Gravel ride

The sleeper train got into Vienna Central station almost exactly on time. All I had to do was get a local train to the little village where the bike rental company lived. However, it turned out that the train I got on left from the same platform as the right one but three minutes earlier, heading for the same destination, but crucially not stopping at every station along the way. In the end it, was not a problem, I got off at the next station, found a bus back (the train ticket was valid in the bus!) and the bus took me to only a couple of minutes from my destination, whereas the train station was a half hour walk away.
The friendly people at Austria Trails filled my water bladder for me, found some cable ties so that I could attach my bike computer to the bike, and I was off.
First round the corner to the Lidl, where I got lunch, then a route along the edge of an expanse of vineyards before heading off the hill again and going through little villages which were in effect the outer suburbs of Vienna. There were huge dramatic rock faces near the path, but rather always a bit hidden and unsuitable for photos.
I was just getting tired of the tarmac when the route veered away from cars and houses. I was on a small road heading uphill where the track alternated between little off road tracks (verging on needing a mountain bike) and tarmac again when it got too steep or rocky.
After a bit, I went through a small village dominated by a large monastary. The route went right through the middle of it and to my surprise, real live monks in flowing robes were going from one building to another, so it wasn't just a tourist attraction.
As I left the village, the track went steeply up, climbing up and up. I was happy that that section was on tarmac as it would have quite a struggle offroad. Near the top, it begun to look quite Apline, with typical farmhouses and meadows looking rather species-rich. In general, there were not so many flowers out; some Colchicum in fields before the monestary village, the odd Scabious, etc. I did see two special plants - a ice yellow scabious (Scabiosa ochroleuca) and aSalvia glutinosa, which was bew for me. In parts, the trees were beginning to look rather autumnal, with some pretty reds and yellows in their leaves.
At the top of the hill, I stopped to eat a couple of energy bars (bought in the Eifel) and an old farmer passed me on a fat bike. That is probably one place where the broad tyres and powerful engine would actually be useful.
Then it was time for my reward for the climb, a long winding downhill where I could see miles ahead and not to steep so that I could swoop down nicely.
After a section of woodland, I descended into a small village (Bad Völsau), which had another castle, this time with lots of old photographs mounted in its gardens.
Then on to Baden, which, true to its name, was an old spa town, full of massive hotels and fountains.
The last few killometers went through the vinyards again. This time, it was actually quite hard work as there was a fair bit of up and down, and the surface was uneven enough that the gravel bike (no suspension) shook me around quite a lot.
I made it back to the rental place after five hours, over 65 km and almost 1000 hm after I set out. The trains back went smoothly and I was back in Vienna in time for a Schtizel and early night.Read more