June 10, 2014
Day 42: Nussdorf to Gstadt
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The river today led us out of the Tirol, which means for now, out of the really spectacular mountain scenery. Our typical path was something like a straight gravel track beside a straight grey river.
There was a little excitement on this track, though, as we encountered five or six cyclists flying Canadian flags. They were about our age (old timers) and had rented their bikes in Salzburg. By pedalling and some use of train, they had been to Nuremberg, and were now circling on the Mozart Radweg, with an ultimate return to Salzburg. Of course we meet lots of Canadians in Canada, and do not necessarily have a lot to say to them. But out here? What fun, even to hear their Canadian accents, which now sound rather exotic to us.
Talking to these folks on the trail was not the only talking we did, of course. We probably speak to ten or so people per day, all of whom are attracted by our heavy loads and Canadian flags. The very next couple up - just a short distance down the trail - was quite interesting. They were on a tandem, and not too far from home. The man, though, was from Phoenix, but had lived in Arkansas. The lady was from northern Germany. We spoke in English and the man had a mild American accent. But when he said a few words of German, I could see he was really fluent. Naturally the conversation wandered to the differences between cycling in the US and over here. I had often thought of how great it would be to live on a bike path and be able to go out for a few hours, any time. (and, yes, I have mentioned that dream in this blog before). But these two talked about the logical extension, that takes advantage of the fact that there are guest houses all over the place, along the bike ways. So they hop on their tandem and cycle out on day's worth, sleep over, and cycle back. Terrific!
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At Rosenheim we hung a right, leaving the Inn river and heading toward Salzburg. In terms of our guide books, this is an extension of the Inn route. However it is also part of the Mozart Radweg. First up on this route are two lakes - the Simssee and then the Chiemsee. Sees over here are Lakes, eh. The Simssee is fairly small, but is a real fun spot, with a number of beaches with well tended grass and kiosks selling ice cream and other treats.
The thing about heading off the river though, is that we are no longer immune from having to go over hill and dale. Hill and dale does have the advantage of being scenic, of course. Just when I had begun to whine that the scenery was dull, nice meadows and cows turned up. I tried a rear guard action, claiming that the cows were the wrong colour. However, I did have to admit they were nice. All cows are nice.
Not only did this landscape come up with cows, but it came up with rabbits. This was first in the form of rabbit shaped clouds, and then in actual farm rabbits. The hills and dales, however, had a major drawback - they are by definition ups and downs. With the temperature well over 40, this was rather harsh, to say the least. We drank all the water we possibly could, but just being out in the bright sun like that is exhausting.
So that is why the thought of a nice shower at a campground was a real motivator. Both the Bikeline book and the GPS showed a camping at Gstadt. Even though our distance had not been great, we were really tired, and it seemed we would never reach the town. Of course, eventually we did. We found a real little resort, with sailboats by the lake and dozens of picture perfect chalet style guest houses. We have had enough of guest houses for a while, especially with a nice camping so clearly marked on our map, just up that one last hill (or two).
So really beat now, we arrived at the top of the hill. The GPS said we were standing right in the camping. But where we were was a parking lot. This was not even a camper van parking - there was a sign that said no camper vans. So we cast around the various buildings in the vicinity, looking for a live human to ask about this. Could not find one. So, we have just pitched in the parking lot. We are the only "car" here. Did not buy a ticket at the machine, though. What would be the price for parking two bikes? They do have 4 wheels between them, I guess.
Needless to say, our campsite does not have a shower. We could go jump in the lake - but that would mean going back down the hill. What we will do is just wait for evening to cool us off. Then we should phone those Bikeline Book folks and have a really stern word with them! (No doubt they will not answer - probably in the shower!).
Today's ride: 46 km (29 miles)
Total: 2,239 km (1,390 miles)
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