10.05.2016
Another day into the wind! Oddly we seem to be facing consistent NE winds…. we thought the prevailing winds were Westerlies!
Thetwo capital cities of Vienna and Nratislava are not far apart on the Donau, a days ride.
We set off from Vienna, it taking some time to weave our way out of the busy streets of the city. When we reached open country we really noticed the wind against us again, so it was quite hard work to maintain a steady pace.
Just before we finally left the built up area of Vienna we stopped for a coffee by a centre for water sports, built on a quiet backwater of the main river. They had a “wakelift” and we watched a few people doing the circuit. It was like a high speed ski lift over the water, taking people round a loop at quite a fast pace where they could weave in and out of obstacles on a water ski – it looked like fun, if a little scary.
Our route took us along the north side of the Donau for some 54 miles.
Our route crossed the river using a small ferry at a quiet hamlet – the water was fast and restless giving us a choppy ride over the water. A large cargo barge also went by, adding to the bounces with its wake! The landing point on the other side was a pebble beach – tricky to get the tandem over. Thankfully there were two cyclists waiting for the ferry on the other side who helped us push the tandem up the beach. It turned out out they were from Clitheroe, not 50 miles from where we live!
Our route then climbed up onto a breezy plateau a little away from the Donau. It was clearly a windy place as we saw many wind turbines, they were as far as the eye could see, strung out right along the Austrian border!
Just before we entered Slovakia we came across the remains of a Roman monument at Petronell-Carnuntum. Built between 351 and 361AD. A reminder of how the Danube has been a route for successive invasions and empires over the years, including Genghis Khan who reached what is now Bratislava.
As we have discovered on our journey, passing from one country to another is almost unnoticeable… the only visible indication of coming into Slovakia was a European ring of stars on a sign high above the roadway we were cycling beside.
The entry into Bratislava was along a long wooded area passing a relic of the Soviet area, a concrete bunker. As we later discovered the various remains of the Soviet period have now become a bit of a visitor attraction.
We entered the city by means of the “UFO bridge” so called since above the single suspension Pylon there was a saucer-like restaurant and observation platform high above the roadway.
On crossing over the bridge into Bratislava we bounced over some cobbles before walking the tandem through the attractive streets of the old town as we made our way to our Airbnb accommodation situated right on the edge of the old town.
Nerd’s Corner
Vienna to Bratislava : 54 miles
Distance travelled so far: 1,469 miles
We used one of the tour bus companies to give us a quick overview of what there is and begin to get a feel for the place.
08.05.2016
There are lots of wildflowers in bloom at the moment, making the banks very pretty with splashes of colour.
07.05.2016
Even so, the power of two was evident, we still passed most other cyclists on solo bikes!
There was a celebration of cycling along the river and lots of people out to enjoy the day.
We passed through Melk, where there is a Benedictine monastery; we had a look round the outside and around the town, which was very attractive.
06.05.2015
Again criss-crossing the river to the most favourable side we appreciated the scenery and understood why this area is one of Europe’s most favoured cycle touring route.
