Europe – Page 4 – RuslanY Bike Travel

EuroTour day 12 – Basel sightseeing

I took a one day break from riding and went to the center of Basel. It is a 20 minutes ride by tram from the place where I stay.

Basel is a very beautiful city. I liked it a lot. It is the third biggest city in Switzerland but it does not feel crowded or touristy as other big European cities. Also everyone here speaks English, which makes is so much easier for me to communicate.

Having ridden for more than a week I’ve learned what things I use everyday and what I never use. So I went to a local post office and mailed home some stuff that I never use. That would lighten up my load by a few pounds.

EuroTour day 11 – To Basel, Switzerland

I’ve reached the Switzerland today! This is the first time ever I have crossed a European border by bike. It is a second time ever I have crossed a country border by bike (first one was during a ride from Seattle to Vancouver, BC in 2016).

The crossing of the border was not a big deal at all. There were not any border signs or anything that signifies that you are entering a different country. Just cross a bridge and you are in Germany. Cross another bridge and you are in Switzerland.

I’m taking a rest day in Switzerland. Also I’ve parted with Matt and Harry, whom I’ve been riding with for the past 5 days. They plan to take a train to Alps and then continue North on the EuroVelo 15 route along the Rhine river. The guys are super tough – they ride 70+ miles everyday without any rest days!

At the France-Germany-Switzerland border

Today was a longest ride of my tour but it was not so difficult because a large section of the route was downhill and with a tail wind.

I’ve booked an AirBnB place for 2 nights near Basel. I am planning to visit Basel tomorrow as it looks like an interesting place to see.

EuroTour day 10 – To L’Isle-sur-le-Doubs

The highlight of today’s route was the town of Besançon and the ride in the valley along the Le Doubs river. The landscape has changed and it is more rocky and hilly now.

It is still hot in the afternoons but the temperature is supposed to go down next week.

I am staying in a campground in L’Isle-sur-le-Doubs tonight. Apart from other bike tourers the campgrounds are usually filled with trailers from Netherland and Germany. I guess people from those countries really like to camp.

EuroTour day 9 – To Ranchot

Another 70 miles day in a 95-100 F degrees. But it did not feel so bad – maybe I am getting used to the heat. Also I’ve noticed that if I keep the heart rate around 120 bpm I do not get tired of riding. It is easy to maintain that heart rate because the area is mostly flat.

Today route passed some really nice and old towns. Here are the pictures:

I am planning to reach the Switzerland border on Sunday. The town on the border is called Basel. There I’ll decide whether to continue EuroVelo 6 or do a detour via Switzerland Alps.

EuroTour day 8 – To Chalon-sur-Saône

I did not put the rain fly on my tent last night because of the heat. As a result I had a great night sleep. This was the best camping place I had stayed in so far during my trip.

I continued riding with Matt and Harry and today’s destination was the town called Chalon-sur-Saône. From there the route will follow a different river called Saône.

We stopped at a bakery in a supermarket and bought some French pastry for breakfast. It was so tasty! And this was just some random bakery in a regular grocery store. Overall in my experience the food here has been really good.

Here are some pictures from today’s ride:

Tonight I am staying in a hotel in Chalon-sur-Saône. I needed to charge all my electronics properly and also buy a new bottle of “Essence C” for my camp stove. I rode my bike from the hotel to the hardware store in the center of the town and took some pictures on the way.