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Tuesday, 31 May 2016
BAD BREISIG - Bonn - RODENKIRCHEN 41.50 miles
BAD BREISIG - Bonn - RODENKIRCHEN 41.50 miles
We left a very nice Rhine village. Had a comfortable stay and off we went at 9 alongside the river. Soon we couldn't get any further, the river had overflowed (see picture), so we made a slight detour. Little did we know at that time that worse was to come.....and not once...but 6 times!. Also it was quite deep. Lionel just went through the first one not realising how deep it actually was. Wet up to our calves! I was quite angry, but then I saw other cyclists do the same and they were laughing about it, that I shrugged my shoulders and gave up being cross. For the following flooded areas we made sometimes large detours and on one occasion we lost the plot so to speak. A kind cyclist showed us the way as he was heading for the same destination. Relief..
But what of the day itself. So much to see again. At Remagen we passed the remains of Ludendorff Bridge. It was the only Rhine Bridge captured intact by advancing Allied forces in March 1945. German soldiers attempted to demolish it, but failed, were court-martialled and shot. 10 days later it collapsed suddenly and 28 American army engineers were killed. The bridge towers remain on both banks. Both the American and German flag can be seen on the West Bank.
As we were cycling the west side of the river we could see sitting above Konigswinter on the other side, Drachenfels(Dragon's Rock), the westernmost peak of the Siebengebirge range of volcanic hills. Also that side of the river is Rheinhotel Dreesen. It was here that Hitler met British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain in sept 1938, prior to signing the Munich Agreement - which promised 'peace in our time'. It was not to be..
It has again been a great day.
Hope the flooding will recede for tomorrow...
Sent from my iPad
We left a very nice Rhine village. Had a comfortable stay and off we went at 9 alongside the river. Soon we couldn't get any further, the river had overflowed (see picture), so we made a slight detour. Little did we know at that time that worse was to come.....and not once...but 6 times!. Also it was quite deep. Lionel just went through the first one not realising how deep it actually was. Wet up to our calves! I was quite angry, but then I saw other cyclists do the same and they were laughing about it, that I shrugged my shoulders and gave up being cross. For the following flooded areas we made sometimes large detours and on one occasion we lost the plot so to speak. A kind cyclist showed us the way as he was heading for the same destination. Relief..
But what of the day itself. So much to see again. At Remagen we passed the remains of Ludendorff Bridge. It was the only Rhine Bridge captured intact by advancing Allied forces in March 1945. German soldiers attempted to demolish it, but failed, were court-martialled and shot. 10 days later it collapsed suddenly and 28 American army engineers were killed. The bridge towers remain on both banks. Both the American and German flag can be seen on the West Bank.
As we were cycling the west side of the river we could see sitting above Konigswinter on the other side, Drachenfels(Dragon's Rock), the westernmost peak of the Siebengebirge range of volcanic hills. Also that side of the river is Rheinhotel Dreesen. It was here that Hitler met British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain in sept 1938, prior to signing the Munich Agreement - which promised 'peace in our time'. It was not to be..
It has again been a great day.
Hope the flooding will recede for tomorrow...
Sent from my iPad
Monday, 30 May 2016
BOPPARD - Koblenz - BAD BREISIG 40 miles
BOPPARD - Koblenz - BAD BREISIG 40 miles
A dampish start at 9 while continuing on the cycle path next to the Rhine. We saw The city of Koblenz - founded by the Romans -ahead and beckoning us to come over and through. We had looked forward to this and we really enjoyed all we saw. We just poodled along on the bike; there was so much to see and at the slow pace we were going - on very good cycle paths - we were able to take it all in. The route was next to the Rhine and at a certain point we arrived at Deutches Eck ( German Corner), the point where the Mosel and Rhine rivers meet right in the middle of Koblenz. The route then took us via the old town over the river Mosel and back to the next stage alongside the Rhine. We stopped of course for a coffee on the Riverside gardens from where we could see the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein opposite Koblenz on the other site of the river.(see picture). The part of Koblenz we cycled through must be the best part of the city. Buildings and houses are very impressive and at one point we passed a bronze statue, called 'Affection'. At first it looked like a Henry Moore, but on closer investigation it was by a local sculptor, Lucien Wercollier, and was a commission for the year 2000. It is a beautiful work and you want to touch it. But ...of course you don't.
We stopped at Bad BREISIG and as soon we were in our room the heavens opened. That was good timing for stopping. Had a walk later and are back now writing my story.
Sent from my iPad
A dampish start at 9 while continuing on the cycle path next to the Rhine. We saw The city of Koblenz - founded by the Romans -ahead and beckoning us to come over and through. We had looked forward to this and we really enjoyed all we saw. We just poodled along on the bike; there was so much to see and at the slow pace we were going - on very good cycle paths - we were able to take it all in. The route was next to the Rhine and at a certain point we arrived at Deutches Eck ( German Corner), the point where the Mosel and Rhine rivers meet right in the middle of Koblenz. The route then took us via the old town over the river Mosel and back to the next stage alongside the Rhine. We stopped of course for a coffee on the Riverside gardens from where we could see the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein opposite Koblenz on the other site of the river.(see picture). The part of Koblenz we cycled through must be the best part of the city. Buildings and houses are very impressive and at one point we passed a bronze statue, called 'Affection'. At first it looked like a Henry Moore, but on closer investigation it was by a local sculptor, Lucien Wercollier, and was a commission for the year 2000. It is a beautiful work and you want to touch it. But ...of course you don't.
We stopped at Bad BREISIG and as soon we were in our room the heavens opened. That was good timing for stopping. Had a walk later and are back now writing my story.
Sent from my iPad
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