Danube - Austria Sept 7

Melk to Stockerau

What a beautiful ride today.  It started out cool and overcast but warmed up and brightened up as the day went on.

It was our longest day of the trip at 107k.  

We started the day with our normal breakfast.  But today there was two twists to it.  First, there was honey fresh from the farm.  So fresh that you can see it still had the bees on it!  Second, they had a fresh orange juice machine.  You drop whole oranges in it and out comes fresh orange juice.  It was fantastic!

We set out on the road with clouds still present but the sun trying desperately to burn them off.  It was not successful until about noon.  That is when the skies were clear and the sun was bright.

As we left town we saw the flood high water marker for the town of Melk.  The flood of 1501 had to be a massive one.  This marker is high above and far from  the river.  We saw the same when we were in Passau.  The high water mark for 1501 was far greater than any other flood.

We rode through the countryside rich with beauty.  We came upon several castles perched above the river.  Some as the one above in great shape.  And some like the one below, in ruins but of an age greater in years.

We rode through the wine region of Austria with vineyards clinging to the hillsides.

Villages dotted the hills as the wineries shoes their economic strength.  So many of the towns and villages were so quaint with their winding cobblestone streets.

We got into Stockerau about 5 after a great day of sightseeing.  We are very close to Vienna and the end of the second leg of our journey..