As you can see from the map, we started out for Ibersheim where we had a lovely bed and breakfast booked but the owners could only check us in at 7 pm so we decided we would carry on to Worms and poke around, see the cathedral and then return to Ibersheim. In doing all this, we discovered we were following some of the routes taken by Martin Luther as he journeyed to the diet in Worms.
We are still close to big cities like Mainz so we will be seeing a lot of street traffic .
We followed the GPS track I had laid out in the morning fairly closely at this point in order to get to the Rhine by going generally SW. When I allow Ride With GPS to do the mapping for me we get a pretty good track that only chooses to put us on streets and pathways that are bicycle friendly. The caveat comes later ...
Those last two pictures were taken at a 30-40x zoom. The camera is a Canon Power Shot SX240 HS. It has 20X optical zoom and anything beyond that is digital zoom. The best feature is the stabilization it does, allowing me to take pictures on the fly while pedaling and also pictures like this without a tripod.
The Ride With GPS track we are following continues to show us lovely paths on established radwegs (bike paths) as we journey toward the Rhine
Our path led us to the Rhine where there has been an established ferry for centuries. It was believed to be used by the Romans and known to be used by Luther on his way to Worms
Now comes the caveat about routing with Ride With GPS. When it presents a route, I look at where it is taking us in detail so that I can drag the route over closer to the river if that is what I think I want. I did quite a lot of this during the route finding exercise in the morning. I was puzzled by how it would jump back to a track that it seemed to favour even if it was shorter and more direct to stay on the track I was choosing. But I forced my will upon it. Now, over the past 2 days we are starting to learn why.
Some discomfort resulted from following the track I had prepared at this point. (horrible, bumpy track, YUCK!)
When we came to a really beautiful paved path that appeared to parallel the path by the river I remembered how RWGPS had kept trying to put me on a path a little ways from the river, so we tried it and watched to see if it remained in the same general direction. It did.
Erika thinks this is mistletoe growing in the trees. I started blowing her kisses
At certain points it was easy to cut back to the river, have a look and see that the path was still gravel. I just loved the look of this area with its ramp and all
Marvin PaxmanErika said it was the best Strudel we have had. My theory is she was put out that she had to wait until I took the picture :) Reply to this comment 5 years ago
His boat was sunk by one of these and he was picked up by the English. He was 15 years old at the time and spent the rest of that year and a good part of the following year in prisoner of war camp in Scotland.
Our path into Worms was at times park like neighborhoods and a lot of industrial. As I hadn't mapped anything beyond Ibersheim, we followed the river and anything Google could tell us.
The gasthaus we were going to stay at could not accommodate us until 7pm so we decided to cycle into Worms for a look. We had not mapped out the route so, using google maps on Erika's phone and trail signs, off we went.
Erika just liked this one, an old gate left on a busy corner shortly after we entered Worms.
The following pictures are inside the Worms Cathedral. You can see how much more ornate the Roman Catholic church is in comparison to the Luther memorial church. (It looks like Marvin's hand was shaky.)
Our path back out of town took us right by a bike shop and we stopped in to see about adjusting brakes and checking tire pressure. The mechanic came up from the back and was very helpful and friendly.
Exceptionally helpful considering we were not planning on buying a thing. I have great respect for people like this who are dedicated to excellence regarding their profession.
Marvin PaxmanTo Steve Miller/GrampiesHe said they were fine. He checked to make sure they were still good. We have had such great weather that the bikes seem to be in fine shape. The main stress they get would be when the roads are rough. I am amazed at how well the tires and tubes have been holding up, they don't seem to lose air at all. In 4 weeks one tire dropped 50kp and that was all. I could tell from squeezing them and he confirmed it for me. Reply to this comment 5 years ago
Once established in the B&B, I took several pictures because it is so lovely. At 68 euros, it was more expensive than the night before but so very nice. And there was a great breakfast included.
We stayed in a private home this evening. It as so very lovely and well cared for. A wonderful, welcoming hostess.
Taken the next morning, pictures of the garden area of the B&B. The town of Ibersheim is known for the Mennonite community with a very old church built there. The owner of the B&B was a farmer (Mennonite) and it really shows in the garden. The wife runs the B&B and is registered with Bette und Bike. The name is Gasthaus Ellenberger in Ibersheim
(look for the pictures in the next entry)
Today's ride: 76 km (47 miles) Total: 1,097 km (681 miles)
