Gone are the days of practice rides to prepare for the trip. In the past, we use to carry books in our panniers to simulate our travel loads. We read up on our destination till we can visually replay them in our minds. Now 2 weeks before the trip, we did not even know which bikes to bring, what weather conditions to expect and what towns to stay in. Hopefully, the cycling Gods will not be too hard on us!

The Danube bikeway starts in Germany and goes all the way to Budapest. We are riding only part of this route from Passau, Germany to Vienna, Austria. In this direction, it is technically a slight downhill with the backwinds pushing us. Estimated distance between these 2 points is roughly over 200+ miles. Expected riding days, 6 to 7 days.

The Danube bikeway was originally used by horses to pull barges and ships along the Danube River. As a major commerce route in the olden days, it was used as a source of income for kings and barons. They would build fortified castles along the river route and collect tolls for any ship or barge passing thru.

So sit back and relax as we ride the Danube. Remember that if we can ride it, so can you.