skelo wrote:Hi Did You go up the Rhine? I too have tried reading the guidebook backwards! how did you get on?
I am planning to try to cycle from York to Lucca next summer, York-Hull/Rotterdan Ferry, Europoort-Basel on the EV15, cycle to Lucerne and then cheat on the train to Andermatt over Gotthardpass, drop drown to lake maggiore, not really decided the route from thereon.....
Any thoughts?
Yes I did, and loved it. A few things:
The cycling facilities in Nederland are, of course, superb, but when you come off the ferry, breakfast options are few. You'll pass a nice little restaurant called de Punt at Botlek, which will just be opening as you get there (if you don't ride too fast).
The 'official' route, IIRC, follows the Lek, but I went along the Waal, camping at Dordrecht, Tiel, Millingen. Up through Germany was a nice mix of rural, urban, industrial as far as Mainz. After that, the river meanders through a flat landscape of lakes and oxbows, and you see very little of it.
I followed the advice to take the Canal du Rhein au Rhone after Strasbourg, pleasant quiet ride. I didn't want to do the two-sides-of-a-triangle through Basel, so veered off at Breisach up to Donaueschingen and had a couple of days on the Danube, very different scenery and a nice change.
I rejoined the Rhine at Friedrichshafen, and had a lovely ride all the way up to the tiny piece of Italy that drains into the North Sea. Then dropped down into Italy by the Spluga pass. It's an easy climb (as Alpine passes go) from Splugen, and the spectacular descent is the ride of a lifetime. Can't recommend it highly enough. Campsite at Campodolcino has a nice little restaurant.
Hope some of this helps
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