Resia (Reschen) to Landeck - 31 May

May 31

We had indicated that we would like breakfast at 8, and the lady of the house had given the job to her husband because it was Sunday (Sonntag), and she wasn't getting up that early. There was the standard euro brekky fare of sliced meats, cheese, breads, jams, juice, and as much coffee as we wanted. There was also an offer of something else we couldn't understand (maybe eggs?), but we had had plenty of food, so we declined. Heading outside to load up our bikes we both quickly grabbed extra clothes - it was about 5 degrees and overcast, threatening rain.

Our guesthouse on the lake.

We rode the few km along the road, stopping at the border/pass sign for a photo, to meet Rod and start our journey through Austria. We had heard that nearly everthing is closed on Sunday in Austria, so we grabbed some chocolate bars and stuff at the service station next to Rod's campground.

The pass.

It was to be a day of firsts - first rain, first ride into Austria, first ride into Switzerland, first 1000km! We got to wear our raincoats for the first time. I will let the photos describe the scenery as we rode from the Reschenpass down to and along the deep narrow Inn River valley towards Landeck.

From the border to Nauders the cycle path crossed lush green fields and passed under ski lifts. At Nauders we made the short climb over to the Inn valley.

The fast descent to the river was great fun, stopping only once for a photo.

At the bottom of the hill we crossed into Switzerland and stopped for coffee and cake.

Faces blacked out for security reasons.

When we got going again it started raining. This part of the valley is better described as a gorge in many sections, widening a bit after Landeck where it is joined by another river.

It was overcast and cold as we rode into Landeck. We rode to the campground, only a few hundred metres from the town centre. It looked quite good, but it wasn't exactly camping weather, so we went into the town centre to find a cafe. Over coffee and food we had a look at Lonely Planet (pdf files on my phone) for somewhere to stay. We checked into Gasthof Greif which was recommended and close by. A great little guesthouse. Highlights: the door to our room, the view from our window, the food! We both ordered something called schweinkotelet, which was pork steaks accompanied by seven vegies and four sauces! We had to skip desert. Landeck is a beautiful little town.

Our door.

Our view.

Part of our view.

Our guesthouse.