Category: Bike touring

Cycling while cat spotting.

Ready for cat pics? Germany has been a cat bonanza. Usually I confine my cat posts to Instagram, but the last two days cycling in Germany have been so cat rich I can’t resist sharing.

This cat in old town Memmingen was very fond of Rich.
This farm cat in Kißlegg was very interested in a cuddle.

First we had a six cat day, which we considered a lot, and then today we had a fifteen cat day while riding almost 70k to Landsberg am Lech.

Calico cat warming up in the sun.
This cat was enjoying the last rays of sun outside old town Wangen im Allgäu. Up for pets? Yes.

Many of the cats spotted were in fields hunting or sleeping, not close enough for decent photos or interaction.

“There’s one.” I think this was #12.

It makes the miles/kilometers pass. Happy pedaling.

Cat mechanic.

Tschüss Switzerland!

Rich enjoying a sun break on a shaded decent down the Rhine Valley

This morning we’re waiting for a train to Austria, then we ride into Germany along the Bodensee, also known as Lake Constance.

We really enjoyed our time in Switzerland. We even got our vaccine QR codes (Rich will write more on this.).

Cowbells! Not just for tracking cows and delighting tourists.
These Valais sheep!
The start of the Rhine River.
Many trips to the Coop market to get picnic lunch supplies. we have a one sit down meal a day rule. It’s easier and faster for us to picnic for lunch and then relaxing to go out for dinner.
All the beautiful Swiss Brown cows. And the yummy cheese they help produce.
Met some other cycle tourists. These 2 great guys were headed up a pass we were riding down.
So for now, farewell Switzerland ❤️
Fun bike graffiti in Chur.
But before getting on the train I spent some of our change in the vending machine. Masks and chocolate, what else in these times?

Off we roll!

It’s not often I’m ahead of Rich on a climb (we had just taken a break and I requested he stay back for a photo.).

And we’re off on our touring bikes at last. After watching so many bike touring vlogs during the pandemic we’ve been itching to ride. We spent our first night at Evian-les-Bains, after a moderate climb to col de Moises followed by a long long long downhill to Lac Léman.

I’m very glad we came down, the climb from the lake up to col de Cou looked brutal. Rich looks like he was wishing to go up. The man loves climbing.
Crossing the Rhone river on our way to Montreaux.

The ride from Evian-les-Bains was lovely in parts, and needing improvements in parts. A few stretches you would not recommend for a novice cyclist, although the French drivers are very good around bikes.

On a recently built stretch of the route, a trail next to an unused rail line.

Our second stop is Montreaux- we’re spending two nights here, yes, it’s a rest day already. And it’s our 24th wedding anniversary. This a perfect lovely romantic place to spend two nights. We’ve walked the promenade, we took a train up into the hills behind town and walked down to find the most atmospheric restaurant ever for lunch.

On the train winding up the mountain.
Masks: a new addition to train station vending machines.
And walking down.

A lot of good travel advice starts with “walk away from the tourist areas…” We did, and had a great but steep walk back down towards town.

Perfect walking weather, cloudy and mild.

The route took us by perhaps the cutest, most atmospheric restaurant ever. It was lunch time. We were hungry.

Nestled into a little nook. No view of the lake but so cozy.
The tables were lined up along a public water fountain.
With constantly running taps.

As we sat waiting for lunch we wondered if the water was potable? We’ve seen a number of taps in villages and mountain trails labeled as non potable, but this one had no label. Well, potable or not, still one of the cutest restaurants ever, we agreed.

It didn’t take long for the first local to stop by to fill a bottle.
And another local. Must be potable – or good for plants?
And then our waiter, behind Rich in the green shirt, filled a carafe for our table. Question answered -potable and tasty.

Next on our agenda today is a swim in the lake and then tomorrow we’re off up the Rhone Valley, EuroVelo Route 17. There will be wineries.

Breaking it Down to the Wire!

So the last week had been intense, with so many goodbyes and experiences in our great little neighborhood of Broderick Street in the heart of San Francisco. But the primary focus on has been getting our final items to storage, clearing out every last thing out of the flat…and oh yeah, packing for a (hopefully) long international adventure!

The staging room – ready to pack!
Magic – it all fit!

The last day had one more trip to storage, a trip to drop our luggage at friends in Redwood City, and finally putting the last items out on the curb and closing our door to our beloved flat for the last time 🥲.

So empty
Goodbye Ladybugs

But then off to Redwood City by bike and train 😀 it felt so appropriate for our lives in SF

Feeling Free riding out of SF!
Former Caltrain Board member ready to roll
Celebratory Beers on Caltrain tasted SO good!!

So it’s all hard to believe that all the prep of the past 18 months finally starting to pay off and we are actually on our way to Europe! We’re at SFO now and ready to board our flights to Geneva via Lisbon! The haze of the pandemic still doesn’t make this feel real. Will Europe still be there? Can we enjoy the high points of travel during a pandemic? This has not been easy my friends, but we are doing it: and we’re glad that we can share it all with our great friends….some even in person.

Next Time – the logistics – getting by with a lot of help from our friends!