danube for a stretch.

Some people on tubes floating through the gorge.

It was a beautiful sight with a great deal of history.

We landed in the town of Kelheim for a great lunch and a pedal for 30k more into our finish of Regenburg.

In Regenburg there was a fantastic cathedral with brilliant stain glass windows as the evening sun exploded them with color.

And for dinner... As you can see from Barry's calzone, the portions are ginormous.

Danube - Germany Aug 29

Donauworth to Ingolstadt

Today was a great day with beautiful scenery and cooler weather.  When we woke there was rain with thunder and lightning.  It looked like it was going to be an ominous day.  But after checking the weather forecast it looked as if the bad stuff would be done after 9.  So we delayed our start and missed getting wet.  We did get a sprinkle or two but no real rain.

It was overcast for a good part of the day and that made it very comfortable biking weather.  

We cycled along through picturesque forests and beautiful river valleys.  We came into the town of Neuberg an der Donau.  It had a beautiful old historic square.  I should say that it really wasn't that old of a town square as most of the buildings were only from the early 1700's.  😊

We walked the square a bit before we settled in a restaurant in one of the oldest buildings, built in 1701.

We looked at the menu written in chalk on the board and asked the waiter if he spoke English.  Little bit he answered, and was very truthful in his answer.  We were looking for insight in what was really on the menu.  With a little bit of understanding we were going with the schnitzel.  But there was a local gentleman sitting a bit away from us and told us nein schnitzel, Schweinschaufel good.  So Schweinschaufel it was and wow was it good!  That is one thing around in Germany, the lunches are huge.  It is hard to climb back on the bike after devouring one.

Pictures of Neuberg from the Danube or Donau as it is known here...

We got a bit off track after lunch.  We rode for awhile and missed a turn somewhere.  So we backtracked and found a gravel road.  We rode down this. It started as a two lane gravel road then the woods started closing in.  Then it was a single lane, then a goat track...  Then the road ended at a creek.  We traversed some boulders, crossed a creek, found another gravel forest road and continued with determination.  What was of a certainty was that we were not where we were supposed to be.  One comment was ... this just keeps getting better and better!  But after some,  where in the hell are we and now we know what Hanzel & Gretel felt like moments, Barry and his Garmin got us back on track.

The 65k day only ended up to be 68k all up and in.  Not bad...  😊

We got into Ingolstadt and enjoyed the sites of the city.

This is the main square...

Bicycles are everywhere.  It is great to see in a busy city center cars and bicycles getting along seamlessly.  And the bikes are old and new as are the riders.  You can tell that here they are not just for pleasure rides.  Bikes are a real means of getting around, shopping and work etc.

An adorable water fountain for drinking in the square.

A real authentic biergarten...

Truth in advertising...  Name of a Tattoo parlor just off the square.

Danube - Germany Aug 28

Ulm to Donauworth

Today was a mixed day.  We were supposed to do 90k but ended up running up the total to 102k.  We meandered off course for a bit.  

We ended up riding on so rough gravely utility road along the river.

Th great difficulty came when my rear tire developed a slow leak.  So for the last 30k we would pump the tire up full and then I would head off like a bat out of hell as fast as I could to eat up some kilometers.  I could only get the army tank heavy bike up to 37 kph.  And that took Herculean effort and a collective group drafting to accomplish that.  Then stop pump it up again and ride like hell to try to get in without having to change the tube again.  I was getting about 6-8 kilometers per pumping.  It was quite infuriating...

I coasted into the hotel on a flat and called the tour company.  They sent out a completely different bicycle rather than fixing the tire.  Whatever works because I was fed up with the trouble with that bike.  

We had a great dinner at a restaurant that was suggested by the hotel owner and then I fell into bed exhausted.

Danube - Germany Aug 27

Ehingen to Ulm

Today was a great ride.  It was a 35k day with great weather.  It started out with me changing a flat (twice again).  But it got better once on the bike.  I think the riding just does it to me.  Give me a bike and I will have a smile...  😊

We rode through the valley and up only a couple of hills.  It was a quasi rest day.  One that was needed after yesterday.

Here is the view as we set out upon the day.  Out of Ehingen we rode the ridge and then descended down to the river.

The Danube is growing in size as we move through Germany.

At one point we ran out of signs that were guiding our way.  A bit lost on our way.  We ran into a road cyclists, Wolfgang who gave us some assistance.  He led us into our destination, Ulm.  He was great.  He stayed with us and ensured we got to our final destination.

Ulm as seen from the bike path entering the town.  We invited Wolfgang to join us for a beer.  But he reciprocated and asked us to meet his wife.  We went to the town center and relaxed after a fairly easy day.  We met his wife and talked for a while.  Wolfgang even bought us a round!  The hospitality was fantastic.  He even asked a friend of his to give us a tour of the church.

I snuck in a quick nap and missed the tour.  But I did not miss the trip up the steeple of the Ulm Munster.

It was a mere 768 steps up to the very top of the steeple.  The top level that you can climb to is cut off in the photo above.

This is the view of the Danube from the top of the steeple.  It was breathtaking.

The city of Ulm...  A fairly large and sprawling berg.

The church itself was impressive as well.

A couple of more pictures of the town of Ulm:

Here is a picture of a quaint little place right along a brook.  I want the place with the little balcony over the water (the one just to the left).  😊

Tomorrow will be a bit of a longer day of this trip.  Scheduled for 90k but we have come to not rely on the numbers projected...

Danube - Germany Aug 26

The day started out fantastic.  We had what we thought was an 80k day ahead of us.  With yesterday being a bit over 60k, we looked forward to a walk in the park...

As Scott said we set a new record with our achieving 22 kilometers in 3 hours.  Not one to be proud of...  But we were taking it easy and enjoying the gorgeous scenery.  

We rode through thick woods that were a canopy and kept it cool and comfortable.  

We came upon many cute little villages that were perched on the top of hills and mountains.

What also added to the record of 22k in 3 hours was that I had the first flat of the trip.  Actually you could count it as two.  I changed the first tube got the tire back on and poof another flat.  I had missed a piece of wire in the tire.  I went around the tire three times and did not find it.  But the new tube did.  So change it again I did.  

Once we got back on the road we continued until we got to a beer haus...  We had steins of beer and I had schnitzel and pomme frites.  A light lunch... 😳.  The lunch stop was a bit early but the village was right on the river that was overlooked by a...

Castle keep that in its day must have controlled the river and its valley from its lofty peak.

Here was another beautiful town and castle that looked down upon the Danube.  You can see its reflection in the river.

We came upon one fantastic sight.  We road in the cool of the shaded woods until we were about 30k from finish.  Then we came up out of the covered river trail and out onto the plain.  It got very hot as the sun baked us without any discernible cover.  It was also at that point we ascertained that we really didn't have only 20 some odd kilometers left to finish the 80k day.  We had realized it was going to be a 106k day!  And we had an immense amount left to go.  But as Barry said at one point...  Well they aren't going to bring the hotel to us.  So off we went and kept riding.

It turned out to be a tough day with 106k as the total and 86 degree sun hitting is in the afternoon.  But we eventually made it and got to the inn.

This is the town where we ended up staying.  Quaint village but we didn't get in til after 6.  That and as we were pulling in my rear tire was going flat again.  But I will save that fun for tomorrow.  We just collapsed into the chairs and ordered beers and pomme frites.  

 

Danube - Germany Aug 25

Day one of the riding is complete with a total of just over 60 kilometers.  It was a picture perfect day with temperatures starting out in the 60s but warming up to 80 degrees F.  What a beautiful ride it was.   Literally could not have been better.

  

Here we are at the official starting point.  The group cmumping at the bit to start the day.  It was a bit humorous to see, I didn't see it but Barry and Scott saw several people set out in warm jackets and pants.  It was a bit chilly but really?!  As Barry said, did I miss a wether report for bad weather?

 

We stopped shortly after at the brewery when we saw all of these cases of beer wasting away in the warm sun.  At first we thought it only right that we jump in and help them save all this beer from extinction by drinking it all.  But a collective decision was made that we had only just begun.  We certainly will drink that much over the length of the tour, so pace ourselves we must.  

Back on route and off we went.

We rolled through beautiful countryside of gentle hills and pastureland.

The path took us from one small village after another...

As you can see the trail for most of the day was paved with the surface as smooth as a babies bottom.  

Another quaint village after one of the few hills for the day.

A large house sitting on the peak of the hill we had just descended down.

We stopped for lunch and beers and had a full experience of...  not sure what but I asked for salt with lunch.  And the waiter did not understand or at least he portended to not understand.  We said you know pepper and salt.  The waiter left and brought pepper back.  We asked again and he walked away speaking German to other tables and laughing.  Pretty sure he was making a bit of fun at our expense.  I used google translate to find out what salt meant in German.  Salt in german is salz.  He really didn't know what I was asking for.  Well he eventually brought us some salt (salz).  He also, worked his way out of any tip... 😊

Our hotel for the evening, the Jaegerhaus...  Situated right on the river.

The view from our hotel as seen from the river...

And the river...  Danube,  leisurely and beautiful at this point in its path.  😊

Day1 done and fabulous.  Now on to day two...  Can't wait!