Category: Cycling
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45. Last whirl of the wheel. (July 31)
It has taken me a week to get around to writing to you, because baby Elia and I have been so busy catching up and playing. This is a last look at the stats after finishing… 55 sunny days of pedalling from morning till night + 2 days of heavy rain when I stopped +…
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44. Grande Finale Day – OSLO ! (July 24)
Suddenly Oslo popped up, and my family were waiting for me at the finish line! . My first hugs in a long time! and 4138 kms since I left home. Photos still to come, but most of you have seen the video on Instagram or Facebook. It was a very happy moment, although it feels…
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43. A Rolling stone gathers no moss for 4000 kms (July 23)
The terrain rose up and became beautifully hilly. Massive piles of mossy granite boulders pushed up through the oats fields while balancing trees on their heads. These hills are perfectly spaced to allow cyclists to whizz down a steep slope for 10 seconds before starting up the next for 10 minutes. Up and down like…
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42. Swedish bitters (July 21)
Apologies to the Swedish for putting these dull pictures on the blog, it was the only cloudy day they’ve had in a long time. Most days they are either fighting fires or lying on the beaches. After a very pleasant rest near Ängelholme, I made my wiggly way up the coast. The cycle route was…
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41. Copenhagen magic (July 19)
It was the hottest day of the year. Even so, it’s always a pleasure to be in this city. We spent the day rolling around enjoying the scenery. Bruce and Kealena treated me to an all insclusive personalised tour. Meals, a chat with the little mermaid, and a new lock for my bike. So…
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40. Sneaking up to Copenhagen (July 18)
There are two respectful ways to enter Copenhagen, one is sailing in, and the other is rolling softly in on a bike. One should take a full day to do it. When cycling in these realms, one needs a particular set of skills. Kealena and Bruce kindly gave me a crash course, thereby avoiding unecessary…
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39. Bridging the Baltic Sea (July 17)
The great crossing began with a blue sun. Our posh hotel elevator, being slightly too short for a bike body, had the girls doing a circus trick by balancing the front wheels up on the golden hand rail. It was a frizzling hot day, so we had ice-cream at the beach and a large Döner…
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38. Coasting along! (July 16)
Moments in Hamburg that I couldn’t resist sharing, even under sprinkling grey skies we were happy to explore. It was a sunshine and birdsong day as we rolled out of town, eventually, the three of us on our eeeee-bikes. It took us most of the morning to get going, city exits are always a…
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36. Hamburger sophistication (July 11)
What do you order for dinner in Hamburg? Sweet-potato chips. But ask any Hamburger citizen and they will tell you with pride that the food here is highly sophisticated and exquisite. From rich and savoury to spicy and sweet, luscious meats, delightful veggies, free range biofriendly everything under the sun and rain. I began the…
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35. Grimm’s Bremen story (July 9)
Lucky find, the hotel in Neubruchausen, it was pleasant. I especially liked the knitted bunny incubating my breakfast egg. The scene changed dramatically when I went out of the door. WHAT THE grey sky! The cycle path was mine all the way from Neubruchausen to Bremen, about 35 kilometres. Here are some pictures of random…
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34. Biking on. (July 8)
Riding together with Birgitta and Hanns Georg was fantastic, they knew where to go, so I didn’t need to navigate, and could just pedal along in bliss, babbling on. We had a delicious lunch in a big garden. They let me go after about 60 kms. I had to go on over the hills. I…
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33. 2500 km raspberry-pop shop. (July 7)
The 2500 km mark popped up directly in front of a raspberry farm stall. It was a happy moment after a day of riding through industrial parks and road works. I was negotiating yet another “umlietung” which took me off canal and through a farm. It had been a tough, hot, smelly day of riding…
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32. Goodbye my friend, Rhine. (July 5)
This is yesterday’s post. Hotel’s and hostels offer very poor wifi, so the blog cannot be shared when it should be, it has to wait for the next stop, just like many things in life. The sun is dragging his billowing sky down to the smoking chimney stacks. A giant storm growled through dinner, but…
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31. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. (July 4)
Mostly very very good, a little bad and a tiny bit of Ugly. Magnificent riding along the Rhein from Bad Honnef to Cologne. Thanks to those who have worked to make the cycle tracks there. Brilliant! There is also a ferry man that pulls you across a stream on a raft…wearing a sailor cap and…
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30. Loreley. (July 3)
Simon came to see me at the Loreley section of the Rhein for the weekend. A short relaxing break from riding my bike. We visited 5 castles on Sunday morning. The Bellevue Rheinhotel, a historic place to stay, if you’re looking for a bit of pampering. Riesling wine tasting and gourmet cuisine. I think…
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29. Painting at the riverside. (June 29)
The morning was exuberant with fresh vineyards. Riesling grapes still budding on the vines. The Rhein is becoming greener too. My little paintbox made happy colours and manifested this naivety. Someone had set up the perfect table and chairs on the riverbank just for me. I felt very happy under my number. Would a…
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27. Big Green Umbrella. (June 28)
Today the wind came up against me. The tall poplar trees along the river bank clapped their silver leaves, making a high sound like a standing ovation at an opera. It was a blue sky day, with puffy clouds dotted about. Birds of prey skimmed over the golden bristles of the harvested wheat fields looking…
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26. 2000 km Jube-jubelation. (June 27)
Today, this afternoon, at 16:30, we stopped for ice-cream at Jesolo eis, to celebrate our 2000 km moment. Us, being my bike and I. A lovely young lady Kira very kindly served a trophy pistachio and fresh kiwi sundae, and took a photograph of my CUBE trekking bike with me behind it eating the eis.…
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24. A Bicycle is a marvellous machine (June 24)
Riding a bike along the banks of a river has a profound effect on the rider. The river softly massages away one’s knotty moods, while the bike carries you along at a pace neither fast nor slow…it goes at the exact speed you need to be propelled, so as to see most of the beauty,…
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23. Black Forest Gateau. (June 22)
No sign of the famous Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte so far. Maybe the world famous Black Forest Gateau will make an appearance at my next destination, which would be Freiburg, although I doubted I would make it that far in one day. The journey was not without highs and lows, although the terrain was flat. Steel works,…
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22. Bed bugzzzi. (June 22)
The only men I attract by my appearance these days, are those with noisy machines. – mowers, tractors, builders and lorry drivers. Even the rubbish truck man made a comment after a near miss. I don’t think it was complimentary. But the hoteliers usually always shake my hand when I leave, which is sweet. My…
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21. Emerald River blues. (June 19-21)
19 June 2018. Early morning ride along the southern shore of lake Constance (Bodensee in German) which forms the border between Switzerland and Germany, was so calm after the turbulent river that feeds it, unlike me who woke up in the night with vertigo! I was horrified of course, and so worried that I would…
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20. Singing down to the Bodensee. (June 18)
I dropped down from the mountain ice, with the river misting at my side. From Stuben to Bludenz to Nenzing to Feldkirch. My wheels spun fast between the trees, until the land began to plain, and the white stream expanded into a calm turquoise lens. The tunnel panic wasn’t so bad this time, being Sunday…
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19. Arlberg Pass to Stuben (June 17)
It was the first day of my 3 week trip so far, that I had absolutely no idea where I was going. The thought of a steep pass made me anxious, so I delayed along the way and dabbled with my paint and took leisurely photographs of flowers. Dilly-dallied all the way along the valley,…
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18. How to ride in heaven. (June 15)
First of all, the man did not make another appearance. At Burgusio, where I escaped the man and spent the night, there is the magnificent Marienburg Monastery. We have visited before thanks to Susanne, Simon’s sister. Incredible to see, the highest Benedictine monastery in Europe. The library there has recently been renovated and the book…
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17. Val Venoster. (June 15)
What a wonderful day, pedalling up through the valley towards the Resia/Reschen pass. A famous and very popular bike track, but people mostly go down hill to Merano, then catch the little train back up to their hotels. The mountains have white ice toppings. I’m very nervous about going up there. The emerald idyllic landscape…
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16. Truck spray. (June 13)
This morning some of the Everest Hotel guests vanished with the key to the dungeon where the bicycles are stored overnight, so I had to wait for them to come and open the lock. It was an imperfect start to a few other annoyances that came up first thing. I pedalled out to the river…
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15. Going into the Alps. (June 13)
Lucy Lui gave me breakfast in her back garden, and waved me goodbye. All my hosts and hostesses so far have been truly generous and kind. Mantova was just waking up when I passed along her northern shores, sneaking along a little path in the woods. A large sticky spider web attached itself to my…
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14. Po River flats. (June 10)
I was thrilled to have an egg for breakfast at Pico Hotel. Usually it’s a matter of cornetti with jam and a coffee. Set off a bit late this morning, due to it being Sunday. Lesson 3. Don’t sing with your mouth open when riding a bike. Hum, because insects can get in your lung.…
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12. Cherry time. (June 8)
Farmers are selling their cherries along the roads. There are two types called Duroni and Ciliegie. Duroni are red and a bit sour, compared to ciliegie. I bought a some from a lady and her daughter along the road. It would be lovely to come back in the early spring when they’re all flowering. To…
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9. Poggio Pratelli. (June 4)
The evening was lilac with pink roses, from the high terrace of the village called Radda our glasses of red wine held up in the sun, and the moon floated like a white petal between them. A choir was singing in the church so we sat on a pew and closed our eyes for a…
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7. San Filippo to Buonconvento – Day 5 (June 1)
It rained. Not much fun to bike in the rain. So we only set off at lunch time, in time to stop for lunch. After a miserable attempt at standing under a tree for cover while large trucks dashed us with road spray. The salad at Fonte all Vena in San Quirico d’Orcia, is a…
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6. Bolsena to Bagni San Filippo – Day 4 (May 30)
Yesterday was a sore day. My beloved Brooks saddle is unforgiving, but the scenery was breathtaking. We set off after a hearty goodbye to our nun, and took the back roads out of the crater. Stopping to view the huge Lake Bolsena, which looked back at us with one grey eye. This place has been…
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5. Freewheeling. ( May 29)
The thing about being a granny on a long bike ride, is one never knows what might conk in. So far so good. Early morning at the coffee bar in Vetralla you can have a whiskey corretto (in Italy it’s usually the other way around, an espresso with a dash of liquor). Traffic was quite…
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4. Francigena – the old road. (May 28)
Simon and I left Nonna Loreta to clean up our breakfast dishes, and rode up into the hills, passing a pretty sanctuary for a blessing. It is Brandon’s 30th birthday today! Madonna del Sorba I met Doris, a very nice lady from Bremen who is walking the pilgrimage to St.Peters. Flocks of white butterflies are…
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3. The Jitters – Day 1 (May 26)
What a lovely surprise to see so many friends pitch up to see us off. Simon said he wanted a cappuccino at Wunderkaffe, and there they were! Thank you everyone, for the great send off. A little wobbly along the Appia Antica, still getting the hang of my panniers. They weigh about 14…
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