August 12, 2012
From Denmark to Germany
We awoke early as we wanted to get away and cover the round about 15km to Gedser to catch the 9.00am ferry to Rostock. That would give us plenty of time and allow for what would be the inevitable delay as we found the ferry terminal, bought tickets etc. It was not to be, we set off on what we thought was the cycle route and after some time we were in the middle of a scrubby forest on a grass track which eventually faded out. What to do now, we retraced our steps and the GPS came to our rescue. The road was the main one to the ferry but there was not a lot of traffic and there was a good hard shoulder so it really felt pretty safe. Eventually after all our dithering around we had covered over 30km and arrived at Gedser at 9.15 so it was just a matter of buying a ticket for the 11.00am ferry.
The ferry was an interesting experience. There were a number of bikes and these were loaded first. Up in the body of the ship there was a café and what happened reminded me of what happens when Ken takes out a tractor load of hay to the cattle. There was nearly a scrum as everyone (me included) joined a que to buy masses of food, I bought us a huge plate of sausages and chips. Then a frenzy of eating and then all was quiet apart from forays into the duty free to buy cartons of beer. As we approached Rostock we noticed something very special. The sea was absolutely full of old sailing ships, some square riggers, some schooners, others gaff rigged and a sprinkling of modern yachts. There was clearly something unusual happening and this became clear when got into Rostock itself and found it was the last day of the annual Hanseatic celebration. The town was packed with people and there were all sorts of fun fair type rides for kilometers along the waterfront. The air was heavy with the small of candy floss. We found it hard to ride along because of the masses.
Our destination was Bad Doberan, chosen because it had a square around it on the map (this means scenic or interesting). What a gem it is. The main attraction is the massive brick Munster. This was built in the 1300s and was the church of the Abbey. We are staying in a charming old hotel in the old centre of this beautiful little town. Our room is elegant but the effect is rather spoilt by the fact the tent which was very wet this morning has been laid out to dry.
Today's ride: 70 km (43 miles)
Total: 347 km (215 miles)
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