Distance: 50.17 kilometres
Time: 2 hours 55 minutes
Speed: 17.2 km/h
Ascent: 133 metres
Total distance: 398 kilometres
Total time: 22 hours 26 minutes
Word of the day: Gegenwindradfahrermüdigkeit: the tiredness caused by cycling into a headwind.
The Captain writes:
After the Stoker finished writing yesterday’s post we ventured out into the blisteringly hot (36 °) streets of Koblenz and headed (slowly!) to the Rhein. Here we found the talstation (valley station) of the Seilbahn Koblenz – a cable-car gondola which would take us to the top station on the other side of the river.
Of course the gondola cabins were made of some sort of Perspex, which only served to magnify the heat inside, but we survived the journey and, once at the top, walked a few hundred metres to the viewpoint looking out over the confluence of the Mosel and the Rhein.
Of course the Rhein looks much wider, even given that it is suffering from a severe lack of water in this current heatwave. The Mosel has served us very well since our short venture into Luxembourg at Perl, and the remainder of our cycling journey will be on the Rhein.
We have established, though, that when we take the train and tram journey back to Sarreguemines to pick up the car we will be travelling back along the banks of the Mosel and Saar rivers, retracing much of our route in a much more leisurely fashion. Something to look forward to!
The weather forecast for today was for even higher temperatures, accompanied by a very strong wind which would blow into our faces for almost the entire journey. We took an executive decision to set an early alarm, knowing that we were in for a tough day.
So it proved. The early kilometres were urban, and therefore intricate, on a wide variety of surfaces including tarmac, gravel, cobbles and concrete. The Stoker navigated us towards the river, and we settled in alongside. Hang on, though! For days we’ve been cycling downriver, and now we’re on the Rhein we’re against the current, uphill! Ah well, needs must.
I should mention that the provisioning of cycle paths on this journey has been exceptional. For more than 95% of our trip we have been on dedicated high-quality cycle paths, completely segregated from road traffic. As the person responsible for our direction of travel this has made my life much easier – normally I have the responsibility for avoiding potholes, oncoming traffic and random hazards, selecting gears and braking, while the Stoker navigates and warns me of hazards coming from the rear. On this trip I have been able to enjoy the scenery without the need for constant traffic-related vigilance, which made it all much more relaxing.
The cycling continued easily enough, as we headed for the town of Boppard, some twenty kilometres distant. The cycle path weaved between riverside sections and excursions away from the banks. The villages looked prosperous and well kept.
The river itself, apart from being much wider than the Mosel, was clearly short of water. There were frequent sandbanks, and the channel for vessels, marked by buoys, looked much narrower than one might expect – in fact we saw a service vessel transporting some new buoys – presumably some repositioning was necessary due to the shallow water.
It was already over 30°, and before reaching Boppard we sought some shade for our first drinks stop. Once back on the cycle path the headwind became apparent. A headwind is always something of a pain when cycling, but this was akin to a very strong hairdryer – not only was our rate of progress hampered, but the wind quickly dried our throats. For a while we were on a long exposed section of the path, denied access to shade by the railway line which ran alongside.
Finally we spotted a concrete bridge which seemed to provide some semblance of shade. We crossed the road barriers and sat down in the shade to drink a second bottle of water. A walker who was heading in the same direction spotted us, and clearly decided it was a good idea to join us.
By now we were approaching the town of Sankt Goar, just around the corner from the Lorelei. Before reaching it we were flagged down by a local cyclist, who asked us to look out for his wife further along the cycle path. Or at least so the Stoker told me! His wife had lost her bag and phone, and was looking for them, and I think he was concerned about her in the rising heat. Happily we spotted her a kilometre or two further on, and passed on his, er, instructions!
In Sankt Goar we found a café in the shade, and drank beer (very refreshing) and water (to counteract the dehydrating effect of the beer)! Well it made sense to me. We do look very hot in this picture.
Shortly afterwards we rounded the corner to the Lorelei rock. This location is famously occupied by a siren, who lures unwary sailors (apparently with her golden hair and haunting song) onto the dangerous rocks below. Her attitude to cyclists, as far as I can establish, is unrecorded, and we certainly didn’t see any golden hair or hear any haunting song, so we were allowed through unscathed.
By now the cycling was extremely tough. The temperature had reached 37° and the headwind was strong.
Our average speed plummeted, as we fought against the wind, and it seemed to take forever to reach our first view of Bacharach. Even then we had to stop in a minuscule patch of shade to drink our last bottle, which was by now the temperature of a cup of tea. Not nice…! While we stood there a very low-flying military plane went up the valley, making a huge amount of noise.
Some glucose tablets were consumed too, and we felt sufficiently fortified to cycle to our hotel.
It had been our toughest day for some time, and we’re glad that when we return to Koblenz in a couple of days the heatwave will have passed. We’re taking a final rest day here.
Here’s today’s route:
…and a short video