Not so alone as it looks like

It was the day of encounters. At first I cycled – for a change, in sunshine – along with a Swiss from the town of Zug, in his mid-60s, tanned, on a mountain bike that had already seen better days. “I’ve stopped working after 45 years,” the cyclist told me. “And now I am fulfilling my life dream. I always wanted to make a long bike trip.” I asked him how much time he took for the ride along the Rhine. “I’ll see how far I get until winter,” he said, grinning. In the further conversation it turned out that he was also a passionate mountaineer. He had climbed all four-thousanders of his home country, said the Swiss: “Actually, I had always dreamed of climbing Mount Everest one day. But tourism on this mountain has nothing to do with the way of climbing that I like.”

By ferry to the other side

Also a companion

With a heavy heart, I had to allow the Swiss to race ahead, I could not keep up his surprisingly high pace in the long run. But I did not go alone for long. My next companion was a 77-year-old local who is usually doing a half-day bike trip every day, in good weather. “I have to be back home by noon,” he told me. “Otherwise, my wife worries.” I owe him that I did not have to go a long way around the town of Rust (which most people know because of the leisure park nearby). This was a peninsula, the local expert explained to me at the decisive parting of the ways. Therefore, it was better to change to the French side, and to return later to the other side with a ferry. No sooner said than done. This was a really good advice. And by the way, I added with France the fifth nation on my tour down the Rhine after Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria and Germany.

Over the creek

From stone to stone

Shortly after I had said good-bye to the senior, I landed in a dead end. “Have you not seen the sign?”, asked a man who was standing with his old bike on the Rhine. I had overlooked the sign. I now had two alternatives, the man said: either to go back one and a half kilometers or follow him on a secret path: “But you have to cross a streambed. I get over there with my bike. But I do not know whether you can do it too with your packed bike.” I thought: What he is able to do, I also can. I followed him on the trampled path with nettles and brambles. The streambed was not dry, as I had supposed. Instead, I had to carry my folding bike across some boulders, in between water flowed. I took off my saddlebags and brought first the bike and then the luggage over the bridge of stones. After all, I could continue my journey without a long detour.

Moral support

With Nancy Hansen (l.) and Ralf Dujmovits (r.)

The fourth encounter of the day was a planned one. In the town of Kehl, I met Ralf Dujmovits – the so far only German climber who has scaled all 14 eight-thousanders – and his life companion, the Canadian climber Nancy Hansen. They wanted to accompany me on their mountain bikes a bit of my way along the Rhine and thus support me morally. Together with Ralf and the Austrian mountaineer Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, I had launched the campaign “School up!” at the end of June 2015 to rebuild the school in the small mountain village of Thulosirubari, which was destroyed by the earthquake in Nepal on 25 April that year. My donation bike trip “School up! River down” is to flush further money into the project, so that we can pay the ongoing construction work at the new school.

End of the day trip after 125 kilometers

Water from above and below

I really enjoyed sharing a bit of my way with Ralf and Nancy. Besides, I almost forgot my tired legs because of the good talks. Even a heavy downpour, the first of the day, could not cloud our good mood. In the town of Söllingen we finished the bike day – for me after 125 kilometers, for Nancy and Ralf after 45 kilometers. I spend the night at their house in the town of Bühl. Tomorrow morning they will bring me back to Söllingen, where I will continue my journey down the Rhine. I have now managed 589 kilometers in total. Some were quite exhausting, but encounters like today’s compensate for all the hardships.

At the Rhine Falls

I am exhausted. What a day! I feel I have fought constantly. Against the heavy legs, my weaker self, against some, thank God, only short rain showers – and especially against the headwind. It has made me almost see red. It began already shortly after the start in the town of Kreuzlingen, when I rode along the so-called Untersee, the lower part of Lake Constance, before it flows into the River Rhine again. I was happy that the announced rain showers first stayed away, but the wind blew straight in my face. And this in addition to the fact that I really felt the first two stages of my donation bike tour “School up! River down!” with a total of 226 kilometers within two days in my calves.

Over the hills

Stopover at a vineyard

In the small town of Stein am Rhein, where Lake Constance flows into the Rhine, I crossed to the right side of the river. There I first put on my raincoat – for nothing as it turned out, because the rain shower was short. But the wind remained. Finally I reached the Rhine Falls in Schaffhausen, about on the half of the stage, clearly after the scheduled time. Because of the uncomfortable weather there were much less tourists than I had expected. From Schaffhausen I rode my folding bike to the town of Waldshut-Tiengen – “over the hills”, as it was written in the tour guide. That should have made me think. In the hilly terrain, bike paths are often dirt roads with sometimes steep ascents. A couple of times I had to dismount my bike and push it.

A cup of coffee to come down

Bike route signs in Schaffhausen

I had my mental low point, however, at the trip distance of 80 kilometers. I was now on top of the hills and was looking forward to finally driving down again. However, the headwind was so heavy that, with great effort, I was only able to ride down with just 15, 16 kilometers per hour. At some point I roared at the wind: “What have I actually done to you?” The next moment, I felt it was quite idiotic. I went into a snack stand and drank a cup of coffee. After that I felt better. Perhaps I had really impressed the wind with my outburst of rage: it calmed down a little bit.

One night in bed

In total, I rode nine hours with my folding bike today. I managed 117 kilometers despite all the adversities. This time I allow myself to spend the night in a small hotel in Laufenburg-Luttingen which is specialized in hosting cyclists. Yesterday’s starry and therefore cold night in Kreuzlingen was little relaxing. With my ultralight sleeping bag I was quite “underdressed” for these temperatures, so I was cold and woke up again and again. Today I urgently need a few hours of deep sleep to regain strength.

300 g steak at the end of the day

Disturbed idyll: The Swiss nuclear power plant inLeibstadt

You may ask yourself what I eat and drink during the trip. Today, I took a pack of Peronin for breakfast, full of calories. The powder, vanilla flavor, is mixed with water, one portion has 1,907 kilojoules. It has been developed by the South Tyrolean adventurer and arctic specialist Robert Peroni. En route, I ate a croissant, two “Landjäger” (spicy smoked sausages), a chocolate and a power bar, plus two cups of coffee and two liters of water. After the arrival I filled my calorie store again: starting with a bouillon liver spaetzle (a regional speciality) and then eating a 300 g steak with fries and salad. So I have some calories again to burn tomorrow.

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.