Day 15 – Tue 24 Jun 14, Bad Sackingen (Germany) to Basel (Switzerland)

June 24, 2014

Forecast: 10-18 deg C, rain; Listed Distance: 33km; Actual distance: 51km; Cumulative distance: 544km; Av speed: 12.8 km/h; Bad Sackingen: 13 deg C, drizzle; Basel : 24 deg C, fine & sunny; Start time: 8:55am; Stop time: 3:30pm; Ride time: 3h55m (the slow av speed is partly explained by having to wheel the bikes through towns and other places of interest)

We had breakfast about 7:30am and left about 8:55am. It was a very short ride into Bad Sackingen and we wandered through the town and saw the old Cathedral and 200m long wooden bridge. We crossed back over to Switzerland via that bridge for the ride to Basel, and rode through an old, dark, misty/foggy forest - The Black Forest. We were on our own for 99% of the time; only saw 2 runners in 20km. The path was a bit rough in some places, but it was much better than riding on the road/highway.

We stopped in Rheinfelden for mornos and were approached by another cyclist, Tom from Germany, who wanted to know which was the best route to Basel, that is, the Swiss or German side. As Greg had done it before, he recommended the Swiss side, which was the way we were going. So, Tom rode with us for a while to the ruins of Augusta Raurica and then went on his own. He couldn't believe we had come all the way from Australia and that we started in Zurich and were cycling all the way to Amsterdam.

Augusta Raurica was founded in 44BC and over the next 200 years it was developed into a thriving metropolis of over 15,000 people. Today it is a museum, excavation site, research centre offering workshops and tours. The amphitheatre has been converted into a modern outdoor performance venue.
Greg calls it taking every scenic diversion on the route that we saw, whilst Wendy says we just got lost! We took a wrong turn at some road works about 12km from Basel but soon found our way back onto Route 2. As it was still a bit early, we stopped on the cycle path, about 10km from Basel, for lunch.
Finding the hotel was quite stressful and not quite as simple as Greg thought it would be. We mixed it with buses and trucks and Wendy was building a lot of character, again! Greg didn't seem that worried though.

Eventually Wendy just stopped, and inserted the Swiss sim into the phone so we could successfully navigate, and we did eventually find the place; not so much a hotel but an apartment block – Casa Esperanza. We were greeted promptly and shown to our room complete with kitchen (full oven, stove top, microwave & fridge). The only downside is that the bathroom is shared, but only with one other room. And, it is right outside our door so not too far to go, but still not quite as convenient as having your own bathroom.

We showered and washed some clothes, updated blogs, etc, and rested. Then went for a wander to find the supermarket and grog shop. Bought groceries at Migros and beer and wine at Denner. We had pork chops and salad for dinner and will have bacon and eggs for breakfast. Also bought some fruit and yoghurt.

Having a home cooked meal was just the best and with 2 glasses of wine each (from a beer glass mind you), the night was good.