After a few relaxing days in Falkau we went on 09.04.21 again on our bikes in the direction of Donauquelle in Donaueschingen. Our route there took us through the beautiful Black Forest along Titisee and for miles through an avenue in the middle of the deepest forest, it was incredibly beautiful and the weather was also on our side – our bike hearts were glowing 😃.
After some really nice impressions we found a great place just before Donaueschingen, on the Schellenberg, to make a fire, grill a sausage and pitch the tent. The campsite was even approved by the district forester himself 😃. Winfried approached us as he jogged along and we had an interesting conversation about, among other things, a well-known monastery in Georgia, about which he had recently read an article, which he later brought over to us with two regional beers – a nice surprise, which made us very happy.
The following day we then reached the 1st milestone of our journey – the spring of the Danube in Donaueschingen, from where we will now cycle along the Danube Cycle Path.
The 1st stage of the Danube Cycle Path took us along beautiful castles, ruins and landscapes. The temperature also peaked at a fabulous 18°C, which meant that we decided to take a dip in the Danube due to a lack of showering opportunities. Brrrr, that was cold, but at the same time very refreshing and energizing. We also just washed the most important clothes on this occasion.
We were prepared from the weather report that it would be cold for the next few days (weeks), but when we crawled out of the tent the next morning, we could hardly believe our eyes when everything was covered in snow. Since it continued to snow until early afternoon, we decided to put on the full rain gear and head out. It was freezing cold, also thanks to the breeze that has been blowing around our ears every day since then with a strong headwind. Also the tent, our water bottles and all bike bags froze over night each time, as it got as cold as -5°C. So cycling is rather little fun, but we were rewarded on Tuesday evening with a brilliantly beautiful campsite, where we could also warm ourselves at a fire. We were amazed when a beaver appeared in the river right next to us 😍.
When we have almost given up hope for a warm accommodation (unfortunately, you get almost only rejections at Warmshowers at the moment), a sign with the possibility of camping on a farm has appeared. The farmer was fortunately just outside, so we grabbed our chance and asked him for a warm shower. He had a huge joy in us and our plan, so he immediately agreed and to top it off even offered us a room with wood stove to spend the night – there are just sooo great people!!! In addition, we had the pleasure of being shown the entire farm zoo, be it little goats, very freshly born baby rabbits, pigs, cows, etc., it was incredibly nice how warmly we were received and felt immediately comfy. We also enjoyed the shower and the oven unimaginable 🙃.
Our luck lasted even longer when we got from Luca the opportunity to stay overnight with him in Ulm, this even for 2 nights, where we can now also allow ourselves a break day (does that good!!). Quite great, exciting conversations and stories we have shared with him and now continue along the Danube Cycle Path, hoping to soon encounter better weather, higher temperatures and especially tailwind.