From Switzerland to Austria: the countries with 1000 bicycle paths

We are in our last phase of equipment testing, the final line before the big jump. This time, it's during 2 weeks that we ride on the roads to test our bikes and our equipment

Heading for the Swiss, German and Austria roads for a fun trip

We start softly by leaving Lindau, at the edge of the lake Constance in Germany. The very first day is soft and monotonous along the Rhine, but nevertheless we cross 4 different countries in the same day: Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

After taking the wheel of a local for about ten kilometers, we have a break for a lunch in a typical Swiss village, where the windows are painted with beef's blood. This is the smallest village of Switzerland.

We take the road again, heading to Interlaken and the Jungfrau valley, which will be the most distant points of our Swiss loop.

During these first 3 days of cycling in Switzerland, the lakes succeed one another in the middle of these green mountains. These lakes, so deserted in compare to our French lakes, are all more beautiful the ones than the others, we do not get tired of the reflection of the mountains in these emerald waters.

We slowly dive into Swiss life: the bicycle paths are omnipresent, the cleanliness is perfect and the rules are followed. We sometimes have the impression to enter a deep countryside but there is always an ultra modern building or a train line at insane altitudes, which remind us that the anthropic activity is always very close in Switzerland.

Switzerland is able to combine countryside landscapes with high quality public services: in these conditions, it's not simple to put the tent anywhere. In this month of August, we have preferred the campsites to put the tent (the bivouac not being very well seen here, and very visible).

Finally, we arrived in Interlaken, the city at the entrance of all these majestic glaciers. We decide to stay 2 days in order to visit the Stubai valley without the bikes. The landscapes are breathtaking, the beauty and the power of nature is omnipresent in this valley: the torrents and the underground waterfalls coming from the glaciers are impressive.

After 3 days there, and a few hikes and visits of famous places, it's time to go back to Zurich, where we take a train to Munich.

So we start to cross Bavaria from Munich to Salzburg. We discover the beautiful city of Munich, with its abundance of Bavarian beer and bretzel.

After 2 days of cycling, we cross the Austrian border: we reach Salzburg, the Mozart town. This town, on a human scale, was a real crush. It's a real cultural break in the middle of these 2 weeks between lakes and mountains.

We continue the journey to the scenic village of Hallstatt. As in Switzerland, we cross beautiful lakes with crystal clear water, as we go deeper into the Austrian mountains.

The lake and the town of Hallstatt do not disappoint by their beauty but the overabundance of tourism make us want to ride in a more quiet direction.