Guebwiller to Riquewihr: Four beautiful medieval villages

May 30, 2018

If this was a cycling race you would call today the queen stage not because of difficulty but because of the beauty. We were on the road for 7 hours but only covered 58km because we stopped to enjoy coffee twice, another picnic lunch and tour on foot 3 of the beautiful villages. The 4th we are staying in for a rest day so we will explore more tomorrow. The terrain was fairly flat until one big hill at the very end as we approached Riquewihr. Because it was such a long day and very hot this hill was harder than it should have been. I will let the photos speak to the beauty.

Miles and miles of vineyards can be seen in all directions.

That is my bike on the ground. I did not crash I placed it there to climb a wall for a photo op.

Circling quiet roundabouts is a great way to regroup.

The fountain in Eguisheim with the church in the background. There are 3 stork nests on the roof tops and at least one has chicks.

One of many beauty signs denoting the business,

It is great to have an architect on the tour he spotted this wall that shows the various stages of construction. A timber frame with stones, mud and straw in between or cement patches in the modern era covered in plaster before painting. Not much wonder they last hundreds of years.

This stork was drinking in the river when I spotted him.

Riding through the vineyards into Kaysersberg the birth place of Albert Schweitzer.

Exploring Kaysersberg this time by bike .

Kaysersberg castle on the hill and lovely building in the foreground.

The sign says dangerous descent so you know it is steep. We rode up it in the last 5km of the day.

The daily ritual of an after ride dirty beer.

My dinner of bull, yes male cow covered in a purple cabbage gravy with vegetables and frites.

We passed the Ritter chocolate factory so we had to stop and buy a little treat much of which melted in the hot sun.

A stunning window flower box. These are everywhere.

Why stand when you can sit and why sit when you can lay down.

A funky little building in the middle of 2 streets.

A group photo at our picnic spot in Eguisheim.

It was drizzling when we went out to dinner so I borrowed Joan’s sou’wester to keep the rain off my glasses.

Today's ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Total: 535 km (332 miles)

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