2 MID-LIFE CYCLISTS IN A MOTORHOME: Lake Constance

Hohenschwangau Castle and Lake Alpsee

Driving through the Pyrenees

4th July. We have enjoyed the last 3 days exploring inland from Peniscola, cycling over 100 kms around Càlig, Cervera Del Maestra, Sant Jordi and Vinaros. The roads were lovely and quiet with a nice mixture of gradients but nothing too taxing and we have taken full advantage of the lovely pool to cool off on our return each day. Today we left Peniscola to head north and drove through some amazing scenery as we reached the southern side of the Pyrenees and headed to La Seu d'Urgell. We decided to carry on to Andorra to take advantage of cheap fuel and alcohol.

La Seu d'Urgell

The parking area for Motorhomes was also used by large lorries so after shopping we had lunch and then decided to return to La Seu d'Urgell for the night, a nice little town with a free camperstop with lovely views of the mountains.

5th July. This morning we enjoyed a stunning drive through the Pyrenees back in to France. The scenery was absolutely breathtaking although Glynn wasn't able to enjoy it in quite the same way as he concentrated on the descent with a few hair-pin bends thrown in for good measure. We even saw the Little Yellow Train on its journey over viaducts and through ravines treating it's passengers to even more amazing views than we were able to see.

The Little Yellow Train

We then noticed a smell of burning so we pulled in to the next available lay-by and Glynn found the brakes were almost smoking from the effort of slowing our descent through the mountains. Definitely time for a break and a coffee!! Our ultimate destination for the day was Trouillas and a lovely free Aire on an olive farm.

9th July. After spending the last couple of nights at Piolenc and exploring Orange and the surrounding areas by bike we headed for Sassenage.

Orange

I was really excited to finally be in the Alps and the views were amazing. We were lucky enough to get the last space on the Aire which was in a lovely setting with a mountain backdrop and close to the river L'Isère. We enjoyed a nice walk around the town before dinner and then I kindly let a Glynn beat me 2-1 at crib!!

11th July. After driving to St Jean de Sixt yesterday to meet up with our friends Colin and Sandra we were now happily parked up on a campsite for the next 8 days so that we could test our legs on the local Cols as well as catch a stage of the Tour as it passes through the area. I was so excited to finally be in the Alps and also a tad nervous at how I would cope with the climbs as I'm definitely more of an endurance rider whereas Glynn favours the climbs.

Col des Aravis

The four of us set off for the Col des Aravis which was a tough but incredibly scenic ride. There were six hairpin bends in the latter part of the climb which disguised how much further I needed to go to reach the summit. I just kept my head down and pushed on and I was so exhilarated when I made it to the café at the top. The views were stunning and we lingered over our coffee break to allow our legs and lungs to recover and to make the most of sitting surrounded by such a beautiful landscape. Needless to say the descent was very much faster than the climb and involved a lot of braking. We had only done 23kms but it was probably the toughest 23kms I had ever done with just over 600 metres of climbing.

Col des Aravis

13th July. After a relaxing day yesterday which involved little more than a stroll in to the village we were motivated to do another climb today so the four of us set off to climb the big one in this area and probably the most well known, the Col de la Colombiére. I was slightly reassured by having done the Col des Aravis but I was still a bit nervous as we set off. This was a longer and much tougher Col with over 800 metres of climbing but I did it!! Wow, what a tough climb it was for someone like myself who struggles with climbs and

Me and Sandra feeling chuffed!!

I got a bit of a boost when I actually managed to pass a couple of people!! Glynn was obviously ahead of me so he was waiting at the summit to greet me. The final bit of the climb was really tough with an average gradient of 7.1% over the final 4kms with 5 hairpin bends. There is a white line painted across the road to signify you have reached the summit and Glynn was standing there to greet me. Luckily he recognised what the final climb would have taken out of me and he was ready to grab my handlebars as I came to a stop.

It was just as well as I was shaking from the exertion and probably would have fell over.

I made it!!

I have to say that it was probably one of the most amazing accomplishments I have done and I felt a bit emotional. It may be only a regular ride for some but after so long of wanting to get to the Alps and being a weak climber I was absolutely buzzing at what I had achieved. As I had the descent to do I resisted the urge to have a celebratory brandy and ordered a coffee instead. Sitting at the cafe I watched a succession of teenagers, that appeared to be part of a huge group, cross the line and many of them cried as they reached the summit. Their colleagues all stood on the line and clapped and cheered their friends in encouragement and it was lovely to watch. The views are amazing from these high points in the Alps and I was able to see so much more on the descent as I reduced the depth of my brake pads on the way back to the campsite!! A fantastic 31 km ride and nothing but an evening of wine and relaxation ahead!!

Col de la Croix Fry

16th July. Colin and Sandra moved on this morning to a nearby campsite at Le Grand Bornand to meet up with more fiends that were arriving to watch the Tour. We had enjoyed a couple of lazy days so after lunch myself and Glynn headed out on our own to see what other Cols needed to be climbed. We headed for the summit of the Col de la Croix Fry, a more gentle Col that only involved 550 metres of climbing and apart from a brief climb of just over 10% it was an easier 6.5% on the final stages and dropped to a much more gentle 5.4% at the top. I never thought I'd see that day when I referred to 6.5% being easier!! On the way up we were passed by two cyclists that made me look like I was standing still and when I got to the summit they applauded me from the café much to my embarrassment although I was also slightly chuffed. There was an Aire at the top which was packed with motorhomes in readiness for the Tour passing through tomorrow and the whole area was buzzing in anticipation. Today's ride was only 22 kms and the easiest of the 3 Cols but still challenging enough to feel as a sense of achievement.

Waiting for the TDF!

17th July. Today was stage 10 of the Tour de France which began in Annecy and ended in Le Grand-Bornand. A challenging stage with three category one climbs and an unclassified. We started the morning watching the ladies race as it passed through St Jean de Sixt just below our campsite before walking over to Le Grand-Bornand to watch as they crossed the finish line. We then headed back to find a really good spot to catch the men's race pass through St Jean. The streets were lined with people waving flags and the atmosphere was great.

Great view of the Tour at St Jean de Sixt

We found a good place to stand just as the road led out of the village as there was a hairpin bend where the road dropped down so we would have a great view as the riders passed us and then as they came back round the bend on the road below us. After the race passed through the village we walked back and managed to get a great spot close to the finish line in spite of the huge crowds that lined the final section. Geraint Thomas crossed the line in 10th maintaining his second place overall and Chris Froome was 15th moving him up from 8th to 6th in the General Classification. A fantastic day all round and a great way to spend our last at in the Alps.

Lake Annecy

19 July. Yesterday we bade a sad farewell to St Jean de Sixt and did a short drive to a lovely campsite on the edge of Lake Annecy. After lunch we cycled into Annecy to explore. It is a very beautiful and colourful city situated on the edge of the third largest lake in Europe and has the Alps as a backdrop. We did a very easy 21 kms exploring the area. It is known as the Venice of the Alps because of the canals that run through the heart of the town and there are lovely cobbled streets and little bridges that cross the waterways.

Lake Annecy

Today we decided to cycle the entire circumference of the lake which is a largely flat route on cycle paths for the most part however there is one steep section near Menthon-Saint-Bernard which is also the area where they have yet to add a cycle path. It was a fantastic ride and very scenic with the lake, the beaches, the castles and pretty little towns and villages. It was an easy 42 km ride and after we'd got back and had lunch we headed in to Annecy again in search of a bar to watch the final part of today's stage of the Tour. We paid €12 for 2 beers!! Blimey you can tell we're not in Spain anymore!!

Annecy

20th July. Today we left the lake and set the sat nav to Belfort as a halfway stop to our next planned destination of Lake Constance in Germany. It is definitely a good idea to remember to check the route before accepting it as a short while later I suddenly spotted what looked like a border crossing so we came to a halt and parked up. It hadn't occurred to us to check the map or we would have realised that the shortest route meant cutting across the edge of Switzerland. After a quick chat with the guy in the office we discovered we were in fact on the Swiss border.

Lake Annecy

After he reassured us we needed no vignette or anything as we weren't planning on using a motorway we passed through the border and travelled around the edge of Geneva and then took a very pretty but winding route up through the mountains and back in to France. It was definitely more pleasurable for me as I enjoyed the views while Glynn was busy concentrating on negotiating the motorhome around a few steep hairpin bends. Oh well that's another country I can add to the places I've been even if it was somewhat brief!! The weather changed as we headed further north and we now had rain and thunder instead of sunshine.

Meersburg

23rd July. We've spent the last 2 days parked on a lovely stellplatz at Stetten on the edge of Lake Constance. The weather has been a bit mixed with plenty of cloud and a few showers but in between the sun has made an appearance and we've taken advantage of this to get out on our bikes. We cycled to Meersburg, Überlingen and Unteruhldingen exploring the area and following lovely routes through the vineyards that line the slopes down to the lake, adding another 45 kms to our total. There were a couple of short but steep climbs but nothing I couldn't handle after tackling a few Cols in the Alps!!

Meersburg

Several times we could hear the sound of a Zeppelin overhead and it was fascinating to watch them fly over full of tourists getting a birds eye view of the lake. Today we drove further around the lake to a lovely stellplatz on the edge of a campsite at Kressbronn. A great site that allowed us full use of all the campsite facilities and their fantastic showerblocks. We cycled to Friedrichschafen to see the Zeppelin museum but then realised we had no bike locks with us so we settled for exploring the town and marina before cycling back. A nice easy 33 kms.

The floating stage at Bregenz

24th July. I was able to add another country to my list today when we cycled further round the lake and crossed the border in to Austria. It wasn't actually clear when we'd crossed the border but when we reached Bregenz I knew we were in Austria. After exploring the town we cycled down to the edge of Lake Constance. Every year a spectacular floating stage is constructed in front of the open air amphitheatre that can seat 7000. The Bregenz festival which is held every July and August has grown in popularity since its inception in 1946 and now hosts large scale opera and musical performances. This years performance was the opera Carmen. After admiring the stage set we cycled back in to Germany to the lovely little island of Lindau, a really pretty place worth exploring. By the time we got back home we had cycled 50 kms.

Just before the storm

26th July. Yesterday we drove to Füssen, a lovely setting with the Austrian Alps providing a stunning backdrop. We managed a quick ride in to the town to get some maps from Tourist Info before the impending storm arrived. We watched the mountains change colour, illuminated by the setting sun before turning black as the storm arrived. It looked really dark and moody and really quite stunning. Today we awoke to clear skies and warm sunshine so we set off in search of 2 fairytale castles that I knew were in the vicinity.

Neuschwanstein Castle

We cycled through really lush green countryside dotted with little chalets and I could see Neuschwanstein castle nestled high up ahead of us. It is a 19th century Romanesque Revival palace situated above the village of Hohenschwangau, which also houses a 19th century castle of its own that was the childhood home of King Ludwig ll of Bavaria. When he became king he commissioned Neuschwanstein castle to be built on the site of the old Schwangau fortress which dated back to at least the 12th century.

Hohenschwangau Castle

He became known as the "Fairytale King" because the castle was built to look like a fairytale castle. Sadly it wasn't completed until after his death so he only ever got to spend 11 nights in it however more than a million people every year now have the pleasure of admiring his creation and it is the most photographed building in Germany. The castle does not disappoint up close either and we enjoyed admiring it before cycling down to Neuschwanstein castle. I must confess that I was actually even more impressed by Neuschwanstein castle with Lake Alpsee in the background making a stunning picture.

Neuschwanstein Castle

After we left the castles behind we carried on along the edge of Lake Alpsee and then on to Unterpinswang. We headed back home via the main road and it was only when we passed a checkpoint that we realised we had been in Austria again. After a quick lunch break we decided to set off again, this time to cycle the circumference of Lake Forggensee. Again it was a very scenic ride and although it was an undulating route there was nothing too taxing and when we got back we had done a total of 59 kms.

At Highline 179

27th July. There was no accidental crossing of the border into Austria today as that was exactly what I had planned. When doing my research of the area I had discovered there was a suspension footbridge called Highline 179 at Reutte , just across the border in Austria. It is in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest Tibet-style footbridge in the world and I was keen to go and see it. It is just over 400 metres long and is suspended at a height of 114 metres connecting the castle ruins of Ehrenberg on one side of the valley with Fort Claudia on the other. We set off for Reutte enjoying the views as always. The route very gently increased in gradient until we got near when it increased to a much steeper but easily manageable climb. It was a very warm day so I was looking forward to a nice coffee break on arrival however what neither of us realised at that point was that we had forgotten our money!!

Ehrenberg Castle

What a silly mistake to make, especially since we had both drunk most of our electrolyte drinks because of the heat so we were running low on fluids. We locked the bikes up in the car park and climbed the steep ascent to the ruins. I was gutted to have come so far and not be able to enter the bridge although I think Glynn was secretly relieved as it wasn't really his idea of fun. We managed to get some good pictures but it wasn't the same as actually crossing the footbridge so I guess we'll have to come back another year!! Owing to the heat and the lack of drinks we didn't hang around too long before heading back. It was a lovely 43 kms ride which could only have been improved by remembering my purse.

Munich

29th July. After leaving Füssen yesterday we spent the night at Landsberg am Lech and today we drove to Munich. There is a huge parking area for Motorhomes at the Bayern Stadium and it's only a short walk to the tram station. Tickets were only €6.70 for unlimited travel within zone 1. We had an enjoyable day in Munich before heading back. Because the area at the stadium was packed with Motorhomes and more were turning up we decided to move on somewhere quieter so we headed to Ulm for the night.

30th July. We made an early start and drove to Pfullingen which had a nice little free parking area for Motorhomes and it was only €1 per 2kw of EHU. Bargain!! It was a beautiful hot sunny day and in search of the next castle on my list we set off towards Lichtenstein. It was only 10 kms to Lichtenstein castle but the last 4 kms climbed at an average gradient of 6.5% with a few hairpin bends thrown in for good measure.

Lichtenstein Castle

The castle was well worth the climb though and we enjoyed a nice stroll around the area and found a viewing spot where we could see right down across the valley below.

31st July. To end the month we headed back in to France, to a little town called Walscheid. There was a lovely small Aire on the edge of a lake with a man-made beach. It was clearly very popular with locals and with the weather being so good there were many families enjoying the water and having BBQ' s. We set off on the bikes to explore and discovered a route called "Le Circuit des Deux Vallées".

It was a lovely route and virtually flat until we were almost back when we were faced with a very steep climb in 36° heat!! A nice 35 km ride but now time to cool off in the lake.

The view from Lichtenstein Castle

After a lovely swim we were sat outside relaxing when a Frenchman came over and insisted we share his freshly barbecued garlic mushrooms as he had some spare. How kind and they really were delicious!!

Well what a month it has been. After wanting to get to the Alps for so long I was not disappointed. I feel like I've had superlative overload writing this months blog but I seriously can't stress just how stunning everywhere has been. The French and Austrian Alps are out of this world. Lake Constance, the valleys around Füssen, the drive through the Pyrenees, all of it has been amazing.

Zeppelin

The castles really were fairytale and to add the fact that I actually managed to climb 3 of the Cols in the Alps just amazes me. I actually feel a real improvement already in my climbing fitness so it really is a case of just getting out there and doing it. We have had such an amazing time that we have decided we need to get road bikes again as all of this has been achieved on our hybrids and Sandra pointed out that if I can do those climbs on a hybrid it would be so much easier on a road bike. I think we need to take Sandra's advice and start looking for new bikes.