Day 15 - Horn to Zwettl - Donaueschingen to Prague

September 21, 2019

Day 15 - Horn to Zwettl

Before leaving Horn I wandered about in the AM to capture a few photos. It was a chilly morning so we left a bit later than usual. We left Horn this morning with aspirations of making to Gmund Austria near the Czech border. Shortly into our ride we realized that was unlikely to happen because the terrain was rolling hills and the route was not as well marked as on the Danube. Indeed, it was very bad in one spot or someone was playing a bad joke and moved the signs because we ended up on a logging track. The track was very steep down and up with a very rough surface. We all walked part of it, some more than others. Carol was craving some adventure and she got it in spades today. Everyone took it in good spirits and after our lunch break we soldiered on. We changed our destination to Zwettl. While having our dirty beer in the town square we started looking for a place to stay. It was not looking good for a while because there is some sort of festival going on in town. However, a young man who served us beer found a local Gastof (nothing special but it is clean and we have our own bathroom).

Today was the hilliest so far and I suspect this is going to be the norm from here on. We covered 57km with 769m/2540ft of climbing which is tough with our loads. Carrying the load changes the difficulty on the grades in an exponential manner. For me now 4% feels like 6%, 6% feels like 9% and 8% feels like 12%. We have had grades in the double digits and they either really hurt or I have to walk. Better to walk then fall off. We will see what tomorrow brings.

When is the last time you saw this many ash trays for sale anywhere. The number of smokers is greater the farther east you go. Yesterday we stopped at a café and a pub where smoking was still allowed inside and it was bad.

A wall carving depicting Horn in the 1700s.

Passing through a tiny hamlet we came across this magnificent manor.

This is the greeting to locals use it means good day.

Some serious wood chipping was taking place.

Some people I know would be crying for their mama about now.

At the top of the rocky climb we stopped to enjoy our sandwiches.

This is a man made lake created by a dam on the river. We had another steep climb to get up above the dam.

Today's ride: 57 km (35 miles)
Total: 395 km (245 miles)

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Hilary JaegerI am sure the climbing is likely to be more frequent and more difficult now that you have left the Danube behind. I suspect Ron and Carol have triples on the Surly LHTs which probably helps them quite a bit. But I do not believe there is any shame in walking; as you say, better that than falling over.
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