Well, after the previous night, anything would be good, but it has to be said we had the best nights sleep so far in a lovely room that wasn't too hot, was quiet, and had comfy beds. And last night's meal was cheap and good (and the excess provided the sliced ham, for today's picnic - these German meals are way too big!). The whole bill for bed, breakfast, meal and drinks was less than €100, so ace value. We headed off into a cloudy morning with temperatures of 18-19C and not a breath of wind. Perfect conditions for Scotland-conditioned cyclists. It was pretty much more of the same today. Largely fast tarmac, no hills except the occasional climb onto a flood dyke, buzzing along through fields on the alluvial plane (adding beans to our crop-spotters list) with the odd factory or milk processing plant thrown in for variety. The latter surprised us as we have seen virtually no cows, but we suspect that the low lying ground is for crops and just a few miles away, as the hills bound the plain, pastures dominate. Well, that's our theory anyway. The problem with pan-flat terrain is that it requires relentless pedalling. There's no respite after a hill climb so it can feel a bit like an exercise bike session. Consequently, an hour is the best you can tolerate without a stop for a break. A croissant from breakfast provided the excuse after the first 60 minutes as we sat next to one of the many water level controlling houses. Soon came the town of Deggendorf which we had targeted for coffee and (the best yet) cakes. We bought tomatoes and banana at the local market then the best bread rolls yet from a bakery. After a bit of a wiggle to find our way out of town we cycled on until we found a perfect picnic spot just before the village of Winzer next to a statue with a convenient stone table. This took a while as there were a lot of diversions after Deggendorf which contributed to our slightly longer day than planned. Not long after the picnic the sun came out with a vengeance so it was good to find a biergarten open in the village for some welcome refreshments. The gasthof was reached in Windorf without drama and a further beer and meal was gladly consumed after the chores were done. After a day of superlatives (sleep, value, cakes, bread rolls, speed) a short walk around the island in the river rounded off the day as the sun gently set. How romantic!
45 miles at an average of 11.2 mph. 4hrs and 2 mins to ascend a few flood dykes accumulating 120m
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