Our first cycling day started well, but warm, 40C. We left Mainz on good quality biking trails, and a fairly good app with turn by turn instructions that I piped to my hearing aids by a bluetooth receiver. The morning ride of about 2 hours covered 17 km, meeting the barge at Nierstein. We had maps as well, but we were helped by a group of 36 Norwegian cyclists from the barge who let us follow them.The path moved away from the Rhine at one point to reach vineyards in the hills.
These are the vineyards, small plants, in rows.
Much like in the Niagara area, but the soil is red.
Not a lot of shade today. Here we stop for a sandwich and water.
We took a break on the barge mid afternoon for a sponge bath, and then off again. But our Norwegian buddies were gone. We set off together trying to follow with the app. We travelled through hay fields and some small towns.
Let me tell you about my ebike. There are no headwinds and no hills, you just need to pedal like you mean it and it gives you a lift. A little like horseback riding. It's a big animal.
Mariette is a good cyclist keeping up with her conventional bike.
We were riding for several kilometers without shade and came across this watering hole by the trail.
Happy to slug back a soda drink. A beer would have killed us.
38 km in the afternoon, including a few course corrections. Our trail finished at the Rhine at Gernsheim, but we needed to cross the river as the barge could only moor on the other side. So we took a ferry that connected both sides: 3€ for you and your bike. Roughly 55 km for the day.
Used my tablet rather than my phone, great photos! Will we see your barge? Are the cabins as tiny as expected? How's the heat while on the barge? Food? Thanks for posting, I'm sure Mariette's helping with the photography...not!
ReplyDeleteViews are gorgeous! How lovely…you must need a lot of water in this heat?
ReplyDeleteGlad you nailed the first day. Hope you can cool off at times. The scenery is beautiful. Enjoy 🚴♀️🚴
ReplyDeleteSmart to avoid beer while riding in the heat, but I hope you're indulging, at least a little bit, on the barge.
ReplyDeleteThanks for these pictures and commentary. I am enjoying your trip vicariously. Take care.
ReplyDeleteYeah! Relieved to see that I finally figured out how to make my comments "stick." Some of my previous ones disappeared into cyberspace. 😕
ReplyDeleteRob, you will be interested to learn that at Mass yesterday, Walter said he didn't know you were on a cycling vacation in Europe. Cheryl questioned how that could be given that he sits beside you in the choir. Walter's defense: You and I are always talking! Can you belive that 😲