Tag Archives: Germany

Biking, Germany

From the Rhine to the Wine

I loved this trail even before I rode it. The name says it all. And what could be better than an afternoon on the Rhine, with a glass of wine in hand?

The Suedliche Weinstrasse in the southern Pfalz is one of my favorite regions in Germany. It is a small area, bounded by the Rhine to the east, and the Haardt Mountains to the west, with little wine villages studding the countryside in between. Therefore, this trail covers it all for cycling families looking for the quintessential wine-themed bike ride in Germany.

From the Mountains, to the Plains
From the Mountains, to the Plains

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Germany, Wines

Wine Notes: Suedliche Weinstrasse

What I Learned

Wine has been produced in the Pfalz since Roman times. This is especially true around Speyer. Formerly the site of a small Roman fort, as it grew, so did its wine production. As witness to this local wine production, in 1867 an intact bottle of wine was found locally in the sarcophagus of a fourth century A.D. Roman official. It was the only one of ten (!) to have withstood the ravages of time. It is now on display in the State Historical Museum in Speyer.

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Germany, Hiking, Nutshell

Vom Rhein Zum Wein: Trail in a Nutshell

Trail Name: Vom Rhein Zum Wein

Trail Type: Middle distance bicycle trail; almost exclusively paved, well maintained, and well-marked.

Length: total: 31 kilometers/19.25 miles

Convenient to: Speyer, Germany;

Marking: Profiles of Speyer cathedral and two cyclists in white, on a green rectangular background

Rhein Zum Wein Signage
Rhein Zum Wein Signage

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Biking, Germany

Riding in the Emperor’s Seat

The Kaiserstuhl (Emperor’s Seat or Chair), rises in dramatic isolation from the flatlands of the valley of the Rhine. This vine-covered promontory allegedly got its name from the actions there of an early Holy Roman Emperor. Its majestic appearance alone is reason enough for the name, in my opinion.

The Kaiserstuhl promontory overlooks former imperial holdings north, south, east and west. It contains two wine districts in the German wine region of Baden, the Tuniberg and the eponymous Kaiserstuhl, and it abuts two others. Additionally, in the distance, on the other side of the Rhine, lie the vineyards of Alsace, France. Wine is definitely king in this southwest corner of Germany!

Looking North over the Rhine Valley
Looking North over the Rhine Valley

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Biking, Germany, Nutshell

Radweg Weinland Kaiserstuhl: Trail in a Nutshell

 

Trail Name: Radwege durch Weinland Baden: Kaiserstuhl Alternative (Bike Trails through Baden Wine-land: Kaiserstuhl Alternative [Route])

Trail Type: Mid-distance trail; almost exclusively paved, (two short sections, less than a half mile total, were hard-pack surfaces), well maintained, but no consistently specific markings for the route itself.

Length: total: 49 kilometers/30 miles

Convenient to: Freiburg, Germany

Marking: No trail marking specific to this trail, and it is at times on other named trails (like the Rheintal Radweg (with a green sign and white lettering) from Malterdingen to Koenigschaffhausen)

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Biking, Germany

Wine for a Song

 

Rather than referring to the cost of the wine here (although some quality producers offer great Rheinterrassen wine at very reasonable prices), today’s post title refers to the Song of the Nibelungen, that epic poem of feasts with wine, hosted by powerful kings with brave knights, and a fearless slayer of dragons guarding vast treasures.

The poem (later adapted and set to music in Wagner’s Ring Cycle), tells of the life and death of the dragon-slaying hero Siegfried, and his relationship with the Burgundians. Much of the action takes place in and around the city of Worms “on the Rhine”, which is home to the court of the Burgundian king Gunther and his wife and queen Brunhild. (It is also now home to several sculptures of dragons, commemorating this facet of the poem.)

Here Be Dragons
Here Be Dragons

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Germany, Nutshell

Rheinterrassen Route: Trail in a Nutshell

Trail Name: Rheinterrassen route

Trail Type: Long distance; almost exclusively paved, well maintained, but the route itself is not marked.

Length: total: 50.5 km/31.5 miles

Convenient to: Mainz or Worms, Germany

Marking: Dark green and lighter green lines, and silhouetted town skyline, on a white background.

 

Rheinterrassenroute Signage
Rheinterrassenroute Signage

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