Blogs from Bavaria, Germany, Europe - page 3

The Gasthof Zum Hirschen was a wonderful hotel, we wished we could have stayed longer. Dinner last night and breakfast this morning were sensational. We also found a much longer road down to the canal which would have made the climb up yesterday bareable. Back on the canal for the morning stint and it's very quite, eerily so. No wind, hardly a ripple on the water and no barges, in fact no barges since Bamberg. We spoke to one person who said the water level is too low for the big barges. The big locks are not manned. You have to book ahead for locks to be operated for you. It really was like a ghost canal, but still very scenic. We had our morning break at a sleepy little town where we found a shop ... read more

If we could have spent another day (or two) in Nuremberg we would have but Istanbul waits for no-one. We had breakfast early, packed up and then did the relay down the 3 flights of stairs (53 steps) with our gear. It's almost become a joke when we turn up with all our gear, ask if there is a lift (usually no) and then see what floor our room is on. On the bright side, there were four floors of the Hotel Central City and we were only on 3! It was a bit of a slow get away, Jeff went to lube his chain, then couldn't find it (the lube not the chain). A journey back up the 53 steps to see if it was left in the room and, alas, not. He did manage ... read more

Today is our last day on the Main River. We ride from the very beautiful town of Bamberg to the history filled city of Nuremberg. The day's forecast is for rain again, starting mid morning and continuing for most of the day. We hit the road at about 8:15am and while not raining there is a definite chill in the air today. As is our norm we start off very slowly, winding our way out of whatever town we're in. Just a way to warm up the legs and ease into a new day. The first few hours are dry at least. We end up riding on the canal most of the way rather than the Main River. We think this is the continuation of the canal that we will follow from Nuremberg that will take ... read more

The Bike Lodge Hotel had everything a cyclist staying overnight needed, including washing machines and driers which we were in dire need of. Washing clothes in showers and basins only gets things so clean. As soon as we hit the room we filled a bag with clothes (including the days riding clothes) and took them down to set on a wash cycle and then back to the room to relax. Some time later an alarm went off and persisted. After about 10 minutes there was a knock at our door. The manager was there saying that an alarm on one of our bikes (mine) was going off. With horror I realised I hadn't taken my alarm fob out of my pocket before throwing my shorts into the wash. It must have shorted and set off the ... read more

After a week of relaxation in Bratislava and Graz, I felt sufficiently rested and recuperated to tackle my next multi-day hike through the mountains; and where better to do so than the Bavarian Alps? So after leaving my dear friend Kathi in Graz (where we'd had storms every day) and taking the train to Salzburg, I was up early the next day to take a 45-minute bus ride across the border to Berchtesgaden NP, nestled in the extreme southeastern corner of Germany. The plan was to do a 47km loop hike (known as the Watzmanntour) that starts and finishes at the park's most prominent lake (the Königssee) whilst first climbing - and then circling - its most prominent mountain (the Watzmann). By staying in mountain huts (and one 'Nature Friend House') along the way, I could ... read more