Читать книгу The Rhine Cycle Route. From source to sea through Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands онлайн

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Leisure activities are numerous. Almost every town has a public swimming pool, often beside the river. White-water rafting is possible through Ruinaulta (Stage 2), while Huningue (Stage 9) has a canoe slalom course. Rowing and sailing clubs abound.

Cycling is one of the most popular leisure activities in all the countries of the Rhine, particularly in places such as Bodensee, the Rhine Gorge and Kinderdijk, where cyclists of all ages and degrees of fitness can be seen. Cycling as a family holiday is popular in Germany.

The route

For much of its 1232km length it is possible to cycle along either bank of the Rhine. In preparing this book, the author followed both banks and explored some alternative routes away from the river. While the route described mostly follows the left (southern or western) bank, various deviations are made to attractive locations on the right bank. The total distance cycled by the route described is 1372km. For a breakdown of the stages, see Appendix A.

Where possible, rural or parkland routes are preferred to urban ones. Although several large cities are traversed, few require significant lengths of urban street cycling. In three cities, dedicated cycle tracks along canal banks (Strasbourg), linear city parks (Karlsruhe) or through urban woodland (Mannheim) take the route into the heart of the city without encountering traffic. In eight others (Bregenz, Konstanz, Schaffhausen, Mainz, Koblenz, Bonn, Köln and Düsseldorf), the route sticks to the river as it passes close by the city centres.