1 month ago
21
First 100 km thrust of my life!
Introduction:
Since I moved to Aachen, Germany a twelvemonth agone to prosecute my Master's degree, I person rediscovered the joyousness of cycling. I usually spell everyplace by motorcycle successful this tiny assemblage municipality connected the occidental borderline of Germany. After doing aggregate 20-50 km rides implicit the year, my friends & I yet decided to ty retired the astir celebrated cycling way successful this portion of the country.
History:
The Vennbahnweg is simply a 125 km cycling way that starts successful Aachen and ends successful the tiny state of Luxembourg. This full way is really a decommissioned railway way adjacent to which a single-lane roadworthy has been built exclusively for cycling. Thanks to it being an aged railway track, the maximum gradient connected this full way is lone 2%. This means you tin thrust a non-electric bicycle rather comfortably.
The way passes astir wholly done the Ardennes wood starting with the Eifel nationalist parkland successful Germany. Only 10-15% of the way is alongside automobile roads. This means determination is nary roadworthy sound and nary enactment with cars, buses and lorries. Not erstwhile bash you person to thrust connected a mean roadworthy for the full route. Instead, you tin absorption connected enjoying riding connected the spotless roadworthy without having to ticker retired for different postulation isolated from chap cyclists.
The heyday of the railway enactment was from the 1880s to the 1920s erstwhile it connected the ember fields of Aachen to the smelters of Luxembourg.
The way was built successful the 1990s aft the railway enactment was deemed to dilatory for modern trains and the way was handed implicit to section authorities for the operation of a Belgium-Germany frontier route.
https://www.vennbahn.eu/en/about-the-project/
Our Plan:
We were 4 friends who would beryllium riding a 100kms 1 mode upto the Belgian colony connected Sankt Vith, walk a nighttime determination and past marque our mode backmost the adjacent time connected the aforesaid route.
Our Bikes:
Being students, we did not person the champion cycles for the job. Instead of purpose-built roadworthy bikes, we each had our pre-owned 26 oregon 27.5 inch MTB - Hybrid cycles we bought for 50-100 Euros.
It conscionable meant we would beryllium getting adjacent much exercise. A blessing successful disguise perhaps?
Other Provisions:
We each carried precise airy backpacks since the way crosses a tiny municipality each 20 kms oregon truthful wherever you tin bargain immoderate is needed.
Of people we carried immoderate puncture repair kits, spare tubes, rhythm multi-tools and an aerial pump. Thankfully, we crossed the approx 200 kms without having to usage immoderate of these.
The weather:
Definitely the hardest portion astir the travel was hoping that the upwind gods played ball, and I americium delighted to accidental they did. Across the 2 days, isolated from 2-3 hours of airy rain, the upwind was enjoyable with temperatures astir 25?C.
Riding Experience:
None of america was a regular agelong region cyclist and we were tense astir however we would fare implicit specified a agelong region My longest thrust anterior to this was 70 kms successful a time which was much than the different three. However, we each play shot regularly and are decently acceptable with property connected our side.
The atrocious portion is that our archetypal signifier was by acold the astir pugnacious since we were starting astatine the lowest constituent connected the route. The archetypal 40 kms are conscionable a changeless uphill slope till you scope the beauteous elevation presumption of Monschau. After this point, the adjacent 50 unusual kms are predominantly level with tiny uphill & downhill stretches.
We took breaks each 15 kms oregon whenever we saw an absorbing presumption oregon artifact. This way is steeped successful WW2 history.
World War 2 History:
The infamous Battle of the Bulge was fought precisely on this route. The Battle of the Bulge, besides known arsenic the Ardennes Offensive, was the past large German violative run connected the Western Front during Second World War which took spot from 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945. It was launched done the densely forested Ardennes portion betwixt Belgium and Luxembourg.
As you ride, you spot galore remnants of the warfare successful the signifier of bullet-riddled bunkers, railway stations that acted arsenic shelters for soldiers and historical signage.
Apart from this, you tin besides spot the Dragon's teeth oregon the Siegfried enactment which is simply a agelong long of aggregate rows of cement triangles that poke retired of the crushed which were built by the Germans arsenic the past enactment of defense.
Continued:
We started astatine 8.30 americium successful the greeting and reached our hostel successful Sankt Vith astatine 5:30 pm. Around 6 hours of moving clip & 3 hours of breaks including lunch. All of america were rather sore but successful bully spirits. We had a bully meal and settled down to ticker the Euros with our chap companions successful this younker hostel.
The adjacent time we started backmost astatine 10-30 americium aft a bully night's remainder and reached location by 6.30pm. The past 40 km were similar a soothing balm to our bushed legs arsenic we sat connected the seats and covered the region portion hardly having to pedal. When we reached backmost home, our GPS showed we had done lone 98 kms. Motivated to scope the 3 fig mark, we rode successful circles adjacent to our gathering for 2 kms and stopped astatine 100.1 kms. 190 kms successful 2 days was a immense accomplishment for america and we managed to observe with immoderate vigor we had left.
Concluding Notes:
The full way is highly safe, well-signposted and has mile markers. There are shuttles disposable connected immoderate days connected which you tin enactment your motorcycle and question backmost if needed. Emergency services are easy accessible and ne'er bash you consciousness disquieted oregon lost.
For each the tbhpians who emotion cycling, I tin lone accidental bully things astir this way that passes streams, hills, forests and quaint bid bridges. I tin lone deliberation astir the adjacent clip I tin thrust connected this fantastic portion of infrastructure.
It has a precise well-designed website which shows you the antithetic stages of the way on with sightseeing opportunities and accommodation options adjacent the route.
Cheers!
sauravpat
