Ramblin' Dan: Bike Touring Adventures

Europe Day 21: 53 Miles

Ensdorf, Germany to Luxembourg City, Luxembourg

Finally a day with a change of scenery. I feel like I’ve been riding along rivers for too long. The rivers have provided quick and easy riding, but I would have been bored with another day of it. Today started along the water, but I quickly got into some hills that weren’t too difficult and provided nice views. I spent time in 3 countries, starting in Germany, crossing into France, and finally ending in Luxembourg.

Europe Day 20: 43 Miles

Keskastel, France to Ensdorf, Germany

Today was what I’d call an active recovery day. I wanted to put in a ride that would get my legs moving, but not be strenuous in any way. The last 2 days were hard with each day clocking in at over 6 hours of riding. 43 miles of flat bike path was the perfect way to move forward while also giving my body a chance to recover from the 140 miles I put in over the prior 2 days.

Europe Day 19: 60 Miles

Strasbourg, France to Keskastel, France

Today was a tough one mostly due to the heat. Temperatures went above 90 degrees which made what would have been an easy 60 mile ride a bit harder. I was prepared for the high temperature and completed the ride, although slower than I would have liked.

Europe Day 18: 80 Miles

Basel, Switzerland to Strasbourg, France

Today was a great day of riding after my day off yesterday. It was a lot of mileage but didn’t take as much effort as some of the shorter rides because the route was completely flat. I actually finished 80 miles today faster than the 69 mile ride from Lucerne to Basel. The only real obstacle was the heat, but with enough water and some shade I made it through the day without any problems.

Europe Day 17: 0 Miles

Basel, Switzerland

Today was a rest day spent enjoying great weather with friends. We took a nice walk through Basel stopping at a few different spots for drinks and food along the way.

Europe Day 16: 69 Miles

Lucerne, Switzerland to Basel, Switzerland

Today was probably the most enjoyable ride I’ve had in Europe so far. The weather was great and I spent most of the day riding on a bike path through farms and small towns. 69 miles is the longest mileage day I’ve done so far, but most of the day trended downhill which made the distance easy to cover.

Europe Day 15: 0 Miles

Lucerne, Switzerland

Today was another rain day, so I decided to take the day off from riding. Basel is 70 miles from Lucerne and the ride will be much more enjoyable in nice weather. Today was not unproductive though. I spent much of the morning planning out my route and made some big decisions on how the rest of the trip will pan out.

Europe Day 14: 36 Miles

Attinghausen, Switzerland to Lucerne Switzerland

Based on the weather reports from last night I knew I would be in the rain all day today. My train ride yesterday had placed me just 36 miles from Lucerne, about 20 miles closer than I had originally planned. This turned out to be advantageous for today’s ride, because it saved me an extra couple hours of riding in the rain.

Europe Day 13: 34 Miles

Chiggiogna, Switzerland to Attinghausen, Switzerland

Today was challenging, but in a different way than I expected. The climbing was tough, but the frustration came with road closures that allowed me to get close to Gotthard Pass but not let me reach the summit. I had to make up a plan B on the fly about 4 hours into my ride. I did however challenge myself with some climbing in the Alps and make it to an end point for the day that I am happy with, so all was not lost.

Europe Day 12: 48 Miles

Lugano, Switzerland to Chiggiogna, Switzerland

I entered the Alps today but didn’t really do much climbing until the last 6 or 7 miles of the day. If those last few miles are a preview of what’s to come, then I am in for a real challenge tomorrow. Today, on the other hand was a relatively easy day with great scenery and a bike path that provided perfect riding conditions.

Europe Day 11: 32 Miles

Milan, Italy to Lugano, Switzerland

Today started out with beautiful weather but ended with a sudden downpour and lightning that got a little too close for comfort. The day didn’t go as planned but the backup plan got me to my destination. I spent my last morning in Italy and crossed the border into Switzerland just before getting hit by an afternoon storm.

Europe Day 10: 30 Miles

Lodi, Italy to Milan, Italy

There isn’t much to say about today’s ride. The goal was just to get from Lodi to Milan which was about 20 miles. I went from farm roads to busy streets as I got closer to the city center. There wasn’t much to see along the way, but I made it to Milan without any issues.

Europe Day 9: 61 Miles

Parma, Italy to Lodi, Italy

Today was a relatively easy day with 61 miles of completely flat road. It wasn’t a very scenic ride, but there were some nice farm views at points. Most of the day was spent on busy roads with narrow shoulders, but it was still an enjoyable ride.

Europe Day 8: 51 Miles

Pontremoli, Italy to Parma, Italy

The climbing started immediately and continued constantly for the first 2 hours of the day. It was a challenging ride that tested me with over 3,000 feet of elevation gain, but the reward of a huge downhill to end the day and views of the Apennines made it all worth it.

Europe Day 7: 51 Miles

Viareggio, Italy to Pontremoli, Italy

The roads from Viareggio to Pontremoli took me through 20 miles of seaside resort towns followed by a slow climb back into the mountains. I still haven’t had a sunny day since Siena, but at least I didn’t get rained on while riding today.