Disclaimer: This blog post is exceptionally long partially due to the difficulty in selecting which photos to post, and, that it covers about two weeks of wonderful experiences for us!
First off, we loved using the 'Danube Bike Trail' book of route maps to guide us through our journey. The clearly posted Radweg signs were also a huge plus as you could nearly be on autopilot as you took in all the beautiful scenery. However, if you miss a little green sign, or get too lazy, you can find yourself in a cute little town that is not on the route! Luckily for us, that only happened once and costed us only 6km of backtracking.
The German part of the Danube Radweg bike tour begins in Donaueschingen, where the town claims is the source of the Danube River from an underground spring, and ends in Passau. We left Ian's parents in Colmar and made our way there, mostly by bike, with one train ride to avoid 1,500 feet of climbing big hills!
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| Bikes loaded up to tour independently...tent, sleeping bags, stove, cooking equipment and supplies included! |
From Colmar, France, we rode to Ihringen, Germany...a day or two from the start of the Danube River Valley bike tour. Our first campsite was in a crowded and expensive, typical German campground with 'wall to wall' camp trailers and populated pool. The pool and lovely shade nearby was a welcomed respite from the continued heat wave, although Ian was denied entry to the pool b/c he did not have the proper bathers on. A lifeguard stopped him and said, "We do not allow shorts in our pool." For a moment we, or rather I, contemplated looking for a European speedo for Ian, but he promptly nixed that idea!
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| Yes...we decided that we needed the luxury of lightweight collapsible chairs. |
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| The Camping Platz is for people with tents only |
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| German Unimog camping vehicle, by Mercedes...this one was completely decked out! |
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| 2nd Night of Camping - much nicer with our lakeside view...and a bit cheaper too! |
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| Finished making dinner, just in time for the evening downpour. |
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| The convenience of being able to put our bikes on the train is a bonus! |
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| Ah...the refreshing sampler! |
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Spring in Donaueschingen that 'officially' sources the Danube River, but another town argues that claim.
Now a decision. Arrived in Donaueschingen via train - should we ride on, or stop at the fabulous Furstenberg Brewery...uh, this was a no-brainer! Luckily, we only had 5 km to reach our campsite!
3rd Campsite and now officially on the Danube bike trail. Back to the crowded German campground! But, we had the pleasure of some country music at the campground by a duo, one of whom was American.
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| On the road winding through farmland |
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| At times we need to look for shelter to have lunch, in case of rain |
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| Gorgeous campsite along a small creek and looking onto the limestone rocks |
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| Luckily there was shelter in the barn for cooking dinner |
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| Our only day so far of rain all day...still smiling! |
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| Danube bikers conferring about the route |
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| This town had number of painted storks |
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| Yup...beer vending machines at many of the campgrounds! |
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| We were so happy to come across water, but we noticed that it was greenish and tasted funny. Promptly poured it out and later learned the 'kein' means 'not' rather than what we thought meant clean! |
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| Blue pool in another river caused by minerals |
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| Ulm was a particularly gorgeous town so we spend a few days there. This was a raised walkway built along the old city wall. |
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| We were given the tip to look for camping at Kanu (Canoe) Clubs along the river. Rudi was a member and welcomed us very warmly and gave us great tips about what to see and do in Ulm. |
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| Old city hall...now a restaurant downstairs |
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| Ulm's town bird/ emblem seen all over the place. |
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| Tallest church tower in Europe . On our day off biking, we climbed up the never ending 760 stairs/ 161.5 meters! |
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| View of the twin towers at the back end of the church |
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| Incredible city and valley views from the church tower |
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| Entering a medieval town via an old city gate...steep cobble stones meant that we had to walk our bikes up! |
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| Set up our tent under some shelter to take advantage of some refuge from the rain at night. |
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| Nearly had to leave Ian in this town. |
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| We ride mainly along the Danube, but there are other rivers that come in here and there to join it. |
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| Tasty beer at an Abbey with Jason, a biker we befriended along the way! |
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| Took a short, 30 minute ferry ride up the Danube River Gorge for some excellent scenery. |
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| What a beautiful place to kayak. |
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| Looking back at the Abbey church |
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| Luckily, we only had 10 more km to ride to the camping spot - on a working farm, no less! |
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| River cruise boat |
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| Hit the small gay pride parade in Regensburg |
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| Looks like the Castro in San Francisco! |
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| Nothing like a castle playground structure...only in Europe! |
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| A special architectural feature in Regensburg are these towers that people built on top of their house to show off their wealth. They turned out not to be very useful since they got very cold. |
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| Happened upon a wedding ceremony in the basilica in Regensburg |
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| Hen party - bride to be and friends dressed in the traditional Dirndle |
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| Entertainment at the gay pride gathering |
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| Nice lederhosen! |
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| Suddenly a bunch of motorbikes arrived to the market plaza in Straubing. Seemed to be a regular gathering of a Zundap bike club. |
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| Panorama of the lovely Straubing Market Platz |
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| 'Just out for a ride in my solar powered trike bike!' |
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Camping at the beer garden! The campground owner must have decided that it was more profitable and less work to have campers instead of beer drinkers. Although, they did offer their guests cold beer at a very reasonable price.
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Prost! Just after our icy dip in the Danube River.
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| What are these beer cases doing here? Some sort of festival having to do with beer and bikes, we supposed. Our kind of event! |
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| The city of Passau and the official end of the German Danube Radweg, 581 kilometers. On to the Austrian Danube Radweg now...after a visit to a friend in Salzburg for a welcomed break from the saddle. |
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