July 29, 2022
Easy riding along the Rhine-Marne-Canal
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The Marnre-Rhine Canal that we followed on today's ride has an interesting history.
The Canal de la Marne au Rhin (Marne–Rhine Canal) is a canal in north-eastern France. It connects the river Marne and the Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne in Vitry-le-François with the port of Strasbourg on the Rhine. The original objective of the canal was to connect Paris and the north of France with Alsace and Lorraine, the Rhine, and Germany. The 313 km (194 mi) long canal was the longest in France when it opened in 1853.
There is much more to discover in the internet for those interested. For us of interest today was the bicycle path that starts in Strasbourg and follows the canal for about 80 kilometers. We picked it up in Saverne and rode an out and back. At one point the canal disappears into a tunnel and the bike path and road have to go over the mountain. We followed the path back in 2008 on our way to Paris, today we turned around before the climb. I don't think it's a serious climb for e-bikes, but back then we had camping gear and just our legs for power so I suppose we thought it was a pretty big mountain.
What I found most interesting today, aside from pleasant countryside and an enjoyable bike path, were the many lock keepers cottages on the part of the canal that is no longer in use. They are privately owned and most of them seem to be under construction, in the process of being converted into something inabitable after standing empty for many years.
Help - all of my pictures and captions just disappeared. How did that happen? I'll repost the pictures, add some brief captions and forget about putting them in the right order. Sorry.
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Janos's video for today:
Today's ride: 37 km (23 miles)
Total: 37 km (23 miles)
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