18-27 deg C, fine and sunny all day, with a pesky headwind
Ride: 53km; ride time: 3h21; total time: 5h:45
G ride total: 1,100km
W ride total: 1,084km
Walk G: 5km; total: 302km
Walk W: 3km; total: 272km
We didn’t realise just how long it takes to get the bikes loaded up after checking out and before you can ride away - 10-12 minutes as it turns out. Anyway, we were not in any rush to head off as we knew we didn’t have far to ride. Greg had found the EV7 route out of the city and over the bridge last night. It wasn’t long before we were on our first detour for the day due to roadworks and possibly flood damage rectification. One thing you can be certain of in Germany is that they do signage well, most of the time. Or we must have missed a sign somewhere as a man walking his dog waved us down to explain, in German, that we were headed for a dead end and exactly where we needed to go. We sorta kinda knew what he was saying by the way he waved his arms around and pointed. It wasn’t long before we were back on track.
The surfaces today were mainly smooth with a few stretches of cobblestones. There were some gravel sections with potholes, but anything off the busy roads is fine by us.
We stopped for mornos at a pathside hut. Then to kill some time we took a detour to Mühlberg and spotted a ‘church’ that turned out to be a Monastery. It was quite photogenic outside and inside, although plain. Trying to get back on the EV7, we followed the signs that led us to a set of stairs and a locked gate! One of the few times we’ve been led up the proverbial. Didn’t take us long and we were back on track.
Lunch was had at Belgern, on a shady bench on the side of Marktplatz. Again, we didn’t choose a very restful place as it turned out to be quite busy. There was an ice cream cafe not far from us that was doing a roaring trade from the locals and passing cyclists. We even saw someone that, from a distance, looked just like our friend from Canberra - Bob; could be a long lost relative?
From Belgern, it was only another 16km to our destination so we were in no real rush to leave knowing we could only check in at 3pm. Well, we made better time than we thought we would and arrived at Hotel Goldener Anker just after 2pm and tried the door, only to find it firmly locked. A lady did come out and asked us what we wanted, so Wendy said we were here to check-in. No correspondence, nor verbal means of communication was to be entered into, but we did understand “come back in one hour!”
So, we did what any self respecting cyclists would do on a warm afternoon - find the nearest ice cream shop and have one. Of course that didn’t take up much time at all, so Wendy volunteered to mind the bikes while Greg went for a wander. On his return he tried the hotel door again, and was told that it was not normal to admit people before 3pm, but you can come in anyway. Before she could change her mind, we were in.
After unpacking an making ourselves at home, we had a short rest before going for a pre-dinner wander. After dinner, Greg went for his customary post-dinner wander while Wendy looked at hotels for Potsdam and blogged.
When we parked our bikes in the storeroom yesterday afternoon, ours were 2 of 8!
Elbe River scenery, same scene, different perspectives
Marienstern Monastery at Mühlberg
The bell tower
Rathaus/City Hall Belgern
Ride route and stats
This is what happens if you leave your bike at the hotel
Hotel Goldener Anker, #43
A really spacious room
The view from our room - Marktplatz (Market place)
Our hotel, our room has the 2 windows above the word ‘Goldener’
One corner of Marktplatz
What we presume this is the old wine cellar at our hotel
Musicians and Fool fountain in Marktplatz Torgau
Castle Hartenfels
a royal castle dating to the 1500s, with history exhibitions and a chapel consecrated by Martin Luther
A beautiful spiral staircase
Castle view from the riverside
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