Distance: 28.14 kilometres
Time: 2 hours 17 minutes
Speed: 12.3 km/h
Ascent: 403 metres
Total distance: 106.1 kilometres
Total time: 9 hours 54 minutes
Word of the day: Baumwipfelpfadspaziergang: A walk on a tree-top path
The Captain writes:
Mettlach was lovely, set in a deeply incised meander of the Saar, which was looking impressive from our hotel bedroom window. Across the narrow bridge there were several restaurants available, but we chose a simple burger bar – for some reason we rarely choose ‘fine dining’ restaurants when we’re on a cycling tour, perhaps because we need to load up on carbohydrates.
The town also hosts the headquarters of Villeroy & Boch. As in the case of Leffe at Dinant, there’s a museum celebrating their achievements. On this occasion we gave it a miss – bathroom ceramics somehow lacked the draw of delicious beer.
Aware that we had some serious climbing to do this morning we attempted once again to stock up on carbs at breakfast, and succeeded to a limited extent. The welcome was warm, though.
As soon as we pedalled away from the hotel we encountered today’s climb. Knowing that our climbing legs have been somewhat untested this year I selected the lowest gear and we settled into a steady pace for the next three kilometres. The sun was already baking down, and it was hard work, but we were pretty happy with our performance, and after one seriously steep section with a 13% gradient things eased slightly and we reached our first target of the day, the Aussichtsturm Cloef.
This impressive structure sits high above the dramatic loop we visited yesterday. In order to reach it we traversed a wooden walkway built high above the forest, very reminiscent of some of the walkways we encountered in New Zealand, designed to provide access to the beautiful places with the least possible damage to the natural environment.
This is the Aussichtsturm:
It provides access for all (including those using wheelchairs) to the top-level viewpoint over the Saar. I suppose it took us about ten minutes to work our way to the top, but it was very much worth it. We did discover that, having failed to pause our GPS devices, our progress to the top was recorded:
From the top we had astounding views of the meander we viewed yesterday from river level.
What a stunning spot. The sort of place that can only be ruined by an ill-advised selfie, you might say.
Anyway, after the effort of climbing on the tandem followed by the effort of climbing on foot to the viewpoint we decided we needed sustenance, in the form of beer, apple juice and Apfelkuchen at the viewpoint café, before setting off across the plateau towards the Mosel valley.
This proved to be an interesting experience, not least because it took us through the forests on narrow gravelly tracks – challenging to negotiate on a tandem. The surroundings were well worth it though – forests of oak and hazel trees and quiet hamlets.
Before long we started to see the far side of the Mosel valley – Luxembourg – in the distance. Soon the first vineyards of the trip came into view, and the villages showed obvious signs of the prosperity which invariably accompanies viticultural activities. Everywhere just looked smarter, better preserved and, well, rich!
We descended to the valley floor and crossed the Mosel into Luxembourg, specifically into the town of Schengen.
There, in the middle of the river, is the tri-point boundary between Germany, France and Luxembourg.
There too we saw structures and flags celebrating the European Union and Schengen’s place in its history. Those who know my politics will know that I think our exit from the EU was one of the most stupid decisions in our history, and, standing there, I wished our flag was flying there proudly with those of all the other member countries. I hope that one day it will return.
We crossed the river back into Germany and went shopping! We’re taking a rest day tomorrow, and staying in an AirBnB in the small town of Besch, so we needed to stock up on food (and wine!) for our stay.
And here we are, by the side of the Mosel in a lovely apartment. There will be no blog post tomorrow, as we relax and build our strength for the next section of the trip.
Here’s today’s route:
…and a short video