September 16, 2014
Abwinden - Melk.
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Another bright day, but the wind was still with us i.e. against us. After breakfast, I spoke to three more cyclists, on their way out, as we retrieved our bikes from the store. A German guy riding on his own, like us towards Budapest and a couple on their way to Vienna; no organised parties here. We crossed the river by means of the Abwinden hydro dam, then followed back roads and an off-road track to another ferry, serving the town of Mauthausen. Close to Mauthausen is a memorial site devoted to the victims of the Nazi concentration camp of the same name. I suggested to Barbara that we might have paid a visit, knowing that she would have found the experience altogether too distressing, so of course she said no.
Back across the river, we stopped off at the Eurospar supermarket on the edge of town. The wind was up again and the next section of the trail, hard by and above the river, was hard going, the wind full on, up the nostrils. Barbara took my back wheel for this stretch and I rode enough of it on the drops, a position I rarely adopt when touring. At times like this you come to appreciate what makes Dutch professional cyclists such tough cookies. Alright, there are no mountains, but training against those North Sea winds takes some fortitude. I suggested to my partner on my back wheel that it would be a good idea to join up with another group of cyclists travelling at close to our own speed, to share the load. We overtook most, apart from the occasional roady, but after a few miles, we caught up with a couple of German guys who were willing to participate. Then the straight stretch by the river ran out and they said we were just a little too fast for them [this was hardly flattering], so were back on our own, but some woods gave us relief from the moving air
We stopped to eat, on a bench overlooking the river, close to Dornach bei Grein railway station. If the Danube valley was broad and flat along its whole length, if the bike path only followed raised dykes, then I would suggest it would be ridden by a lot fewer people [especially against the wind]. The next stretch through Grein was much prettier, the valley narrows and for a short stretch you have to ride on the road. At least we did, it may be possible to avoid riding on the road by crossing the river.
Grein itself is a stopping off point for riverboat passengers. Some of the vessels carry rental bikes, presumably so customers can ride a stretch if that's what takes their fancy. The woods come down close to the river here so the effort of riding against the wind is mitigated a little.
At Persenbeug, we left the river behind for a while. Outside the village we overtook a large, organised group of French cyclists, average age somewhere in the high sixties probably. We stopped near Mertzling for sustenance and now back with it, sat on a bench overlooking the river. The path also rejoins the road here and runs alongside until Steinbach, where you're on the street for a while. The valley widens again here and we were back on the dyke until the bridge at Tonberg, where there's a cycle helter-skelter to help you up to it. We crossed. The remainder of the day's ride, on the opposite dyke, to Melk was the worst stretch of the day. We were right in the teeth of the wind which had grown stronger, it was colder now too and of course, we were more tired. It was slow going. I was glad we'd booked ahead. Melk is most famous for the monastery built high above the town, It wasn't long before that came into view, beyond the hydro dam. It was quite a bit longer before we got close to it.
We eventually found our lodging right in the historic town centre, having first enquired at the wrong place with a similar name, then before checking in, with the help of a friendly Australian woman's smart phone, found a supermarket out of town just before it closed; back on bread and cheese [and Austrian red wine] tonight.
Today's ride: 100 km (62 miles)
Total: 1,334 km (828 miles)
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