Sunday 22nd September 2019

Luttingen - Kembs (France)

80kms

Before I recount the activities of today, I feel obliged to comment on the accommodation we stayed in last night. We have always maintained that wherever we have stayed, in whatever country, the greeting has always been the most telling thing. The spoken language doesn't matter but the body language and the tone of the greeting, most certainly does. With a warm and genuine greeting, almost any hotel, hostel, b&b or campsite can be relied upon to provide a pleasant experience. Should you find yourself in Luttingen the Kranz hotel is the place to stay as it is a fine example of what I have just outlined.

Here we go with comments on today after a very fine breakfast. The weather continues to hold although I overdid the extra layers this morning and worked my way into a great lather by coffee stop time.

 (In all the excitement I have forgotten to mention our companion of last evening. Another cyclist, a lady, with some years of experience, who hailed from Gap and was keen to extol the virtues of mountain living. We have an open invitation to bike or ski but at a level, methinks, we would be unable to meet.)

Onward with today; the highlight, if such it could be called, was the traverse of Basel. Having visited some very pretty villages and the longest covered bridge in Europe (think that is accurate), Basel was on another planet. It also kept running further away - initially 45 kms to eventually over 60! The approach was something of a bum burner bouncing along stony and dusty tracks so when our route wound it's way up, down, through and over, we were unimpressed. Nonetheless, we did emerge the other side only  slightly bruised and battered. 

Our way now, and over the next few days appears to follow a canal and is thus expected to be flat with lots of bouncing. Extra padding required!

Not as many power assisted bikes around today, only about half of the total, but when my bum hurts and I am chewing dust, I can barely bring myself to greet these usurpers even as I acknowledge that I will no doubt join their ranks at some time in the future.

Here's to the future!

Roman amphitheatre Basel