Day 2 & 3 Linz-Grein; Grein-Pochlarn

Today is Sunday. The ride was 52 km. It was very nice--because the sun was shining. Our first two days of riding were very rainy. We still enjoyed it--but the sun was better. Most of the ride is right along the river shore and the views are very pleasant.


When the path diverts inland more we go through mostly farming areas and occasionally a small village/town. At one spot there was a detour that was not well marked. We ended up on a muddy route pushing our bikes for a short distance. We had asked some bikers we met and they clearly said "no problem". Famous last words. . .


The picture above is of the bike ferry. Several places have a bike ferry. It was not well marked but we figured it out and waved to the ferry man who was on the other side of the river. It saved us about 1 hr of nonscenic riding for about 2 euros.

We continue to enjoy the food. Breakfast is our biggest meal--getting us "fueled" for the ride. The breads are great. The breakfast buffet usually includes fruit, cheese, soft-boiled eggs, sliced meats, mueslix, etc. The coffee is very strong. We tried for decaf--but I think that is not an option in the places we have been. We often will picnic for lunch--meat, cheese, breads. Our German is limited so our evening meal selection often requires alot of translation.

The hotel we stayed at last night was 5 km uphill. They met all of the bikers (about 16) at a specified area in town and shuttled us with our bikes on a trailer. This morning the firsst 5 km where an easy downhill ride.

Beginning Our Danube Bike Ride

Hello friends and family:
Today was our first day on the Danube bike trail. We started in Passau, Germany. We got our assigned bikes and had to get to the pier in less than 1/2 hr for a 2 hr boat ride to Scholgen where we started riding. The bikes are more mountain bike--so they are unfamiliar to us. Surprisingly the bigger seat is less comfortable than our small road bike seats. The path is nice--mostly off road. It rained most of the day--but the temperature was mild. The accomodations are nice. The food, especially the bakery products, are great. They provide good maps but still there were some decision making moments and a few backtracks. We rode about 60 km today. There are others staying in the same hotels and riding the same route--but we don't usually see anyone else. Ron's high school German is somewhat lacking but better than Sharon's complete lack. We are staying tonight in Lenz, Austria. It seems to be a shopper's paradise--we are not shoppers but enjoyed looking at the Konditorei treats. We are hoping the rain is over.

Vienna to Passau

Hello everyone! We will be the first to admit that the travel days (across the Atlantic, etc) are not our favorite. We had a 6 hr layover in LA. We arrive in Paris late and barely caught our flight to Vienna (final boarding was in progress). Our luggage was not so lucky--but it did arrive 4 hrs later and was delivered to our hotel.

Vienna is a very nice city--and we don't normally like cities. Very clean, lots of Konditerei options and a good walking space. We had a scare because the hotel had not received our cancellation for the second room (wish Dick and Sharon were here). Luckily they had mercy on us and didn't charge us for the room--even though it was our fault.

We traveled by train to Passau, Germany. From here we will begin our bicycle trip tomorrow. We will eventually end up back in Vienna after 6 days of biking along the Danube River. Hopefully that will make for some nice pictures. Unfortunately tomorrow is predicted to be a rainy day--not what we want for the first bike day--but out of our control.

We had a picnic from the deli tonight. They have great salads. With fresh sliced cheese and baguette. Very nice!

We hope all is well in USA. We will "talk" more later in the week.

On the Road Again. . .Almost!

Hello friends and family:

We leave next week (May 24) for a return trip to Italy. This time we will start in Vienna, Austria, with a one week bike trip along the Danube River. We will have the support of a tour company moving our luggage each day to the next destination. They have arranged the lodging--so it is a preplanned adventure. It will be Ron and I traveling only--very disappointing that our neighbors had to sit this one out--Dick is recovering from heart surgery.

After the bike trip we will hike in various Italy locations. Our son, Dustin, will join us for a week in the Dolomites. He was with us there once but he only had one day because of a delayed flight (engine failure--emergency landing in Omaha).

We will return via Geneva, Italy. We will visit some new spots and stay in some of our favorites from previous trips. So. . .watch for our updates.

Sept 2010 San Francisco Bicycle Trip

Yes--it is 2011. But some of our "readers" were requesting some blogging about trips we have taken and not documented. . . So we are excited to share with you pictures and stories about our longest bicycle trip so far. We left Sept 1 from Bandon, OR. (We got a ride there to start because we had already bicycled the OR coast that far south--and we didn't have enough time to leave from Salem.)

We were fully contained--with camping supplies. Our most memorable night was near Crescent City, CA. We were the only campers in the remote campground. We both heard a lot of noises during the night. Ron was very specific in hearing the sniffing of a large animal. It is noteworthy that the campground had "lockers" to protect your food from bear. We also remember that location because we took a "detour" that required us to push our bikes up a hill covered with rock for about an hour.

We averaged about 50 miles a day--our longest day was 76 miles. That day, however, our son had met us and hauled our luggage--so it was a little easier. We camped 6 nights and stayed in motels 6 nights. Dustin, our oldest son, lives in San Francisco. He and his girlfriend, Jessica, camped with us the last two nights.

Highlights of the 12 day bike trip included the beautiful Oregon and California coast and also the Redwoods. We had NO flat tires!! We also had fabulous weather--no rain--and fog only one day. Yes, there are hills on the route. . . By the end of the trip our legs were much stronger and we didn't seem to notice the hills as much. The 5 miles Leggette Hill, however, is definitely memorable!

Hong Kong

We are now in our last day of the trip. We will be eating and sightseeing our way around Hong Kong today and leave tomorrow for USA. All is well. We had an excellent Peking Duck dinner last night. We all suffered trying to use chopsticks for noodle soup!

Kayaking in Ko Lanta

Today's outing was kayaking and a long-boat ride to another island (BuBu Island).  We enjoyed it and had a cover or shade most of the day so did not add to our sunburn.  We feed the monkeys twice--bananas on the way and leftovers on the way back.  We swam on our break and had a surprisingly good picnic lunch.  It was curry,  rice, chicken with peanuts and marinated fresh vegies.  Plus pineapple and watermelon for dessert.  We have enjoyed the fruit!!!

Tomorrow we head to Krabi to Raylay beach--which some say is the prettiest beach in Thailand.  We are there one night and then on to Bangkok airport for one night since we fly out early on Saturday to Hong Kong.  We will spend two nights in Hong Kong.