Bicycling in Germany

I just returned from another bicycle tour in Europe and a visit to Iceland. (I'll cover the Iceland visit in another post.) The bike tour took us along the Moselle and Saar Rivers in Germany. And this time my son Tuli joined me making the trip an extra special occasion. We met at the Frankfurt Airport on April 26th and hopped on a train to Saarbrucken where the journey began on the following day. As before I had booked a fully catered tour (bikes, meals and hotel accommodations) through Eurobike, the Austria based company that arranged my Danube ride a couple of years ago. Because this tour was in Germany they handed it off to their German partner, Velociped, which made the hotel arrangements. As before, everything went off without a hitch. The accommodations were excellent overall, the food, especially the buffet breakfasts, was outstanding and the top quality touring bicycles functioned flawlessly. If you're thinking about making a similar tour, 7 nights in 4-star hotels with breakfasts, expect to pay about $1,000 USD. The tour company shuttled our luggage from hotel to hotel so we needed only carry our rain gear, water and lunch in a (supplied) waterproof pannier bag. Check the website links above for more information.

The one downside to our trip was the weather during our week on the radwegs (bike paths) — it was fairly chilly most days and there were intervals of rain. We had one exceptionally fine day, a couple that started out cold and cloudy but developed into fairly nice days later, and one nasty afternoon of heavy rain that soaked me pretty well. Tuli, who bikes in Eugene, Oregon, had better gear so he didn't get as wet as yours truly. A new lightweight rain jacket is on my list of things to buy this summer.

On the Saar Radweg, day 1- Saarbrucken to Mettlach

Typical section of the Saar Radweg

Tuli, dressed for chilly weather in North Face's finest

Tour boat — Saar River

Hotel Zum Schwan - Mettlach

We had a fairly nice ride to Mattlach although this first section of the bike path ran alongside a busy highway and through the heavily industrialized Saar Valley. Our first day was a 42 mile haul, the longest of this particular tour. We reached Mettlach in good spirits, checked in to our hotel and bought a dinner of pizza, toasted sandwiches and sparkling water from the bakery next door.

The next day dawned chilly and gray. We left the hotel rather late that morning but because this was a short segment, only about 26 miles, we thought we'd best wait for the overcast to dissipate. It didn't so we hesitantly set out for Trier at about 10:30 am.

Start of Day 2 - Tuli and I with Mettlach in the distance

This short portion of the Saar Radweg had a nice gravel surface

Tuli riding the Saar Radweg

We rode to Trier on this day and at about the half way point, transitioned from the Saar to the Moselle River valley. The day's ride was not all that long in miles but in the event not all that comfortable either. As some of you know, I did many training rides in Thailand last month, more than 300 miles worth, to get my body accustomed to a bike saddle. I had hoped to be less bothered by long hours on the trail than I had been on my Danube trip. It turns out the discomfort (sore butt) was not because of inadequate conditioning but because the saddles the bikes come with are, in some way, no good. I know that because Tuli is very used to riding, putting in 10-15 miles a day during his commutes to work, so I reasoned that if his butt was sore after only 65 miles of biking, the source of my discomfort must lie elsewhere. I suspect it's because the saddle shape, which looks like the wider seats found on ladies' bikes of long ago, are too wide for someone used to modern day (narrow) men's saddles. But whatever it is, the result was that both of us had sore tails at the end of the day. My strong recommendation to others, and my commitment to myself if I ever do one of these tours again, is to bring along a saddle I'm used to riding on and swap them before the ride.

The next day brought rain. We could see it coming but on a tour like this, one doesn't have the option to wait for better weather. Your next hotel has already been booked and paid for as have all the others after that one. You simply must get to that hotel, rain or shine.

Rain ahead on the trail to Piesport - Moselle River

In Piesport it rained steadily all night and into the morning so we once again were forced to start later than normal. We waited until we were sure the rain was finished before leaving the hotel at around eleven o'clock. The forecast was encouraging and sure enough, by the time we drove the 26 miles to Traben, got settled into our lovely hotel, the Weingut Trossen, the sun came out for a few photo opps before we sat down to dinner.

We were in the heart of the Moselle wine region now and the river valleys, literally every square foot of them, are covered with vineyards, vineyards that have been there since Roman times. Yesterday's hotel in Piesport, the Weingut Lehnert-Viet, and the Weingut Trossen, are both working wineries that have had accommodations added on. (weingut means winery in German). Wine was plentiful, cheap, and I'm sure, quite tasty. Alas, I did not imbibe because my appetite for alcohol, as for so many other things, knows no bounds. I quit drinking alcohol years ago so it's simply better for me to try to ignore the aggravating fact that although I'm traveling in Germany, the home of one of my favorite wines, the beloved Gewürztraminer, I'm unable to sample any of it.

Views from our hotel, the Weingut Trossen

No wine for me at the Weingut Trossen but happy nonetheless

The next day was by far the best of the trip. Beautiful sunshine and warm temperatures graced the entire day. We stopped often to bask in the warmth and watch the river sliding slowly by. The hills and vineyards shimmered in the sun and the Moselle Radweg provided many opportunities for rest stops.

Morning vineyard with grape harvesting machinery

Every possible square foot is used to grow grapes

Tuli rides the Moselle Radweg

These nice benches begged for a tryout

Reichsburg Castle - Cochem, Germany

We arrived at our hotel, the Karl Müller, at about 5:30 and had plenty of time for a walk around the charming town of Cochem.

The next morning was cloudy with rain threatening. The path ran close by a highway for much of the way to Koblenz making this segment seem somewhat disappointing compared to the wonderful ride we'd enjoyed the day before. And then the weather deteriorated. We searched for shelter as the first few drops of rain spattered the pavement and blundered into an older hotel, the Lellman, where we had coffee and apple strudel as we watched the rain pound down outside. Luckily, it soon quit and we were able to proceed under partly sunny skies to our last stop, Koblenz.

We had biked a total of 195 miles (314 km) in six days of easy riding, rainy days excepted. Our Moselle bike trip was over.

On the trail to Koblenz

Bicycling Fitness Campaign

If you had told me last year that I'd be bicycling in Chiang Mai, in the summer, in the heat, I'd have said you were crazy. No way was I ever gonna get on a pedal bike for enjoyment in the tropics. But I have. And I'm loving it.

There is a practical reason for my change of heart. I'm meeting my son Tuli in Germany next week where we will do a bike tour along the Saar and Moselle Rivers. I had a lovely time on a ride along the Danube a couple of years ago and was keen to do another. Tuli was available and interested so we decided to do it together. He lives in Eugene, Oregon, and bikes to work every day. In fact, he bikes everywhere. I, on the other hand, after years of fairly intense bicycling had all but given it up. The heat, my age, wah, wah. When I did the Danube tour I was fine for the first few days but after that my body began to complain. Well, not my body so much. It was my butt that hurt and it hurt enough to make the last two days of that splendid trip kind of painful. I was determined to get in shape before this ride and as I know too well the only way to prevent a sore butt is to condition it with riding. Luckily the place Nut and I moved to last month has tons of lockable storage so when my Homer friend Walt Bovich was about to leave Thailand I offered to store his bike. Of course, part of the deal was that I would be able to use it for some training. Now, after many miles of pedaling I'm confident I won't experience the same issues as last time.

Our rental in Ban Chang Kham

The neighborhood we're in is just south of Chiang Mai proper. This area was once the capital of the ancient Lanna Kingdom (Wiang Kum Kam, Wikipedia) and it's loaded with ruins dating from the 12th century. The capital was moved to Chiang Mai, where it's known as the "old city" inside the moat, to avoid the constant flooding it suffered from the nearby Ping River. There are something like 75 of these ancient temples scattered here and there in a two-mile radius. It's a very cool neighborhood. Our rental is a 3-bedroom, 2-bath home that costs 8,000 baht per month (about $220 USD), so it's significantly cheaper than our last place.

Nearby ruins of Wat Pupia (N18.74971° E98.99772°)

Just south of Wiang Kum Kam is peaceful farm country where the lanes are lined with orchards and rice fields. It's dotted with small hamlets, laced with canals and it's very flat. Walter's bike is a nice 18-speed Trek mountain bike with hydraulic fork and knobby tires. The roads and terrain where I ride don't require the knobbies and could be done without the gears for that matter because I seldom need to shift because there are no hills. The small lanes have light traffic and are a pleasure to drive. I had been thinking my riding would take place in Wiang Kum Kam itself because it's so quiet and visually interesting. But after my first few outings of 5 or 6 miles length I began wanting to see more and ride longer. I began expanding my radius to include new territory. Now I'll typically ride for an hour or two and travel 15 or 20 miles. Out of that total there is only a mile or so where I'm forced to use a bigger, busier road so it's a very pleasant way to get some exercise. I leave the house at 6:30 am when it's still relatively cool and traffic almost non existent. "Relatively cool" in Chiang Mai this summer means about 80 degrees — by afternoon the temps have been reaching 105-106 degrees! Whether that's because of El Nino or global warming I don't know but it's been brutal. I stay inside with the a/c on all afternoon. At any rate, the morning rides that started out being purely a training endeavor are now something I very much look forward to.

Typical road on the morning tour — a single lane of smooth pavement

Walt's Trek with my GPS mounted on the handlebars

A fishing pond on the wayside

Rice fields and my ride

Typical weed-choked canal - Ban San Pa Duea

Quiet path on the McKean Hospital grounds, Ban Pa Daet

Since starting this little fitness campaign I've logged about 280 miles on the bike so I should be in reasonably good condition for the ride. After biking from Saarbrucken to Koblenz on the river tour we'll take a train to Amsterdam, where bikers rule the roads. We'll spend a few more days riding around seeing the sights, checking out a few "coffee shops" along the way where we'll sample some of the odoriferous herbs that are legal there.

After that I fly to Iceland where I rented an AirBnB flat and a car for a few days. I'll drive around the area near Reykjavík seeing what there is to see before finally hitting the east coast of the U.S. and my daughter Carin's home in North Carolina. ETA Homer, May 24th at about 10 pm.

I'm counting down the days until I leave Thailand. Nut and I are going through our usual spells of separation anxiety. She's been cooking my favorite foods and treating me extra special. I'm starting to gather and organize my stuff for the trip ahead. I'll be leaving Chiang Mai on Sunday.

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A note about dogs:

The biggest problem with riding a bicycle here, in fact one of the the biggest problems with Thailand, is loose dogs. Thailand is chock full of the mangy critters. Most of them won't bother you but many will chase a bike or a jogger and try to bite. It's scary to think about the possibility of a bite and the rabies shot to follow. Many Thais keep dogs to protect their property — most of those are confined to their yards which are enclosed with walls and gates. But many are allowed to run loose and those that live on small streets that don't see many bikers are especially dangerous. I carry a squirt bottle with vinegar for them and a shot in the face works pretty well. My buddy DC carries a stout bamboo stick that he swears by. Once a dog sees that stick raised, he says it stops them in their tracks. Some of the joggers I see are also "packing bamboo" for the very same reason. I just added a bamboo cane to my riding gear and I'm going to start using household bleach in the squirt bottle.

Walt's Trek equipped for mapping, and dog defense

Update April 22:
I had a chance to test "DC's bamboo hypothesis" on my ride today. Five dogs started running toward me growling with teeth bared. I raised the stick in the air and shouted Mai!, Mai! (Thai for No!) They turned away instantly and slunk back to the side of the road. A couple of them actually had their tails between their legs. The stick works much better than the bottle - I wish I could kill the bastards but for now the bamboo stick will be my preferred weapon.