September 24, 2012
Starting up the Alter Rhine: Beating the rain
We have been very lucky with the weather but it seems as if this luck may be running out. When I looked at the forecast this morning it was overcast with light rain for the morning then torrential rain starting between 1pm and 4pm. We decided that the best thing was to get away as early as possible and avoid any stops for coffee so that is what we did. It was a pity really as the route up the Alter Rhine is lovely, the mountains are beginning to close in on either side of us. On the river side we saw fishermen who looked like serious trout fishermen and reminded me of my father who was a particularly keen (and purist) fisherman. The path was absolutely perfect as it is an inline skating route as well. Inspite of mountains all around us the hill climbs were absent. Once again we were riding over borders and along borders. We resisted crossing the river into Liechtenstein as we felt we had better make progress.
About 11am it was beginning to rain, we had travelled a bit over 40km and had reached the little Swiss town of Buchs. There was an appealing looking hotel so I went and enquired. Yes they had a free room but it wouldn’t be ready for some time. We dropped of our bags and bikes and went to a café for a coffee. One thing about Switzerland (and Austria) that is different from most places in Europe and of course New Zealand is that smoking is not prohibited inside in Bars and Restaurants. They do however have a separate area for smokers and non smokers. We felt rather foolish and precious last night when we went to dinner and we were the only ones in the non smoking area. In the café this morning again the same thing, the smoking area smelt disgusting and we remembered how long we had to put up with this in NZ.
We booked in then rather foolishly drank a half litre bottle of Italian Merlot between us which brought on a long sleep. It was teaming with rain when we awoke. It is now 5.30pm, the rain has stopped and we can look across and see the high meadows on the mountains. Ken took a short walk across to Liechtenstein and I think we will ride on that side of the river tomorrow.
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Today's ride: 44 km (27 miles)
Total: 3,165 km (1,965 miles)
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