A Perfect Day of Riding

April 20, 2018

We awoke to another sunny, hot day and made plans to ride to Limburg. After the sticker shock of fixing our bike, Mary Ellen decided that she didn’t need new shoes after all, so we are going back to the shop to return them.

Cora offered to show us her favourite ride to Limburg as it features beautiful riding away from cars through picturesque landscapes featuring the history of mining for iron in the area. We will follow a small river and ride on or adjacent to the rail line used for mining.

As we rounded a corner, we saw a field full of sheep - but what caught our eye was a mother with 2 new born lambs. Of course we had to stop, as did others in their cars.

What a delight - we came upon this mother and her two newborn lambs - just 10 minutes old. The lamb on the right is a few minutes younger and hasn’t figured out yet how to feed or stand.

This woman had also pulled over to enjoy the spectacle of the young family.

We are riding to Limburg, but this time Cora is taking us on her favourite ride, the Kerkerbachtal, which follows a rail route through an area that was for mining. We will be following a small river through beautiful countryside, free from cars.

This farm run Metzgerei (butcher) is a great place to buy meat and sausages, freshly made onsite.

We also visited this farm last year - it is a great place.

Riding on a secondary road takes us through picturesque villages with a very old church.

A locomotive from 1901 that was used when the rail line was operational.

This village is typical of the charm we are seeing today on this ride.

St. Lubentius Cathedral on the Lahn River is a special place and has a commanding view of the area. Last year we came here on a ride with Georg and Cora and they showed us this church of religious importance. In the crypt there is an unusual sight of countless skulls and bones of the congregation from 100’s of years ago - they wanted their remains to be close to St Lubentius.

Riding across the River Lahn on a historic bridge in to Limburg. In the background is the distinctive and well known landmark, Limburg Cathedral.

We ate lunch at a Metzgerei in Limburg - Mary Ellen had cabbage rolls and potato salad. Yummy!

Limburg on the Lahn- one of our favourite places and it feels like a home base for us.

“A meeting of the minds” in the heart of Limburg.

This statue/fountain of a man drinking beer from a keg is very well known.

Hadamar is a village near where we are staying and they have an excellent Italian Eis (ice cream) Cafe where all of the ice cream is made fresh every day. There is a strong tradition of Italian families settling in Germany and running Eis Cafes and pizza. This cafe has been running for over 50 years..

Cora had spaghetti ice cream with three different sauces and cherries.

Mary Ellen’s ice cream was topped with white chocolate and fresh espresso.

We have had such a good and memorable day of riding. Today’s route was exceptional - thanks Cora for sharing this with us. And when we got home, the girls greeted us with their usual curiosity.

This one was walking so elegantly on her thin legs.

Today's ride: 55 km (34 miles)
Total: 72 km (45 miles)

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Marvin PaxmanReally enjoyed this day's entry. In case you don't know who we are, we are from Victoria (soon to be Mill Bay) and are good friends of the Grampies.
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6 years ago

Barry BartlettGreetings from Germany
We have appreciated your comments as well as your personal reflections of your time here. It was great to hear about your experience in Limburg at the Cathedral. Like you, we also love Germany and we have the good fortune of coming back here every year as we store our bike here with friends we met cycling along the Rhine 5 years ago.
Hope you are having a good Spring in Victoria.
Regards
Barry and Mary Ellen Bartlett
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6 years ago