Bringing Alonzo Home - Part 1

Sonja: The morning was occupied with picking up the driver's license (it only took 8 weeks to process) at the overcrowded Führerscheinstelle in Leverkusen. Finally high noon I got to hit the road South.

First plans to travel through the Eifel were crossed by torrential rainfalls and thunder storms. It hadn't rained in four weeks, but I was pissed on only half an hour into my trip, so I donned my rain gear and changed my route and meandered along the river Rhine hoping for weather improvement.

 Castle Arenfels

Source - Castles galore along the Rhine

My TomTom Rider was programmed only to take twisty byways, which turned out to be a very nice feature, and so I got to see a lot of scenery and castles that must mostly remain nameless as I was passing by and too lazy too look them all up.

I was already past Koblenz when the rain finally stopped. I had a pucker moment just there while negotiating a wide turn, and the rear wheel lost traction several times. I suspect there must have been a diesel spill that must have added to the road's slipperiness.

The sky was grey at St. Goar but I welcomed the dry tarmac, and the empty roads. The castle on the right might be Maus (mouse), or was it Katz (cat)?

Near Kaub lies Zollburg Pfalsgrafenstein smack in the middle of the river on an island.

Downtown Bacharach

I overnighted in Bingen at a tiny Bed&Breakfast that offered vehicle storage in the backyard. Here's my humble abode. It was bigger than expected, and quite modern except for the pink (!) tiles in the bathroom (Bob would have liked it, I am sure.)

Where is Alonzo?

I strolled through the city and climbed up the stairs to Burg Klopp, who are known for their exceptional cuisine.

Waiting for supper and enjoying the view with a virgin cocktail. What would a journey be without the culinary experience? There was nothing specific on the menu but I ordered bits and pieces from different dishes, and the chef prepared it perfectly.

This bridge with its seven arches was built in the 11. century crossing river Nahe. It is the oldest medieval bridge in Germany and still fully functional and used by everyday traffic.

Nahe - Rhine conflux.

 Bingen from above.

From this vantage point strong memories of our travels along the Columbia River back in 2011 came up. I certainly miss Oregon...

Imagine the river sans ship traffic and castles, and there you have Columbia River gorge. I believe we even traveled through a smalltown named Bingen back then.

The Mouse Tower below with Ehrenfels Castle in the background. There is a legend around the Mouse Tower where a cruel arch bishop was eaten up by mice in revenge for letting people starve and die.

This first day covered about 220km on byways, with 4 hours riding plus 1 hour wasted on taking shelter from the rainfalls, hail and thunderstorms.

To be continued...