The end of our cycle tour in Germany is almost here! When we began one month ago, the end point seemed so far away. But after 1100 kilometres on the bikes, the day that we will arrive in Berlin is here. We are very happy about how the tour has gone but, as usual, a bit sad that it will all be coming to an end.
The weather forecasts had been threatening showers for today but our fingers were crossed that the forecasted rain would be limited as we really wanted to arrive in Berlin and finish the tour on our bikes. The train option was too easily available! Leaving our hotel in Germendorf, we also had ride challenges as we were several kilometres off the planned routing. We had a vague plan as to how we could rejoin the B-R while staying off busy roads and still be riding in the right direction. We knew we had to ride south and slightly east to find an intersecting point. Luckily, after riding a few random streets, we found ourselves on a cycle path beside a busy road that guided us right onto the planned route. At that point a passing shower arrived and we waited under a tree as we put the covers on the panniers. We were now only about 25KM from Berlin.
Our hotel in Germendorf worked out fine, just that it was a bit beyond Oranienburg.
And another new sign - Berliner Mauerweg - translation: The Berlin Wall Trail. It is a 160-kilometre-long cycle and pedestrian hiking trail in Berlin and Brandenburg. It largely follows the earlier course of the Berlin Wall around West Berlin. We only followed a small bit of the route.
For us, too early for a beer but as a coffee stop this large biergarten style restaurant was perfect. Seating for over a hundred people but only six hardy cyclists today!
The Saatwinkler Steg is a pedestrian bridge built in 1990 over the Berlin-Spandau Shipping Canal. The Berlin-Kopenhagen cycle path runs over this footbridge.
Lining the canal were many small cottage type homes with well kept gardens. The path and the canal were not very busy but we found many interesting things to see as we slowly rolled along into Berlin. Our first stop was the main Hauptbahnhof to buy train tickets for our departure back to Frankfurt on Sunday morning. Then we cautiously weaved our way along the streets to our hotel, passing a few of Berlin's major sights along the way. Our first thought was that this is a big, busy city! Our hotel is located near Checkpoint Charlie and will be a great base for the next three days. After cleaning up and letting a heavy shower pass, we went down a block and stopped at the first restaurant we came to. It was quiet and it was still very early for dinner but we enjoyed both good service and a good meal. Pat had the schnitzel mit spargel and Scott had the Salmon. Our next stop was one of Berlin`s most famous sights - Checkpoint Charlie. That finished up our last day of the cycle tour. We still have a few days of sight seeing and travel preparation before returning home.
Interesting contrast of the old and new factory and how their buildings were integrated in design.
The former border crossing Checkpoint Charlie is one of the most important and most visited sights in Berlin. The attraction for tourists was a military checkpoint at the time of the division of Germany.
We walked around the area and read the information provided about the history of the area. Very interesting to have a better understanding of history that was happening in our lifetimes.
What the American side really looked like on one day when the border position was fully operational. With the tanks in this position there may have been some sort of issue.
