Tag Archives: Germany

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I’m a little behind on my blog due to some long cycling days, and lack of decent wifi; it’s a bit odd how the wifi in Western Europe seems to be worse than further East and down South. I’ve made good progress along the Danube, and am currently contemplating how I get through the rest of Germany and into France. It looks like a bit of a convoluted route, with a few mountains in the way, however I’m sure it’ll work out.

Here are my routes and stats for the last few days:

02 October: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/916425965
03 October: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/918545558
04 October: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/918545612

–> 02 October – to Au an der Donau (150km)
It was a cold start to the day in Vienna, or just West of Vienna anyway, and my tent was soaked in condensation; I hate packing up a wet tent but no choice.

: Cold start to the day in Vienna – tent very wet

: Eccentric building on my way to route West from campsite

: Hurrah for sunshine

I had various thoughts on my route today, including heading North over the hills to join the Danube cycle path, however in the end I stayed on the roads and pedalled West, joining the official route later on.

: Morning route through small towns; Maria-Anzbach

: Austrian countryside looking nice in sunshine

: Farmland and forest, road quiet

: Arrived back at the Danube near Emmersdorf an der Donau

: River cruiser and castle in background

After riding down some fairly quiet roads, through some nice farmland, and the occasional town, all with a central church, I made it to Melk and the Danube after 70km. Oh, and I also passed Weiner Wald, which amused me greatly.

I crossed over to the North side, then continued on the cycle path that runs right next to the river, enjoying the flat pedalling and nice scenery.

: Emmersdorf an der Donau

: Some huge river cruisers on the Danube

: Some stretches of the route deserted

The rest of the ride to Au an der Donau was easy-going, with a tailwind to help speed me along, and a few random phone calls to people at home to help pass the time; my mobile data was on anyway and calls are free once I’ve paid the Vodafone Euro-traveller rate for the day. I passed several cycle tourers going the other way, all struggling a bit with the headwind, but didn’t catch up with any going my way. The cycle path was busy for some stretches, with a lot of casual cyclists out and about, and really quiet for other bits.

: Church and statue in Persenbeug

: Street typical of many of the towns I’ve passed through

: Cycle path and tailwind making things easy

I realised I’ve been slowly but steadily climbing since I joined the Danube cycle route, from just over 100m in Bulgaria, to over 200m in elevation now. It will be interesting to see how high I get before I leave the Danube, wherever that may be. Needless to say I’ve climbed up and down a lot more than that; the path isn’t always flat!

: Another pretty town next to Danube; Sarmingstein

: Grein with its impressive castle type building, and loads of tourists

: The Danube in Grein, plus transport barge

After a quiet last stretch, aside from a few ducks and herons, I made it to my campsite in Au an der Donau, where I met up with several other cycle tourers staying the night. Patricia and David were from Canada, on their way to Budapest, along with Malachi from Ireland, and George also from Canada who was heading up to Poland then Berlin. It was great to meet up and chat with other cycle tourers again; we headed to a restaurant (Gasthof) in the village for a couple of beers and some food. A very pleasant evening of swapping stories, route tips and eating was had; I ate a lot, consuming two dinners to try to replace the calories I’d used pedalling 150km.

Patricia and David mentioned the concentration camp (Mauthausen) they’d visited just the up the road, which I could go and see tomorrow, however I think I’m more likely to press on towards Germany and Passau. It’s probably important that I visit such a place at some point, however after the House of Terror in Budapest I think I’ll keep things light for a bit!

–> 03 October – to Passau, Germany (140km)
I was up early, ready to ride back to country number 6 of my tour, Germany again. I said goodbye to my fellow tourers, who were heading North or South East respectively, then set off into a cold but dry morning; much less condensation on my tent so easier to pack up!

: 3 Surly Long Haul Truckers – great touring bikes

: Morning in Au an der Donau; everything so much greener than a week ago

: On we go, sporting big hole in shorts

The ride was fairly standard until Linz, at about the 30km mark, then things started to get interesting with the cycle route entering a valley, or I guess you’d call it a gorge, through which the Danube flows.

: Danube – constant companion a the moment

: Return of the straw folk; haven’t seen any for a few months

: Linz in the distance; bit of industry

: Arrive in Linz, not stopping, had to avoid lots of glass

: Scenery getting better again, Ottensheim

: Some interesting wall art on route

The scenery was beautiful, much more exciting than yesterday’s, with lots of other cyclists using the well signposted routes, on both sides of the river, and several tourers to say hello to.

: Action selfie whilst cycling

: Some big transport barges on the river

: Cockpit view, for posterity

: Route getting more interesting, with hilltop castles

: Wondering if I should be on the other side of the river

: Viking like tourist boat, nr Sankt Martin im Mühlkreis

I remained on the North side of the river for a long time, spurning several opportunities to cross to the other side by ferry or bridge. There were several large barges cruising up or down the Danube, transporting various goods (not sure what, maybe coal again); looks like the river is still used as a major haulage route as well as for tourism. The cycling was pretty effortless and very enjoyable, however I knew it was too good to last. Close to St. Martin, where there’s a castle on a hill, the path ran out at a bend in the river, at some cliffs where people were climbing; looked awesome fun. A footpath carried on however it wasn’t passable by bike, even if I was to carry it and my gear (I checked). I had to backtrack a hundred metres or so to find a track heading up the hill, which looked like it might take me where I wanted to go.

: Narrow track leading up the hill, hopefully going where I need it to go

: Pretty steep, but sunlight in trees nice

: Trail continues up, bit wider now

: Near the top, castle appears; Sankt Martin im Mühlkreis

: The castle, at least I assume that’s what it is

: Made it back down to the river on the other side,; very hot and hurting

The narrow trail was very steep, and initially covered in brambles and stinging nettles which didn’t do my legs any good. One of my pedals also slammed into my right calf, whilst I was pushing, causing a fair amount of bleeding even if it was only a shallow scrape. Eventually the path widened, passing through pleasant woodland that was very peaceful, even if I was sweating profusely, stinging, and still bleeding slightly. I made it to the top, where thankfully the path joined a road at the castle, and then sped down the other side to rejoin the cycle route. I reckon it was a good mini adventure, or side-quest, and I don’t doubt many other cyclists have experienced the same thing; if they spotted the side path that is, it’s a bit obscure but prevented me having to backtrack several kilometres to find a crossing.

: Cycle route continues through woodland

: Taking the ferry at Kirchberg ob der Donau

: Smaug and Lobster in transit

: The ferry, not a complicated affair

: On the South side of the river, more enjoyable scenery

I’m not sure what was causing it however I heard a loud siren, like an air raid warning, a few times near my mini-adventure site. I wondered if it was perhaps a flood warning being testing, or a faulty siren being triggered by the large barges and tourist boats on the river. I was just hoping there wasn’t really a flood in progress, which could have provided a more dramatic type of adventure.

I took the ferry to the other side of the river near Kirchberg ob der Donau, not wanting to repeat my side-quest, and followed the signs on to Passau. Again the riding was really good fun, and I’d recommend the route to anyone. It’s obviously very popular with cyclists as I passed a lot of people out for a day’s ride; lots of e-bikes too, which confused me a little when quite elderly people started to overtake me.

I crossed back over to the North side of the river, by a bridge this time, near Niederranna, still in Austria I think, although it as hard to tell with no border crossings visible. Somewhere along the line I crossed into Germany, as I noticed I received a text from Vodafone welcoming me, and suddenly there were a lot more cars with German number plates. It was a long ride up to Passau, through lots of small towns, and passing yet more cyclists. I paused in Passau, which is definitely in Germany, and is also known as the city of three rivers (Dreiflüssestadt); the Danube is joined by the Inn from the South and the Liz from the North. It’s another ancient city, with a large University, and an interesting history (look it up).

: Arriving in Passau, Bavaria

: Passau clock tower

: Large tourist boats, Passau

: Looking back on Passau

I couldn’t find any open shops, which was slightly annoying as I needed supplies, but eventually found a garage where I could buy some chocolate and fizzy pop. Then it was on the Dreiflusse camping, just West of Passau, where I was given a friendly welcome and a place to pitch my tent for just €12. I was feeling pretty tired, so was glad they have their own restaurant; the Gypsy schnitzel was very good, as was the beer, and the Hungarian goulash soup.

: Hungarian Goulash Soup

: Followed by Gypsy Schnitzel

Unfortunately the wifi wasn’t working, so I couldn’t update my blog (one of the reasons I’m a bit behind), however as I was tired, and full of good food, it was nice just to relax in my tent and get an early night. Aiming for Regensburg tomorrow; Germany is going to take a while to cross, but that’s okay, it’s a great country.

–> 04 October – to Regensburg (140km)
140km kilometre days seem to be becoming the norm, and my legs aren’t complaining in the morning so all good. I wouldn’t have been able to keep this up a few months ago, so I must be a lot fitter than when I started. It probably also helps that I’ve lost at least 10kg!

My tent was a bit damp again in the morning, only on the outside, but it takes ages to dry now it’s colder so I had to pack it up wet. As well as it being colder I’ve developed a cold, which is more irritating than anything else, although it does seem to be getting a bit worse so I’ll have to feed it lots, and perhaps try to cure it with wine, or schnapps.

: Damp morning at Dreiflusse camping

: But lots of sunshine to look forward to

: Dreiflusse Camping – nice window boxes

I was on the road again by 08:00, pedalling off into a quiet Sunday morning, with only river and birds for company for the first hour. It was lovely cycling in the peace and quiet, as a pair of herons flew over, and with ducks dabbling on the over. I spotted loads of birds today, including the aforementioned, but also buzzards, various tits, a Green Woodpecker, Grebes and I think Cormorants; lots of crows still too, which again seem to follow me sometimes.

: Quiet morning on the river; ferry just getting going

: Beer crate gate and bike near Vilshofen

: Lonely tree on road route I took

The scenery wasn’t as exciting as yesterday, however it was still pleasant riding, despite a bit of a headwind getting up in the afternoon. I rode up to Deggandorf, then lost the cycle route signs somehow, and ended up crossing over to the South side and following roads to Straubing. The roads actually made a nice change, with some different things to look at; various small towns, farmland and German Sunday life going on.

: In Straubing – busy Sunday market

: Straubing market

: Straubing market place

: Straubing – flower box

I stopped in Straubing for a lunch break, and had a wander around the Sunday market that was in full swing. After a cheeky Mcdonalds, just because it was convenient and I hadn’t had one in a while, I bumped into Charles from France, on his way down the Danube on his touring bike complete with large trailer. We both stopped for a bit to exchange advice on the route; was good to speak some French again.

After Straubing I crossed the river again, then passed through more countryside on my way to Regensburg. Unfortunately the day got duller as it progressed, with cloud cover moving in, and rain starting as I entered the city. I had intended on having a look around Regensburg, as there are loads of Roman remains to visit, however I was feeling pretty tired, and wet, so headed pretty much straight for the campsite.

: Regensburg Old Town entrance

: Regensburg Old Town street

: They like their colours in Germany

: Regensburg Cathedral

: Eagle statue

: More of Regensburg Old Town

: More of Regensburg Old Town – panorama

: Schweinbraten for dinner, delicious

I later learnt there’s a famous sausage restaurant in Regensburg; missed out there but enjoyed some traditional Bavarian fayre at the campsite restaurant. My tent was under siege from rabbits when I got back to it, however they didn’t prevent me from falling asleep very quickly. On to Donauworth tomorrow.

10 & 11 June 2015 – to Holland and a heatwave

08 and 09 June 2015 – Hamburg to Bremen, and heading West

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Since Hamburg I’ve been pedalling for 3 days, so a bit of a blog catch-up is in order. I’ll cover the 08 and 09 May on this post, and might get to today’s ride later, if not tomorrow; in Holland now, where cycling is just a pleasure.

Here are links to the routes and stats from the last couple of days:

08 May: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/799082018

09 May: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/799082125

–> 08 May 2015
I was frankly surprised not to have a hangover after a very good night out in Hamburg, however I’ve noticed before that a lot of cycling tends to reduce the severity of hangovers, plus I probably don’t drink as much as it goes to my head more quickly after all the pedalling.

First order of the day was to find a bike shop to get some replacement inner tubes, just in case. Reception pointed me in the direction of a few local to St Pauli, and whilst I couldn’t find any tubes that were exactly the right size, I bought a couple that will do the job, should the need arise. Again most inner tubes in Europe seem to use Presta valves, however I found one in one shop with a Schrader valve, and another in another shop that was Presta; my pump will work with both so think we’re good. I got my stand tightened up too, however I don’t think I’d better use it as the metal has fatigued where it joins on to the bike, and will eventually break; not structurally integral to the frame but annoying none the less. I might get a replacement stand fitted to another part of the bike, or use the forked stick trick; not vital in any case.

One other addition to the bike; added a St Pauli Jolly Roger sticker, their unofficial logo, to my panniers. I need to remember to get more stickers to add on my travels.

St Pauli Jolly Roger

I’ll have to start thinking about getting Smaug serviced soon, and maybe a new chain and rear cassette, but I’m loathed to change anything whilst it’s all working. Will get the chain checked for stretch anyway.

Once back at the hostel I packed up and said goodbye to Alex, before hitting the road towards Bremen.

Preparing to leave Hamburg – with Alex, my compadre from last night

Alex was flying back to London later that day; weird to think the flight takes 1 hour, whereas it’ll take me another 5 months, admittedly via a rather roundabout route.

The rest of the day was fairly straightforward riding. I pedalled North West out of St Pauli, alongside the River Elbe, chatting to a few random people along the way (friendly place Hamburg), and got the ferry over to Neuen. You don’t quite realise how big Hamburg port is until you see it – goes on for ages.

Bit of Hamburg port

Cool fountain in Altona, Hamburg

On the ferry I ended up speaking to a man who is finishing his job in a week, and going hiking in the Alps for 7 months; amazing who you randomly bump into.

Smaug on-board passenger ferry across the Elbe

Then it was a case of skirting around the airport and heading South to Bremen, albeit it via a rather ‘scenic’ route.

Road to Bremen 1

ALERT – this post is being temporarily taken over by the CCFC – Crustacean Committee for Corrections. So, Lobster here, we did not take the ‘scenic’ route, the human pedalling the bike, known as James, went the wrong way because he wasn’t paying attention to sign posts. What a dufus. Probably added 20km on to the day’s ride, and meant we nearly ran out of chocolate, which would have been a crisis not worth thinking about. I had to take over the navigation for the rest of the ride; it was quite boring, apart from the cows who are funny, and the bit where James got sprayed with water from a farmer’s irrigation spraying device thingy; that was very funny. Luckily I have a carapace and am not averse to water, unless it’s hot, so it didn’t bother me.

Through the countryside to Bremen

Ahem, yeah okay, we might’ve gone the wrong way for a bit, but it wasn’t that big a detour, and we had an emergency McDonalds when we got to the outskirts of Bremen to make up for it; they accepted MasterCard, which was handy as I was running out of cash. It’s really quite tricky to find a cashpoint that accepts anything other than Eurocard/Maestro in Germany.

Wizards Tower on the outskirts of Hamburg

I found the campsite relatively easily – Stadtwaldsee, on the outskirts of the city, and unfortunately right next to the motorway so it was a bit noisy.

Stadtwaldsee Campingplatz, Bremen

I had enough cash for the campsite, but not for the restaurant, which also didn’t accept MasterCard, so instead ate some biscuits and had a relatively early night. Tomorrow I’d find an ATM and get out a decent amount of cash so I don’t run short again. There were quite a few other tourers at the campsite, including a couple of French guys heading North; more and more cycle tourers as I head South.

Nice sunset at Stadtwaldsee

118km pedalled, in 6.5 hours.

–> 09 May 2015
Today wasn’t an amazingly exciting day, but I covered a good distance and it was good to see Bremen, even if I did spend most of my time looking for an ATM that would accept MasterCard or VISA.

Visit from a Hare in Stadtwaldsee

Smaug ready for another day on the road

I headed into Bremen on cycle paths, taking care to avoid the trams, as well as tram lines which can be lethal if you get your wheel caught in them. I went straight to the historic Market Square, where the World Heritage listed town hall (Rathaus) can be found. I glanced at it then found the Tourist Information office who were able to point me in the direction of a couple of banks that would accept my cards; ended up at a Santander and withdrew some Euros – a big relief, and I can buy food now! I could also use the free wifi at the Tourist Info office to check my route for the day, and my emails etc, very handy, and meant I was able to check-in and get spotted on the Bremen marketplace web cam.

Bremen webcam shot

Bremen has a lot of older buildings, compared with Hamburg; here are a few photos from taken on my meanderings.

: Bremen Cathedral

: Bremen Marketplace

: Bremen Rathaus

: Bremen – think this was a hotel

: Bremen Rathaus 2

: Thumbs up to finding a cashpoint that works

: Bremen Rathaus 3

: Bremen – knights on guard

: Bremen Marketplace – not sure who this is

Somewhat relieved to not be penniless still, I made my way over the river and cycled to Delmenhorst, passing a ship called the Admiral Nelson on the river – probably a restaurant by the looks of it.

The Admiral Nelson

I was paying particular attention to signposts, so as not to take any unplanned detours, and to avoid a Lobster takeover again. It doesn’t help when the signs are missing from the posts, however a combination of maps and my Garmin saw me out of the city and suburbs, and into the countryside.

Fields of Barley with cornflowers

The roads took me through fields of Barley, where cornflowers added a vibrant purple colour to the landscape. There were cows too, much to Lobster’s delight; I don’t know why he likes them so much.

At one point I opted to risk it and continue down a cycle path next to a road that was allegedly closed. It turned out fine, just like the other day – the road was being resurfaced but the path was open still. They don’t do things by halves in Germany; if the road needs mending they close the whole thing and get it done quick.

Road being resurfaced but cycle path open

The route to Werlte, my destination for the night, was easy-going and well signposted, with the next village on my map always having a handy sign to point me in the right direction. There were no hills to speak of either, so despite the 112km it felt like an easy day. My only complaint is that some of the cycle paths can get unexpectedly bumpy at times. Tree roots growing under the tarmac can ambush you, and are a little jarring to say the least. It doesn’t help that I’m a bit paranoid about my wheels, both spokes and punctures, so am constantly checking them.

Before checking in at the campsite I did a shopping run to Lidyl, and probably bought too much now I’ve got some money, however I’m sure it’ll all get eaten.

Smaug loaded with supplies

There were some interesting garden ornaments in a nearby garden centre; these are just a few of them.

German garden ornaments, not quite gnomes, but purple sheep are, urr, interesting

I don’t think I can fit anything like the above in my panniers, so friends and relatives are probably safe, this time around.

The Humminglingerland/Werlte Campingplatz is a great campsite, and I’d arrived in good time; it was cheap at €6.50, and has free wifi. There’s no restaurant, but I didn’t need one tonight, and it’s lovely and quiet so I was just able to chill out for a while in the sunshine, enjoy a mug of wine and the birds singing; je suis tres sophistique, non?

Chilling out Humminglingerland/Werlte campsite

I had some radishes too, so getting my 5-a-day, or thereabouts.

Radishes – awesome and wholesome

A bit of planning saw me work out my route to the Netherlands, however I’m still undecided on whether to visit Amsterdam or not; going towards ‘not’ at the moment, as it could just be a lot of hassle with my bike. I’ll make up my mind tomorrow, and try and work out where I’ll be around my birthday for the purpose of family visitations; looking forward to that!

07 June 2015 – Hamburg and St Pauli, a day off

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Well, almost a day off, I did a bit of cycling (28km), some to get to St. Pauli and the hostel where I was staying, and then a quick sightseeing tour of the city. Routes and stats below:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/799081745

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/799081879

After a somewhat restless night I had a bit of a lie in, I didn’t have far to go after all, but was still up and ready to go by about 10.00. Yannick, who I’d met the day before, pedalled off on his way to Puttgarden, to get the ferry over to Denmark; one of the routes I’d considered, but from the other direction.

Yannick – off to Denmark and then Sweden to Norway

Good luck with your tour Yannick; hope the new saddle works and your leg improves. Nice to know I’m not the only one who encounters bike issues that can have knock on effects.

It was only a short ride into Hamburg centrum, and pretty straightforward in comparison to some cities (mostly British ones). After riding past an Ikea, who’d have thought it, I passed the Specialised bike shop Yannick had mentioned yesterday, where I’d hoped I might be able to get new inner tubes and fix my stand. Unfortunately like most shops in Hamburg/Germany it was closed on a Sunday; cool Fat Bike in the window though.

An Ikea in Hamburg, what a surprise…

It’s actually quite refreshing to see shops closed on a Sunday, and a city calm down a bit. I know for a lot of people it’s very convenient to be able to shop on a Sunday, especially if you work the rest of the week. Still think it would be nice if everyone could have Sunday off, and give everything a rest; restaurants, cafes and pubs aside, need them to stay open for calorie loading purposes!

Specialised bike shop, closed unfortunately, but cool fat bike

I made it down to the River Elbe, and realised I’d forgotten to take a photo of the online map showing the location of my hostel.

Made it into Hamburg unscathed

I didn’t want to use any more data roaming, after clocking up a rather large unintentional bill, so went to the tourist information office instead and got a free local map. Not sure if I’ve already mentioned the rather unexpected bill I got from Vodafone, however I thought I could use the free data test drive I’m on, which gives me unlimited data until later this month, in Europe with the £3 a day Eurotraveller deal. Unfortunately it turns out I can’t, and that the £3 a day deal only applies to the 3GB standard data I get each month; I really wish they’d told me this in the shop when I said I’d be going to Europe for 6 months. Needless to say the resulting bill is a lot more than my standard £19 a month, but I’ll just have to put it down to experience and move on. I did talk to a Vodafone rep about it online, and they gave me an extra 2GB of data for this month, but wouldn’t refund what I’d already been charged for because apparently it says the test drive isn’t included somewhere on their website.

Anyway, back to Hamburg; loads of bikes around again, including lots for hire like the ones below.

Lots of Boris Bike equivalents on offer, and red too, good choice

As is normal with all the European towns and cities I’ve been through so far on this tour, you can cycle on most pavements, with a lane allotted to you, and you have right of way most of the time. Really very impressed with cycling in towns in Scandinavia and Germany; good signs most of the time too.

Using the map from Tourist Info I located the street the Backpackers Hostel is on, in the St. Pauli area of Hamburg, and slowly made my way there after checking out a bit of the waterfront and Fish Market. I also rode down the Reeperbahn, Hamburg’s Sinful Mile, centre of a lot of the city’s nightlife and Red Light District; maybe Europe’s most famous Red Light District.

Reeperbahn means Rope Walk, as it’s where the cities ropes used to be made in the 17th and 18th centuries. Close to the river I expect all the sailors used to pile into the Reeperbahn to spend their money after being at sea for ages, and hence the entertainment area took shape. It’s really quite a bizarre place with theatres, restaurants, a big market and bars, intermingled with sex shops, strip joints, and McDonalds, as well as Currywurst stalls! I also noticed a lot of people living on the street, quite literally, a theme repeated throughout much of Hamburg, which is a big contrast to the obvious wealth of the city, with a lot of millionaires living here.

The Backpackers hostel is on the side streets of St Pauli, in a quiet area. Upon arrival I was greeted by Tanya, who manages the joint and is very friendly and helpful. I couldn’t check in until 15.00, so relaxed for couple of hours enjoying a local beer, Astra, in the sunshine. Beer in Germany is so much cheaper than Scandinavia, where I didn’t really drink, and Astra is excellent at €2 or less a bottle. I also got talking to Alex, who was staying at the hostel and offered to show me around later. He’s a veteran of Hamburg having lived here for several months a few years back, and is passionate about the city. He was just visiting for the weekend this time around, and recommended a local kebab shop, so after checking in I nipped out to get some food, being forever hungry as usual.

Mr Kebab – a most excellent Turkish purveyor of quality foodstuffs

The Kebab was excellent, probably the best Doner I’ve ever had; delicious lamb surrounded by crisp bread, with salad and a yoghurt based sauce, all for €4. Whilst enjoying it I had a walk around the back streets of St Pauli.

Best Doner Kebab I think I’ve ever had

There are a lot of Turkish immigrants in the city, many having moved here after the Second World War; I think they helped rebuild Hamburg after much of it was destroyed by the RAF and USAF. I read that in one operation called Gomorrah, the RAF and their US counterparts bombed Hamburg with incendiaries, creating firestorm that killed over 40,000 civilians and practically destroyed the city. It felt a bit odd wandering through the narrow streets, years after those terrible times, thinking about such things and what it would have been like in war-time.

It’s a very relaxed area now, especially in the sunshine, and has a very Bohemian atmosphere to it. There’s a lot of graffiti too, and not all of it good. People were sitting out in cafes, or just on the pavement, chatting and drinking coffee or cold beer.

St Pauli wall art

Post Kebab I had a bit of a rest, then went out for a cycle around the city, heading to the centre and some of the parks. As well as the impressive looking town hall the parks were lovely, along with the lakes and waterways. Tourists abounded, as did street performers, expensive cars, and as mentioned before homeless people.

: Hamburg Rathaus – town hall

: Hamburg Rathaus – town hall 2

: Hamburg Centre – lots of waterways

: Hamburg Street performers 1

: Hamburg central lake – Binnenalster I think

: Binnenalster from other direction

: Smaug and Lobster in Hamburg

: Hamburg Centrum

: Rathaus through an arch

: Rathaus 3

: Hamburg Street performers 2

: One of Hamburg’s many parks

: One of Hamburg’s many parks – many people lounging in sunshine

Being on a bike I could see a lot of Hamburg quite quickly, so was back at the Hostel in an hour and a half, in time for a quick shower then to meet up with Alex to head out for a few beers.

Alex proved an excellent guide, his passion for Hamburg coming across as he walked me around St Pauli and down to the waterfront. He showed me the house where the Beatles lived at a point quite early on in their careers, when they were resident in the city for quite some time. I think Hamburg proved quite a formative experience in shaping the band and their music.

Beatles house – plaque showing they live here

If you didn’t have someone to show you, you probably wouldn’t find this vine shrouded doorway, and know this world-famous band once lived here; as always local knowledge is much better than any guidebook in getting to know a place.

Beatles house 2

We also walked past the Kaiserkeller, where the Beatles used to play, including at least one gig that went on for 12 hours. I think they played one show here with toilet seats around their heads for some reason.

Kaiserkeller – venue where Beatles used to play

Typical Reeperbahn side street

From a cultural point of view I guess no visit to Hamburg would be complete without a wander through the Red Light District, a slightly odd experience having not encountered anything quite like it before.

Reeperbahn Red Light District – this street is closed to under 18’s and women, unless the women work there

We walked through fairly swiftly, ignoring the invitations from various ‘shop’ windows and their employees!

Waterfront – the Elbe

After a walk along the waterfront we headed back into St Pauli for a few beers, and a Curryvurst. An excellent evening was had taking in a few different bars, one of them very English (the London Pub), and chatting about travelling, life, the universe and everything.

: Currywurst – brilliant invention

: More Union Jacks here than you see in most of the UK

: London Pub, St Pauli

Alex also introduced me to a few of the local spirits/shots including one called Mexicana, which is like a Bloody Mary but with chilli, and different degrees of chilli depending on the bar; it was lovely. Here are a couple of others I tried, both warming.

Kuemmerling

Underberg

Feeling decidedly merry we headed back to the hostel, stopping for another kebab on the way, just cos they’re so good here; I did mention I’m always hungry when cycle touring didn’t I?! It was nice to chill out with a few of the other residents in the common room; a few Australians over visiting Europe with their guitars, and one guy who works for VSO and has just got back after several months in Malaysia and China. Hostels are great places to meet up with diverse and interesting people, and to find out about new places you then add to your list of destinations you want to visit someday.

So a late night, but a great night, and many thanks to Alex for hosting it and bringing the city to life. Back to cycling posts tomorrow.

05 & 06 June 2015 – to Bad Bramstedt and Hamburg

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After an entertaining evening with Claudio, Larissa, Alex and Romulus I had a bit of a late start on 05 June, and still half asleep I left my shampoo in the campsite shower; won’t be the last time. I think there’s something karmic about leaving shampoo in campsite showers, as generally you find someone else has done the same at one of your subsequent campsites, and you can use that instead.

Morning in Jarplund; Stuttgart crew heading off to Flensburg

Claudio headed off early to get to a nearby garage for a tyre change before Iceland, and the others pedalled into Flensburg for a day’s sightseeing. It was good to meet them all, and probably marks the start of running into more tourers at campsites now I’m further South, and the touring season has started in earnest.

Sunny day in Jarplund – thumbs up to meeting more folks on the road

I set off about 10.00, and had a great day’s riding down to Bad Bramstedt, most of it on cycle paths, or pavement doubling as cycle paths that run next to the road. I covered 119km in 6 hours and 45 minutes of pedalling, but was on the road for quite a bit longer than that due to a puncture repair session. Here’s a link to my route and stats for 05 June:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/794919245

The only drawback of riding on some of the marked cycle paths, especially in the towns, is they’re a bit juddery, and can be stop/starty due to junctions, so I have to admit I didn’t use them all the time as it made progress too slow and increased discomfort in various body parts.

My route took me down to Schleswig, and on through gorgeous countryside, often lovely woodland; a lot of it Beech which is my favourite.

Riding through Beech woodland

It was the hottest day of my tour yet, and the first time I’ve worn only one layer; just my Icebreaker top, plus my lightweight buff under my cycle helmet to stop sunburn on receding spots and the back of my neck.

Schleswig waterfront

Close to Dannewerk I decided to follow a cycle route that pointed in the right direction, disappearing into farmland. I was a little dubious as to what the route would turn into, after yesterday’s experiences on Route 8, but thought I’d give it a go.

Pedalling through farmland following a marked cycle route

It started off well enough but deteriorated into a farm track, which the bike coped with fine, but it knocked me about a bit; no suspension!

Cycle route turns expedition like near Dannewerk

I think there must be an airbase near Dannewerk, as I’m pretty sure that’s what I passed at one point. I also passed a lot of wind turbines, doing their bit to help save the environment. I hope they checked the areas for bats, as wind turbines can have unfortunate effects on these delicate creatures due to the air pressure changes they create; causes bats to haemorrhage. Nearly everything humankind does has some sort of adverse impact on another species, even if we think we’re doing right; wind turbines can screw with bats and birds, tidal power with whales and dolphins. It’s a bit depressing really however I guess it’s a case of choosing the lesser of evils; got to be better than fossil fuelled power-stations.

Pedalling past lots of wind turbines

I reached the 60km mark and noticed my front tyre was going flat. This was slightly vexing, but on such a fine day it was going to take a lot to annoy me. And besides, I was able to stop next to the village bakery/ice-cream shop so it wasn’t all bad.

Puncture repair in Hohn, Lobster claiming he’s trying to help but pincers make it awkward

On examining the inner tube the last patch had come loose, maybe due to a combination of hot weather and friction. I tried to patch it but it wouldn’t take for some reason; I might’ve rushed it. I stopped for an ice-cream break to consider my next course of action.

Ice-cream break in Hohn

Whilst mulling things over, and trying to keep Lobster away from MY ice-cream, a friendly local pointed me in the direction of a bike shop a few hundred metres down the road. Great I thought, I can just get a new inner tube. Unfortunately they didn’t have an inner tube in the right size, which is an issue I’ve previously had on this tour, however I dug out an old one I’d repaired from my panniers and put that on instead. It’s still going over 100m later so the repair job seems to have been a good one, touch wood. I’ll definitely be buying a few spares in Hamburg.

After a protracted break I got back to it and rode to the Nord Ostee Kanal, which I had to cross via a car ferry; only a short jaunt across the canal.

: Transport across the Nord Ostsee Kanal

: Smaug on board the ferry

: Crossing in progress

: Nord Ostsee Kanal

: Crossing the Kanal – superb weather for it

I still had quite a way to go to get down to Bad Bramstedt, so after the canal tried to speed up a bit, making good progress, aside from on the cobbled bits.

German roads often cobbled through villages

Riding along wooded roads very pleasant and shaded

I arrived at Campingplatz Rolande in Bad Bramstedt a little later than anticipated, but reception was still open; I think the owner lives on site as he was wandering about doing stuff for most of the evening, including trying to speak to me in German which whilst appreciated wasn’t very successful as far as a two-way conversation goes.

The Campingplatz Rolande is a little small and quite noisy, but did the job for me after a fairly long and hot day in the saddle. The owner was able to supply me with a couple of cold beers which went down a treat.

Cold beer always brings a smile to my face

Note – beard still present, decision still pending on its fate.

I passed quite a lot of other cycle tourers today, including one guy looking very relaxed on a recumbent. I noticed a lot of them seemed to be around retirement age, or older. I guess people have more time on their hands for touring once they’re retired, however I wonder if this was just today’s sample or if the trend will continue; great to see people travelling by bike well into their sixties and possibly seventies though.

I spent the rest of the evening trying to decide what to do next, settling on a short leg tomorrow to a campsite just on the outskirts of Hamburg, followed by a hostel for one night on Sunday. This will allow me to see a bit of the city, whilst not getting trapped there for too long, and it’ll save on money too; hostels are expensive on Saturday nights. It’ll also give me a chance to do some laundry! I need to think about getting Smaug serviced, as I’m pretty sure he’ll need a new chain soon, and maybe a new rear cassette, and the stand needs tightening; don’t have the right allen key and too wobbly to use at present.

Top tip: If there a flying bugs in your tent, and I had quite a lot mine, shine your torch into the porch area to lure them out, then shut the door quickly; worked well for me.

Luring the bugs out of my tent via head torch

–> 06 June 2015

I had a rather broken night’s sleep, partly due to passing traffic which proved pretty noisy, but also due to the massive thunderstorm that struck about 03.00. I didn’t get out of my tent to watch, as I could quite happily see the lightning flashing from inside, followed by thunder and heavy rain. Thankfully I stayed dry again, and it probably explained all the thunder flies around earlier.

Today’s ride was just a short 38km down to the outskirts of Hamburg, which only took around 2 and half hours, at a pretty slow pace. Here’s a link to the route and stats:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/795595199

Not a lot to report from the ride. I did go around some road closed signs at one point, and just carried on to the next bit; they were resurfacing, but no-one was working on Saturday, and it was fine to cross the short stretch by bike.

Road closed – thou shalt not pass, unless you’re on a bike

I made it down to the Knaus Campingpark in Hamburg just before midday, and checked in. To my surprise there was another cycle tourer with a Hilleburg Akto Tent right next to my spot. Yannick is from Belgium and currently touring up to Norway. It as great to meet up and chat about routes, bikes and share a few stories.

Another tourer with a Hilleburg Akto

As the day progressed 3 more cycle tourers turned up, however I’ve only spoken to them briefly so far as I’ve been busy doing laundry, and a bit of bike cleaning/maintenance. One couple are on their way up to Sweden for some island hopping, so we shared a few route suggestions.

Laundry dome and drying; feeling accomplished

I’ve also discovered that, at least so far, MasterCard isn’t so widely accepted in Germany. This proved a problem whilst trying to get supplies in an Aldi earlier. I ended up having to take some cash out on my debit card, which’ll cost a lot more than using my Prepaid Travel card; something I’ll have to prepare for in Germany, however I reckon l be able to use it more easily in the centre of Hamburg.

That’s all for today. Blog now up-to-date. Tomorrow I head into Hamburg for some sightseeing, but also to visit a bike shop or two to top-up on inner tubes and get a couple of things fixed.

04 June 2015 – willkommen in Deutschland

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I woke up and listened; only a faint rustling of the tent canvas, the wind had dropped, and it was sunny! Could this be the glorious day’s cycling I’d been waiting for?

Morning in Svendborg – glorious day

Feeling buoyed by the thought that today was going to be a good’un, and with a new country in my sights, I was up, breakfasted and packed in good time. The campsite cat brought me a present, a mouse wrapped in leaves, which was a bit odd, and then ducks started following me around.

Stalked by Mallards

When the goats in the mini zoo started bleating I started to wonder if I’d developed Dr Doolittle traits overnight, or maybe this was all a dream and I was in fact still asleep, and it wasn’t such a nice day after all. Not wanting to consider the latter a possibility I got on the road quick.

Svendborg Sund Camping morning view 2

There were plenty of people up early, paddling in canoes, or sailing in small yachts down the narrow stretch of water between the campsite and Svendborg. It all felt very relaxed and holiday like.

Goodbye Mallard

I rode over the bridge to Svendborg and then turned left, following nice cycle paths alongside the road to Faaborg. The scenery was more varied and interesting than yesterday, with a few hills thrown in for good measure.

: View from Svendborg Bridge

: Svendborg Bridge panorama

: Pedalling through Danish countryside

: Windmill on the way to Faaborg

: Descent to Bojden – ferry awaits

: Arrived in the nick of time for the ferry

It was so nice to be cycling without a headwind. I hardly looked at my Odometer, and could just relax and enjoy the sunshine and countryside. Before long I reached Bojden, just as the ferry arrived from Fynshav; a short 10km crossing to Als and Jutland.

: Ferry to Fynshav

: Smaug looking cool next to motorbike

: Off to Als, then Jutland

: Leaving Bojden

: Happy days! No wind

: Ferry – looking back to Bojden

: Ferry panorama – on way to Fynshav

: On board ferry – everyone out in the sunshine

After enjoying a hot chocolate and pastry on the ferry I pedalled on from Fynshav to Sonderborg, which didn’t seem to take very long, arriving in time for lunch. I walked through the town stopping to buy a hotdog from one of the many purveyors of such fine foodstuffs.

Sonderborg and first hotdog of the day

Hotdogs in Denmark appear to be very popular, with several different varieties. I preferred the Ristet, which comes inside a bun and is topped with pickled cucumber, crispy onions, mustard, ketchup, and remoulade.

Lots of people out in cafes in Sonderborg

Needing to use up my Danish Krone and I decided I’d eat my way through the rest of Denmark, and had another Ristet for good measure; I’ve been losing too much weight anyway, at least that was my excuse.

Sonderborg waterfront

I paused on the bridge out of Sonderborg, hoping that the folks at home might be able to see me on the webcam, but also to stop as the middle section was raised for a boat to come through. Unfortunately I couldn’t delay long as it was just too busy, and I’m not sure I timed it right for the webcam. I cycled on to Dybol, then turned South and crossed the small island before rejoining Jutland; lovely quiet roads and cycle paths again.

Marina – Egernsund

I followed the Route 8 cycle path a lot of the time, not out of any particular design, it was just going in the right direction. I was also having a day of being open to possibilities, so if I saw a cycle track or nice road that went the way I wanted it to, I took it. I rode down the side of Flensburger Ford, through a number of small towns. This is obviously quite a big tourist spot, and very beautiful, with some lovely yachts out on the water (when I win the lottery etc).

: Flensburger Fjord 1

: Flensburger Fjord 2

: Flensburger Fjord 3

: Ristet number 3

: Followed by a humongous icecream (Lobster helped)

: Flensburger Fjord 4

: Flensburger Fjord 5

After relaxing next to the Fjord for a bit, and of course taking on vital nourishment, I thought I’d better get on with the task at hand. I continued to follow Route 8, which decided to take me off-road and through the woods for a bit, as I got closer to the border with Germany.

Route 8 goes off road

It was slightly awkward cycling for a bit, and my bike developed an annoying squeak which I couldn’t identify the source of; it’s still doing occasionally now, a few days later, and I don’t know what’s causing it – I’d better investigate further in case it’s a problem that’s going to get worse.

Route 8 – the forest continues

I finally made it out of the trees, which had provided some welcome shade and smelt nice, and could see Germany across the bay. There was a beach and people swimming; in fact one cyclist arrived in the spot below and decided to go for a swim; I nearly joined them.

Route 8 – that’s Germany over there

In this case I resisted the temptation of a dip, as I needed to get through Flensburg, and carried on towards the border. I was keeping an eye out for customs officials as I’d seen a few signs suggesting they might patrol round here, but didn’t see any. In fact, when I got back on the road, I barely noticed crossing into Germany.

Beach just across the border in Germany

For some reason my Garmin decided to switch off at this point, so I had to restart it and my route tracking, hence there are two links to today’s ride; a total of 119km pedalled in 6 hours and 45 minutes:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/793985036

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/793991399

I was in country number 6 of this tour! I rode on to Flensburg and walked through some of the city. Again there were a lot of tourists out and about, enjoying the sunshine and street cafes. Flensburg looks nice, with some lovely older parts to it.

: Flensburg – shoes a dangling

: A square in Flensburg

: Flensburg street

The cobbled streets were slightly jarring on my still wonky hand, and always make me worry about my wheels, however I made it through and cycled South the Jarplund, where the ACSI app on my phone told me there was a campsite. It was a bit of a maze getting out of Flensburg whilst trying to avoid the busier main roads, and stay on cycle paths. I made it to the campsite but had to go around the houses a bit to get there.

At the campsite I met up with 3 other cycle tourers from Stuttgart, as well as an Italian motorcyclist from Italy; Larissa, Romulus, Alex and Claudio. Claudio is on his way to Iceland, and will be getting the ferry with his motorbike from North Denmark; there are a limited number of ways of getting to Iceland by ferry. Larissa, Alex and Romulus were just finishing a week of touring around Northern Germany, and are heading home on Saturday; Romulus has done loads of cycle touring in the past though.

Campsite in Jarplund – fun evening with new friends

Needless to say a fun evening was had, with a few beers and lots of chat about Europe, travelling, politics, and the economy, to name but a few topics. Claudio cooked pasta for everyone which was most welcome; in fact he kept producing food from his motorbike panniers. Thanks Claudio! Hopefully I’ll meet up with the all somewhere on the road in the future.

One thing about a new country – you have to relearn things in the supermarkets; took me about twice as long to pick up supplies, however at least they still have mountains of Haribo still.

All in all, a splendid day!

Self Propelled

Self propelled adventures through life; blogging on cycling, touring, micro-adventures, general shenanigans, and environmental news