You weren’t kidding Ben, this place is a fairy tale.
Summary of the last 2 days. Had a nice breakfast at a fairly upscale French place on the way out of Prague. The omelette was great. The pistachio cheesecake was divine.
Outside of Prague, Czechia has been mostly pretty rural interspersed with some small but beautiful forests and a little bit of river riding. Also quite hilly compared to the the rest of this trip so far. Probably 4000 to 5000 feet on each of the last 2 days.
Mostly gone are the castles and other visible signs of history that were so common in Germany. However, strangely, each village seems to have one and only one really old stone building. I have yet to stop and take a picture of one so you’ll have to take my word for that.
Middle of the day yesterday I passed a cyclist and we exchanged some pleasantries and were on our different ways. Turns out, I was going the wrong freaking direction so caught back up to this rider and we rode together.
Philipp is 34 and just completed a PhD in comparative literature in Berlin. He is *moving* back to Vienna, his stuff sent in the mail and with friends and himself on a bike, with a likely detour through Italy. Lovely guy, currently 4 feet away from me in his tent. it is really nice to ride and chat with someone, makes the day more fun and go quicker.
It also doesn’t hurt that he rides with a garmin and some routing skills so we have been on track without exception for a day and a half. I am getting one of these things. Google maps sucks.
Yesterday I asked if I could tag along with Philipp to the *structure* he was planning to sleep at, but there was bridge construction so we couldn’t get there. Checked on the closest and only camping option which was full. The owner explained in broken English and much gesturing that we could camp in a grassy field by a restaurant right next door as long as we ate or drank at the place. We did camp but not the eating or drinking part. It was actually a lovely night as described in yesterdays post.
Woke up to a very intense fog and another flat! There is definitely something wrong with my rear tire. I am 100% sure I’ll wake up to another one tomorrow.
Today we had lunch in the town square of Ceske Budejovice which is gorgeous and had no tourists at all.
Two hours later we arrive at Český Krumlov. This place is a little unbelievable. It’s a small city surrounded by mountains with the river running though it. I don’t want to sound trite but it looks like something out of a Disney movie. Tiny cobblestone streets, beautiful old buildings, TONS of tourists. Still totally worth the visit. And the ice cream didn’t hurt either.
Campground tonight is very full and festive. Must be 300 tents here. Haven’t stayed anywhere like this yet. the good news is the riding has been so tough I’ll sleep despite the noise.
Tomorrow is my last day in Czechia and I’ll be arriving at the Danube, the home stretch of this ride. May not start in Passau as planned, but will start near it.
The food looks delicious. Happy you’re riding with someone who knows where he’s going. You have a birthday coming up. A garment would be a nice gift. Surprised you don’t have on with as much biking you do. . Again beautiful photos. It looks like storybook buildings.
Make that a Garmin. I hate spell check.
Looks beautiful. Praying to the tire Gods that you have less of those flats. Enjoy your last stretch in Czechia.
Wow! That actually better than Disney!
Hoping for no more flats! Cool
You have a riding partner for a bit.
Wow! Český Krumlov looks incredible. And the food too! Glad to hear you found some good riding company and that the weather seems to be good!
I’m so glad you made it! My experience there was marked by incredibly cheap Pilsners at a local brewery, swimming in the local river and then unfortunately overdoing the local Absinthe in a typically ham-handed Canadian way and winding up unconscious face-down in a hostel bathroom stall. But such is youth!
That’s hilarious. Thank for the tip. Totally worth the punishing climbs to get there and away.
Hey Chad, It’s awesome to hear you have more company to socialize with while riding. It’s keeping the rain away, I’m certain!
I’m also curious to know if there is a problem with your bike that’s causing excessive flat tires, or if the riding conditions leave most riders prone to regular flats? You certainly seem well skilled and resourced to be able to tackle this frustration, so good on you!
Keep on Keepin’ on!
Iain
The tire is shot. Simple as that.