Downhill all the way...

The valley has widened out now so the cycle route is very flat, meandering across the plain of wheat fields, with plenty of good views of hunting red kites and large strolling storks. There are loads of other touring cyclists following this route, though no other Brits yet. One family keep up with us, a mum and 2 kids. The little one only about 7 yet is carrying 2 bulging panniers! We catch up with a young couple with a kiddy-trailer. They are keen cyclists from Freiburg and have their 6 month old daughter with them, sleeping through the journey. We asked about their route from Freiburg, but sensibly, they took the train and so avoided our tortuous climb.
By mid afternoon the heat is getting to us so we pause for a beer at MUNDERKINGEN. This is typical of the many small towns we have passed through, monastic buildings, a Rathaus decorated with geraniums and halftimber houses with very steep, tiled roofs.


As we leave the town, the route takes us to a Donau bridge. Unfortunately they have decided to shut the bridge for repairs, so we are left stranded on the wrong side. Looking over the river beside the bridge we see they have considerately installed a temporary pedestrian/cycle bridge lower down the bank, but no sign of how to reach it! With the assistance of a local lad we find a set of steps between the bankside houses, where some planks have been fixed to help wheel bikes down - across at last!
We camp at a 'Gasthaus Camping' that we spot as we enter the village of ERSINGEN. Eating in their restaurant, we witness the gathering of the local drinkers club. They consume considerable amounts of beer before an accordionist appears and we are treated to an evening of beer-drinking songs! Despite consuming yet more Steins, they climb aboard their various forms of transport (bikes, tractors, and a mercedes) and drive off !


The Gasthaus is part of a large farm, and we are the only campers in the orchard between a paddock of ponies and a huge barn of beef cattle. We are woken in the night by the heaviest squally rain our poor little tent has had to contend with, but by morning it has blown dry. Our farmer cycles past waving a big cattle rod at his herd as he takes them down the cycle route to pasture.
We stop at Ulm to wander round the Saturday Market, admire the cathedral then set off along the river bank. It starts to rain, we get lost in a wood and then I fall off! I am ok but muddy, and my poor bike needs sorting as I have managed to get the chain off and caught between the back cog and the rear stay. We shelter in a handy barn to fix the bike and eat lunch, then carry on in the persistent rain, soon coming across 2 young cyclists sheltering in a bus shelter. They were a pair of post-grads from Manchester Uni heading to Budapest. We travelled on to DILLINGEN together.


Miles to date 1,330

Location:SIGMARINGEN to DILLINGEN