Where the bloody hell are we anyway? Switzerland? Germany?

It’s hard to know what country we’re in today.

The Rhine river forms a handy border between Switzerland and Germany, except over here in the area between Tiengen and Stein am Rhein, where the border becomes an almost arbitrary set of lines on the map. I’m sure there are long historical reasons for the border placement, but for a 21st century traveller it all seems a bit random. There is even a point here where you can be in Switzerland and look south (and also north) toward Germany.

We wake up in Germany this morning and after riding back through German suburbia, turn left to keep on our eastward journey. Once we leave suburbia the German villages are quiet and when the time comes for a cold drink, we cross the river into Switzerland – with a steep downhill and hence a steep uphill to get back. Alas it is a futile quest. The Swiss town of Kaiserstuhl, though prettier, is equally quiet and closed so we go thirsty.

We cross into Switzerland and then back into Germany again, then back into Switzerland before reaching the Rhinefall (Rhine falls) near Neuhausen.

I think I have been here before, in my long and distant past. It was in the winter though, and I have images of white ice and snow and dark earth in my memory not the colourful and busy spectacle that we see today.

The falls are Europe’s largest, some 150m wide and with a 23m plunge. Switzerland has somehow managed to keep both sides of the river at the falls location unlike other famous falls in the world (think Niagra, Iguazu). 

Thankfully the viewing areas are not overdeveloped and we are able to buy a take away meal (Indian!) and sit quietly watching water falling, which for me is always mesmerising. There are a couple of boat trips you can do out to the falls (a bit maid of the mist-ish) and there’s a restaurant with a terrace where it would be pretty amazing to eat with the falls roaring away in your ears, but a quiet sit is plenty. We still have places to go!

From the falls we have to go up, up, so we walk a steep path with our bikes and then take a lift to get us up to town level in Neuhausen.

We have about 25km to go to Stein am Rhein and there is a swimming pool in my future!

The rest of the ride today is spectacular. We are definitely in Switzerland now. There are hills and they are green. We are on gently rolling country, but the way is always up. The Rhine is a fast-flowing river which means it is steep. When riding upstream then, of course we are on a gentle, but  ever-upward path. 

After riding through farmland and small villages where we dodge schoolchildren on their way home from school, and birds of prey circling ploughed fields, we arrive on the outskirts of Stein am Rhein, a town we have been told is very pretty. Instead of going into town immediately we go straight to where we are staying: a camping ground, our first on this trip. 

Switzerland is a very expensive place to travel if you are not Swiss, working here and earning Swiss francs. We’ve agreed to stop converting prices to Australian dollars to save our sanity, but the accommodation in Stein am Rhein offered pretty slim pickings and was all a bit eye-watering price-wise. I hunted around and found this camping place where you can sleep in a ‘pod’ for only 45 Swiss francs. Bargain! That is until you add another adult, which adds another 45 Swiss francs. And then there’s the towel hire … Even so, this place worked out to be the cheapest and, bonus, has the best view around.

The only downside is a steep climb at the end of a hot and dusty day in the saddle. My jinx strikes again – there is always a climb to places I book.

After getting my breath back I can almost say the climb is worth it. The view is stupendous over Stein am Rhein and Lake Constance. It makes for a pretty special end of day beer.

We are in luck tonight as we have company. An old work colleague of Neil’s, from back in his TUSC days, lives nearby and drives with his wife to collect us from our hilltop perch and to take us to dinner in town. The town is special for Robert and Madeleine as they had their wedding here 50 years ago. 

It’s nice to have company for a couple of hours and we enjoy a riverside dinner in town after a quick walk around the colourful main street of Stein am Rhein. And, thankfully, we don’t have to ride up that hill to sleep tonight; we are delivered back by car, which is quite the luxury.

Stats for today:

• Distance: 69.49km
• Climb: 439m
• Average speed: 15.2km/h
• Average temperature: 27C
• Moving time: 4:33:54
• See our ride on Strava

The beer picture

At the end of a day’s ride, our tradition is to enjoy a beer, and to photograph it for posterity. Today’s beer picture was taken at Camping Hüttenberg, perched high above Stein am Rhein and Lake Constance.

Along the way today: