The trouble with quickly planning a holiday is that when you are vaguely planning 55 to 60kms a day it is only a guesstimate so yes today ended up as a 70km day.In addition instead of staying at a beautiful historic town of Gunzburg we are staying in Offingen just down the road from the Gundremmingen nuclear plant.

Oh well reasonable hotel with very large rooms, although not up to last nights attic room with electric shutters and skylights to look at the night sky.

Easy flatish cycling today with arriving in Ulm in time for coffee and a look around the historic centre. It didn’t present a pretty picture on the way in with grafitti, drunks staggering around the river bank , then once in the city a psychotic woman groaning menacingly. The cathedral with its tallest spire was encased with scaffolding and seemed to be locked up so no chance of climbing up it. We entered via the leaning Metger tower, which started leaning a few years after being built but its still standing now still on its lean.

Ulm is also the end of the alternative route which you need an extra day for along the Blautal valley meant to be more scenic and 40,000 year old historic artifacts, so we’ll put in the diary for another time.

Lunch we entered the town of Leipheim slightly off our route but it was looking like we werent going to get any food if we stayed on the forest paths. We went into the first Gasthof we came to Der Hirsch as you enter Leipheim.A really traditional German pub. We went for the menu of the day ; soup , salad bar and a main dish all for 6 euros. There were 2 choices of main a pork cutlet or a “dampfnodel” alias a steamed bun. I assumed it would be stuffed with pork mince like a chinese steamed bun, no just a steam bun which you eat with vanilla sauce from the salad bar!!At least hubby did share his cutlet.

The routes today were at times very convoluted so at one point we were blocking the road wondering which way to go, the car driver we held up a young man, just laughed at us . In perth we’d have been mowed down.If we need to cross the road cars just stop for you even if there is no crossing,its amazing. I love it.

Huge serves in the restaurant here tonight, we’ll need to go back out cycling. At least we’ve had chance to try the other noodle speciality from here spatzle dumplings made from flour,nutmeg,pepper,water and eggs and tossed into simmer in a broth.

Bed calls and it is a seriously huge bed.