September 9, 2011
To Kelheim: We have a boat ride down the Danube Gorge
Our hostess last night told us that Bavarian Beer was the best in the world and that made in Ingolstadt the supreme. It is certainly very important here. We of course had to taste it. They only seem to sell it in massive 0.5l glasses and it was indeed very good. We met Jack and Rob, two brothers from England who have a cycle trip in Germany each year. Rob had a career in the army a good deal of his time stationed in Germany so has perfect German. Lovely guys who were enjoying the pride of Bavaria. Rob always rings ahead and books their accommodation and suggested he do that for us. Rather foolishly we agreed and although we have had the certainty of a bed we have missed our flexibility and the ability to go where we want on a whim.
It was raining when we woke. Ken had found there were two museums he would have liked to visit in Ingolstad, the Audi Museum and the History of Medicine Museum. We felt we had to push on so reluctantly gave them a miss. The route today was extremely easy with few challenges apart for the fact that because of the rain it was very muddy. The rain however didn't last long. Along the way we kept seeing a fire engine and a group of about 7 fit young cyclists on speedy bikes. It was like the hare and the tortoise. Eventually when we talked to them we found they were a group of firemen from a southern Austrian city doing a speedy trip along the Danube with the fire engine as their sag wagon.
When we got to Weltenburg we had been told to stop at the monastery and taste the beer made there. It is a huge tourist operation with lots of tour buses and hoards of people. It was from here that we had to catch a ferry down the Danube Gorge to Klenheim. The road over the mountains is just too steep to contemplate. I was surprised by the size of the vessel which can take 600 people. We loaded with a lot of other bike tourists including a group of 6 Londoners who were cycling to Cape Town. They were lovely young people, very upbeat about their adventure. Having talked to the family who had driven from South Africa I couldn't help but wonder how they would fair in the Sudan. I will follow their blog.
The trip along the Gorge is for about 5km and is spectacular with massive cliffs and a now very swiftly flowing Danube. Bavarian Beer of course was very much to the fore on the short journey. We arrived in Kelheim with plenty of riding still in us but we had our reservation. Finding the hotel was a bit of a mission, the only problem however is it is 4 or 5km out of town. Never mind the room is big and comfortable, it is cheap and surprise, surprise there is wifi.
Today's ride: 54 km (34 miles)
Total: 1,965 km (1,220 miles)
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