Straubing to Niederalterich: Huge bike shops, got lost and in the end had a great day!

September 20, 2012

Check out time at the Youth Hostel was early: 9 am, so after a hearty breakfast we headed off. Somehow we got lost leaving the Youth Hostel following the river on bike paths through town. Once we found our way, we did a bit of sightseeing and headed out to investigate some bike shops we had seen coming in to town.
There were two shops close together and they were the largest shops we have every seen Hundreds of bikes and accessories. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing what they carried. A man came and found me as I was browsing. He had noticed our bike and wanted to talk about our bike and was very interested in our experiences. He was originally from Romania and also loved to cycle tour.
We cycled past the urban sprawl of Deggendorf and ended up in the village, Niederalterich ,on the river,. We were fortunate to stay at a Private Zimmer with the Mayhofer family. The first guesthouse we visited was full, and the owner called for us and the hostess rode her bike over to escort us. She and her husband were incredibly hospitable and provided us with a homey suite complete with cooking facilities, patio and breakfast - only 45 euros. We have found that Germany offers really good value for accomodation and most often includes a hearty breakfast. However, we are increasingly finding that we can’t eat the meat and cheese at breakfast, so we make up sandwiches for lunch on the road - which makes our stay even more affordable.

The buildings are very old in the town centre of Straubing.

A beautiful painted detail on a hotel exterior wall.

Interesting narrow alley leading to the cathedral.

This was the biggest bike shop we have ever been in.

We met this man a few times on the route today - he is from Switzerland and this is his first cycle tour.

Breakfast in the garden room at the private zimmer we stayed at. Wonderful hospitality.

Today's ride: 52 km (32 miles)
Total: 2,575 km (1,599 miles)

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