No-va caned!

Because several times I had to get off and push Lev, and without the various analgesic creams I’d have considered amputating my foot…

Distance cycled: 48.55 miles (cyclemeter map)
cumulative distance: 100.69 miles

I think we almost bit off than we can chew today. However we are out of practice at arranging fuelling stops, there was an amount of ‘up’ today, so I’m pleased to report we are in Swiss Heidi Hotel in Maienfeld. Even better, we are indoors, watching a thunderstorm rather than being caught in it.

if you want to repeat our journey today, be prepared for a sudden turn off the main road just outside Trun. The slope requires your lowest gear even if you’re ready for it. We weren’t, so came to a sweary halt, and walked our bikes up to where the road became sane again. And that was just the Vorspeise: the guidebook had warned us there would be some climbing. But there was lots, or at least it felt like lots. (The guidebook says 250 metres for the main climb.) There were also quite a few miles of un-made roads and gravel paths, and the ultimate barrier:

Gott im Himmel! Get around that if you can!

We stopped for snacks in Ilanz after about 12 miles (about an hour’s pedalling) and thought we could easily do another 30 miles to Maienfeld including the forewarned climb in 3 or 4 hours of pedalling. We have done it but with a lot of swearing, and walking up another mad climb at Reichenau.

Not long after that, my foot spoke up: intense burning sensations in my heel which were only persuaded to go away by applying voltarol or ibuprofen creame every 30 minutes. The last such stop was only 850 metres from the hotel but I couldn’t go further. (It’s still happening – I amused a couple of children in the hotel bistro as a hobbled back to our room to grab the cream.) I also bonked for Australia a couple of times: thank goodness for banana bread and glucose tablets! And surely a honeymoon should include some bonking?

But it’s been worth it – it’s beautiful around here. The mountains and wee villages are beautiful. I have been using the GoPro so I hope I have some good footage to share when we get home. And there is a possibility of reaching Austria tomorrow if I offload enough weight. (Today’s luggage-related highlight was getting the bungee that holds my rucksack on the panniers caught in Lev’s rear wheel.) I want to get everything I carry into panniers, even if it means abandoning the CD player and tennis racquet. The prof will know what I mean.

Oh, and I forgot to mention meeting several times with the Austrian couple Elly encountered yesterday. They are are cycle-touring together, and he is 80! I think they’ve earned their electrobikes, and there’s hope for us yet. I’m looking forward to bimbling around on bikes with Elly when we’re that age! Maybe we can get a side-by-side electro-tandem! Tschuss!