Day 3: To Raustetten, a grey day

Saturday July 17, 2021
First a look out the window, overcast and there isn't much change the whole day, but no rain is good news and it turns out to be a good day. I not only see a grey sky but also have a view to the old city wall that once surrounded Donauwörth. The solar panels make an interesting contrast.

A portion of the old city wall side by side with solar panels

After breakfast we head to the bridge with a view to Donauwörth and the confluence of the Wörnitz and Danube that we missed yesterday. Today the scene is no longer sparkling in the sun and the rivers look murky. But perhaps the water was murky yesterday, too, after all the rain we have had.

Confluence of the Danube and the Wörnitz

View to the old town of Donauwörth

Heading back to the old town for a few more pictures, I stop by a bicycle shop, Brachem Radsport, to have another consultation on my malfuntioning suspension fork. Again here immediate service and knowledgeable mechanics. They confirm what I had heard before, there is an air leak, and they pump some more air into the air chamber. No charge - but I could make a donation to their Kaffeekasse (coffee kitty). 

A walk through the main street of the historic old town, Reichsstrasse

Another view of architecture on Reichsstrasse

We're on our way following the Wörnitz more or less and reach Harburg after 14 km. Harburg's historic old town seems to be waiting for visitors but we see hardly any tourists today, an advantage of grey skies.

Sometimes our route follows the Wörnitz.

Sometimes the bike path follows the road.

Harburg

On the stone bridge over the Wörnitz, with some decoration. For a festival?

Giant crocheted doilies over the road into the old town

The Harburg thrones over the city, one of the best preserved castle complexes in southern Germany.

The castle - we don't ride up to visit it but I understand it is open to visitors.

The Wörnitz is showing the effects of the heavy rainfall.

Another 20 km through the Swabian Jura landscape takes us to Nördlingen, another picturesque town on the Romantic Road. On the way we encounter a detour that we don't take seriously but should have. 

Excellent bike path, well separated from the highway

Traditional Swabian Jura landscape - gentle hills with juniper bushes

sWe come to a detour sign but the bike path as far as we can see looks fine so we continue on. Usually you can walk your bike around or through a construction site, we aren't worried. When we reach the site we see this will not be the case this time. A tunnel is under construction and the continuation of the bike path shown on Open Cycle Maps is inaccessible. Studying the map more closely at home I wonder if that bike path exists at all. The detour via the little town of Reimlingen is simple, but it would have been better if we had opted for the detour at the first road block. It is very practical that the app we use for plotting our routes and navigation, Komoot, reroutes you.

Not a bad detour

Nördlingen is pretty but kind of touristy, as are most of the quaint and well-restored towns along the Romantic Road. Thanks to the mediocre weather it isn't too busy today. 

We stop for a coffee.

I love the luxuriant gardens in the villages

Our goal today ist Raustetten, just a bunch of houses, near Fremdingen. It was about the right distance, in the middle of nowhere but the countryside is lovely. We have stayed at Hotel Waldeck before, that time too because it was about the right distance and there wasn't much else in between.

Potato plants are blossoming now.

A short, steep climb takes us to this chapel before we reach our destination.

Uh oh, another detour? No, just a reminder to drive carefully. The whole village seemed to be under construction.

The sky was a bit gloomy and we had a constant wind in our face, but it was a good cycling day with plenty of variety.  I think one of the most tiring things when cycling is monotony.