9. The Return of the Crazy Dreamers

Morning all.

Well the Crazy Dreamers are now safely back in Blighty.

We were on the road from anything from ten to twelve hours a day- about six to seven of them were spent cycling and the rest were given over to eating, sheltering from the rain, and trying to find signposts- particularly on the Upper Rhine- the signs got a lot better in Austria.

After having got up at between half past five and six, left the campsite [ or bijou railway bridge], between eight and nine, cycled and sheltered for 10/12 hours, set up tents and found something to eat, there really wasn't any time for finding internet connections or anything. Huge thanks and gratitude to Anthea for keeping the blog going- a very noble effort.

We did 830 miles in sixteen days- the most we did in one day was nearly sixty nine miles, and the least was ten miles. However, that was the day when we accepted that the total distance would be about 1000 miles so we had to catch a train to make sure that we would be in Vienna in time.

We reckoned that it rained for about 50% of the time and there wasn't a twenty four hour period that didn't have rain. Despite this, it was a very enjoyable experience and none of us regret a minute of it- that is except for the night where it had been raining for 12 hours, my tent leaked and therefore I was being dripped on from the inside, and the rain showed no sign of abating- I must admit that the spirit flagged a little but only for a short time.

Luckily the two best days were when Anthea and Hilary flew over and we had a great time walking around Vienna.

This is just a short entry to say that we are back and that over the next week or so we'll sort out the photos and try to give a flavour of each day.

Thankyou to all of you who have left comments- I'm sure that would have been beyond me.

We all kept remarkedly healthy, if damp, and I am sure that this is in no short measure due to the 'Assos' cream that Jim Harmer recommended to me. As I put in a postcard to the Harmers

Assos to Assos

Dust to dust

If the cycling don't get you

The chafing must.

But in reality it didn't.

Will blog soon.

Ignore the tent at the very back. Here you have Big Bear [ at the back], Mother Bear- at the front, and Baby Bear safely tucked in in the middle.

Even by our standards the first Sunday was a very, very, very wet day. Here we are outside Xanten after reaching a low point by sheltering in a Netto entrance. We just couldn't find a Waitrose.

Photo to show two things- a] the sun did shine, and b] these are beers to celebrate getting to Passau.

Important landmark- 800 miles cycled.

Equally important- the triumphant entry into Vienna. I've photoshopped out the cheering crowds, the podium lined with civic dignitaries and the marching bands who were all there to meet us.

More photos and details to follow.