So, a "technical failure" stopped us for 10 minutes or so, and from then onwards, difficulties started to accumulate. In the end, we reached Hannover about 45 minutes late, and the envisaged ICE connection, along with its bicycle reservation, and despite its own delay, was gone.
Kreiensen - Hannover: 69 km (today 112 km so far)
38/n
At this point, with DB, you have some options, but one thing is certain : they will not provide one for you. One option is to try, by brute force, to get yourself with your bicycle in one of the many trains, ICE or not, most of them delayed, from Hannover to Köln. The success of that strategy will depend on space in those trains, and also on the goodwill of the train staff, in combination with your diplomatic capacities.
I opted on using my phone's capacity and a fair bit of experience to try and reserve a new bicycle space in a later ICE, paying an additional 15€ and being of course dependent on space in that train. Luckily, this worked and I am now somewhat confident to make it to Köln and hopefully also Bonn tonight. But in my opinion, I should not have had to pay for that new reservation.
39/n
That ICE left only about 30 minutes late, and it had all bicycle racks empty. But would they have let me travel without the new 15€ reservation? Don't place your bets on it!
And the weird thing is, for you as a human, you are allowed to squeeze into a later train, if a DB-mess has made you miss your connection. But for your bicycle, that does not apply. What's the logic for that?
40/n
We reached Köln with about 40 minutes delay, as far as this initially-not-planned ICE was concerned (more than that compared to my original schedule).
Hannover - Köln: 296 km (today 408 km so far).
, and I caught a late night (not even the very latest) RB to Bonn. Overall delay against the plan 2 hours and 15 minutes. But on the positive side, I reached my intended destination, Bonn Hbf!
Köln - Bonn: 34 km (today 442 km in total)
41/n
No bicycle today but a short and nice trip by train to the Ahrtal, site of the major flood disaster in 2021. Regional train from Bonn to Walporzheim, the current terminus of the line destroyed at the time.
Bonn Hbf - Walporzheim: 36 km
42/n
A pleasant 3 hours stroll around the hills near Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, still a lot of flood damage visible.
43/n
Travelling back to Bonn by regional train from Bad Neuenahr to Bonn, in the rain along the Rhine with its very low water level.
Bad Neuenahr - Bonn Hbf: 31 km (total today 67 km).
The two regios today would have transported the bicycle easily, but I did not need it.
44/n
Today, if all goes well, no trains, only bicycle, heading South under a grey sky, on the Rheinradweg to Bacharach.
45/n
Passing the famous Remagen Bridge ruin, and the mouth of the Ahr river, I am making good progress on the excellent Rheinradweg today, low traffic, only mild headwind.
46/n
Koblenz, and then just some views from pedaling along the Rhine. This is easy going, and there was not much traffic (we are off-season after all).
47/n
The end of a 124 km ride, at Burg Stahleck, a classical German youth hostel, high above the river and also the Rheinradweg.
This should give you the track of today https://bkrtr.de/B3n7r (I deleted the very first km or so)
48/n
Today's plan is to continue the Rheinradweg "uphill" as far as I can comfortably do, and then hop on a train to Offenburg.
Will continue to navigate with OsmAnd~ which has again worked really well yesterday.
49/n
Bacharach: I was too tired to climb down from my castle to explore it last night, and am too keen to continue the ride this morning.
50/n
This is what I call serious rail infrastructure, 3 tracks here and 2 on the other side of the river. Hardly any trains though, today, because of maintenance work further north.
51/n
The bicycle tracks are mostly well-indicated on the ground, but the GPS helps, in certain situations, especially when you feel like deviating from the main direction for a while.
52/n
Rolling along the Rhine in the morning sun, peacefully, mostly the other traffic is on the water.
53/n
First time I see this, it seems to be a nudge such as to make everyone aware that there could be high-speed commuters here. I rather like the idea, although when I came through here, there was nobody else. Seen in Bingen.
54/n
Reaching Bingen in this way (from the North) means crossing the Nahe river, only meters from its end, and also saying goodbye to the hills of the Rheinisches Schiefergebirge (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhenish_Massif). Now the rest will be flat.
55/n
Interesting, variable and generally pleasant cycling towards Mainz.
Of Mainz itself, I have no photos. Clearly, the city of Mainz HATES anyone on a bicycle: the paths, at least on the EV15 from the west are downright dangerous, and without the GPS I would not have found the crucial turn towards safer places on the Adenauer-Ufer. I advise to take great care here, or best avoid Mainz altogether.
56/n
Crossing the Rhine into Hessen brought more peaceful moments. Much of the time, you follow the dykes, without much view on the river, but splendid biodiversity of all types. What's fascinating is that you are given the choice between Autobahn-grade tarmac below the dyke or beautiful fine gravel through the grass on the dyke. Mostly, I preferred the latter - if you pay attention, you don't make less speed (with my forces) there, you see more of the landscape and you enjoy the flowers.
57/n
This kind of signposting is a little confusing - the EV15 goes in three different directions? On the autobahn, every single detail is indicated with high precision, but for a European bicycle route, I would expect just a tiny bit of more and coherent information.
58/n
I have cycled 106 km today, so far, and feel full of energy - can't say the same of that ruin in the background (which we are a lot who tried to stop it from being built in the first place, decades ago).
59/n
Crossing the Rhine again, over the curious Nibelungenbrücke, with its dual bicycle path and an interesting passage through its main structural tower. Arrival at Worms Hbf comfortably, after another 120 km really nice cycling.
The track of today: https://bkrtr.de/jFYVd
So I have done the planned about 240 km of the Rheinradweg, in two days, and I can really only recommend it to anyone else.
60/n
For the concluding part of this trip, I need some trains again - two this evening and a bunch more tomorrow.
First a regio from Worms to Karlsruhe, virtually on time, a good number of people and no stress at all.
Worms - Karlsruhe: 92 km
61/n
The second and last regio for today, from Karlsruhe to Offenburg. On time, not a lot of people, much bicycle space. But quite a lot of stairs to climb inside the train.
On-time arrival in Offenburg and end of the day.
Karlsruhe - Offenburg: 69 km (total today 161 km)
62/n
The last day of the trip! Since it depended only on me whether I reach the station on time, and I thus would be unlikely to miss it, I had booked an ICE to Basel this morning. Coming all the way from Berlin, it nonetheless arrived on time in Offenburg (despite the nightjet from Amsterdam, nearly three hours late, that came through just before).
63/n
Sometimes, just when you think you might have an on-time arrival somewhere today, the train stops just outside the station - but we were only few minutes late in Basel SBB.
Offenburg - Basel SBB: 124 km
Although there was really no time, theoretically, to reach the fastest connection from here, I gave it a try and went towards the platform. Remarkably for Switzerland, the 8:55 regio towards Bern was delayed and also on a different platform, but I made it. Always worth checking whether a "connecting" train is really gone!
No compulsory bike reservation on this train and mine is the only bicycle in a space for 8.
64/n
On this connection, it would have been convenient to change in Bern only, but clearly, I would miss that one, leading to a longer layover in Geneva. So I opt for a change in Olten, where SBB actually that the IC to Lausanne would briefly wait for us. This one has compulsory reservation (for a slightly more awkward placement), and today I even manage to get one for 2CHF.
This implies an additional change in Renens but leaves the chance open for the Geneva-Lyon 12:25, otherwise impossible.
Basel SBB - Olten: 38 km (today 162 km so far)
65/n
Catching up comfortably, along the Swiss lakes, first Biel then Neuchâtel, to a station I had not heard about earlier, Renens VD, just in the outskirts of Lausanne. Another quick change (with good ramps) to the train for Geneva.
Olten - Renens VD: 160 km (today 322 km so far)
66/n
In Renens VD, all bicycle travellers changed for the Geneva train, with the same facilities as the Basel-Olten this morning. Non-stop ride to Geneva, arriving even a bit early.
Renens VD - Geneva: 56 km (today 378 km so far)
67/n
Not wanting to dwell on clichés, but I now have proof that, after punctuality, cleanliness rates high in Switzerland, even in the French sector of Geneva Cornavin station.
68/n
Oddly, our battered TER to Lyon gets to leave before the TGV to Paris which will have to follow us for half an hour, until Bellegarde. No bicycle reservation required nor possible.
69/n
Along the Rhône near Seyssel-Corbonod. We cycled here, along the Viarhona, some years ago.
70/n
Arrival in Lyon Part-Dieu, even a few minutes early.
Geneva - Lyon Part-Dieu: 163 km (today 540 km so far)
In Lyon, I tried my super high-level SNCF grand voyageur le club what-have-you card to take a short break in their "salon grand voyageur" - but that was of course naive. They only want briefcases, not someone's beautiful bike at the entrance, "for security reasons". Shame on you for rejecting me, and shame also for giving me such a ridiculous reason.
71/n
Quite a mess on the platform at Lyon Part-Dieu, managing technical failures with TGVs, but my TER to Valence Ville leaves on time, with lots of people and bicycles in it. Reservations? Mine is for the later one, and I seriously doubt they could check (see the exchange with @cyclotopie near the beginning of this 🧵).
72/n
All went well until St Rambert d'Albon where we stopped for one of those "signalling failures", making us loose 25 minutes and miss the chance to connect easily in Valence Ville.
Lyon Part-Dieu - Valence Ville: 107 km (total rail travel today 647 km, for the entire trip 2536 km)
73/n
Now in Valence Ville, I had 2 options: wait for the next train in just over an hour (not too bad), or else try the bus 17:15. The train would have been easy, the bus wins by about 45 minutes on arrival. But we are in AURA, and taking a bus requires true expert knowledge ... it's an SNCF bus, not an AURA bus, so the lady in the bus terminal officially does not know it. But sncf-connect does not know it either, the only reliable info is on the DB app. To complicate matters, two buses leave at the same time in the same direction, but with different stops - and the tickets can't be interchanged. Anyway, reluctantly, the SNCF driver accepted both my bicycle and my interrail ticket, none of which were certain - and I was on my way to Die.
74/n
Reaching my final destination which was also my point of departure, about half an hour earlier than I would have by train.
76/n
To conclude:
a) travel by bicycle and train through Europe is possible,
b) it requires some preparations, though, and then some skills in managing risk,
c) it could be made a lot easier and more popular if European policymakers seriously wanted to decarbonize the transport sector.
I enjoyed the entire journey and ended up doing everything I wanted to do.
My main specific choices were,
- to accept (whether I like it or not) that the smartphone is an essential tool (but you need a power bank along with it),
- to buy an interrail ticket (4 days in a month), this may or may not have been the cheapest option, but it provides some flexibility,
- to navigate google-free, that is with OsmAnd~ (the free version, from https://f-droid.org/en/packages/net.osmand.plus/),
- to sleep, when needed, in youth hostels (interesting places, good value for money),
- to make sure the bicycle is not too heavy (ruling out any e-bike).
Thanks for following so far - will try to answer any questions that might come up (and I have some more projects like this next month).
77/77
Wolfgang Cramer
Marco Tullney