Monday 22 August 2011

Day 1: Salzburg - Mondsee - Unterach am Attersee (45km)


As the bikes couldn't be delivered in the morning, Charlie, Penny and I went ahead to get her all sorted. And with a baby carseat strapped firmly into one of the two seater trailer spaces, it was a very good solution. And the bikes were very sturdy ... a relief on both fronts!



So everybody else then arrived and we all got sorted out, with seats adjusted, panniers filled and sunscreen a plenty. After a slight false start, a kind Austrian lady led us to the start of the bike trail in her car, and we were off.

The first stretch was tiring, due to the heat (our holiday co-incided with an Austrian heatwave) and in my case, my leg muscles saying 'what the hell are you doing to me'?

The countryside was green, each house traditional and pristine with sumptuous windowboxes. And the wind rushing past your ears is very liberating. And of course Charlie did masterfully well pulling his daughter across Austria.

After a stop for lunch, and some Calpol for Penny as her teeth were hurting, we went further on towards the lakes. Through green fields and downhill past the Drachewand (dragon wall) to Mondsee. We found a good spot where most people went in for a much needed refreshing swim, and Greg produced a delicious watermelon from somewhere.

Then on to Attersee, where unfortunately there had been a mix up with our hotel (they had 1 room booked instead of 6 ... eeep!). So we were whisked off to another hotel, where we had to dash out to dinner to ensure they were still serving food, and we were all keen to go out as it was Andrew's birthday. Penny was being amenable, until her TB jab burst, and we had to deal with a green pus filled bloody mess during the dashing.

So, tired but relieved to have a bed and food, we did Andrew's birthday quiz which some of us had compiled for him, and then gratefully went to bed.

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