13-20 deg C, rain from about mornos, particularly heavy between lunch and the time we arrived at Ybbs
Ride: 63km; total: 653km
Walk G: 5km; total: 190km
Walk W: 4km; total: 185km
What a wonderful day’s cycling! Not long after we commenced riding about 8:30am, we entered an unexpected wine region. Arguably the finest in Austria according to the reports. Not only do they produce pretty good wine but the area is also an UNESCO World Heritage site. The amazingly old buildings, castles, the terraced vineyards and the cobblestone streets are all a treasure. Of course, because we are on the bikes and need all our facilities to stay upright, we were unable to partake of any of the local fare. The problem was, with 60 odd km to our booked overnight accommodation, we were potentially going to take two days to get there due to the constant stops for that great photo around every corner.
We finally made it through the region only to be stopped by some pretty heavy showers. In fact at one stage it really come down so we took refuge under a bridge along with a half a dozen other cyclists who weren’t that keen about riding in the rain. The rain kept coming so we spent about 45 minutes under that bridge.
The rain eased off a bit so we got underway, but the heavy rain returned a short time later. We had our raincoats on so we were able to continue with the top half of us nice and dry.
We did consider a stopover at Melk which has one of the biggest and most beautiful Benedictine Abbeys in Europe. However before crossing the bridge, as we were on the other side of the Danube, we counted seven river cruise ships parked up. That convinced us to stay on our side and keep going. We appreciate that these ships deliver a lot of tourists, and money, to these towns and cities along the river, but the numbers that gather at the attractions are just overwhelming for us and we don’t want to be there at the same time if we can help it.
The last 15km to the hotel were done with a very nice tailwind and we hooked along about 23-25 km/h, and it was great, especially as it was still drizzling. The rain stopped about 2km from the hotel, so we didn’t look too bedraggled when we checked in. We were almost an hour early, but our room was ready, thank goodness. Bikes were securely stowed in a purpose built cabin and we were in our room, #115 at Donau Lodge, not long after. We have a very nice room, and if it wasn’t for a 16th century tower in the way we would have views of the river. Surely they could have knocked it down for us! Not very likely.
After unpacking, having a wash and a cuppa, we had a little rest, even set the timer so we didn’t over rest! Wendy then got researching and booking a hotel for Linz while Greg posted in Fb. It was then to the streets on foot to find a restaurant Greg had seen advertised - Pier 4. On the way, we found a few items on the Town Map as ‘must sees’. We saw a few more on the way home, including the structure that blocking our view of the river - The Powder Tower.
Showers, blogging, teeth and bed. We have another 80km odd to ride tomorrow.
Dürnstein Castle
Lots of these narrow streets, reminded us of most of the wine regions on the Loire in France an 2023
Danube
The vines were absolutely loaded with tiny little grapes
Fortified Church of St Michael
A nice looking building at our pseudo lunch stop
White egg Castle ruins
The bridge we sheltered under, note how mush water is draining off it
!!!!
#115, Donau Lodge, Ybbs
Our view
Ride Route and stats
YBBS on the Danube
St Lorenz Church
In the window of the church
Are these not the most beautiful flowers you’ve seen? While they may be aesthetically pleasing,
In Australia they quickly invade the environment and take over.
Flood levels
We now know that this laneway with the sorry looking bike above it, leads to the Ybbs Bike Museum that closed as we were having dinner, bugger!
Pier #4
Not what you expect to see on the wall of a restaurant, kind of Faulty Towers-like! Even Wendy did a double take
The Monastery, hospital, and Cavalry Barracks. The Monastery is where a six year old Mozart played the organ at a mass, when he stopped on his journey from Passau to Vienna
Looks like the new Town Hall?
Donau Lodge
Our window, on the lower floor
