(The Danube Bike Path)
Barb and Moe on the Donauradweg beside the wide Danube river in Austria
(Click on the thumbnail photos below to see larger images.)
Mon. May 21: We checked out after breakfast and cycled
down to the train station. Love those bike lanes! As we had at Donauworth, we
took advantage of a special Bavarian ticket price that allowed up to 5 members
of a group to travel for the price of 2. We got off the train at Neufahrn, about
half way between Munich and Regensburg. Unfortunately Brian left his handlebar bag
on the train. It contained his tools, his camera and a few other small items. We
lunched in Neufahrn and then took a direct route to Regensburg on a wide smooth
highway with a lot of truck traffic. However, German truck drivers are very
considerate of cyclists so it was not a problem. The temperature was up near 30°
(C, of course - that would be around 85°F for you Yanks. It's
time for y'all to move into the 21st century and join the rest of the world) and we were
nearly out of water by the time Peter led us to our hotel (the Straubinger Hof
- "adequate" would be a good description. The only remarkable thing was that the
toilet paper had SUDOKU puzzles printed on it!) 
Near the end of our ride I had
noticed some noise from my front wheel. An inspection revealed a couple of loose
spokes, a conditioned caused by my carrying the heavier set of panniers on the
"low rider" rack at the front for logistical reasons. Since Brian
wanted to go to the rail station to inquire about his lost bag and there was a
bike shop beside the station, we headed off on our bikes while the others walked
downtown. Unfortunately only my problem was resolved. We dropped our bikes off at
the hotel, walked down to the Danube and headed into town to meet the others in
front of St. Peter's cathedral. The exterior was spectacular with its tall
Gothic spires but the interior was less impressive. We all sat by the river and
ate bratwurst and sauerkraut and drank beer or wine. We wandered the cobbled
streets, shared a pizza for dinner and then headed back. Nice sunny day. 55 km.
In Straubing. The guys know how to relax!
Tue. May 22: Brian checked at the station again - no luck
- but they put him on the phone with a woman from Deutsche Bahn, the German rail
company, who seemed to
have a grasp on the situation. She told him to contact her before 4 PM for news
on the search. Hopes were high. We cycled east out of Regensburg (a city that
did not, for us, live up to its hype), choosing the shorter southern route to
Straubing. From time to time we were on the highway but for the most part we
were on quiet rural roads or dedicated bike paths. The sun was shining, the
route was flat, the wind was at our backs. 
We flew along! We had a pause
café in the hamlet of Geisling, picked up some lunch groceries in Pfatter
and lunched in a small park in Gmünd with the Danube flowing by a few metres
away. When we arrived in Straubing and our hotel (the Gaubodenhof) we were
greeted by an English speaking waitress (with a definitely English accent) with
the question "Is there a Brian in your group?" His missing bag had
been located in Nürnberg! A phone call revealed that he must travel to
Nürnberg by 7 PM - it was now 12:30 PM - so he and Sue left by taxi for the
station to catch the next Nürnberg train. We checked in and then sat for a cool
drink - we were all down about a litre -as a brief thundershower swept through.
"Free time", so we all meandered off to see this attractive town with
its fine clock tower and numerous churches. I sauntered out to find a watch
strap to replace my fast decaying one. As I wrote these notes a quick shower
passed through but I was safe beneath an awning at the hotel having a cool beer.
Sue and Brian returned from their adventure at supper. (Brian says that the
difference between an "adventure" and an "ordeal" is
"attitude".) The bag and all its contents were intact. This improved
my already good estimation of Deutsche Bahn. We had a
pleasant walk around the pretty town square before turning in. A good day. 47
km.
Wed. May 23: The Gaubodenhof in Straubing was a nice hotel with a
pleasant helpful staff - and a good breakfast. We paused to reinstall Barb's
sagging handlebar bag and to allow Sue to (unsuccessfully) look for a
replacement for her dead camera battery before heading across the Danube. It was
a bit tricky finding the bike path at first but once on it we sped along, dead
flat again, stopping for coffee in Boden and lunch near our destination of
Deggendorf. We arrived at our hotel just before a short thunderstorm. We'd been
very lucky with the weather of late. I walked down to the river to locate the
place where the riverboat docks because the next day Carol, Brian, Sue and Barb
were going to take the boat down to Passau with their bikes. Carol finds the
relentless fast cycling on the flat bike path hard on her knees so a day's rest
will help ease the problem. (She prefers hilly cycling because she can rest at
the top of the hill while she waits for me to catch up and then rest some more
as she coasts down the other side. There are no rests on the flat.) The rest of
the group planned to speed down to Vilshofen, about two thirds of the way to
Passau, to get there ahead of the boat so we could join them for the remainder
of the boat ride to Passau. Sue found a camera shop where they offered to
recharge her dead battery for free! The rain had stopped so we were free to
roam. Peter and I found an internet café where we learned that the Anaheim
Ducks had eliminated the Detroit Red Wings and would face our Senators in the
Stanley Cup finals. Carol's hold on first place in the playoff pool had
strengthened. She may be uncatchable. We toured this attractive town with its
fine clock tower in the main square. Moe found a good restaurant (La Padella)
just off the square where we all had the best meal of the trip to date. Back to
the hotel for coffee and calling our grandson at home and updating our journals.
Another fine day. 42 km.
Thu. May 24: The four riders had an early breakfast to be
on the road and into Vilshofen before the boat arrived there. I put the two
large panniers on Carol's bike since she was taking the boat from Deggendorf.
(Because of her knees and a 1994 broken hip she hasn't ridden with panniers
since 1993. I carry all four on my bike.) 
Peter led us out of the city and we
were soon on the well marked bike path. This was a sprint. We had 35 km to go
and had to be in Vilshofen by 11 AM. All went well until Peter got a puncture in
his rear tire. A quick inner tube replacement was done with the team of four all
taking part. We reached Vilshofen well before our target time - lots of time for
a coffee and a pastry. The ship arrived on time with our four companions waving
wildly as it docked. As it turned out, the dock I had identified the day before
was the wrong one. Luckily they discovered my error in time to get to the
correct dock before the ship sailed. We had a pleasant
breezy voyage down the
Danube to Passau. Very relaxing. Passau is a fine old city with narrow cobbled
streets, numerous churches and a splendid baroque cathedral. We had pizza in the
square behind the cathedral on a beautiful mild evening. Unusual but enjoyable
day. 36 km.
Fri. May 25: Even before breakfast the big tour boats
were on the move. Three or four decks high and longer than a football field, they
dwarfed the little two decker we had sailed on the day before. We had even seen
one the night before with a clear glass sidewall into a beautiful dining room
with crystal chandeliers. They advertised that everything glass aboard was Swarovski
crystal.
Beautiful, but not of our world. After checking out of the hotel we stopped at a bike shop a
couple of blocks away where they had kindly offered the use of their large pump
to bring all of our tires up to the proper pressure. Pumped up and ready to go,
we crossed the Danube to the north shore to follow the well marked radweg
out of Germany and into Austria. I am completely unaware of where we crossed the
border. There was no perceptible change. We had our pause café in
Obernzell where Peter remarked "Austrian sounds just like German!" We
followed the river downstream, cruising effortlessly, lunching at a little café
along the way. At Schlogen we piled into a tiny ferry and crossed to our hotel,
the "Donauschlinge" (literally the "hairpin turn in the Danube
river" because the river makes a big meander here). Our rooms were not yet
ready so we sat on their shaded deck for a cool drink and watched the river. We
discovered that grüner veltliner, Austria's most popular white
wine, is very much to our taste. At dinner on the large deck we watched cruise ship after
cruise ship, perhaps a dozen or so heading downriver to Vienna. They looked so elegant.
Another easy day. 41 km.
Sat. May 26: We stayed on the south side
and headed off in cool shade at river level. The mountains come very close to
the river on both sides here so it was very picturesque looking up river. The
Danube is very much a "working" river and right from the beginning at
Regensburg we have seen big barges, heavily laden and as long as Great Lakes
freighters, plowing their way up or down stream. The mountains faded away as we
continued on, now in bright warm sunshine. We had coffee in Aschach where Brian
discovered a problem with his rear brakes. There was a bike shop nearby where
they addressed the problem as best they could but a more permanent fix must be
found when he returns home. We passed a few riders on horseback - a little scary
for both us and the horses - and then crossed to the north shore at Ottensheim
on a ferry. Interesting system. The ferry used no motor! A cable from the boat
was connected to a device that rolled along a cable strung across the river.
Using this cable, the rudders and the swift Danube current the boat was able to
cross the river. It poses an interesting problem in physics and geometry. From
Ottensheim into the busy city of Linz the bike path ran along side a busy
highway - no problem but at 30°C it was not a pleasant experience. Our
hotel in Linz had air conditioned rooms but the air conditioning was not working
(although we were told that the service man was coming on Monday to repair it -
no help to us!) We had beer and wine in the shaded hotel garden, a stop at the
internet café for e-mail, weather, etc., and then wandered into the old heart
of Linz. There's an impressive central square in the city, crowded mostly with
young people, apparently gathered for some sort of rock concert by the river
that night. We had a nice dinner in a cool interior courtyard. Nice day of
cycling. 56 km.
The pretty town of Grein (Austria)
Sun. May 27: There was indeed a concert by
the river on Saturday night and the revelers were noisily passing our open
windows at about 2:30 AM. However, we did get back to sleep and awakened to a
clear blue sky. The radweg follows the river closely here and we sped
along, having coffee in Mauthausen and lunch at Mitterkirchen. On such a warm
day it was a good idea to clock over 50 km before noon. Near Grein I saw a
deer, the first I had ever seen in my 21 European trips despite cycling in
remote rural areas most of the time. Grein was a pleasant surprise. There is a
quaint main square with 400 to 600 year old buildings, a small attractive
church, the old town hall and our very nice hotel, the Goldener Kreuz. Peter had
settled in to his room to watch the Grand Prix race when there was a power
outage in the hotel. We were entertained as he fruitlessly went from café to
hotel to café around the square, trying to find one in which the race was being
broadcast. Luckily, the power returned shortly so his afternoon was not ruined. Carol and
I wandered the town after our showers, stopping for a pastry in the square
(where I wrote these notes). She climbed up to the 15th century castle while I
had a brief nap. (Exciting times!) She described the castle as "OK".
Faint praise. We went down to the river after dinner, had an ice cream and
walked along the promenade. There's a nice view across to the mountains that
force this big bend in the river at Grein. It was supposed to cool off tomorrow.
That would be nice. 68 km.
Mon. May 28: The ferry across the river to
the south shore did not start until 9 AM so Moe convinced us to ride back the
"half kilometre" to the bridge. It turned out to be two and a half km.
Barb got a puncture in her front tire as she rode across the bridge. We set
about changing the inner tube and removing the small nail that had caused the
problem. Moe attacked the new tube with the pump with so much vigour that he
snapped the end of the valve off. Luckily, Peter had a spare small enough for
Barb's tire and this one was pumped up with less enthusiasm and more care. Back
on the road again we passed the ferry dock just before the first ferry of the
day arrived. We sped along the well marked route, stopping for coffee and a
pastry in Ybbs - difficult because our nonexistent German was even better than
their English - then lunch at a pizzeria in Pochlarn. Normally we picnic at
lunch but this day was a holiday and all the grocery (and other) stores were
closed. You have probably detected the sameness of our days - breakfast, ride
until coffee break, ride until lunch, ride until destination is reached. 
Today
our destination was Melk, a very turista place because of the monstrous
abbey and baroque church that dominate the town. We stayed at the Goldener Stern
on the Sterngasse, the only street in the town that had escaped the great fire
of 1847. Because of the holiday the city was alive with cyclists and other
tourists. Most of our group went up to see the abbey and the church. Peter and I
(philistines both!) did not. We were informed that the abbey and church were
indeed magnificent but when I see such opulence I always wonder about the
peasants who spent their lives creating such a place where monks could live in
relative ease or even decadence. Carol was awed by the abbey and especially the
church but shares my views about the sacrifices made by the common people to
create such splendour. We visited the much more modest parish church with it's
fine Gothic steeple and clock and, within, simply adorned with wonderfully
carved wooden "stations of the cross". A people's church. After dinner
we all went out to find an ATM since many of these hotels and restaurants do not
accept credit cards and we were all running out of euros. As had been predicted, the clouds had rolled in, the wind
was up and the temperature had dropped
dramatically. The cold front was promised
for one day only. We'll see. Easy day. That's the norm on the Donauradweg.
53 km.
Tue. May 29: One week to go. The time is
flying by. We spent some time in Melk trying to find internet access because the
first game of the hockey finals had been played in California the night before.
(Our Senators lost 3 - 2) We started off on the south side of the river but were
directed by a helpful woman to cross the bridge at Melk. Good advice, as it
turned out, despite the steep switch-back climb up to the bridge. The radweg
on the north side passes through a series of pretty little villages and the
vineyards of the Wachau region of Austria, with the rows of vines terraced up
the slopes of the mountains. I can't imagine what the grape harvest (the weinlese,
as it's called in German) must be like. It looks like it would be labour intensive. At
Willendorf the group (well, not Peter and I, of course) climbed the hill to see
the "Venus von Willendorf", a 4 to 5 foot model of a 4 inch sculpture
of a woman, a 30000 year old fertility symbol carved out of limestone, found
near the village. The original sculpture is in a museum in Vienna. At Wosendorf
we stopped at a vintner's to try the local wines. We tried several, finding
their premium riesling "thin", and Heather bought a litre of weissburgunder
(pinot blanc) and I a bottle of grüner veltliner, each costing 2.80
euro. At that price our expectations were low but both wines were quite
drinkable when we had them later in the afternoon at our hotel. 
At Dürnstein we
happened upon a group of Russian tourists getting their photo taken outside the
ritzy Schloss Dürnstein hotel. A hotel employee was taking photos with camera
after camera and Peter volunteered to pass the cameras to the man. I think that
every member of the large group had a camera and each one wanted his/her own
copy. Dürnstein is apparently where Richard the Lionheart was held hostage on
his return from the crusades. The women in our group stopped at several of the
many shops as they descended through the town. We stopped for lunch at a fast
food place just outside of town and it was there that our lack of German again
gave us trouble as our 4 orders of bratwurst and fries turned into 6. By the
time we got to Krems we were tiring. The cool wind was taking its toll. As a
result we saw little of the treasures this city had to offer as we sped through
in search of the Donaubrucke (the bridge over the Danube). On the south
shore we sped along the flat, featureless radweg right beside the river
for a long time before finally turning off to go into Traismauer, our
destination for the day. The bike path led us to a barricade (where a stage was
being erected for a concert) with no obvious way around. A few metres back from
this dead end a local resident tried to explain how we could go back and get
around the problem - he without English, we without German - and then finally
opened his gate and graciously allowed us to wheel our bikes through his
garden,
spectacularly adorned with red roses, to the street behind. We quickly found the
Hotel Schwann, beautifully appointed in a 600 year old building, the most
attractive building in the town. We drank our cheap wine on the patio behind the
hotel, a pleasant end to a tiring day of cycling. Because of the villages and
the vineyards, Carol enjoyed this last day on the Danube above all the others.
64 km.