Only a 27k bike ride today from Speyer to Mannheim. Very minimal elevation especially as we are going down stream.
Today, Jen was able to join us on the bike ride. We thought we would see how she faired as we didn’t want all the abrasions on her leg to re-open. She has been a real trooper with it and we are seeing the full damage now as the all the bruising is starting to appear. It is a very good thing that she is on an e-bike.
Like yesterday, we were fortunate enough to be able to drop off at a small beach on the edge of a billabong in the Rhine River where we chucked on the cozzies and went for a swim. It was only 10.30am in the morning yet we felt that we desperately needed a dip. The one big blessing with this hot weather is  that it is not humid. Had it been humid, we would not have been biking.
Part of today’s ride included catching a small car ferry across the Rhine River. We pedalled like crazy to catch the ferry as we could see it was getting ready to leave and almost leap frogged onto it just as it pulled away from the bank.
The distance it had to cover was very small but the current it had to battle was immense. The captain had obviously crossed the river many times and he crabbed across at a 90 degree angle having gunned the engines and then looked like he was going to smash into the concrete walls on the other side.
It gave us a very good understanding as to just how mighty the flow of the river was and you can just about make it out in this short clip that we managed to capture. It all happened so quickly plus we were trying to pay the ferryman and keep upright on our feet and supporting our bikes all at the same time. Before the ferry came close to a stop, all the locals were set up at the starting blocks revving their engines and sparring for the poll position.
We then cycled through some very industrial areas and even passed a coal burning power station. By now we were on the outskirts of Mannheim. This area is distinguished by its history of invention, giving birth to chemical giant BASF, and providing the stage for Carl Benz to create the first automobile. We seemed to spend a lot of the day seeking out places in the shade where we could get a cold drink.
Fraser gave all of us a great chuckle as he was relaxed at one of our watering spots and seemed to look just like one of those 1980’s aerobics teachers with the cool headband.
We got back to our cabin to find this rather confusing character who we quickly ripped to shreds as this gave us an extra towel to wring out our washing. You become very inventive with your washing when you travel and we have such a lot we have to do each evening as we have to wash all our clothes that we have worn each day. Normally you can make your clothes last at least two days but not when biking and especially not when travelling in this kind of heat.
After a cold shower and a load of washed laundry littered around our cabin, we went upstairs for our afternoon coffee and cake. We are definitely not losing weight on this trip. Due to it being so warm, they have put together a beautiful display of ice cream which we are appalled to say was rudely devoured by our fellow travelling companions. There was some semblance of queueing but definite FOMO behaviour evident and this was from a group of people with an average age of 65 years – so sad to see. There was more than plenty to go around. Goodness knows what the staff thought of these plebs.
This is the first photo we have managed to get of the eight of us which was taken last night whilst we were upstairs playing Five Crowns which has become our go-to evening activity. We only manage to get one round in before we all disappear to our cabin around 9.30pm – yeap, definitely in an older travelling bracket now.
Steps 5,975
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