Day 84: Lohr to Ochsenfurt

May 12, 2025

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I brought the desk staff at our hotel, the Bundschuh, what I thought would be an easy question this morning. I told them that I thought "Bunt" meant colourful, and "Bund" seems to mean "federal", so what does the name of the hotel mean?

They were stumped by this, because to them "Bundschuh" is a family name, and in this they are quite right. Internet lists several famous people named "Bundschuh". However, as Dodie discovered:

"Bundschuh" refers to a type of medieval German peasant's shoe, traditionally made from a single piece of leather and laced or tied at the ankle. It also represents a historical revolutionary peasant movement in southwestern Germany, where the Bundschuh became a symbol of the peasant uprising against their feudal lords.

The Shoe:"Bundschuh" literally means "band shoe" or "tied shoe" in German, referring to its construction with laces or thongs. It was a typical peasant shoe, distinguishing it from the boots worn by knights and symbolizing the peasants' common cause.
The Movement:The Bundschuh movement, particularly in the late 15th and early 16th centuries, involved localized peasant uprisings against their feudal lords. The shoe itself became a symbol of rebellion and solidarity among the peasants.
Symbolism:The Bundschuh represented the peasants' collective struggle against their rulers, contrasting their attire with that of the nobility. It was a visible symbol of their shared grievances and a rallying point for their uprisings.

All this was lost on the staff, but we seemed to find it interesting!

One thing that the hotel, and the town, was up on was Snow White, or to them Schneewittchen. "Schnee" is snow, but "wittchen" is a little tricky. Whereas "weis" is white, "wittchen" seems to mean "little white". Ok, fine. So in the hotel one can buy lots of Schneewittchen stuff, like the cute books shown below. and the town has a treasure hunt, in which you locate dwarf installations through the streets, and from these collect questions, or answers, or something. The hotel had a map of these installations, but as usual we were intent on leaving town!

Schneewittchen sticker book sounds good.

We pulled our bikes from the one of three side by side garages where guests stash their rides. We expect that in the high season, these are really packed.

We were soon out on the trail, which was as lovely as ever, and would stay great for the whole day. The days have been starting very cold, but sunny, so the temperature rises rapidly. It means we start with a lot of clothes on, and then look for the right times to get them off.

We found that how comfortable we were, or not, depended on whether a section of trail was in shade or not. But as we see below, there is also a possible issue of wolves, not to mention witches, trolls, hunters, woodcutters, and other magical beings in the deep dark forest

We came out into areas of sun and shade, that were warm(ish) and freezing.

Out first major town was Gemunden. While pretty enough, this did not blow my socks off. Maybe this was because no bakeries appeared to be open. Later, in Wurzburg, Dodie challenged bakery availability or quality as my criterion for judging, or even visiting a town. Clearly she has no idea what she is talking about!

Back on the trail, it was again forest, light, and dark. Barring an encounter with an actual mythical being, there is little to report from the path, other than its beauty.

Next up as Karlstadt, which in truth was much like Gemunden. These towns are beautiful, alright, but they do not have the horsepower to be tourism destinations on their own. It's the chain of them that creates the draw.

Crossing the river, near Karlstadt, we could see a "chateau", built in 1911: Villa Steinbruck, which may be open for visits. Nearby was also the ruin of Karlsburg Castle. The castle is from the 8th century, but was destroyed in 1525.

We entered another section where steep banks along the river were covered with vines. I searched for what grapes/wines are grown on the Main and came up with stuff that is way too complicated for me:

Franconia is known for its Silvaner grapes, which are often used to make powerful, earthy white wines, as well as Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) and Domina for red wines. Other white grape varieties in the region include Riesling, Bacchus, and Scheurebe, while red wines also include Portugieser and Dornfelder.

The Maindreieck wine region is the largest of the Franconian areas and lies in the center of the Franconia wine region covering 4200 hectares of vineyards. Maindreieck means Main Triangle in German which is referred to as the triangle formed by the river in the middle portion of Franconia. The Würzburger Stein, a hill north of the city center of Würzburg, is the most well-known vineyard location. The name Steinwein is a synonym for the region's wines. Nearly every village along the Maindreieck produces some wine.

We stopped to eat our sandwiches, and Dodie was spotting small birds in the bushes. I just don't see them, so I handed her the camera, and she came up with this: it's a Great Tit:

We approached Wurzburg, which is by far the largest and most interesting town on this part of the route. On that approach, the grape hills now had buildings at their tops.

Dodie surmised that this was a winery. She was almost right. Google has it as Schloss Steinburg, a four star hotel. No matter how many stars, we are not about to cycle up there!

A big feature of Wurzbug is its 16th century bridge, Alte Mainbrücke.

"The bridge was designed by the Italian architect Antonio Petrini and was completed in 1543. It replaced an earlier wooden bridge that had been destroyed by flooding. The Alte Mainbrücke is a combination of Gothic and Renaissance styles and features a series of arches and towers that make it an impressive sight.

One of the most distinctive features of the bridge is the row of statues that line its sides. These statues were added in the 18th century and depict various saints and historical figures, including Saint Kilian, the patron saint of Würzburg, and Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn, a prince-bishop who was instrumental in the construction of the bridge."

Just before jumping up on the bridge, we passed the "Golden Goose", that I noticed for its hanging sign. They claim to have been cooking since 1603.

Up on the bridge there is a view of church spires in the town.

Coming from the bridge - we see there is lots of activity in the town.

We set off looking to just spot the main sights of the town. Half of us would have included the main bakeries, but that didn't quite happen. We did get these:

The Cathedral behind, with the the cathedral museum in the foreground. This "Museum am Dom" is an art museum of the Diocese of Würzburg, opened in March 2003

The St. Kilian's Cathedral. Perhaps this is the cathedral, and the domed building shown above is not? It's hard to know because the doors were locked.

St Mary's Chapel is certainly the one with the striking appearance.

The chapel stands beside the city library, which also is a stunning building.

High atop the chapel is this gold coated Mary. The statue rotates up there. You have to look hard to see Mary's face.

Inside, the chapel has a bit of stained glass, and four paintings at the altar.

The chapel and the library are near the market square. These few stalls are on the edge of the large space.

We did pick up a bit of erdebeeren schnitte in the end. I'd call it a disappointment, with strawberries that seemed none too fresh, no cookie like base, and only a smidgen of white icing like goo. We'll have to keep researching!

20 km further on, we arrived at Oschenfurt, our target for the day. At 80 km total, the distance is a bit much. But we should now be in our best condition of the tour, and besides on the flat, we ought to be able to pedal forever.

It's hard to see without a blowup, but this is a golden stork.

Ochsenfurt seems like it has a bit more going on than some of today's earlier towns.

Our hotel. It specializes in beer - hmmph.

Tomorrow we will have another brief look at the town.

We are whipping around the Main quite rapidly now. Tomorrow: way up north to Schweinfurt.

Today's ride: 80 km (50 miles)
Total: 3,095 km (1,922 miles)

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Martin RuebenackerDear Dodo, dear Steve, I'm glad you have this wonderful wheather when you are entering the region where I studied and married (Würzburg). This was the most beautiful time of my life. I like to follow you on the Main bike tour. I wonder if you noticed you rode more than 3000 km incredible. By the way you have been searching for the Chagall windows in Mainz. They are not in the Dom of Mainz but in the St. Stephan church. If you like I can send you some pictures via Email ?. Best regards Martin from Altrip
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2 months ago

Steve Miller/GrampiesTo Martin RuebenackerYes, we did see that we just passed 3000 km. It would have been much further if we had been able to cycle the whole way, but we needed trains to fit the trip into our allied time. We would love to receive some pictures of the Chagall windows. Next trip we will hope to visit the correct church in Mainz and view them ourselves.
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1 month ago