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For the last few weeks before I returned to the US, I worked in Copenhagen (København). I flew there every Monday morning, and home to München every Friday afternoon.

A bicycle tour from København to München

Dave Hood
2004-02-19 20:21:47

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Didn’t even see an irresistible opportunity for lunch, so I stopped at a bakery on the way out of town for a really decadent cinnamon roll and milk.

Picked up cycle route 9 again, stayed with it. Yes, much prettier, much quieter. Most of the time I was alone. Many of the roads are so narrow that two cars couldn’t pass without using the shoulder.

Flat country – what that means is that the hills aren’t more than five or ten meters high. Many don’t even register on the altimeter. Gets to be work, even so. Fields, forests – not that different from Germany. Signs on the farmhouses advertising potatoes, tomatoes for sale. Someone had left the day’s collection of eggs by the road; people who wanted eggs could take what they wanted, leave money in a jar with a slotted lid. Nice to be able to trust people.

Thatched roofs are very popular, and many are beautifully manicured. After a few years, they become green with moss. A few were brand new this season, still golden.

Eventually the going got easier and I deduced that we were dropping back to the shore at Præstø Fjord. The whole world was white, no distinction between sky and water. The bike route went back inland, uphill. Even a short granny grade – who would have believed it in Denmark? Getting tired and sore. Someone at work yesterday asked me if I had trained for this. No – the ride is its own training. By the time I get home, I should be just about in shape for bicycle touring. Meantime, I’ll have to do the best I can.

Saw some birds run across the road. In Nebraska, I would have instantly identified them as pheasants – but do they have pheasants here? Yes! Saw some more later, closer up: long tail feathers, golden bodies, white ring around the neck, dark heads. The females are golden, speckled. They lurk invisibly in the grass until you get close, then fly up with a great flurry. ...