The Bicycle Adventure Club - Come Ride With Us!

Eastern Swiss Lakes

September 14th to September 28th

Ride Director: Randy Glover
Ride Co-Director: Lucy Glover
Ride Driver: Susi Vogler
Report by: Susan Grant

Randy and Lucy Glover gifted participants with a fabulous selection of sights and sounds on this amazing bicycle tour around the eastern Swiss lakes.  Susi Vogler supported the tour as van driver with prompt service and precise information.  The cost of this trip was extremely reasonable considering how expensive Switzerland is, the very lovely and well selected location of our accommodations, the welcome happy hours, and the myriad of dining experiences. Although the timing bumped up against our bedtime, we never retired hungry.

The pace of this trip was just right for this participant.  My 32mm wide tires were perfect for the surfaces that were mostly paved, but often included sections of dirt and gravel.  The frequently encountered bike route infrastructure added to the pleasure of touring.  There was almost always a mildly challenging climb, tucked into an easy flat to rolling route that encompassed rewarding views of greenery, lakes and rivers, snowcapped mountains, quaint villages full of flowers, eye-catching sculptures, clocktowers, and ornamented buildings.  The bountiful hillsides were ever present with cows, sheep, goats and horses along with the bells often dangling from their necks. Our senses were delighted when one minute we were peddling on a somewhat busy road and the next a quiet path through farmland or pasture stretched out before us. 

The mid-morning café stop for a cappuccino and a pastry were a favorite part of my day, something I only indulge in when touring.  Some days other participants joined us, other days it was just my husband and me.  Folks tended to ride in small groups.  We passed some and were passed by others, sometimes multiple times over the course of the day’s route, always checking in and up on one another.  Bike shops were friendly and helpful, though their hours weren’t always the most convenient.

Early in the tour on our ride from Dubendorf to Schaffhausen, we rode through the small village of Hettlingen where we encountered a lively festival with multiple options for locally prepared food, various crafts, and 2 outposts of live music.  One appeared to be the town band and the other a trio of more folk like music with the strangest looking but lovely sounding instruments.  Here, we stopped for coffee and homemade delicacies served by the most friendly group of ladies interested in tales of our travels and from where we came.  We learned from these delightful women that their festival took place only once every five years, but for some unknown reason; it had in fact been ten years since the festival last took place.  The event, we were told, was not commemorating anything particular, simply an occasion to celebrate their community.  How very serendipitous for us.  Near the end of this same day, our route included a stop at Rhine Falls, where we parked our bikes and toured the magnificent site of the most powerful waterfall in Europe.

Midway through the tour we rode to Vaduz, Liechtenstein.  En route we rode by and along one of the prettiest hillsides I have ever seen in Buchs, Switzerland, luscious rolling waves of green dotted by charming houses that in my imagination could only embody perfect serenity.  Day four finished along Lake Constance in Bregenz, Austria where we were able to get a glimpse of the latest floating stage which hosts elaborate opera productions famous for their extraordinary set design.  Unfortunately, the shows run exclusively in July and August of each year.  So impressed was I with the setting; that I just might need to return someday for a summer escapade.

Consistent with my experience, our group was composed of a colorful array of warm and interesting cyclists, all willing and eager to share their histories and learn of mine.  I have to give a shout out to Hank Hermes, the eldest of the participants at 91.  Hank, you are an inspiration for this cyclist and a model of just how many more adventures might lay ahead.  Thank you!

Photo: Neal Fisher  Photo taken by Susan Grant