31 miles, 3 hours on the bike, 415 elevation gain

We were on the road before 9 and it was already toasty warm outside. No need for jackets. Today we retraced our steps back downstream along the Danube except this time we were on the opposite side of the river.

Our first stop at 27km was the Trappist Monastery Engelszell which was founded in 1293.

In 1699 a fire destroyed the gothic monastery and church. A new abby and church were built from 1700-1764. In 1939 the Trappists were forced from the abbey by the Gestapo. Of the 73 monks forced from the abbey, only 23 returned after the war. Since 1945 the community has persevered despite economic hardships and the small number of monks. The Trappist Monks produce beer and sell liqueurs of several different kinds made from traditional recipes and are said to have medicinal properties. We thought it would be a good idea to support the Trappist Monks.

Here’s a peak inside the chapel.

There were six of these, three on each side.

And a close up of the golden box.

And look at how modernistic the ceiling artwork is.

Back on the cycle path we passed a lot of scenery like this, big fields of grain – wheat, barley? – with poppies sprinkled throughout.

We got to our hotel around noon,

and had a delightful salad lunch. Lucky for us, they had a pool which was great for cooling off. It was a hot one today. The rest of the afternoon was spent exploring the nearby marina/campground and planning tomorrow’s adventure.

There’s really nothing else here so we had a wonderful dinner of lamb shank with their house white wine at the hotel. Chris wowed the waiter with his questions about Austrian ice wines and red wines and while we were eating his recommended dessert – pancake (crepe) with strawberries, etc. he brought us two different samples of Austrian reds that were perfect with the dessert.

They were both great, but Chris really liked the one on the left – Blauer Portugieser.  We’ll be heading into Austria’s primo wine region in a few days and now we know what we’re looking for.

Today I will end with this. Not sure about who or what he represents but I think he might be Kokopelli’s Bavarian kin, don’t you agree?