July 1, 2014
Day 63: Bad Kohlgrub to Hopfen am See
We found that we had stopped pretty much in the centre of Bad Kohlgrub, which turned out to be quite a small town. It was cute, though, and had both a small grocery and a bakery. The bakery was housed in a nicely decorated building, which I am sure enhanced the appeal of the qwark taschen we took away.
We realized that there was no way to avoid the twin problems of hills and gravel path - which is what the Bodensee-Konigssee had on offer to start us off - so we just went for it. At least there was no rain, so the gravel would not be working to grind down our rims, assuming we ever used the brakes!
Basically our situation was that the feet of the Ammergau Alps lay between us and the broad valley that contains the large lake (Forgensee), many smaller lakes,, and the town of Fussen. These "feet" of the mountains, while low compared to the height of the peaks, still bear the name Hoher Trauchberg, which itself connotes mountainous heights.
This was pretty much the route we took when we came the other way - from Fussen to Oberammergau, on Day 47. We spent the early part of the ride (which was mainly a push) asking ourselves if this was just where we had been, or if our route had been slightly different. Soon though, we clearly were on the route we remembered. We were helped in this by having to cross the two streams we had crossed before. We looked for the stepping stones we had put out last time, and took no doubt exactly the same photos of the rock strewn, flooded path.
It is on path like this that the optimistic feeling of the Bike Friday makers and owners that the bikes feel just like "real" bikes runs up against reality. The reality is that a 20 inch wheel does not run over gravel or through sand nearly as easily as a larger wheel. And if you load the wheel as if your "New World Tourist" were a touring bike, you will not be going anywhere fast. We are of course used to this situation, but thought it would be worth mentioning - while watching someone on an unloaded mountain bike bounce through the stream with total nonchalance. Meanwhile, I more or less carried mine through.
We paused to look up what we ourselves had said about this bit of the route when we came the other way, and found that we were not very enthused about it then either. However, it was only about 10-15km of slogging - not the end of the world. Soon enough we collected our reward. We burst out of the forest and off the mountain, into the valley of the Forgensee. This was the start of 30 km of the best, most scenic cycling anywhere.
It began as we returned to a bench where we had stopped on the reverse ride, and looked out over the meadows and cows to the high mountains behind. As we sat there admiring the view and eating the stuff we had salvaged from breakfast, four horses galloped up to the fence just behind the bench. They were two very tall mothers and two foals, still nursing. They just settled in to keep us company, the mothers standing very still, and the foals alternating between nursing and seeing what we were up to.
In due course, the mothers took the foals over to a spot in the sun nearby, and put them down for their naps. We took this as our own cue to move on. Our plan was not to return all the way to Fussen, at the south end of the big lake, but to cut across in the north. So we descended south through small villages, until it was time to turn west. All the while we were on nicely paved path or small roadways, with the stunning mountains in the background.
We paused at a fork in the road, just to plot our next turns (with our maps and GPS we were having no trouble seeing what they were to be) and a couple sporting nordic walking sticks came up to us. The lady said something in German that we interpreted as an offer of help, but for a change it was in fact that she wanted a peek at our map, to plot a way to the Wieskirche. This was enough to initiate a conversation - or rather two - as I spoke to the man and Dodie spoke to the lady.
The man, Wolfram, asked me some questions - but these were not the usual questions (UQs). Rather he wanted to know what I had studied in school, to what use I had put my education, where I lived and why I had moved there. He conceded that some could take offense at his forthright questions, but that he was always trying to learn about people - what they thought and what they were up to. In return, I learned that before retirement he had first practiced as a lawyer, and then was a manager for one of the sixteen German states (I forget which) for Deutche Bank.
Speaking then about the German states, he noted that Bavaria had been independent for 1000 years, and that with this background Bavarians had a strong sense of their identity and history. In fact, he said, the state government still maintained a ministry of culture, and made substantial investments in maintaining the link to traditional things such as the clothing.
These comments certainly jived with what we had been noticing in Bavaria.
Wolfram and Helga had their main home near Frankfurt, but had bought an apartment in this vacation area. It was good, they said, as a place where the family could visit. They would rather invest in this, they said, then have their money in the bank and be checking daily to see if it had evaporated yet.
Dodie's chat with Helga expanded on this theme - the importance of maintaining contact with family and especially grandchildren. They too are always sending the kids postcards.
From this point the ride took on an almost surreal quality. The reason was that the scenery went from really pretty all the way up to that pinnacle of beauty that at home we identify only with Bow Lake and Peyto Lake, in Banff Park. In this Bavarian version, we passed by Illaberegsee, a small lake north of the Forgensee. With the green lake in the foreground and the meadows and tall mountains behind, it really was a supreme sight. I am not sure right now if any of my photos will show this properly. I hope so.
All the while, the bike path continued as a smooth, mostly dedicated way. The area here is criss crossed by paths, including one which makes the circuit of the Forgensee. Eventually we reached a point where we could see the castle Neuschwanstein, not too far off, and we could really understand why Ludwig II was so enchanted with this place. It was perhaps natural to think that as we left the immediate area of the Forgensee, the very manicured and beautiful territory would give way to a wilder and more remote landscape. But that is a Canadian expectation. In fact, as we moved toward Hopfen am See, things became if anything more manicured and houses more upscale. There were a number of guesthouses that looked really beautiful and inviting, and we were tempted to at least ask the price. However, there were many campings on our radar, so we really had no excuse.
We came finally to a camping which was at a guesthouse that also offered rooms and vacation rentals. As an indication that we are in vacation central, in July, both of these were full. The camping was offered at 15 euros, which is reasonable by the standards we have come to expect. The bath house facilities, though, were ok but not super. What our 15 euros bought was the base standard for European camping - a patch of grass. As is often the unfortunate case, the patch of grass is far from the sanitary facilities, with the space between being occupied by trailers and camper vans who do not need to use the facilities. In addition, there are no tables, nor place at the main building to sit or cook.
So we set up our stools (thanks for the tip, Tricia!) on our patch of grass, and started to get ready to cook and to type the blog. On the other hand, rain was threatening so we picked up our stove and tablet and hiked down to the shelter of the sanitary building overhang. There was a little metal table and two chairs nearby, so I made to move these just under the overhang with us. With this,some people who were nearby, I assume associated with the camping management, freaked out and refused too allow the table to be moved. I explained that I would be putting it back in a few minutes, but they were adamant. So chalk one up for boorish insensitivity to requirements of tenters or cyclists.
We were right about the rain. Just as the skies opened with a violent storm, I ran for the tent with the computer. (And as I have explained, it's not a short run) Poor Dodie got trapped in the washroom. As I write this in the tent, I assume she will wait out the storm. If I put on a raincoat and go rescue her, then we will have two wet raincoats in the tent. Hmmm, those guesthouses sure are looking good now!
And p.s. I do not recommend Haus Guggemos, and their camping in Hopfen am See!
p.p.s. Dodie has now reappeared. She had gotten a third of the way when the storm broke. She dove into a canopy in front of a camper, and announced to two very startled Germans that she would be waiting there until the rain stopped. Eventually they pulled put a chair for her. At least there is somewhere you can get a chair around here!
Watch for photo captions later....
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Today's ride: 47 km (29 miles)
Total: 3,289 km (2,042 miles)
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