Читать книгу The Danube Cycleway Volume 2. From Budapest to the Black Sea онлайн

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As a result, by cycling the lower Danube you embark upon an adventure where the very journey becomes something of a challenge. Tourist offices, places to stay and cycle shops are few and far between, while West European languages are little spoken. You need to plan accommodation ahead and be more self-sufficient when it comes to maintaining your cycle in working order. The fact that you cross the line of the former Iron Curtain twice, pass through an area that was involved in a violent civil war as recently as 1999 and skirt the edge of the old Soviet Union all add to the sense of adventure. But don’t be discouraged by this. Cycling the lower Danube is well within the capabilities of most cycle tourists. The people are warm and friendly and both road surfaces and waymarking have improved a lot in recent years. This book is intended to help the average cyclist complete this adventure successfully.

The chain bridge spans the Danube between Buda (left) and Pest (right) (Stage 1)

The 2772km-long Danube is Europe’s second longest river (behind the Volga). Rising in the German Black Forest, it runs through 10 countries on its way to the Black Sea. This guidebook covers the 1647km that the river flows from Budapest to the extensive delta in Romania where it empties into the sea. As the Danube has dropped to an altitude of only 100m above sea level by the time it reaches Budapest, the cycleway following the river is mostly level. Through Hungary and Serbia the route follows long off-road stretches along flood dykes. In Romania cycling is mostly along the Romanian Danube road (Strada Dunarii), a quiet long-distance road set back from the river alongside the flood plain, which was built in the mid-19th century to open up the southern part of the newly unified country.