Austria

Day 35: Sunday (9/14/2025). “Every day is a gift. That’s why it’s called the present.” A cliche, yes, but today was a gift. We expected heavy rain all day, and on cue it started in the wee hours. Faced with the gloomy prospect of a soggy day, we said, “Let’s just have a lie in and spend the day here.” Decision made, we both got back to our books. Thirty minutes later the rain paused, the sky looked hopeful, and suddenly there was no rain in the forecast. Within an hour, we had packed, said farewell to Craig, Coralee, and an Irish lad backpacking barefoot from Istanbul to his home. (Sure, why not?)

Given our expectations for a soggy day, riding along a scenic (rain free) stretch of the Danube was certainly a gift. And when we arrived at a random campground for the evening, we were blown away. Across the river, perched on a hillside above the village of Durnstein, were the ruins of yet another 12th century castle. It’s claim to fame is that King Richard the Lionheart (of Robin Hood fame) was held prisoner there in 1192-1193. He had been captured on his way back from the Third Crusade. What a day!

Day 36: Monday (9/15/2025). Upstream, the hills close in and the Danube carves its way through the Wachau valley. Terraces dating back to medieval times are filled with grape vines. The wine produced here is apparently well known – by those who can afford to buy it. The seventeen mile route to Melk is dotted with castles, abbeys and quaint villages. It is a lovely ride.

Since Vienna, we have followed the famous EuroVelo cycle route along the Danube River. What’s not to like about flat riding through mostly scenic countryside? After three days we are not bored exactly. But we have started to weary of the sameness. So, a few miles past Melk, we turned left towards the foothills of the Alps. Good choice. We were treated to quiet country lanes through rolling hills and small towns. Bonus points for being off the bike tourist superhighway that is the Danube cycle path.

Day 37: Tuesday (9/16/2025). On previous trips, we have averaged 600-700 miles each month. Since leaving Helsinki just over a month ago, we have traveled 1,100 miles. We’re tired. Our bodies are tired. Faced with another rainy day, we decided to hole up in Wieselburg for a day and do nothing touring related. Three loads of laundry in a proper washing machine. Stretch. Read. Write. Do some bike maintenance. But mostly, just rest!   

Martin came by to chat while I was working on Sharon’s bike. He rather sheepishly admittted that he was staying at the hostel tonight because “my girlfriend – she does not like me much right now!” Ouch! In the evening, he came by our room and we had a nice chat. Clearly, though, he was a hurting, lost soul. He was desperate for company and even offered to buy us a beer in town. We obliged him for a time but retired much sooner than he would have liked. Later, we overheard his side of a tearful, impassioned phone call. We assume it was with his significant other. Hard to say whether or not he is back in her good graces.

Day 38: Wednesday (9/17/2025). Today was dubbed the “EKG ride.” A profile of  our route looked like an EKG heart scan. Up a hill. Down a hill. Up another hill. Down another hill. Add to that a healthy headwind and you have all the ingredients for an extra special workout. This came as no surprise. The wind was forecast, and we are skirting the northern edge of the alps. Hills are sort of to be expected. But the narrow winding country lanes were blissfully free of traffic. The picturesque villages and countryside more than compensated for the hard work. This evening, we make our home on the outskirts of Steyr. 

Day 39: Thursday (9/18/225). “This looks vaguely familiar…” We had a deja vu moment as we rolled into Steyr. Then it clicked. We’d been here three years ago on a previous bike trip. We didn’t remember the name, but we could hardly forget the city. It is still just as lovely. We revisited a few sites. We poked into some previously unseen corners. We enjoyed our second breakfast from a local bakery then headed out of town. Yesterday had been a butt kicker, so we dialed back our ambitions and set modest mileage goals today. The hills and headwinds still gave our backsides another boot. And yet, it was a glorious day.

We rolled into Adlwang expecting a short snack break. Instead, Gerhard and Ava wandered over and struck up a conversation. They were curious about our trip. They graciously then took the time to give a brief history and tour of the village. Apparently, the 1300’s era church here is a popular pilgrimage site. In a few weeks, people from the surrounding towns will make the journey to Adlwang. They also led us to a small chapel with a small spring. Splashing the water on your eyes is meant to offer good vision and a good life. Ava’s mother spoke of coming to this same chapel when she was a small child. Lot’s of history here. Had Ava and Gerhard not stopped, we would have missed so much.  

Gerhard belongs to a photography club and writes for the local newspaper. He asked if he could write our story. Of course! I guess we may become minor celebrities! (I’ll attached the link at the end). What a wonderful surprise. As always, people are the  highlight of our day. Shortly after our tour guides left, we stopped by the local grocery. We ended up chatting with the grocer for another fifteen minutes. Such pleasant people.

Buoyed by those experiences, the final miles to our campground…still crawled by. One last hill brought us to a site looking out over the nearby town of Sautern. To the south and west, the expanse of Austrian alps. A bit intimidating knowing our route heads in that direction. We spent an amiable evening talking to a few of our campground neighbors. A cyclist riding from Salzburg to his home in Vienna. A retired couple from Denmark wandering Europe in their caravan. These are the days we will remember.

Day 40: Friday (9/19/2025).

It is a cruel irony that the mountainous landscape we love is also the most difficult to travel on bikes. Even the lumpy foothills are a challenge. Fortunately the headwinds relented today. And as we turned south towards and along the Attersee, we had tailwinds and some flat ground. Yay.

The Attersee is stunning. Crystal clear water. Surrounded by mountains and rolling hills. On this day, hundreds of sailboats were enjoying the fresh breeze. The 43K road around the lake is a favorite for cyclists. We saw hundreds in our few miles along the lake to our campground. Tomorrow the “King of the Lake” bike race will unleash many hundreds of cyclists all seeking glory and personal best times. 

Day 41: Saturday (9/20/2025). Our ride today was divided into three distinct stages. A cool, morning around the south side of Attersee and Mondsee. This came with a generous side of jagged peaks and fellow cyclists. Phase two was a very hot low gear grind through farm fields to a high point on our way to Salzburg. And finally, miles and miles of glorious downhill coasting to the outskirts of town. As Sharon noted, probably the easiest thirty miles of hard biking we’ve done. 

Our visit to Salzburg coincides with the annual St Rupert festival. At this point, I know nothing about it. Apparently it involves large numbers of people dressed in traditional Austrian garb drinking lots of beer and eating what looks like amazing food. We gathered this from a bus ride and brief walk around downtown after dark. Tomorrow when we have more time, we intend to fully embrace the festive atmosphere.  

Until next week – STC!

Here is the link to Gerhard’s article

https://www.meinbezirk.at/steyr-steyr-land/c-regionauten-community/mit-den-fahrraedern-von-helsinki-nach-zuerich_a7628035