Category Archives: Cycling

Small cycling tours in Europe.

Cycling, Engineering History

Main-Danube Canal

Introduction

Cycling is one of my favorite outdoor activities during weekends or short vacations, and bike tours alongside the Main-Danube Canal between Nuremberg (German: Nürnberg, Middle Franconia) and Bamberg (Upper Franconia) belong to my personal subset of uncomplicated and convenient tours which do not demand much of a preparation.

There are virtually no climbs, and the track is more or less on my doorstep. For the seventy kilometers from Nürnberg … read more

Abroad, Cycling, Personal Development

Comfort zone crusher: Col du Tourmalet

Table of contents

  1. Prologue
  2. The Pyrenees
  3. Col du Tourmalet
  4. Hunt for the Col
  5. Epilogue

1. Prologue

I am on around 1300 meters altitude and the snow is glittering in the early afternoon sun.

It is the beginning of December, but I am wearing a simple cotton T-shirt while standing at the roadside ditch, my hands on the handlebar of my MTB.

As I was climbing up this mountain half an … read more

Abroad, Cycling, Engineering History

Bibracte

Table of contents

  1. Introduction
  2. The Morvan massif
  3. Bibracte
    1. Gallic origins
    2. Metallurgy
    3. Civil engineering
  4. The fate of the Gauls

1. Introduction

During the summer of 2016, I made an extensive bike tour through the Morvan massif in east-central France.

Apart from the picturesque landscapes, this region boasts with a noteworthy history and great a many archaeological sites and museum exhibitions.

It gravitates for the most part around the ancient town … read more