2012 - Greg's Cycle Tour Zurich to Amsterdam: DAY 23: FRI 14 SEP

Ride: 64km; total: 1,067km

Fine & sunny 8-19deg, breeze varied from tail to headwind as we went through the Rhine Gorge

After a great breakfast we headed out into a cool morning but it soon warmed up enough to take the rainproof jacket and pants off. The whole ride today was along the Rhine on beaut smooth sealed paths. Coffee at Rudesheim and a walk through its streets. It is one of the picture postcard towns on this section of the Rhine and is invaded by 1,000s of tourists every day. The town belongs to the Frankfurt Rhine Main Region and is one of Germany’s biggest tourist attractions. Only Cologne Cathedral draws more tourists from other countries. Making the town worth visiting is not only the wine or even the Old Town itself, but also the picturesque landscape. The many street cafes and restaurants certainly draw the crowds.

We then crossed to the other side, (south) via ferry to Bingen. The Rhine on this section flows through a tight gorge with lots of old castles on the high spots. The many castles in the valley made it a strategic area and it became a core region of the Holy Roman Empire. It was at the centre of the Thirty Years' War, which left many of them in ruins, a particular attraction for today's cruise ships which follow the river. The Rhine Gorge is a popular name for the Upper Middle Rhine Valley, a 65km section of the Rhine between Koblenz and Bingen. It was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in June 2002 for a unique combination of geological, historical, cultural and industrial reasons.

As we knew motels vacancies would be tight around this very popular region, I rode ahead to St Goar in order to get in early and give ourselves the best chance. Rooms were very scarce but managed to get two rooms in separate motels. 80euro a night for me which was not bad for B&B when there's a big festival on in town that night and the next day. My room had a view of the Rhine with ships, barges and tourist boats coming and going. I think we were lucky as I couldn't find anything at all on the internet the night before.

I didn't want to ride further as it was 14km to the nearest possible vacancy. Graham was really tired, he had done well up to then but was not quite as fit as he had been on previous tours. This was caused by a combination of poor weather conditions at home prior to the tour and the fact that he was not getting any younger. We had planned a rest day where there was something special to do and see, but had not found anything suitable.

Took a wander through the town where they were setting up for the festival. Live music and a carnival atmosphere was everywhere. Lovely place with lots of great restaurants, but we looked for something out of the tourist traps. Stumbled across a great restaurant in the back street which was obviously mainly used by the locals. Great food and excellent atmosphere.