Day 7 - Rheinsberg, Germany, Happily Bump, Bump, Bumping Along

Joan's View

Nice 58 mile+ ride today with a little bit of every terrain. Uneven cobblestone roads, gravel bike paths through woods, patchworked paved roads, smooth and bulging bike paths, two row concrete pads, and the ever popular shortcuts around bike stops through the grass (see Wade's comment on remembering them well). Tony got quite the workout keeping the bike steady. At one point we had to cross some mud to get to a bike path and it was much mushier than anticipated. We stalled and swayed and he sighed with relief, "That was a close one." I'm learning to push up on my side grab bars when possible to avoid absorbing so much of the jolt.

We are riding in what was formerly East Germany ever since we crossed the border into Rostock. "Rostock was crucially important to Nazi Germany as a major industrial and military manufacturing hub." We see signs of what we think are old Nazi buildings, but the Communist remains stood out way more in the Baltic Countries last year.

Lots of inter connected lakes in this region of Germany. In fact, we are staying at resort on a lake tonight. We were riding on the trail close to Rheinsberg and Tony said, "Down that road is a really nice resort." We rode about 2.5 miles farther into the city and stopped to check into our hotel. Tony actually booked our hotel tonight through Airbnb, and then he received notification that our reservation was cancelled by the hotel. That is where his backup to the backup plan comes in. Anyway, Tony sends me in to the hotel because he thinks my little bit of German helps. The woman at the desk says that we are at the wrong hotel. 🤔Tony checks his reservation and uses that link to get directions on his phone. We ride back via the exact same route that we were just on and, wah lah, we are at that really nice resort!!

We made a few stops today. One was to get a picture of one of the many onlookers. We get lots of stares, but this one was intense.

Another stop was to watch the boats going through a lock.

More pictures of our ride:

Lots of old growth pine forests

The moss was so thick and squishy

It's fall in this woods

Look, Nick, you can even hunt your garbage can here!

Dinner was a buffet at the resort. Roast schwein. Yum.

And, of course, a big German beer for Tony. 🍺

Tony's Extras

I really enjoyed the variety of trails today—although I did have to clean the bike and re-wax the chain when we got back. 😄

The route ended up being a little over 58 miles of planned riding and about 2.5 miles of unplanned sightseeing. Oops! I routed us to the wrong hotel. Not sure how I managed that one. But we didn't need the back up plan or the back up plan to the back up plan.👍😀

Tomorrow, we have 62 miles of planned riding into Berlin. The good news? We finally get access to a washing machine and a day off! My derrière will appreciate the break... and I suspect my legs will be sending thank-you notes as well. 🚴‍♂️🍻

Day 6 - Krakow am See, Germany, Joan is excited to practice her German

Tony's View

We left this morning at 6:00 a.m. to catch the 6:45 ferry. That meant getting up at 5:15 a.m.—which is pretty close to my normal wake-up time, but quite early for Joan. She was a real trooper!

By the way, it was 11:15 p.m. your time. Some of you were just heading to bed, while Joan was already getting up and getting ready for the day. Talk about living in the future!

We then headed to the ferry crossing the Baltic Sea from Gedser, Denmark, to Rostock, Germany. Goodbye, Denmark—it was wonderful. And hello, Germany! Our adventure continues. 🇩🇰➡️🇩🇪🚢😄

Here we are loading the bike onto the ship. It was huge! I’d guess there were close to 75 semi-trucks on board, along with several cars.

Thanks to Joan’s diligence (and her willingness to get up at the crack of dawn 😂), we were among the first to board. As it turned out, that was a good thing!

The ferry was scheduled to depart at 6:45 a.m., but it actually pulled away from the dock at 6:35 a.m. Good thing we arrived early. Chalk one up for the people who believe that if you’re on time, you’re already late—or as Tony (his well trained Marla and Wade) would say, it’s always better to be early than sprinting down the dock waving at a departing ferry! 🚢😄

What a wonderful couple taking a selfie while gazing toward Germany on the horizon. At least that's our story, and we're sticking to it! 😄

The crossing took about two hours, and yes, I made sure to take my Dramamine beforehand. I’m happy to report that it was smooth sailing—both for the ferry and for my stomach. 🚢😂

Before we knew it, Germany was coming into view, and another chapter of our adventure was about to begin. 🇩🇪✨

It’s amazing how many wind turbines there are in the Baltic Sea. Everywhere you look, there seem to be more of them spinning away on the horizon.

By the way, the wind has been coming from the southwest for the entire trip—which means we’ve been riding straight into it. No complaints, though. As long as there aren’t any big hills or long climbs, our batteries handle it pretty well.

I’m not quite at the whining stage like I was yesterday. 😄

One recommendation for anyone planning this trip: start from the south and head north. That way, you’ll have a much better chance of having the wind at your back instead of feeling like Mother Nature is using you for resistance training! 🚴💨😂

Part of a rainbow! What does that mean? I happened to be outside at just the right time and managed to get the picture.

I’ve got to believe it’s a sign that I’m just that cool. 😎😂

Of course, some people might say it was just good timing and a little luck, but I prefer my explanation. After all, not everyone gets a rainbow to show up that says Tony is cool 😂🌈📸😄

Well, I got back inside the ship and found Joan sound asleep on a bench—directly under a sign that, if you look closely, says "No Sleeping on the Benches." 😂

I thought about pointing it out, but then I remembered she had gotten up at 5:15 this morning so we could catch the ferry. That bought her a free pass in my book.

Besides, I wasn't about to wake her up just to inform her that she was breaking the rules. Some rules are meant to be enforced, and some are meant to be slept through. 😴🚢😄

We spotted this cool nuclear power plant and, of course, had to stop and take a picture. 🚴📸

I’m sure you’re all extremely impressed by our ability to turn a nuclear power plant into a tourist attraction. 😂

Some people collect photos of castles, cathedrals, and beautiful landscapes. As you all know who have been following out blog, we will. 😀 

Anyway, I thought it was pretty cool, and since I’m the one posting the photos, you all get to admire it too. 😄⚛️

We decided to pump up the tires because they seemed a little sluggish. After all, we’ve put on quite a few miles, and I was convinced that low tire pressure was the culprit.

After airing them up and riding a bit farther, I came to a different realization: the tires weren’t the sluggish part—I was. 😂

It turns out there’s no amount of air pressure that can fix a rider who’s been pedaling all day. The bike felt fine; the engine just needed a tune-up, a snack, and maybe a nap. 🚴😄

Oh, Shit We reached a point where the bicycle trail simply ended. There was a hiking trail that kept going, but for bikes? Not so much. 😂

Of course, Joan decided this was the perfect photo opportunity. Meanwhile, I climbed to the top to see what was ahead. My reward? A deep ditch.

After carefully evaluating the situation (and by that, I mean realizing there was no way I was getting our loaded bikes through there), I decided to turn around and ride back about a quarter mile to the access point I had conveniently ignored earlier.

So, after all that exploring, climbing, and picture-taking, we ended up taking the route we should have taken in the first place. 😄

The good news is we got a memorable photo. The bad news is we also got a little extra exercise that absolutely nobody had planned for. 🚴😂

How do we get into situations like this?

We took off all the bags and started maneuvering our bikes through the barriers. It felt a lot like trying to carry a couch up to one of the kids’ dorm rooms or apartments—awkward, heavy, and requiring way more effort than it should. 😂

It took quite a while, but we slowly worked our way through obstacle after obstacle. Then, just as we were nearly finished, a German lady walked up and said (in German) that if we had gone about a quarter mile farther up the path, we could have completely bypassed all of this.

Good thing Joan speaks German! Unfortunately, the information arrived about 20 minutes too late. 😄

So, thanks to our determination, hard work, and a little lack of local knowledge, we successfully completed the difficult route that nobody else needed to take. 🚴😂

Joan found an Aldi in Germany—one of about a million of them, it seems—not too far from our Airbnb. That was our first sign that things were going to work out. 😄

Then we arrived at the Airbnb and discovered that the owner spoke only German. This is where Joan really shined. Compared to me, she was practically a United Nations translator.

Thanks to her German skills and a lot of patience on both sides, we managed to get checked in in only about an hour. All that language practice before bedtime is finally paying off!

Tomorrow we head to Rheinberg, and the people there still haven’t decided whether they’ve canceled our reservation or not. No worries, though—I have a backup plan, and a backup to the backup plan. What else would you expect? 😂

Joan's Extras

Yes, it was rewarding to speak some German especially when a German person actually understands you! Also, besides Tisha far exceeding me in our Duolingo group (she's learning French), it might pay off when Tisha and I get on The Amazing Race. 😆 I just hope that Tisha can train and pick up my slack like Tony does on the tandem.

Dinner tonight was Istanbul Doner Kabob - another European craving.

Forgot to mention that last night held a momentous occasion last night. Tony played a game! Since we were without WIFI, the guilt must have set in. We played Danish Yatzy, but with 6 dice. You can guess who won. 😉

Day 5 - Gedser, Denmark - Should I Stay or Should I Go Now?

Joan's View

Me blogging or whatever

We had to make an early decision like in that great 80s song from the Clash, "Should I Stay or Should I Go Now." If we left early, we might have to find shelter until we could get into the next Airbnb. If we stay, we would have to leave late. Our ride is about 32 miles today so my vote was to do the "Alone" strategy and keep the shelter that we already have. Tony thinks about having to clean the bike so I guess that strategy worked for him too. Heidi, our Airbnb host, gave us clearance to hang out in Vordingborg until the rain passes.Tony finally made the decision to leave around 3:15 after checking about 5 different weather forecasting sites. Heidi says that the only reliable weather app is the one from Norway. Tony jumped right on that.

Tony also researched where to stop to eat about 16 miles in and picked this Mexican place called Ozzy's based on the awning so that we could park the tandem there in case of rain. Turns out the food was amazing! Our airbnb is out in the country tonight, but close to the port in Gedser so that we can get on the ferry to Rostock, Germany early. 

Enjoying the view from Ozzy's

Loaded nachos and tacos

We are seeing lots more long distance riders since we left Copenhagen. It's one of the cool parts about riding here seeing the other bike geeks that live out of small panniers like us. 

Note the ominous clouds. Another super long bridge, but shorter than the 7 mile bridge to Key West, and it felt a lot safer. Tony might still flip over the edge, but the guard rail would protect me. 😁

One more pit stop before heading out to tonight's Airbnb.

Tony's Extras

We made it dry, which already puts this trip in the "success" column. Then we checked Ito the Airbnb and learned there's no Wi‑Fi, when I booked it I kinda missed that one. Oops

Fortunately, I listened to Joan and didn't leave until 3:30 p.m. Patience paid off this time.

Now, before anyone gets the idea that I've become a patient person, let's not jump to conclusions. One correct decision does not establish a trend. However, maybe I will make a habit out of listening to Joan and again, maybe not.

Day 4 - Vordingborg, Denmark - CRASH!#!#!

Tony's View

We finally got to ride — a nice little 62‑mile warm‑up. Well… we made it about half a mile after leaving the Airbnb before things got exciting.

I made a left‑hand turn without signaling or checking the mirror. Rookie move. And did we mention Copenhagen has about as many cyclists as Amsterdam? It feels like the entire population commutes by bike, and the bike traffic proves it.

So back to that left turn onto the bike path. I start turning and — CRASH — the cyclist behind us plows straight into the fairing. He kept going, thankfully unharmed, and his bike seemed fine too. Our fairing, however, looked like it had been through a demolition derby. You can see in the picture just how badly it was mangled.

Nothing like starting a 62‑mile ride with a little Copenhagen love tap.

We pulled off the road, relieved that nobody was hurt — except maybe my pride. Then it was time for my best MacGyver impression. I broke out 17 zip ties, duct tape, electrical tape, and whatever dignity I had left. Half the fairing looked like it had been folded by an origami enthusiast with anger issues.

We spent about an hour bending parts back into something vaguely resembling their original shape. The photo shows the fairing about halfway through its transformation into a modern art sculpture held together by zip ties and hope.

Once we got it “rideable,” we headed off again — with Joan literally holding the fairing in place like she was part of the pit crew for a very confused Formula 1 team.

Nothing says “vacation cycling” like roadside repairs and improvised engineering.

We stopped again, and it was clear the zip‑tie‑and‑tape masterpiece was not performing as advertised. At this point it looked less like a repair and more like a craft project gone wrong. A guy rolled up and told us there was a bike shop about 6 km ahead. Perfect — professional help, because my inner MacGyver was running out of inspiration.

We rode there, peeled off all the tape and zip ties, and revealed the full horror show: bent alloy parts everywhere. Both I and the mechanic were worried that if he tried to bend anything back, it would just snap like a breadstick. But he took the challenge. He grabbed the mangled fairing pieces, walked it back to his vise — you know, the tool I didn’t pack for the trip — and got to work.

After a couple of attempts (and a few moments where I thought we’d be throwing the fairing away and going without one), he managed to get everything close enough to its original shape that we could reassemble it. It’s a little cock‑eyed now, but fully functional — which is basically the mission statement of bicycle touring.

Here are some pictures with our new bicycle‑mechanic hero, the man who saved the day with a vise and a can‑do attitude.

With our newly “functional” fairing — well mostly — we were finally rolling again. Naturally, our first stop was a bakery, which is Joan’s version of a spiritual pilgrimage. It was delicious and gave us just enough energy to pretend we were real cyclists again.

A little farther down the road, we spotted something super cool: apples for sale with MobilePay. No stand, no person, just apples and trust. A few minutes later we saw a rack of dresses set out the same way — basically an unmanned garage sale powered entirely by  honesty. 

We were on some pretty cool roads today's you can see from the picture. I would say we were on 60% bike paths and 40% country roads. A beautiful ride.

A great place for a stop in the middle of nowhere to take a break.

We ran into miles of steel plate roads through farm fields, I thought this was super cool and I know my friend Jeff Puthoff would think the same. Yes, the same guy who likes it when I lose my luggage.

We got to the beautiful Airbnb and did some additional adjustments. Then when we went out to eat downtown. I got my favorite Pepsi ever, and the Italian food was awesome. The chef was from Rome, Italy.

I really hope we don’t have to use the word crash again in this blog. Joan did a great job staying calm and reminding me that freaking out doesn’t actually fix anything. She was right, of course — and after she gently told me to relax, I finally stopped acting like the world was ending.

On the bright side, we used about 90% of our battery on a 62‑mile day, which I’m actually pretty happy about. Tomorrow is a shorter ride… with rain in the forecast. Because nothing says “vacation cycling” like wet roads, questionable fairing stability.

Joan's Extras

After setting out on our inaugural first ride of this trip and experiencing an abrupt change of plans, I started to think, "Is this going to become the norm for our first days out?" Last year, I had to peddle backwards the entire day. This year, I had to hold the fairing up off of my legs until we found a bike shop hero. One can only imagine what the future will hold???

I'm actually really loving that fairing. Besides keeping the rain off and making us aerodynamic, I think it absorbed the impact today that could have been me instead. 400 krone was a small price to pay to get it back on guard. 💜

Vordinborg is another cool small town. We walked by the #1 tourist spot in town -  Goose Tower. Goose Tower was one of 7 towers that was once part of King Valdemar Atterdag's castle. It was used as a prison and the locals have some legend about a princess being locked into Goose Tower. There is a golden Goose on the top, although the original golden Goose flew away with King Eric of Pomerania when he fled Denmark with the royal treasure. That part is true, Eric! 

Day 3 - Copenhagen, Denmark, Bags Deployed~

Joan's View

Tony on Fedex watch

The bags to be shipped to Vienna were packed and set outside by 9:00am for pickup. Fed ex was expected anytime before 1:00 or 5:00 depending on the source. Tony spent the morning assembling the rest of the tandem, test riding it, and then went outside a little before 1:00 to be a scarecrow. Ironically, close to 1:00, I went to check on him and he decided that he needed a beer. He went in while I stood guard, and just then the Fedex driver turned the corner and parked on the sidewalk to pickup our bags. 

Fedex loading our bags

We were free again. We metro-ed it to Our Saviour's Church based on another Kaye suggestion. The tickets to hike the steeple were sold out so we checked out the inside of the church. It was pretty cool how the elephants hold up the pipe organs.

Kaye said that the views were great up there. 😁

On our Metro ride to the Torvehallerne, a farmer's market area, we met this couple from New Castle, England. I asked him if his injuries were from the biking or running yesterday during the Iron Man. He said it was from the biking. He was coming in fast to the transition and was looking for flags overhead. Instead there were 2 guys waving flags and a crowd of cyclists in front of him. He slammed on his brakes and went down. He gashed his left arm to the bone and beat up his legs. We asked him if he finished and he said, "Of Course!" They patched him enough and told him that he would have to assume responsibility if he went on. He finished in 13 hours 28 minutes and 50 seconds, and went to the hospital after finishing to get stitched up. That 's an Ironman!

Name that beautiful fish from the fish market, Bud, Nick or other fishermen???

Tony wears his Notre Dame hat and look what we find!

Finally, we found this amazing Chinese place, Mywok. Pad Thai for me, free shrimp chips (Tisha will appreciate that one), and my new favorite drink, Faxe Kondl.

Tomorrow, we ride!

Tony's Extras

Yea, the bags were finally picked up. The folks at Choice One knew I was extremely worried about whether the driver would actually take them. They told me the bags needed to be in a cardboard box, but the shipping company said it was fine without one — “but it’s up to the driver.” Great. Nothing like leaving your sanity in the hands of a random guy with a van. I think it helped with Joan being out there, probably felt sorry for her.

Of course, I had a backup plan… and a backup to the backup plan. Didn’t need either, but I explained all of them to everyone at Choice One anyway. By the time I showed up there for the third day in a row, I told them I’d woken up at 3:00 a.m. just to call my backups and make sure they were still on board. Yea again.

By the way, Doug Borchers — I have great patience. I just don’t like to use it. 😂

I saw this sign and had to get a picture, such a great point.

It was a blast talking with the injured Ironman. He had just retired and said doing an Ironman was something he’d always wanted to check off the list — but he needed retirement to free up the 25+ hours a week to train. I’m sure that’s exactly what most people dream of doing the moment they retire. I’m also sure my recently retired friends, Dan Ernst and Eric Huth, will jump right on that plan. 

Ready to ride tomorrow.

Day 2 - Copenhagen, Denmark, Two out of Three Ain't Bad

Tony's View

Last night I was lying around, half‑asleep, half‑annoyed, wondering if—after all the calls—the bag would actually make it onto the Toronto → Copenhagen flight. And of course, the only thing running through my head was Meat Loaf: “Two out of three ain’t bad.” Except when you only have half your bike, it’s definitely bad.

I kept waking up like a kid on Christmas morning, checking the tracking. Then at 2:15 a.m., boom: “Bag ready to load.” A little later: “Bag loaded.” Finally, I could sleep without dreaming about lost luggage.

The Air Canada rep told me I could swing by the airport at 11:00 a.m. and grab it off the belt. So Joan stayed at the Airbnb, and I set off on a 35‑minute metro mission.

When I got there, they wouldn’t let me near the belt. “Go talk to Air Canada.” Air Canada then told me they were short‑staffed and couldn’t take me back there. It took them an hour to deliver that news. Then they sent me to the information desk, who also said they were short‑staffed. Copenhagen Airport was apparently running on a skeleton crew today.

Finally, they told me the bag would be delivered sometime between 5:00 and 10:00 p.m. Bummer

So I headed back, grabbed Joan, and we went sightseeing instead of bag‑hunting.

We headed downtown and stumbled right into an Ironman race — and not a small one. This was a full‑blown, carbon‑fiber‑everywhere, “my bike costs more than my car” kind of event. You can see all the high‑end triathlon machines in the photos. Yes, I was absolutely salivating.

We ended up right at the transition zone between the bike leg and the marathon run. Perfect spot for people‑watching and gear envy. The run was set up as a 10K loop, so the athletes passed by four times, which kept the crowd fired up and made it feel like we were part of the action instead of just spectators. You can see in the pictures that there are some pretty cool helmets.

Here you can see the runners on the left just coming off the bike leg, while the ones on the right have already knocked out one, two, or even three of the 10K loops. You could actually tell how far along they were by the bracelets — each lap earned them a new color. It was like watching an endurance race and a craft project at the same time.

During the rest of the race we decided to walk around and check out the canals and the colorful buildings that Kaye Borchers recommended. They are something special. 

We decided it was time for food — and obviously a couple of beers. While we were sitting there minding our own business, two guys walked up and sat next to us. Turns out they were ridiculously interesting. We ended up talking to Martin and Jamie for over an hour.

Both were Harvard grads with the kind of life stories that make you wonder what you’ve been doing with your time. The guy next to me was from Sydney — or should I say Sidney, since I apparently can’t spell when beer is involved. They’re working on a project in Greenland, and the material they’re mining there is so similar to what’s on the moon that they actually test moon buggies up there. Greenland: secretly NASA’s playground.

I mentioned that Trump once floated the idea of annexing Greenland, and the guy immediately launched into the strategic reasons — missile defense, Arctic positioning, all that. He said he knows the King of Greenland (which is already a wild sentence), and that Greenlanders like the USA but not the way Trump approached it. According to him, if Trump apologized, the whole thing might actually be possible.

I told him, “Well, you both live in DC — why don’t you go tell him?” He said he’d thought about it, but he might go through Marco Rubio since he knows him well. Then he casually mentioned that his best man is friends with Trump and once asked what Trump is like personally. Apparently, Trump is polite, funny, great at telling jokes, and a surprisingly enjoyable golf partner. Not exactly the description you expect to hear over beers in Copenhagen.

There were plenty more stories, but I’m tired of typing and you’re tired of reading, so we’ll call it even.

Here’s one of the finishers I talked to after he gathered all his gear. Joan and I were honestly amazed that he was still walking — let alone looking like a functioning human being. He told us he finished in 8 hours and 12 minutes. Eight hours! He said everything was going great until the last 10K, when he “struggled.”

Struggled? Most people are still out there grinding away at hour fifteen, bargaining with the universe and reconsidering all their life choices. If his version of struggling still gets him across the line in just over eight hours, that’s not struggling — that’s superhero territory.

Back to the lost‑luggage saga. We got back to the Airbnb at 5:00pm to wait for the delivery. Joan stayed inside on bag‑watch duty while I headed to the grocery store to stock up on supplies. I came back, grabbed a chair, cracked a beer, and parked myself by the road like some kind of suburban scarecrow whose only job was to flag down a delivery van.

We needed that bag tonight — otherwise shipping the empty bike cases to Vienna would turn into a logistical nightmare. So there I was, sitting by the street with my beer, when the phone rang. I told them I’d be out there waiting until the driver showed up.

Their response?

“Wow, you’ll be sitting out there for a while. Our driver can’t make it until tomorrow.”

Big bummer.

Are you happy yet, Puthoff?

I told them I needed it tonight. They said, “Well… if you come to the airport, we can see what we can do.”

So off to the airport I went — again. At this point I didn’t even need Google Maps. I could practically commute there blindfolded.

I arrived, and they told me they could get the bag to me at 9:30 p.m.

It was 6:00 p.m.

Not ideal.

So what did I do?

Yep — I started begging.

And then Celine came to the rescue. She worked some magic, took a picture with me, and we both celebrated like we’d just completed our own Ironman.

 I HAVE THE LOST BAG NOW, YEA!!!!

Joan's Extras

Truth be told, my luggage waiting duty involved a few naps. 😍 Our history is that it takes me longer to adjust to the new time zone and it takes Tony longer to adjust when we go home. Carol and Clyde can attest to that one because it took me days when we visited them in China, a lofty 12 hour difference.

Tomorrow may be another waiting day depending on how soon the bags to be shipped to Vienna get picked up by the courier. Nap anyone?