The train out of Germany

After leaving Hamburg, we took a train to Schwerin, which looked like it would be a nice place to start riding again. We weren’t wrong. The ride started by passing underneath an old castle perched beside a lake, then quickly gave way to quiet forests decorated with their fall colours. For 4 days we passed by more forest, picturesque old villages, and calm lakes.  On the 4^th day it became apparent that my sore knee was not actually any better and, even worse, my other knee was acting up too. So, we changed plans again and decided to head back to the train station, this time to jump ahead all the way to Poland.

We ended up hardly riding any of Germany, only 259 kilometers.  Pressures from our Schengen Visa timeline and the cost of accommodation forced us to move on to better place to find a solution to the knee issue, somewhere cheaper and further down the road.  I think that the section we did get to ride was one of the nicest along our planned route. Highlights included quiet roads, bike trails through National Parks, and a wonderful stay with a couple from Warm Showers who took us in, fed us and spoiled us for a night. Low points included struggling with my bad knees and the fact that it rained on us every single day. I guess that’s what we get for visiting Northern Germany in November?  We’ll have to go back to Germany someday to fully enjoy the country.  The roads between Schwerin and the train station in Furstenberg were some of the most enjoyable cycling of the trip.

Germany Round up:

ODO Start:  1368

ODO Finish:  1627

Km pedaled:  259

Km by train:  553

Train Connections: 5

Train connections missed:  1

Days in country:  11

Days of rain: 11

Nights camped:  3

Hospital visits: 1... due to an infected pinky toe! :( 

Days of bed rest prescribed: 5-7

Days of bed rest taken before getting too restless to sit still: 3

Furthest ridden in a day:  76km

Most popular attraction in all of Germany according to Trip Advisor:  Miniature World

Christmas Markets: 1

Other Cycle Tourers encountered: 1 ( A Japanese guy, heading to Berlin to hibernate for the winter.)

Biggest money suck:  German Bakeries. Mmmmmmm pastries!