Day 1 - Wednesday, July 29, 2026
The first half of 2026 turned out to be quite adventurous - I had taken a longer bike trip to South America (Chile/Peru) in winter and in spring, followed by a family trip to Australia. In June, I had ridden my bike along the River Drava with a buddy on a shorter trip - what was missing was a longer ride while the days are still long and the weather is fine. Ah, the weather. Forests were on blaze in many countries in Europe and the mercury in thermometers kept creeping up highs never seen before. I studied the weather forecast and noticed that places north and east of Austria, while still experiencing above-average temperatures, were more suitable for a bike ride.
I had started packing my stuff the day before and the inflatable sleeping mattress I had ordered (my older one was leaking) had arrived, so I was all set. Friends of mine called to ask where I was riding to - and, on the morning of July 29, I still had no idea, I was contemplating taking a train to Brno in Czech Republic or somewhere in the west part of Romania. Somehow, the hours kept sliding and I was not yet ready, tidying up my place, watering the plants for them to somehow overcome the extreme heat in Vienna, bid farewell to my parents, etc. - you know the drill. This is what you get when you do not have a definitive plan - there was no flight, ship, train or bus to catch - guess I need the pressure.
At long last, around 1 pm, I got ready and was eager not to lose a further day by traveling on public transport. So I rode to the train station close to my home and hopped on a local S-Bahn to Eichgraben, just to get a 20-kilometer headstart. There, somewhat unceremoniously, the ride with my loaded bike started. Ah, one word about it being loaded. A buddy of mine (Levente, the one I made the Drava tour with) urged me to schlepp less luggage on my trips and I heeded his advice. While I still had 5 bags - two large one in the back, two hanging next to the front wheel and one on the handlebar - I was traveling lighter than usual. For example, I did not carry long pants and had only four T-shirts and underwear (as vs. double that). I must admit I did feel the difference, especially when unloading the bags and carrying them by hand at my stops - and probably on the inclines, too.
Soon I was riding past a pleasant golf course of Neulengbach and then up on the streep slope to Schwertfegen, offering a nice view of the castle and its surroundings. Just a couple of days prior, I had taken my folks on a road trip there, they really enjoyed the area. This is more or less home territory for me, I had cycled this area quite a few times in the last couple of years.
The view of the surroundings of Neulengbach - the castle is a bit hidden on a hill on the right
A bit later, I reached the town of Herzogenburg, which I had also crossed on two wheels before. The town hosts an impressive Augustinian Monastery, I had passed it a number of times in the past - funny enough, until this visit, I had never actually seen the front entrance of the church - it was impressive. It was also quite hot, not too bad, I still took a small rest on the square in front of the momument.
The impressive monastery at Herzogenburg
Riding on, I got to a small village called Inzersdorf-Getzersdorf. On the road trip with my parents, I noticed there was a chateau there and this time, I decided to visit it.
The view of the village Inzersdorf-Getzersdorf
Schloss Walpersdorf, built in the 17th century, was really remarkable even just from the outside - absolutely worth a visit, should you be in the area. Inside it was quite a surprise: not only does it host a Michelin-star restaurant called Blauenstein, with its own brewery, there is a magnificent interior design and lifestyle store called Lederleitner. This store is seamlessly integrated into the historic rooms of the Renaissance castle, creating a striking contrast between old and new. Visitors can browse modern furniture, home decor, and garden accessories set against a backdrop of ancient stone walls, historic stucco ceilings, and grand archways. It felt like a romantic IKEA...and I had an hour wondering the many rooms.
Chateau Walpersdorf from the 17th century
The yellow lounge...
..and the blue one, not bad!
Following the castle came one of the steepest inclines of this entire journey. You see, the general area north of Vienna - with a few exceptions - is rather flat, so on this trip I had not crossed all too many mountains. This one, called Theyerner Berg, is - despite its name - is no mountain, just a steep hill, ranging in front of the River Danube. I was greeted by a cute surprise - as I was struggling uphill, I noticed someone staring at me from a hundred meters or so away. It was a deer - I stopped carefully and managed to capture it on my camera.
Bambi!
On the top, I had a nice view back to the monastery of Herzogenburg and rewarded myself by a glass of red grape juice in one of the many Heurigers (wine tavern). It being a warm summer afternoon, the tavern was full almost to the brink. With my thirst being quenched, it was now a wonderful downhill ride to the Danube, with a beautiful view of the Benedictine abbey of Göttweig, crowning the area.
Abbey of Göttweig
A typical Heuriger in a summer afternoon
Then I got to the Danube. Now let me please do some explaining. There is a wildly popular bike path, the Donauradweg, which leads from Passau in Germany to Vienna (then on to Bratislava, Győr, Budapest, etc). I had covered many sections of it, especially the one around Krems and Melk (called the Wachau, more about it late4r), multiple times, riding in both directions. However, I had never yet ridden the full length of it, all the way along the Danube, the main reason was - emphasis on the word "was" - that I had thought it would be boring. I like more quaint places and love to conquer mountains. On this trip, even though I was just following my nose, with no set plan as such, I started on a quest following the river. And what a great surprise I would be in for!
It was by no means a surprise that the initial part of the bike path, crossing the UNESCO World Heritage area of Wachau, would indeed be beautiful. I rode on the right side of the river, with the contour of the town Krems being on the opposite side. It was around 8 pm that I spotted Dürnstein, with the ruins of the castle being lit by the setting sun. (Ah, writing this story around the end of September, I long for days when it was still sunshine at that time of the day!). It was an absolutely stunning view.
Dürnstein lit by the setting sun
Richard The Lionheart was once imrpisoned here
While there was a campground across from Dürnstein, by no means was I thinking of retiring - there was at least an hour or so more of daylight and I felt fit. I noticed the next campground would be in Spitz and there would be a way to get to the other side of the river, at least that is what Google Maps promised. Wrong. I - mistakenly - thought the crossing would be via a bridge, but there was none. Yes, there was a ferry, but the last crossing was an hour or two before I had arrived there. Oh well. I rode on, contemplating where to spent the night, which was now approaching.
I called a B&B, they were sold out and the next one was relatively far away. There was by now no-one to be seen on the Donauradweg, except for a young girl on in-line skates, who complained she had been attacked by a bat. Do bats attack stakers? It was then that I spotted a rest area with benches and tables, just above the bike path and below the road. Now one would spot me here in the darkness - so it was time to pitch my tent and - somewhat illegally - I decided to spend my first night wild-camping next to the river.
While around Krems the Danube seemed to be "in business as usual", here, further up, the level of the water was really low, one could see the rocks of the waterbed. On the other side, there were a couple of fishermen, with a dog, who seemed to be a bit bothered by my presence, I was hoping its barks would not give me away. But then it got really dark - the barks stopped and it got quiet, except for the roar of an occasional truck. As expected, I was left in piece.
The level of the Danube was really low that summer
That day, I covered around 78 km with some 760 meters of altitude - not too bad considering I started only in the afternoon and spent a lot of time at the romantic IKEA...