Along the Rhine

Summer has arrived in Germany (officially with schools out and working folks off).

So, one of the more practical ways of wasting summer time will be leisurely walks or biking tours.

This area is on the south side of the Rhine in Mainz....near the bridge. If you sit there under the shade for an hour, you probably will observe at least hundred bicyclists and two-hundred walkers making tour through Mainz.

Various trails are laid out and you could bike or hike 30 kilometers in one single day very easily, and return by bus or train to the starting point.

These signs are one of the positive things about Germany today.  Thirty years ago....you rarely saw such signs.  City planners have worked these into the trail system and it helps.

The positive of this choice along the Rhine? Well....it's mostly all flat.  I realize that some folks are begging for hills and steep valleys....but there is something to appreciate about just plain flat surface and straight paths that just barely drift to the left and right.

The one negative is that you don't come across too many pubs or refreshment points.  You kinda have to plan ahead....go a mile off-course....to find a place with ice-cream or a refreshing German apfelwein.

The last picture?  The north side of the Rhine....heading west toward Wiesbaden.

One added note, which an American might appreciate...is that you could ride for an entire day and never be in some region or area that you might fear, or worry about crime.

Even in the most rural of areas along the Rhine, you are at best ten minutes away from civilization, a cold beer, and a comfortable place to chill out.