VIENNA - WE'RE OFF AGAIN - 2010

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LOCATION: Vienna, Austria

On July 16, Joe Lehmann and I will fly to Vienna to begin Part 2 of "The Great European Bicycle Tour".  In the summer of 2009, Jos Hulshof and I biked from London to Budapest.  This year (2010) Joe and I will complete the tour by cycling from Vienna to Istanbul.  In so-doing, we will cycle

• 80-85 kilometres per day, 
• for 29 cycling days,
• for a total of approximately 2,500 kilometres, 
• through 8 countries (Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey), 
• from Vienna on July 19, arriving in Istanbul sic weeks later on August 24, 2010.

Wish us luck!

Wayne

BUDAPEST - WE MADE IT!

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July 8, 2009 - Here we are in front of the Hungarian Parliament Buildings, 3,370 kilometres and 55 days after leaving London. During those 55 days we became intimately acquainted with our bicycle seats, sitting on them for 167 hours and 4 minutes. It was a great ride, but we will be glad to be home. Both Jos and I look forward to seeing you soon!

VIENNA TO BUDAPEST (HUNGARY)

LOCATION: Szentendre, Hungary - 30 kilometres north of Budapest, on the Danube River. Tomorrow we will reach Budapest almost 2 months and 3,400 kilometres of cycling!

We have left the Germanic speaking countries and have entered countries whos languages have nothing in common with English. That makes communicating with most people extremely difficult. It also makes it difficult to know where you are and what you are permitted or not permitted to do.

This aquatic facility is in a small town in Hungary, perhaps the size of Owen Sound. The Hungarian (and Slovak) governments appear to be making a great effort to overcome the problems created during the Soviet era and are making great investments in renovating historic buildings and in infrastructure, such as this facility.

SCHEDULE: We are actually ahead of schedule by one day. Tomorrow we will head into Budapest for 3 days before heading home on Sunday, July 12.

DISTANCE: 3,345 kilometres / almost 1,000 more kilometres than I had thought it would be from London. I guess that refelects poor planning, however, it also reflects that we have had to cycle more days and have had fewer rest days that we had planned.

WEATHER: For the past week, the weather has been improving steadily. The constant rains have stopped and the amount of sun has increased as have the temperatures. For the past 3-5 days the temperatures have been 30 or more. Each day it has rained in the evening after we have finished cycling.

Jos follows another cyclist acoss a section of the flooded Danube cycle path east of Vienna. We carried our bikes and paniers across this section which was one of several flooded by the unusually heavy rains in Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary.

FLAT TIRES: No more flat tires since we left Passau on the German/Austrian border.

EATING AND OTHER BODILY FUNCTIONS: We continue to buy most of our food at grocery stores and have picnic lunches and dinners. That means we eat lots of cheese, salami, buns/bread, olives, wine, salads and fruit. The best fruits here are the nectarines. In Germany it was the sweet cherries.

We were surprised to come across this world-class white-water kyaking facility south of Bratislava, in Slovakia. Apparently, the Slovaks have been very successful at the international level in this sport and the government has supported them by creating this wonderful facility along side the Danube.

REPORT: Past Vienna, the cycle paths have been very flat and have hugged the Danube. Frequently we have been able to move along quickly (20-25 kph). Occasionally we have come across flooded areas caused by the unusually high rains in Germany, Austria and Hungary this June. We see that the river was 4-6 feet higher a week or so ago, meaning we would have not been able to pass through here if we had been a week earlier. Still, we have had to wade across flooded areas and have taken to travelling on the roads and avoiding the cycle path along the river to escape the flooded areas and the associated mud that is left once the water recedes.

We met this fellow and his neighbour in a village south of Bratislava. It was hot (over 30) and we were almost out of water. The villages were very quiet and stores were hard to find. This fellow and his English-speaking neighbour said hello in English and German, opening up an opportunity to find water. A half-hour later we had another friend and full water bottles. These experiences renew our faith in people time and time again.

Mavis and John, age 75 and 76 respectively, are amoung my new heroes. They are cycling the Danube Cycleway from Germany to Budapest. They have positive attitudes that have carried them on their 50 year old bicycles through the rains and floods. Hats off to people like Mavis and John!

MUNICH TO VIENNA (AUSTRIA)

 

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LOCATION: Vienna, Austria. We have reached Vienna after cycling over 3,000 kilometres. This report covers the events from our arrival in Munich through to our arrival in Vienna.

After leaving the Rhine River, we took the train the 100 kilometres over the mountains in the Black Forest to Donaueschingen, where the Danube River begins. There was no way that we could get through those mountains, let alone in the one or 2 days that we had allotted for the task, so, being the mature individuals that we are, we took the train.

In Munich we stayed with Gerd Mischler, his partner Doerte and Leon, renewing a friendship that began in the Jakarta airport in 1994.

Together with Gerd and Doertre, we visited two of King Ludwig's castles, the most famous being Neushwanstein. King Ludig is known as "mad king Ludwig" becuase 9of his verz strange behaivour. He avoided state events and generally avoided people. In one castle he had a mechanism that enabled him to lower his dining table from his dining room into the kitchen where it was set and raised back uip to the dining room in order that he could avoid contact with his servants.

This is a view of King Ludwig's parents home, below the castle of Neuschwanstein.

The visit to Dachau Concentration Camp was a moving experience. The camp displays the personal stories of several individuials who died and who survived in this camp, where 30,000 people died between 1933 and 1945, most in the final years of the war. The processing rooms, the barracks, gas chamber and crematoria are displayed in a straight-forward manner. In our discussions with Gerd and from watching German television, we have been impressed with how the German government has taken the responsibility to educate the nation's children about this horrid aspect of the county's past.

The rain that started when we reached the Danube, continued all week. By the time we left Munich, the rivers were swollen and manz cycle paths and highways flooded. This caused numerous detours. Several times we had to wade or ride through water up calves.

Travelling along the major rivers (Rhine and Danube) was quite simple, unless there were detours. However, travelling cross country (e.g., from the Ulm on the Danube River to Traubling, south of Munich where Gerd and Doerte live) was much different. There were hills to contend with, more towns and villages to get through and a million more ways to get lost. We found the trip from Traubling back to the Danube near Passau on the German-Austrian boarder to be very challenging. Theere were the afore-mentioned navigation issues, as well as the constant rain and the many detours. However, we made it!

These two photos show some of the picturesque scenery along the Danube Cycle Path up to Vienna. Many stretcvhes are flat and boring, but others are maked with great castles or monestaries, quaint villages or beautifuil vineyards and orchards.

LOCATION: We have reached Vienna after cycling over 3,000 kms.

SCHEDULE: We are on schedule.

DISTANCE: 3, 123 kilometres

WEATHER: During the pate 2 weeks it has rained 13 days, although on a few of those days it rained either before we started or after we had finished cycling. However, on several days it rained ALL DAY!

FLAT TIRES: 2 - we had our first two flat tires.

One week to go. We are enjoying the adventure, but have begun to look forward to seeing everyone at home.

FRIEBURG TO MUNICH

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LOCATION: Right now Jos and I are in Munich in southern Germany at the home of Gerd Mischler who Sandra and I met in 1994 while travelling in Indonesia. This update covers the period between Frieburg, Germany near the Rhine River and the Swiss border, to Munich in south central Germany.
We left the Rhine River valley at Frieburg after travelling south for almost 800 kilometers and entered the Danube River valley at Donaueshegan and begun our eastward journey that will eventually end up in Budapest. After about 200 kilometres along the Danube, headed southeast toward Munich, leaving the Danube to make its way northeast. In another 10 days, after our visit to Munich, we too will travel northeast and rejoin the Danube. 

This is a typical evening meal, consisting of a leafy tuna salad, yogurt, fruit, olives, bread, cheese and wine. At the end of most days we search out a grocery store where we purchase our food for dinner and lunch the next day. We then eat in our room or in some convenient park.

This is the dreaded DETOUR sign. Keeping in the right direction and not getting lost has proven to be very important. Even though we have been following the Rhine River and now the Danube, it has been surprisingly easy to get lost as the bicycle trail leaves the river to avoid industrial zones, swampy areas, power plants, etc. These detours have added many hours and kilometres to our trip, especially in the Rhine north of Mainz which is less-frequently travelled.

Distance to date: 2,438 kilometres

Number of hours riding the bike: 107 hours and 7 minutes

Average speed: 15-18 Kilometres per hour, depending on the terrain and weather (expecially the wind)

Maximum speed: 54 Kilometres per hour

Although most of the bicycle paths are paved there are significant sections that are not. Some sections are gravel and some just dirt which deteriorates into mud after a rain.

Longest distance on any one day since leaving Amsterdam: 113 kilometres

Number of flat tires: 0

We took the train the 75 kilometres through the mountains of the Black Forest, from Frieburg to Donaueschegan, the source of the Danube (known here as the Donau). The climbs were just too difficult for our old Canadian legs. The Danube starts from this pool in the shadow of an old church in Donaueschegan.

The initial streatch of the Danube Cycleway or Danube Radweg is through rolling farmland. It was shortly after this that I developed a mechanical problem in my gear-shifting mechanism that left me with only 2 gears on the back. After a delay of a day trying to get it fixed, we soldiered on because the part had to be ordered and would not arrive for yet another day. At least the lower gears were usable and we figured we could make it to Munich on those gears. Once in Munich, where we planned to spend a few days we would arrange to have the bike fixed.

Although the number of castles is not as great on this section of the trip, occasionally one shows up. Here Jos enjoys lunch beside an unnamed (to us) castle or schloss.

A line of middle-aged German cyclists crossing the Danube River. Groups of retired cyclists are common along the relatively flat stretches of the Rhine and Danube Rivers.

SCHEDULE: On arrival in Munich we were one day behind our schedule. We will stay one less day here before heading back to the Danube.

During the next few days we will visit some of the castles of King Ludwig II of Bavaria and the memorial at the Dachau concentration camp. Those visits promise some extremes of emotion that I will describe in the next update in about 10 days (the end of June).

AMSTERDAM TO FREIBURG (GERMANY) - THE RHINE RIVER VALLEY

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LOCATION: This report comes from Worms, Germany, on the Rhine River. After a week of travel throughout Holland and visiting Jos' familz and friends, we have headed south on the Rhine. We are about mid-way between the Rhine delta and Switzerland.

Holland Park Hostel, London. This was the first of several hostels, all of which had good points that outnumbered the bad points. At this hostel, the outside was better than the cramped 12-bed dorm. However, other aspects of the hostel were great, expecially the meals.

A picnic lunch in Vondel ("needle") Park in Amsterdam.


WEATHER: The weather has been quite nice except for one horendous daz when it rained hard from 11 am until we stopped cycling at 5. Fortunately we had good rain gear and our stuff was packed in lots of plastic. Still, the weather sucked!

Jos leading his friends Frits and Iene through a 90 minute rehearsal of Verdi's Requiem.

FLAT TIRES: Over 1,500 kilometres and still no flat tires!


DISTANCES: We travel at between 15 and 20 kph and ride for about 4-5 hours each day, not including breaks for lunch, sightseeing, photos, etc. Overall, a day on the road lasts fromn about 9 in the morning until 3-5 in the afternoon.

Travel is always a cultural experience. Here, three fellows waiting for their buddy who has gone inside in the Red Light disctrict of Amsterdam.

Another picnic lunch on the road to Venlo, The Netherlands, south of the Rhine. En route to visit Jos' sister Marianne.

Jos at the Hulshof family farm near Lievelde, The Netherlands.

Jos' sister Marianne laughing as Jos tells her about his interview with a national television program on his arrival in Amsterdam AND as he road his bicycle into the city.

Holland in the spring when it is dry, warm and sunny showed Holland at ist finest. We had a perfect day in Amsterdam, visiting museums, parks and wandering around the canals. It was beautiful. The next day, Jos' friend Frits took us on a bicycle tour through some of the less famous parts of the city and then to the Beemster, north of Amsterdam, famous for its cheeses. Then it was off to Frits' home and a surprise reunion for Jos with some university friends he had not seen for 40 years.

The skateboarder in front of Cologne´s ancient cathedral was an intersting junxtaposition.

When I saw this snail on the trail from Cologne to Koblenz, Germany, I thought of Javan and his interest in snails. When you are far away from home it is funny what reminds you of friends and family.

TERRAIN: With the exception of trips up the steep hills bordering the river, the Rhine route is flat as a pancake and frequented by cyclists of all ages on day-outings and longer tours.

One of the many castles that line the Rhine between Koblenz and Mainz.

It was a veryy tough slog up from the river level to this point at Lorelley, a famous cliff on the Rhine, but hopefully the photo shows that the effort was worth it.

It was another very difficult clime to this castle at Bad Bacharach where we stayed. This was a youth hostel and like many such hostels in Germany, they are located in old, beautiful buildings.

We have been very impressed with Germany. The people are very helpful, in fact gong out of their way to guide us in the right direction. Many times when we are obviously confused (most of the time?) people will take the initiative and ask if they can help. Also, this county's recovery from two devasting wars is miraculous. Regularly we come across photos comparing immediate post-war ruins with beautiful reconstructions.

LONDON TO AMSTERDAM

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LOCATION: AMSTERDAM - This post covers the time from my arrival in London on May 16 until I met Jos in Amsterdam on May 28.

The bike and panier arrived safe and sound in London. Thanks to British Airways.

The official start: May 16, 2009 at Buckingham Palace.

SCHEDULE:
So far I am on schedule, although the couple of days getting to Amsterdam were very long. Fortunately the flat Dutch landscape is conducive to making good time on a bike, even if the wind is not.

This is a performance of Romeo and Juliet in the reconstructed Globe Theatre.

DISTANCE: 913 kilometres from London to Amsterdam, although that does include the extra cycling that I have done on "off" days or at the end of some days to do sightseeing, shopping, etc.

AVERAGE DISTANCE PER DAY: 76 km

This fellow had a sign that said he had cycled 40,000 km in 4 years. If that is what cycling that far does to you, I think I will stop well before I have gone that far.

AVERAGE SPEED:

Average speed on most days is about 15-17 kph. Speed depends on the wind, whether there is rain and the terrain.

MAXIMUM SPEED: 49.5 kph going down one of the big hills between Canterbury and Dover.

LONGEST DISTANCE ON ANY DAY: 128 km from Lier (Belgium) to near Kinderdyk in Holland.

FLAT TIRES: None

The white cliffs of Dover.

WEATHER: Rain of some account on 8 of 14 days. Temperature has been between 16 and 20. On most days it has been very windy. One night there was a BIG storm, but fortunately I had finished cycling for the day.

Although there were cycling lanes in England, things continued to improve for cyclists as I got closer to The Netherlands. Sometimes, the cycling lanes were even a different colour.

TERRAIN: Southwest England between Canterbury and Dover was very hard - lots of long and/or steep hills. Calais to the Belgian border was as flat as a pancake. From Ypres in Belgium to Brugges the hills were very gentle. Holland is once again very flat.


FLAT TIRES: None

Each of the bronze blocks in this German WWI cemetary is covered with the names of soldiers burried in the mass grave near Poelkapelle, Belgium.

The dark brooding character of the German WWI Cemetary at Poelkapelle, Belgium (near Passendale) contrast significantly with the bright, flowered Commonwealth cemetaries such as the one here at Tyne Cot near Passendale, Belgium.

ACCOMMODATIONS: I will provide an update on this in a later blog. However, I do want to thank Michiel and Petra de Ruyter who gave me a wonderful place to stay when I was unable to find any accommodation near Kinderdyk. Their generosity to a stranger was wonderful. Although most people in this world are very good, it is rare to meet such kind people who sense another's need and make an offer of help on their own initiative.

Michiel and Petra de Ruyter in front of their home.

On Ascension Day, it was a holiday in Poekapaele, Belgium and part of the celebrations included a bicycle race

Evening in central Ghent, Belgium

Here I am joined by Rit and Jan at the back of their home in Kessel, Belgium. Josh stayed with Rit and Jan for several months in 1996. Rit and Jan were very generous to Josh and it was great to be able to meet them after so many years. Meeting Jan and Rit was the most emotional part of the trip to date.

At the World Heritage Site at Kinderdyk where you can see a concentration of 16 historic mills.

CHALLENGES:

• 
  
  
  getting my bike onto the airplane in a manner that is acceptable to the airline. The single mattres bag from U-Haul for $5 fit the bill perfectly.
• 
  
  
  getting in and out of cities on a bicycle.
• 
  
  
  finding your way in a foreign country
• 
  
  
  finding a place to stay when you are on a bicycle and can cover a limited distance

NEXT UPDATE: Jos and I met as scheduled, on Thursday, May 28. We will be heading east to meet some of his friends and family and then procede up the Rhine River valley. Next update will be about June 13 or 14.