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Southern Black Forest Cycle Route 2020
 

Day 1
From Bülach along the Rhine on the German side to just after Bad Säckingen

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YouTube German:
https://youtu.be/8E0AtlZPe6A

Sat June 29, 2019, Namedy

8:37 am, Good morning you out there, I thought to myself. Had chosen a perfect place yesterday. Woke up with the sun this morning Slept well. Then I got up and packed everything together. There wasn't much because I didn't need the tent.

Then I made coffee and sandwiches at the table, and had breakfast. When I had packed everything together, I drove off briefly, stopped again, looked back wistfully at the square and then finally set off. Another wonderful day. I had to refill my bottles at the next opportunity, but still had enough to drink. At some point I passed the bridge that was destroyed by World War II. It was the Remagen Peace Bridge . It was formerly called the Ludendorff Bridge. I took a closer look at this structure. Unfortunately the museum was closed for renovation. But I saw no signs of renovation.

So I drove on and shortly before Bonn saw a strange ship. At first it reminded me of the Nautilus. In fact, it was the Moby Dick , built in 1976. I was amazed when I saw the bicycle sign and was confused at first. There was Plittersdorf, 0.4Km. I knew Plittersdorf from the two girls near Raststatt. So it couldn't be Plittersdorf. Quickly google maps and then everything was clear. And then there is this beautiful tree root. There was a lot to marvel at.

My destination was the campsite near Cologne, Camping Berger . Today I didn't want to do so many kilometers. So I got there at 3 p.m. and reported to reception. I had never registered before and had no problems. Not this time either. I was assigned the place, whereupon I put up the tent, packed everything and stowed it in the tent. Since it was very warm again, I went to the Baar for a drink, a cold Cola Zero, what else?

And since I arrived early, I got my dirty garment bag afterwards, bought washing taps at the reception, which also had a small shop in the back, and put my dirty laundry in the washing machine. Then I went upstairs to the wash building to take a shower. Again, I wasn't looked at in any weird way when I went into the ladies shower. The shower cubicles and toilets were neat and clean, as before.

And as usual I spread out on my collapsible camping chair, pulled my camping table towards me, set up the netbook and made my pictures, data backup and diary entries. I loved these two parts.

Later I went to get my washed clothes and hung them on the line behind my tent, between two posts. Then cook something to eat as always and let the evening fade away. I'm looking forward to Cologne and Cologne Cathedral tomorrow.

 

S0 June 30, 2019

Like every morning, wake up, get up, pack everything together and fold and stow my dried clothes. Then go to the front to pay for the space at the reception. I also stocked up on groceries and my breakfast in the little shop. I said goodbye and was given a friendly goodbye.

Then I drove along the beautiful Rhine towards Cologne. It wasn't far anymore. From a distance you could already see the Cologne Cathedral and the 3 famous Krahnhäuser. I always thought when I saw them how they did it, floating so freely until I drove past them and saw that there was still a glass elevator that probably supported the houses. I never noticed them. It was fascinating to drive past them. Freedom was just opening up in me. I now felt where I always wanted to be, here and on the move.

Shortly before the city of Cologne I had my breakfast in the sunshine on the Rhine. Chocolate drink and sandwiches. Then I drove on towards Cologne Cathedral. In the city I still had to be careful, broken glass bottles kept falling on the floor. Then I turned to the cathedral and it was impressive how big it was. I was there a few years ago, but it was different now. I would have loved to go in, but since I was alone and there were beggars everywhere, I didn't want to take the risk.

I was a little ashamed when I saw all the beggars and could afford such a trip. Actually very sad. I already had little money and was satisfied with little, but the… Really sad. So I left the cathedral square with mixed feelings. Outside I saw a beggar who could hardly walk, and I gave him € 5. I would have loved to give something to every beggar.

The bridge with the many locks impressed me. That must have an additional extreme weight, these many locks. But I hardly thought about that.

When I arrived in Düsseldorf, I thought by the way, it would be great if you could meet the musicians in their city like that, the sons of Mannheim, the Toten Hosen in Düsseldorf, Herbert Grönemeyer in Bochum, etc. What a nice thought. In Düsseldorf I was fascinated by the extraordinary houses. And shortly after Düsseldorf there was a well with spring water or something. I had to smile. There were certainly 10 cyclists standing there and waiting until they were about to refill water. I also took the opportunity.

It got later and later and I arrived in Duisburg. I found Duisburg to be an interesting, but also a dirty city. I also have to say that I drove through an industrial area. Slowly I had to think about where to stay overnight. So I checked my cell phone and found something like camping in the forest ...

So let's go there. It was about 10km and I drove along a long meadow. It was full of people, Turks or something. They had a party, nice to look at. Unfortunately I was tired and so I just drove past them. Finally arrived in the forest, it turned out to be a private facility. Oh man, what a crap Google tells me. I was annoyed, is no use, has to go back. Then check again and I found a campsite in the direction of Oberhausen, but closed at 8 o'clock. I could do it. So back at speed the 10Km and hopefully 15Km again.

But after about 12 km I was completely exhausted. So I looked for a suitable place to stay until I landed back in Duisburg. It was getting dark and I almost fell asleep while driving. When I saw this bench with a table, it was clear to me that this was the end of work. So I made myself comfortable, locked my bike with the trailer twice and put the rain cover on my bike over it. This is not only intended to protect my bike from the rain, but should someone tamper with my bike, I wake up to the rustling of the plastic. Almost 3 times secured.

After I had eaten, a man who lives in Duisburg came by and said that this is a safe area, which reassured me immensely. We chatted a little more, then he left and I slipped into my sleeping bag. Shortly thereafter, a dog started barking all the time. Still I fell asleep. During the night I woke up 2-3 times because the dog was still barking all the time. That made me worried about the dog. Still, I fell asleep again.

 

Mon 01 July 2019

Got up at around 5:30 a.m. today. The night was restless. It was comfortable on the bench as far as you can expect from a bench. It was more the dog that kept barking all night. And apparently none of the neighbors care. I would have liked to help, but at the time I didn't know how. When I approached the house, maybe to see something, a neighbor up on the terrace, who was holding a coffee cup in her hand, worried more about peeing on the house than about the dog. That just caused a lack of understanding in me.

So I packed up the rest and drove out of Duisburg along the Rhine. Whereby driving out means that I drove back and forth a bit until I got out. Yesterday I found Duisburg dirty and there was garbage everywhere. But I have to admit, I drove through the industrial area and see it a bit more distantly today. I drove through Duisburg and there was a beautiful sunrise. Nevertheless I was happy to get out of Duisburg.

After Duisburg I drove a lot on the Rhine next door, enjoyed the weather and the type of ship on the Rhine. But had more or less strong headwind all day, which didn't make pedaling any easier. Sometimes e-bikes overtook me and I jokingly thought, yes, with an auxiliary motor it is no art. It took me about 2 hours for 20 km. But how do I put it so beautifully, my way is my goal.

In between I bought drinks and something to eat at a kiosk, gave away the return bottles I had collected and was able to save some money. I sat outside and enjoyed the sandwich. It was a little cloudy, but that was fine with the hot weather. And it went on with a headwind. Had about 70% headwind today.

I was happy when I reached Grietherort near Grieth at the campsite. When I got there, I first had to see where the owner was. Somehow I found the campsite, how should I put it, to be deserted. Then there was a lost soul who told me that the owner was down by the lawn mowing. So I went there and lo and behold, there was a thin man who seemed a little lost to me. He greeted me nicely and we went up to the reception. A dog greeted me there, too, was no longer the youngest. I paid for the night. He also offered me that if I wanted he could cook something. I kindly informed him that I had my food with me. It seemed to me as if his wife had died and then time stood still.

Immediately he opened the doors to the shower area because he had treated them with mosquito repellent. I went to my place to choose. When I went there, I noticed how deserted the place was and how many campers had come down. Even though the sun was still shining, the place seemed gloomy to me.

After setting up the tent, I went up to the showers. Everything had come down a bit. The man met me again. He felt a little lonely to me.

 

Well and the treatment of the mosquitoes was not exactly crowned with success. There were still some insects on the ceiling. But they didn't bother me. The sanitary facilities and washing machine etc. were no longer up to date, to put it nicely. Nevertheless, the shower was good.

A Dutch couple with bikes and a tent came by and told me that unfortunately the dam in Holland is currently closed to bicycles due to renovation work. Too bad. There was no further conversation with them, but that was okay. So I let the day, which was all in all beautiful, end.

 

Tue 2nd July 2019

Somehow I wasn't unhappy to leave the campsite this morning. He looked sad and lonely, although there were many campers and a few tents. So as always, have breakfast, pack up and off you go. I hadn't seen the owner while driving away. It was so quiet too.

When I drove down to the Rhine, there was still a restaurant. But that was closed. There was currently no ferry at the bottom of the Rhine. So go back up and to the main street, where there was also a bike path. This sometimes led over rural areas, which I found very nice.

I followed the Rhine as best I could. The signage was sometimes poor and so I kept getting lost. The navigation system was more suitable for recording routes than for navigating. Maybe I'm just too stupid.

Then at noon I arrived at the Dutch border. As so often, started talking to a man who had just come from Holland. He lived in Holland. Then I passed the gate of the fence and yep, I was in Holland. A few meters ahead came a crane where I took a break. Since there were a few clouds in the sky, the temperature was pleasant. Then someone from my WhatsApp group said: "OK - and from now on it will be written in Dutch"
I replied: "Instellen met een boot over de Rijn"

The bike paths were beautiful to ride. Hardly any potholes etc. The only thing that annoyed me over time in Holland was that outside of the villages / towns, scooters were also allowed to ride on the bike paths. Sometimes they came in from behind and honked the horn. But if you think they're slowing down, of course not. And wearing a helmet with the scooter driver, out of place. The further I drove in the country, the less the scooters became, which I didn't mind at all.

When I arrived at the Den Hoogen Berg campsite near Boven-Leeuwen around 4 p.m., I was warmly welcomed. The owner and his family greeted me nicely, spoke a little German and I spoke a little English. So we could have a good chat. Right next to the reception was a chicken pen, in front of it a seat and then a small meadow for the tents. Very familiar. I liked that very much.

The killer was the toilet / shower trolley. Really beautifully lovely directed. I had never seen anything like it before. Everything well looked after. I ordered bread for tomorrow. There were 2 other Dutch couples present. We quickly got into conversation, from my side, as best I could in English. After we had set up the tents, we had a great evening, ate together and chatted. You invited me to dinner, so dear of them.

After dinner I sat in my chair and made my data backup and wrote my diary. Then I retired to my tent, read something and soon after it was over. Close the tent, cuddle in the sleeping bag, fall asleep.