Day 16

02/09/2011 – Day 16

Vohburg to Kelheim – 34km

The day started overcast and threatening rain again. We had the objective of reaching Regensburg today but remained flexible on that due to the weather.

Breakfast was delivered to the room and was the usual German style of cheese, meat and fresh bread with good coffee. We packed and left without putting on our waterproofs as we thought that was tempting fate.

The path was a dirt track for the next 20km and ran parallel to the river. There was the usual traffic of runners and other cyclists. We did not really have any chance to stop as there were no cafés or bars on the river this morning. The only place that might have something was Eining and it coincided with the 20km/1 hour routine stop.

Then disaster struck. M was trying to turn on his camera and steer and check the map as usual when he must have struck a large rock or something. Suddenly he is crashing down in front of me, bike, bag and him filling the space I was heading for! I swerved hard as his head landed right in front of my wheel, missing him by a hair, phew.

Picking himself up he had suffered minor road rash to his shoulder, elbow and knee, fortunately his hands had been protected by his gloves. The bike had sustained very minor damage and everything else looked undamaged apart from the guide book which I had run over while attempting to miss M’s head, it now had a tyre print across the front of it.

After checking himself over we got back on the bikes and rode round a bend to find a bar, well, more of a shed really with tables and a children’s play area. An awning had been put up at some point and sides added later, I could see that one day it might progress to be a complete building. It was here to serve people waiting for the small ferry that took people across the river to a place called Hienhiem on the north bank. It was the ideal time to stop for a coffee.

While we sat there it started to rain, but only for a second or two, then it stopped and the sun came out and it warmed suddenly. Sitting there M started to complain about his ribs hurting and over the next few hours the pain got worse, also his hand was now starting to hurt. Looking at the map the next logical place to stop was either Staubing or Kelheim.

Moving on we headed towards Kloster Weltenburg, a monastery built under some cliffs on the point of a bend on the river. The only way to the building was along a narrow road also built under the overhanging cliffs. It is obviously a big tourist attraction and the car park was full of coaches but as the road was so narrow, people had to walk the last 1.5km, but at the monastery itself there was a ferry dock where boats from Keldheim brought trippers up the river too. When you round the last corner you are suddenly confronted by a large crowd of people filing the road and queuing to eat at the restaurant inside.

We thought it would be a good idea to go back to the village by the car park and find some food there, which turned out to be the wrong thing to do as everything was closed, as usual. We searched the village but nothing was open so we pressed on to Keldheim. As we set off the was a warning sign on the road telling drivers to look out for slow cyclists as the hill climbed steeply for the next 3km, looking at the map it gave us an option of take a forest path which was not so steep.

At the top of the initial climb up the track we stopped at one of those benches you find everywhere, little clearings with some flowers, a bench and sometimes a small cross or statue. While we were sitting here eating a car pulled up and the man who maintained the area came over to chat. He had lived here all his life and he had just come to cut the grass. While he waited for us to finish eating he told us about himself and asked where we came from and where we were going, all in slow German, but he seemed to understand us.

After lunch we left him to it and set off through the forest, I don’t know if we did save any climbing but the ride was better than the road. When we came out the other side and re-joined the road it was all downhill into the town.

We had found another house in the Bett & Bed website which sounded good so we called in, the woman was very friendly but could only offer us a room with shared bathroom, so we took it. She also did our washing and dried it as well, which after two weeks on the road was heaven!