Having arrived at the Oberalp Pass

“Gruezi” from the Oberalp Pass at an altitude of 2044 meters in Graubünden in Switzerland. After a ten-hour train journey, during which I had to change trains four times with about 40 kilograms of luggage (including my folding bike), I have reached the starting point of my donation bike tour “School up! River down!”. One of the Rhine sources is located about three kilometers from here. When I arrived up here late in the afternoon, I was surprised: early September and already winter conditions.

Wimps

Here I’ll set off on Monday morning

Yesterday it snowed 40 centimeters high. The idea of a fast hike to the source, which I had flirted with, turned out to be impossible. My light hiking boots would have been wet through in no time due to the slush. After all, the pass road is snow-free, so I can start tomorrow morning with my little bike. I have the inn on the pass, where I spend the night, for myself. The other guests have canceled their bookings because of the onset of winter in the late summer. Wimps!

Wild and beautiful

The Rhine gorge

Today I was able to take a look at tomorrow’s first stage. The train passed the Rhine gorge between Chur and Disentis. It is quite wild, especially as the river has a lot of water due to the precipitation of the last few days. The bike route leads over the hills somewhere on the right side of the Rhine. I’m curious. Not only on the route along the river, but also on the experience to do such a far-distance trip with my folding bike, which has only eight gears. This model is not really intended for this purpose, but rather for commuters on short distances. But that also provides a bit of uncertainty, which belongs to real adventure.

Where does the EuroVelo 15 end for me?

How far can I get from the source to the mouth of the Rhine in the Netherlands in the given time window of a maximum of twelve days, on the more than 1200-kilometer-long route “EuroVelo 15”? Once again, I would like to invite you to sponsor the campaign “School up! River down!”, with an amount of your own per each kilometer I drive. If you want to give for instance two cents per kilometer, it would be a total of 24 euros at 1,200 kilometers. Those who prefer to contribute a fixed amount of money can, of course, do so. I am grateful for any euro.

All into the project

Construction site in Thulosirubari

These donations will be used one hundred percent for the ongoing construction of the new school in the mountain village of Thulosirubari, some 70 kilometers east of Kathmandu. The former school had been so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake in Nepal on 25 April 2015, that it had had to be demolished. Along with the famous climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits, I launched the donation campaign “School up!” in June 2015 to rebuild the school as soon as possible. Under the keyword “School up!” in the upper line of the blog you can read more about how the project has developed since then. At the end of October, the first two buildings will be painted.

This is the bank account of “School up!”:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V..
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

Already a thousand thanks to all who will support me on “School up! River down!”- and thus the children of Thulosirubari! You are great.

P.S.: I cannot promise that I am able to translate every blog post during the trip. If I am too tired to do so, please use exceptionally (!) Google Translate or another software to translate the posts written in German.

Along with the climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits, I had launched “School up!” two years ago to rebuild the school of Thulosirubari, a mountain village about 70 km east of Kathmandu. The school had been destroyed by the devastating earthquake in Nepal in April 2015. Despite the heavy monsoon, the construction work has continued in recent months, the school building is increasingly taking shape (see the slideshow below). But we have not yet reached the goal and need more donations. That’s why I’ll start a week today a donation bike tour under the motto “School up! River down!”.

With the folding bike

I want to cycle down the river as far as possible within a given time window – a maximum of twelve days -, starting at the 2044-meter-high Oberalp Pass in Switzerland, near one of Rhine sources. I’ll do it by fair means, without an electric motor in the bike frame. Neither with a racing or touring bike nor with a mountain bike – but with a folding bike. The wheels are only 20 inches in size, so I have to pedal a lot. The exciting question is: How far will I get with my little bike on the more than 1,200-kilometer-long cycle route from the source to the mouth of the Rhine in Hoek van Holland?

Donation per driven kilometer

If you want to participate in the fundraising campaign, this is how it works: Before I start, you determine an amount for each kilometer that I will drive down the Rhine. Means: If you want to give for instance one cent per kilometer, it would be a total of ten euros at 1,000 kilometers. Those who prefer to contribute a fixed amount of money can, of course, do so. I am grateful for any euro for the school in Thulosirubari.

While I’m on the road, I will inform you via Twitter where I am and what I am experiencing – as I did during my campaign “Pilgrimage for Nepal” in November 2015. At the end I will tell you how far exactly my folding bike will have carried me. Then you should transfer your donation directly to the bank account of “School up!”:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V..
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

So keep your fingers crossed!

P.S. Many thanks to the Austrian publishing house Esterbauer for the map material I use for planning my trip.