The Romantic Road - Füssen to Peiting
Saturday May 26, 2018
Founded in 1950, the Romantic Road has become one of the most popular scenic routes in Germany thanks to its culture and scenery. Cycling along the Romantic Road is made easy by the fact that there are a number of connected cycle paths away from the busy main roads and that there is a recognised long-distance trail (the D9) covering the route in its entirety. Here is a link to the site (where I have just stolen a bit of text) with more information on the bicycle route, .
Most people start in the north and cycle south, I'm not sure why. I prefer cycling downhill so we started at Füssen in the south, an hour's train ride from Munich, and in four days rode as far as Donauwörth, covering a little less than half of the complete bicyle path which ends in Würzburg. We had excellent weather and because it is off-season the paths were almost empty. I read that it becomes very busy here in the summer months. We saw very few touring cyclists.
Most people start in the north and cycle south, I'm not sure why. I prefer cycling downhill so we started at Füssen in the south, an hour's train ride from Munich, and in four days rode as far as Donauwörth, covering a little less than half of the complete bicyle path which ends in Würzburg. We had excellent weather and because it is off-season the paths were almost empty. I read that it becomes very busy here in the summer months. We saw very few touring cyclists.
This map shows the entire route over four days.
So as to get an early start, we saved time by having breakfast at the train station - nice gooey pastries. Janos said his coffee was good, and so was my tea. It was Saturday, the weather was good and school holidays had just started as well, all good reasons to expect a deluge of cyclists. We wanted to be sure to get on the train without hassle, and we were successful - there were no other bicycles on the train when we boarded about 20 minutes before departure. Later the bicycle car did fill up. Our bicycles were buried beneath a pile of other bicycles, but we weren't concerned since Füssen was at the end of the line. We didn't mind if we were the last ones to get off.
A quick breakfast at the train station so that I don't have to mess up my kitchen before we leave.
Later on, we had to remove our panniers and the bicycles were stacked three deep.
Setting out - ah, the Alps
We get a partial view of Schloss Hohenschwangau, the 19th-century palace that was the childhood residence of King Ludwig II of Bavaria, built by his father, King Maximilian II of Bavaria.
Now a view of Neuschwanstein, the fairytale castle built by King Ludwig II
Wonderful views of the Alps all day
We found a bench for our picnic lunch in a playground.
Sandwiches from home
All day the fragance of freshly mown hay was in the air.
Enough wood for heating in the cold winter months
Just add to this scene in your imagination the tinkling of cow bells.
Close the gate behind you!
And now it's time for a church. Our path takes us to the Wieskirche - and here is some information directly from Wikipedia (with some edits).
"It is said that in 1738 tears were seen on a dilapidated wooden figure of the Savior. This miracle resulted in a pilgrimage rush to see the sculpture. In 1740 a small chapel was built to house the statue and many who prayed in front of the statue of Jesus claimed that they were miraculously cured of their diseases. The original chapel was too small for the masses of pilgrims that it attracted. Construction of the present church was started in 1745. Everything was done throughout the church to make the supernatural visible. Sculpture and murals combined to unleash the divine in visible form. The Wieskirche was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1983.
"It is said that in 1738 tears were seen on a dilapidated wooden figure of the Savior. This miracle resulted in a pilgrimage rush to see the sculpture. In 1740 a small chapel was built to house the statue and many who prayed in front of the statue of Jesus claimed that they were miraculously cured of their diseases. The original chapel was too small for the masses of pilgrims that it attracted. Construction of the present church was started in 1745. Everything was done throughout the church to make the supernatural visible. Sculpture and murals combined to unleash the divine in visible form. The Wieskirche was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1983.
The Pilgrimage Church of Wies (Wieskirche) is an oval rococo church, designed in the late 1740's by brothers J.B. and Dominikus Zimmermann, leading architects of the day.
Organ in the Wieskirche
Three-dimensional frescos giving the impression that legs are dangling out of the ceiling
The church's show of wealth - A half a century later secularisation put an end to all this.
A painting in the church showing the hundreds of pilgrims on their way to Wieskirche in its heyday
We had more climbs today than we are accustomed to and were happy to get off our bikes after a very satisfying but tiring day. It certainly wasn't downhill all the way. As usual, more pictures from the first part of the day when we were still fresh, fewer from the end when we were eager to reach our destination, although we still had beautiful countryside.