Cycling from London to Istanbul - leg 2

Guest Blogger Ben Wade is cycling from London all the way to Istanbul. Here is the third of his dispatches, documenting the leg from Amsterdam to Stuttgart:

Camping by the Rhine river

11 days ago I was sitting outside a sunny cafe on the banks of one of Amsterdam’s numerous canals. I now find myself sheltering from the cold and rain in Stuttgart wearing all the clothes I have to keep warm. It’s been an interesting 800km of cycling.

Lucy and I set off from Amsterdam in the sunshine and were soon exploring the streets of Utrecth, a lovely dutch city, before pedalling on to meet up with the Rhine at Arnhem. As expected, the cycling in Holland was excellent and a map was hardly required for the whole journey. We found a great campsite by the Rhine, of which there are many, and spent a last evening in the Netherlands watching barges chug by slowly on their way into Germany. Our planned route would follow them along the river banks and down into Stuttgart where Lucy had a trained booked back home (work commitments she says), and from where I would strike off on my own again to follow the mighty Danube.

The Rhine Cycle Route sign systemThe Rhine cycleway is a recognised route (www.rheinradweg.eu) following the river all the way to it’s source near Schaffhausen in Switzerland. However, as we crossed the border into Germany we were almost instantly lost as signs became erratic and cyclepaths unclear. Navigating using a cruise ship guide probably didn’t help and I would reccomend a proper map for anyone planning to undertake a similar journey. Bikeline produce an excellent range of long distance cycling guides including the Rhine Route, that you can purchase before you leave from www.standfords.co.uk. Alternatively, they can be bought from local petrol stations en route, (something I only discovered about 20km from the finish.) The text in most editions is in German but the maps are still very helpful.

Arriving in Cologne en route to StuttgartFollowing a river in my mind shouldn't have been that difficult, as long as we didn't lose sight of the water we would be ok, and for long stretches the route did glide along the river bank, affording wonderful views across to the otherside. What I hadn't realised, and all those loaded barges should have hinted at this, was how industrial the route would be. Factories have priority access to the river side and where this happens the cycleway turns inland and often abandons you amongst the cooling towers and chemical plants. Poor Lucy, I had promised her a romantic 2 week ride along the river, and instead we ended up spending hours getting lost in mazes of industrial estates. Luckily, some stretches were very pleasent and allowed us to relax a little more. The Unesco World Heritage Site between Koblenz and Bingen was a highlight, with great views and easy, well signed cycling, and arriving into Cologne by bike gave us a great chance to explore the City.

After a week of industrial themed touring the opprtunity arose to turn our backs on the Rhine at Manheim and follow the Neckar River all the way into Stuttgart (Bikeline guide also available). We took a left turn up a new valley and the scenery instantly improved as castles replaced chimmneys and instead of piles of sand and rock we passed between rolling green hills. The surface quality of the cycle path however, did not improve. Bouncing our way along some very muddy tracks we passed through some lovely German towns, including Heidelburg, (a sort of German version of Oxford), Hirschorn and Eberbach.

Heidelburg on the NeckarThis area is much more tourist friendly and accommodation is easier to find if you are travelling light. Many homes within villages offer 'zimmer' which are rooms to rent within the house. This is a very typical version of the British Bed and Breakfast. and many cycle tourists we met on route were using them regularly The lack surprising lack of campsites meant that we too were very nearly required to abandon the tent for a room. Most of the little towns also have Infomation Centres where you can book tours into the surrounding countryside. Unfortunately for us the weather had been getting steadily worst and due to the time lost touring factories on the Rhine it was a cold wet final day cycling into Stuttgart with our heads dipped against the wind. When I did get a chance to look up from beneath my hood the Vineyards sorrounding the city looked very pretty and I would love to go back and ride through this area again in the sunshine and not a gale force storm.

Luckily, after 10 days in a tent Stuttgart had a nice comfy hotel for us to collapse into, and after a hot shower and some clean clothes we could reflect on our cycling experiences through Germany.

The Rhine Cycle route was very different from what I had expected. Sections of stunning scenery were often spoiled by grimy factories lurking around every bend, and a mountain bike definately would have made certain parts a little more comfortable. Perhaps next time I would combine the cycling with other activities and enjoy the freedom of pedalling for a few days with that of being able to visit areas away from the river. I hear wine tasting along the Mosel valley for example is particularly good. I do feel I got to see the real Germany a little better however, and not just the one the tourism board promotes. I suppose that’s another of the advantages of cycling, and one of the advantages of getting lost every so often too!

Read Ben's previous missives:

1. The Preparations
2.  Leg 1: London to Amsterdam

You can follow Ben's route from London to Istanbul on this google map of Ben's route.

For a wide selection of unique and adventurous cycling holidays, see greentraveller's cycling holidays in Europe reachable by train.