The Schlogen Loop

I awake early and momentarily wonder where I am, which is a slightly surreal experience. The effects of last night's asparagus have now fortunately passed and we leave early again for another full day in the saddle. You know you're in true cycling country when the vending machines sell a different form of rubber - inner tubes of various sizes. The scenery is truly beautiful with steep sided wooded hills tumbling into the Danube, like Norwegian fjords. We reach the Schlogen Loop, a particularly beautiful location where the Danube meanders almost back on itself and take a ferry across to the other side. It only takes bikes as there are no roads in this section. After a little while we reach our 8th country, Germany, and soon enter the beautiful city of Passau at the confluence of three rivers; the Danube, Ilz and Inn. This is a haven for the big cruise boats that plough up and down the Danube with their cargo of strabismic sightseers. We are amused to see that one of the boat companies goes by the name of Wurm and Koch. Passau is likened to Venice and there is an Italian feel to the town and we eat pizza and more asparagus in a shady courtyard, before crashing into bed with our customary exhaustion. I hope I remember where I am when I wake up tomorrow. (Linz to Passau - 61.5 miles)