Day 31: Allbruck to Stein am Rhein

May 13, 2022

Today started with light rain, but no problem. We put on our bright yellow waterproof stuff and headed off. The rain produced a misty appearance to the southern Black Forest, and the peristant calls of a cuckoo added to the mystique. This had me wondering what manner of mythical creatures live in that forest, and whether they might be about today. About mid day I got the chance to put the question to my phone, and learned that a number of Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings type creatures live in the Black Forest. But I was more interested in traditonal ones, such as imps. The main answer seems to be singing nymphs, related to the Lorelei on the Rhine:

"Mummelsee, situated amidst the dark fir trees, is supposedly named after the water fairies or sprites, although in the local dialect ‘mummel’ refers to water lillies. The book ‘Legends of the Black Forest’ by Alex Württemberger, tells the story of the King of Mummelsee who lives underwater , along with several water nymphs who come out on the surface to bathe at night but stay underwater through the day, or as water-lillies on the surface. If the water spirits are angry, the water level seethes, as was the case when a peasant fell in love with a nymph and tried to find out where she came from. Some stories say the nymphs are actually the nuns who once lived in the monastery that stood there"

Anyway, here is our forest path starting out today. It was cool.

Mystical forest meandering came to an end when we ran into an Aldi. We sent Dodie in and once again, since this is Germany, she came out with a great pile of stuff for not many euros.

Now our way ran close to the Rhine for a bit, and we found it very glassy, but looking high as well. We remember past years, like 2013, when there was significant flooding here. It looks nothing like that serious now.

Of course we are always interested in the crops we pass along the way, for so many long kilometers. My cheap phone camera is rather fuzzy, but maybe someone can make out which grain this is. Dodie is voting for barley, meaning that this will one day get drunk as beer.

Occasionally we would get a nice view over to a village on the other side of the river. This is Kaiserstuhl.

The route here passes in and out of Switzerland, and in spots it certainly looks typically Swiss, with the fachwerk houses, and actually the start of the window boxes with red geraniums.

Several times we ran into parts where the path was ripped up. Our policy is to dismount and just walk through the workers and machinery, taking care that they do not accidentally bonk us with an excavator. Usually the workers just stare passively at us as we invade their space.

The crops here are so neatly maintained it's crazy. It's been like that for the whole trip. Have a look here as we approach the town of Rafz. In Switzerland all this neatness was a bit of a problem. Every inch seemed to be either someone's well tended house and land, or well tended crops. No wild place for peeing, something that becomes quite necessary while drinking to stay hydrated.

A very famous European landmark, just at Shaffhausen, is the Rheinfall. It's not exactly Niagara, but it is impressive. And there are boats that at Niagara would be the Maid of the Mist. Some land at a spit of land in the middle of the falls, and I think you can get off and climb. Not us!

Just before Stein am Rhein there was another nice view across the river, this time to Diessenhofen. We had raced tht boat up the river, and declared victory when it quit at this point.

We have been having increasing difficulty finding places to stay at any kind of believable/sustainable prices. Our effort for tonight is a youth hostel, not even cheap, at 100 euros, after we did some bargaining. They had impressed us by pointing out we were getting a six bed room, but it turned out the room was mostly filled with bed! If there would actually be six people it would be ridiculous, because it has only two electrical outlets, two benches, four coat hangers. There is no internet in the rooms, and the toilet is down the hall.

Yet 100 euros is looking cheap! We have now run into a wall of insane prices, and we are thinking that this is going to sink or radically change our planned trip. Have a look at what our screen looks like as we look forward to tomorrow.

We will try to look forward along our route to decide if it is going to be at all feasible, cost wise. If not, we may flee to someplace more affordable. Somewhere in France? Czech, sooner than planned? Suggestions? (But don't say Balkans).

What gave life meaning today: A cuckoo in the Black Forest

Today's ride: 79 km (49 miles)
Total: 1,874 km (1,164 miles)

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Tricia GrahamThose prices look insane something we have always found in Switzerland Reminds me of cycling along the Italian Riviera in 2019. Your banker will be pleased when you reach the Chez Republic We found Poland and Hungry reasonable too
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1 year ago

Suzanne GibsonThose prices are indeed insane! We have had the same experience when booking just a day before. The more reasonably priced rooms are already taken. You can also look at the websites of the towns themselves as they often have a list of cheaper rooms. Or as someone else pointed out the tourist information of the towns will often be able to book cheaper rooms for you.
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1 year ago