Bike rides from the past couple of weeks

sarasphotos

We had the sunniest April on record and in spite of (because of?) Corona we got out for over 350km of bike rides in the area, mostly for 20-30km at a time but sometimes more.

This was two Sundays ago, 40km through the countryside east of us.
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These are from this past Sunday, when we rode 80km to Ammersee (a large Bavarian lake) and back
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8) As you can see, every family group was practicing social distancing...

9) the view from our picnic spot, the Alps barely visible through the haze

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Stumblebum

Wonderful set Sara! Very warm and happy mood! Love few of them but especially first one. I would check the horizon on that.....! Cheers!

sarasphotos

Thanks for taking the time to stop by and comment, Taz! ...about that horizon... if you look again, you'll see that the church tower and the roof lines are straight - it's the field in the foreground that's hilly and not straight. I think the illusion of crookedness also comes from the fact that I'm not photographing the church straight on but from an angle. Good eye!

Stumblebum

I think you might be right! Cheers Sara!

kdog

Beautiful photos of some beautiful countryside!! That looks like an amazing place to ride bikes.

sarasphotos

@kdog said:
Beautiful photos of some beautiful countryside!! That looks like an amazing place to ride bikes.

Thanks @kdog, we are incredibly fortunate/spoiled to live in an area with an immense infrastructure of bike routes, not to mention a culture of bike riders. And the scenery ain't bad, either. Sometimes the weather doesn't play along, but when it does, it's great. I try not to take it for granted.

black mamba

Outstanding work, Sara. I felt like I was on the ride with you.Thanks for having me along.

sarasphotos

@black mamba said:
Outstanding work, Sara. I felt like I was on the ride with you.Thanks for having me along.

Thanks a lot, Tom! Glad you enjoyed the ride.

black mamba

BTW, Sara, I meant to ask you about something. I notice you are riding on the narrow street tires, yet you also get on sand,dirt,little rock trails. I would assume that those trails on the street tires can get a little tiring. I expose my ignorance here because all my biking has been on wide tire equipment. My beach cruiser has really wide tires....dang near look like they came off of my truck. My other biking was on fairly large-tired, 21 speed mountain bikes. Brother, that was an endeavor I vacated quicker than a hound chasing a rabbit.

sarasphotos

@black mamba said:
BTW, Sara, I meant to ask you about something. I notice you are riding on the narrow street tires, yet you also get on sand,dirt,little rock trails. I would assume that those trails on the street tires can get a little tiring. I expose my ignorance here because all my biking has been on wide tire equipment. My beach cruiser has really wide tires....dang near look like they came off of my truck. My other biking was on fairly large-tired, 21 speed mountain bikes. Brother, that was an endeavor I vacated quicker than a hound chasing a rabbit.

Well Tom, "wide" is a relative term. Both of our e-bikes have 42-622 (28"x1.60") tires, that is much wider than a normal road (racing) bike tire which are somewhere between 1.10"-1.20" wide. You ride on fat tires so you know that the larger the tire, the more comfortable the ride. However what really makes a difference on those unpaved surfaces it the tire profile. You can see in the picture below (my bike charging up during our lunch break last week) that I've got a pretty good profile on my tires - as a matter of fact better than my partner's - and I have a much easier time than he on all of those gravely surfaces. On our non-electric bikes the tables are turned - I have the 28x1.60" and he has 26x2" with lots of profile, which means he does way better on the forest trails and gravely paths when we ride analog (shorter distances or flat rides).

One thing you might not be aware of is that here in Europe the most prevalent type of bike is called a "trekking bike" (what we ride) which is sort of a hybrid between a road bike, a mountain bike and a touring bike. It's what most people ride for everyday activities, shopping, commuting, etc. and also tours of all different lengths. Naturally they're available in all price classes, geometries and configurations. Of course there are also a huge number of mountain bikes and road bikes here, but many people who have a "specialty" bike also have a trekking bike for everyday activities.

Charging during the lunch break:

black mamba

Thanks very much for taking the time to provide such an informative follow-up. You guys stay safe out there.

Cornflake

I just saw these, Sara, and enjoyed them very much. It looks like a beautiful area. Thanks for sharing them.

sarasphotos

Thanks Don, glad you liked them.

pathfinder

80 Km to Ammersee and back? 160 Klicks ?? That's quite a ride!! 100 miles - a recreational ride?? Wow !!

I think your trekking bikes with 1.6" tires would be called a "hybrid" here in the US - not a hybrid electrical drive, but a tire midway between typical bicycle road tires and the 2" tires of mountain bikes, and a more upright riding posture than on a racing bike too. I have one in my barn.

Backroads are always best appreciated on two wheels. When our spring rains finally quit I want to begin riding again also.

Thanks for the lovely back country images.

sarasphotos

@pathfinder said:
80 Km to Ammersee and back? 160 Klicks ?? That's quite a ride!! 100 miles - a recreational ride?? Wow !!

Sorry, you misunderstood - it was 40km each direction, not 80km. Hey, we're seniors out to have a good time, not torture ourselves.

Glad you enjoyed the pics. Have a great bike season!

pathfinder

Sara,I think even 50 miles is a pretty great ride these days. My hats off to you!!

ziggy53

What a delightful excursion you have shared with us! This collection of colors and compositions is a joyful eyeful! (Disregard the wordplay but the sentiment is genuine.)

Long and winding roads are a particular treat.

I do wonder, how common are that type of dome in Germany? (Is that an "onion" dome?)

sarasphotos

@ziggy53 said:
I do wonder, how common are that type of dome in Germany? (Is that an "onion" dome?)

Thanks so much for visiting - I'm glad you enjoyed the photos.

To answer your question, here's a little (probably too much...) information.

When I first visited Bavaria in the late 70s I was surprised at all of the onion domes and thought that they were all orthodox churches. Au contraire, I later discovered - nearly all of the onion-domed chruches are Catholic. (Catholicism is the predomanant religion in southern Germany and Austria and naturally in Italy.) Usually made of copper sheet, onion domes appear on Catholic churches all over southern Germany, Czech lands, Austria and Sardinia and Northeast Italy (i.e. the former lands of the Holy Roman Empire). Most of the churches stem from the late Renaissance and Baroque era (16th-17th century) and many have somewhat ornate to very fancy inside decoration. You made me curious so I did some checking on the origins of the style and it turns out that the first onion dome in southern Germany was built for a convent here in Augsburg (which still exists) and the design became popular from there.

Naturally not all churches here in the south have onion domes, but it certainly is a prevalent style. I always know I'm leaving Bavaria when I start seeing lots of pointy churches.

This is the inside of the Wieskirche, one of the more extreme examples of Baroque church decor. It's a magnet for every tourist bus on their way to "Mad" Ludwig's castle Neuschwanstein.

ziggy53

Thanks, Sara. Very informative and helpful.