In & Out of Zurich:  through Switzerland, down Rhine, Lake Constance, Danube River back to Lake Constance then to Zurich

I am updating this page – finally; during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. With time on my hands I am taking a trip into the past. It is amazing how some pictures and a journal bring back some great memories.

This trip was 3 1/2 weeks and covered about 800km.
This was our second European bike trip. Our first one had been in Holland. This one was quite different as we started the trip travelling through the mountains. From Zurich there is a lake (Zurichsee), a river, another lake (Wallensee) then another river that gets to the Rhine River. That stretch was basically downhill with mountains on both sides. We went down the Rhine (north) through Lichtenstein to Lake Constance. Along the Swiss (south) shore of the lake past Constance to Singen where we took the train up to Tuttlingen on the Danube. We rode along the Danube to just past Ulm. We took the train south to Lindau on the German (north) side of Lake Constance. We rode west along the lake then down the Rhine to the Glatt river. Heading south back to Zurich.

For this trip we had 2 map books from a German publisher – Esterbauer.
We had one for Lake Constance (Bodensee) and for the Danube River (Donau).
But, no cell phone or tablet!

The following table summarizes the trip:

Date	Distance	SKm	City	Hotel
27-Aug-02			Fly to Zurich
28-Aug-02			Zurich	St Georges
29-Aug-02	38.5	39	Rapperswil	Jakob
30-Aug-02	38	77	Weesen	Schwert
31-Aug-02	34	111	Weesen	Schwert
1-Sep-02	24	135	Walenstadt	Churfirsten
2-Sep-02	40	175	Vaduz	Prausch
3-Sep-02	40	215	Altstatten	Untertor
4-Sep-02	40	255	Arbon	Rote Kreuz
5-Sep-02	38.5	293	Konstanz	Graf Zepplin
6-Sep-02	50	343	Tuttlingen	Ritter
7-Sep-02	57.5	401	Sigmaringen	Donau
8-Sep-02	60.5	461	Munderkingen	Rose
9-Sep-02	51.4	512	Ulm	Am Rathaus
10-Sep-02	0	512	Ulm	Am Rathaus
11-Sep-02	31	543	Gunzberg	Zur Munz
12-Sep-02	41	584	Lindau	Zum Anker
13-Sep-02	40	624	Immenstaad	Adler
14-Sep-02	40	664	Oberuhldingen	Kessler
15-Sep-02	40	704	Stein am Rhein	Muhltal
16-Sep-02	55	759	Eglisau	Rheinfels
17-Sep-02	44	803	Zurich	Sternen
18-Sep-02	10.5	814	Zurich	St Georges

 

27 August 2002 – Fly Toronto to Zurich

This trip we have our bikes in cardboard boxes again. We are flying Air Canada to Zurich and returning from there.

28 August 2002 – In Zurich

We arrive at Zurich Airport and leave the bikes in the boxes. We have booked a hotel for our first and last nights and have arranged to leave the boxes there. It would have been $10 a day to store the boxes at the airport – ie $210. So, we were glad the hotel would keep them.
We use luggage trolleys to get the bike boxes to the S Bahn.

Our hotel is a couple of kms from the train station, so we try to find a taxi to take the bike boxes. This takes some time, but finally a Mercedes station wagon is able to fit them mostly in. Had to leave the tailgate open!
Our hotel for the first night (and last night already booked) is the Hotel St Georges.

We put the bike boxes in the Hotel basement and went for lunch. It was a beautiful day – 23C and sunny!
Back at the hotel we unboxed and assembled the bikes. Took about 2 hours.
Out for a walk and found the main train station where there was an indoor market.

Dinner was at a pizzeria where we sat outside – nice mild evening. So good to be able to eat & drink outside. Walked down Bahnhof Strasse to Lake Zurich. Upscale stores like Tiffany’s and Louis Vuitton. Watches selling for over $50,000 CDN!
Stayed up as late as we could, woke up a few times but got a decent sleep.

29 August 2002 – Zurich to Rapperswil – 39km

We sleep in until 9:30 and rush to get down for breakfast which is over at 10am.
Great breakfast. By the the time we got packed up and got the bikes organized it was noon!
This was only our second bike trip, so took a while to get things sorted out.

We biked down to Lake Zurich and took the bike path along the south shore. Paved and pretty busy. Beautiful day! We pass a number of marinas with sailboats.
The paved path follows the edge of the lake. Zurichsee is separated from the Obersee by a peninsula. We cross the peninsula to Raperswil to look for a place for the night.

We have not booked ahead. We get a room in the Jakob Hotel. An older hotel which was renovated a few years before. Our room looks out over a square with outdoor cafes. Off to the right is a castle.

We walk down to the lake front and have a good meal on the terrace at the Hotel Bellevue.
Had beer & coffee after outside our hotel. Have interesting chat with 1 English chap and 2 Dutch guys.

30 August 2002 – Rapperswil to Weesen – 39km

Church bells during night then market noises in square early am made for poor sleep.

Had breakfast at cafe next door. Booked hotel for that night.
We are late leaving – around 1pm! We bike along north side of the Ober See.

The bike paths were very good although we get lost a couple of times east of the lake. Very nice day for biking in low 20sC.

There is a canal between the Obersee and the Walensee. Into Weesen around 5. The town of Weesen is on the west end of the Walensee.  Our hotel looks out over the lake with mountains in the background.

We stored our bikes inside the hotel in their ballroom!

We walk down to the lake and enjoy the mountain scenery.
Good dinner in the hotel restaurant.

31 August 2002 – Glarus Valley & back to Weesen – 34km

We decide to stay another night in Weesen. We sleep in again and have a great breakfast.
We are heading up the Glarus valley into the mountains. Another beautiful day to start.
We stop for bananas and apples and meet a couple from California who had just ridden over the alps on their titanium tandem bike! He worked for Dalsa in California. Dalsa is headquartered  in Waterloo. He knew 2 guys that I used to work with. Small world.
The valley is fairly wide to start. Farmers out cutting grass and clover. Paved path.

It was a great ride up the valley through Nafels to the town of Glarus. Found a drug store to buy a comb. I will need a more complete checklist for our next bike tour! Bought some pastries at a backerie. Met another American couple out for a walk with their 2 year old daughter. (It was Saturday) He had a job and they had been there for 1 1/2 years. They missed English speaking company. Lots of snow in winter and used a sled to pull their daughter around. As we were leaving, a lady from the bakery came out and asked if we had room for some pastries to take with us. 2 strawberry & cream tarts! A family run business, Backerie Gabriel is still going in 2020. Not surprising when they treat customers so well.

The trip back down the valley was quick. Good thing as the clouds started to gather. We got back to the hotel just before the rain.

What a great day it had been. We watched the downpour from the hotel bar as we had well deserved beers. Dinner was next door in a Trattoria – salads & pizza!

1 September 2002 –  Weesen to Walenstadt- 22km

It had rained overnight and into the morning. We left around noon after it had stopped.
It is cooler and cloudy. We bike along the Walensee. The path is paved and separate from the autobahn. We go through 2 tunnels and for a while the bike path is suspended over the lake.

The autobahn was 4 lanes. At points, the east and west parts separated, with one part higher up the cliff. Traffic was backed up as folks headed home on a Sunday.
At Murg, there is a ferry across to Quinten. It does not take bikes and we were not keen to leave our bike unattended so we did not go. Quinten is on the north shore of the lake and gets lots of sunshine. It has the mildest climate in the alps. The 41 people who live there make a good living growing grapes and making great wine.
There is a little drizzle as we come into Walenstadt. We find a newly renovated hotel with mountains in the back ground.

After a beer and coffee, we walk down to the lake. Mountains all around.
We have an excellent dinner at the See Hotel. Tomato Caprese then schnitzel & chips!

2 September 2002 –  Walenstadt to Vaduz (Lichtenstein) – 40km

A beautiful sunny day. As we left the hotel we saw some children going to school.
Judy took 3 pictures, then cut (with scissors not a computer) and pasted them to give this panorama.

We bike along farm roads through a wide valley with mountains on both sides. We buy lunch stuff at a Coop supermarket in Sargans. Then stop for lunch when we got to the Rhein.

There is a paved bike path alongside the river. We are heading downstream. 120 km upstream from here is the beginning of the Rhein, near the town of Andermatt.
We crossed the Rhein into Liechtenstein, stopping in Balzers for lunch.

We have a look at the castle then head into the capital Vaduz. Our hotel is near center. We walk into town which is overlooked by the Castle. We don’t go up as it is 120m up!

3 September 2002 –  Vaduz to Altstatten – 40km

It rained overnight and into the morning. By 11am it had mostly cleared. Into town to buy & write postcards. We have a quick look in the post office where they had a philatelic center. Liechtenstein has a booming stamp business.

We cross the Rhein back into Switzerland and pick up lunch things in Buchs. Got a bit lost outside Buchs.

We had lunch in Frumsen. Found a bench under a tree outside a school.

Altstatten is a town with beautifully restored buildings. We walked around and found a great Italian restaurant.

 

4 September 2002 –  Altstatten to Arbon – 40km

Another beautiful morning. We walk around Altstatten again enjoying the small town feel.

It was noon before we left Altstatten. The trail was pretty flat, paved or hard packed stone.

The trail headed down to the Rhine. Lunch was in Austria across the river. We had quiche, apple strudel and fruit. The bike path was busy as we go toward Lake Constance.
Lake Constance is a widening of the Rhine river. It is 14km wide at its widest and is 73 km long. The south shore is in Switzerland. The north shore is in Germany. There is a small slice in the east in Austria.
Rorschach is the first city we come to as we head west on the south shore of the lake. It is too busy. So we carry on and see a number of sand sculptures along the lake front.

Along the lake are a number of little marinas.

We find a nice hotel in Arbon right on the lake. Rotes Kreuz or Red Cross

We walk around the city. Well restored buildings. We look for a restaurant and end up returning to our hotel to eat. We ate outside in a covered patio. It rained hard.

5 September 2002 –  Arbon to Konstanz Germany  – 39km

Rain was gone in am and the sun was out. We rode around town. Beautifully restored old buildings. Some from the 1300s.

We bike west along the lake through Romanshorn on our way to Konstanz in Germany.
For most of this stretch, the path was away from the lake.
The path was along the shore in Romanshorn. We stopped for lunch and ate on a bench overlooking the lake.

We cross the border into Germany without any checking.
We find a hotel in the center of Konstanz – Graf Zepplin
It is an old hotel – beautiful on the outside, but faded on the inside.

The first room they gave us had no lamps and the windows wouldn’t open.
We complained and got a better room.
We had a great meal at a Brauhaus – Joh. Albrecht. They brew their own beer.
They were selling a meter of beer – 9 glasses of beer (300ml each) on a meter long wooden plank.
Talked to our daughter & granddaughter (3yrs old) by pay phone. No cell phone!
Great to catch up.

6 September 2002 –  Konstanz to Tuttlingen – 50km

There was rain overnight. We seem to be lucky with the timing of the rain. The bikes were locked in a secure place which had no roof. Fortunately we had covered the seats using milk bags!
Today we head north to the Danube River. After looking at train schedule, we decide to bike to Singen where we can get a direct train.
We first had to cross the Rhine river. There was pedestrian/bike bridge with a spiral ramp to get onto it.

Another sunny day. We bike onto Reichenau Island which joined to the mainland by a causeway. Intensive market gardening on the island.

We ride west along the Untersee part of Lake Constance. Stopped at a cafe for lunch in Allensbach.

From Radolfzell we head away from the lake west to Singen. We walk around Singen for half an hour then catch the train for a short 23 minute journey to Tuttlingen on the Danube.
We find a nice hotel and go to a Greek restaurant and got stuffed on great food!

7 September 2002 –  Tuttlingen to Sigmaringen- 50km

Great breakfast. Tuttlingen is a city of 35,000. There are 600 factories in the area which produce 50% of the world’s surgical instruments.
Down the pedestrian street from the hotel is the main square. Today is Saturday and there are a number of artisans working around the square.

The Danube is not so mighty here near its source.

The path today was mostly hard packed crushed stone. Very good. The path went away from the river quite often, so there were a few hills. We went through a number of picturesque towns.

Met a German couple in Muhlheim. They had stayed at the some hotel as us in Tuttlingen.

We find the Gasthof Donau in Sigmaringen

We have a great meal in the Gasthof – sauerbraten for me and schnitzel for Judy. The German couple we had met before came in and joined us – talked until midnight!

8 September 2002 –  Sigmaringen to Munderkingen – 60km

Last night it rained, but today is another sunny day. Rode around Sigmaringen.

Again a few hills along the Danube. Stopped for lunch in Riedlingen. Had kebaps.
After 60km we decide to stop in Munderkingen. It is a small city but we find the Gasthof Rose and decide to stay. Only 39 Euros, as the room did not have a private bathroom. That was no problem as we were the only guests!

We walked into town and had a great Italian meal.

9 September 2002 –  Munderkingen to Ulm – 52km

Another clear warm day. Quiet ride along the now flat Danube.

Couldn’t find a grocery store or restaurant open in Ehingen, so carried on and found a restaurant in Erbach.

Hotels in Ulm were expensive so went across river to Neu-Ulm.
The reasonable ones were booked.
So, back into Ulm and got into Am Ratskeller