Adventure, challenge and pure nature - bikepacking offers the perfect combination. For me, it means combining the joy of cycling with the thrill of the unknown. Every tour brings its own challenges, sometimes predictable, sometimes not.
Back to the roots
Rides from A to B, for example to attend a family celebration, were my first bikepacking tours a few years ago. Most recently, I took part in several ultra-cycling events such as Badlands, Bright Midnight and Seven Serpents. With the Deutschland-Trail, I went back to the roots: combining an event with a bike tour. The gravel edition of the Deutschland-Trail took me back to Munich from a business trip to the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.
Germany Trail?
The Germany Trail was first realised a few years ago. Back then, my former colleague Stefan Loibl cycled across the country on his mountain bike with the intention of discovering the country's most beautiful MTB trails. Along for the ride: readers of our sister magazine BIKE, who showed him their favourite trails in their region. The gravel edition of the Deutschland-Trail should be similar. Both TOUR and BIKE invited readers to submit route suggestions and accompany me for a part of my bikepacking tour.
The route was created in teamwork
I mapped out the rough route myself, following the stages of the Tour of Germany 2024. For the detailed planning, I asked readers for advice and received suggestions for the individual stages, which I then combined into the final plan. Anyone who wanted to was allowed to join me for a section. This meant I was often travelling in small groups and could listen to the (cycling) stories of my companions.
Stage 1: Border experience: Schengen - Saarbrücken
The starting shot was fired in Schengen, a symbolic place for open borders in Europe. From there, the route meandered along the German-French border. The stage was challenging with 130 kilometres and 2100 metres of elevation gain, but rewarded me with magnificent views, for example of the Saar Loop, which I had only seen in pictures. The only downer was a punctured tyre, which cost me a lot of time and nerves. More on this later. From the start at the European Monument in Schengen to the European Monument in Überherrn (Monument to the Great Europeans), we will be accompanied by Saarländischer Rundfunk. The Monument to the Great Europeans is a symbol of Franco-German reconciliation. The result appeared in the current affairs report at minute 27:07.
At the Saar, today's passengers said goodbye and set off on their way home, a mixture of train and bike. I travelled into the city to today's hotel. Shortly beforehand, I received a notification on my mobile phone that a parcel could not be delivered, which had been sent to the hotel as an express delivery. In the parcel from me to myself was my hydration pack, drinking powder, spare brake pads, my rain trousers and overshoes. A lot of things I didn't need for the Tour de France Femmes, but I did need on the bikepacking tour.
Stage 2: Shortcut: Saarbrücken - Zweibrücken
After the exhausting start, stage 2 was a welcome breather - apart from an unforeseeable Challenge described below. To solve the problem, we had to completely replan the route. Luckily, Theo, who lives in Saarbrücken, was with us and was happy about this spontaneous change, as he was able to show me and the other riders his favourite routes, which we would have avoided with the original plan. After around 75 kilometres through gentler terrain, my highlight was the Göttelborn spoil tip and a coffee to which fellow cyclist Elmar invited us. In the afternoon, rain tempted us to shorten the route and take the direct route to Zweibrücken instead of another loop. I can't say exactly how many kilometres and metres of elevation gain we ended up with, as I pressed stop on my Garmin at the bike shop where I tackled the tyre problem from the previous day and then forgot to press start again. When I arrived at the hotel, I washed the bike kit in the sink and wrung it out in a towel. After dinner, photographer Pia Nowak and I fell into bed tired.
Stage 3: Zweibrücken - Neustadt an der Weinstraße
Pattering rain on day 3 made it difficult to set off. First of all, I put on rain gear, overshoes and a rain jacket. It was far too warm, so I took the jacket off again straight away. Then I got on my bike. I was travelling alone today, no wonder in this weather. Once I set off, I was delighted by the now mystical landscape. Rising mist gave it a special look. My highlight of the 106 kilometres with 1800 metres of elevation gain was the descent from the Kalmit to Neustadt - the forest literally changed its face every few hundred metres here, the evening light emphasising the scenery. The plan for that night was for Pia and I to pitch our tent on a wild camping site. However, due to the cold and wet, we decided not to camp and enjoyed the warm hospitality of TOUR readers Matthias and Claudia, who offered us a bed and cooked for us.
Stage 4: Neustadt an der Weinstraße - Neckargerach
After a delicious breakfast with our hosts, Claudia said goodbye and set off for work. Matthias accompanied me on the stage. We headed into the Odenwald via Heidelberg: 50 kilometres flat. I was constantly joined by fellow cyclists, so we quickly became a group. In Heidelberg, route planner Peter invited us into his garden. There was coffee, cake and pretzels for everyone. And the laugh of the day: one of his dogs had declared the garden a dog litter tray and four of us had stepped in the pile.
The break was followed by 1,200 metres of climbing over 70 kilometres, the Königistuhl and Katzenbuckel rewarded with fantastic views. The route put together by TOUR reader Peter Sandmann impressed with gravel paths and flowing trails, and the Rocky Mountain Solo showed off its skills. Our group harmonised perfectly, everyone rode at roughly the same speed. At the finish in Neckargerach, we camped at a cosy campsite right by the river, Matthias was also there. However, there was no chance of resting, as the summer sleeping bags were no match for the night-time cold.
Stage 5: Neckargerach - Stuttgart
Thanks to the sleepless night, I wasn't the only one hanging on. Pia felt the same way. Not Matthias. After breakfast together, he said goodbye, as he was heading back to Neustadt an der Weinstraße today, while my route would take me up and down to Stuttgart, 1800 metres in altitude and 117 kilometres. At first, my Garmin didn't want to start the live track - or display it in the app. That cost me half an hour. It was a good thing that no fellow cyclists had been announced for the start, otherwise I would have been even more annoyed by the delay. I only had company on the last section, before that I enjoyed being alone - a nice change. Thanks to the almost sleepless night, I fought against tiredness today. Music in my ears energised me - as did a short power nap on a bench. Before I said goodbye to today's passengers in the evening, we ate falafel together.
Stage 6: Alpine gravel: Stuttgart - Ulm
The 6th stage was the longest at 130 kilometres, with an additional 1850 metres in altitude. Thanks to my fellow cyclists Raffael from AlbSchotter and Max, it was the fastest, at 20 kilometres per hour. But we didn't just rush through or over the Alb, we also stopped to enjoy the one or other view and to eat a piece of cake. One highlight was an encounter with an alpaca migration. 20 kilometres before reaching Ulm, at the Blautopf, Raffael and Max turned around. Pia and I allowed ourselves a short breather with ice chocolate before I tackled the last 20 kilometres. We were invited to stay with Vera, a fellow cyclist on stage 7. She and her partner provided us with delicious food and the next morning we even had home-baked bread rolls.
Stage 7: Ulm - Augsburg
This stage was easier, with a manageable elevation gain of 950 metres. Three of us started in Ulm, three women, as Vera and I were joined by Marina from Bamberg, who would be travelling with us for two days. Today we took our time and took an extended break at a cycle service station on the Danube. Our planned arrival time in Augsburg was 7 pm. But we were too quick. After a few phone calls, we had pushed our arrival in a cosy beer garden in Augsburg forward by around 1.5 hours. We ended the day in the evening sun - invited by tyre manufacturer Maxxis.
Stage 8: Grand finale: Augsburg - Munich
The last day: 92 kilometres and 600 metres in altitude still separated me from the finish. We started at 7am, two hours earlier than on the previous days, as the planned finish time was 1pm. The route was also varied today. Even the last few metres into Munich had something new and unfamiliar to offer.
I was a bit crestfallen at the start of the day because some of my fellow riders had to cancel at short notice. So it was all the nicer that people signed up at short notice and joined us, some of whom had to turn off again before we reached Munich.
And then: precision landing. I reached my destination with the group of 9 at exactly 1 pm. After the obligatory group photo, we had snacks and drinks at Konsum.Kiez.Kaffee in Munich.
The Germany Trail Gravel Edition
- Length: 880 kilometres
- Altitude metres: 12,200 metres in altitude
- Start: Schengen, Luxembourg
- Target: Munich
- Highlight stages: Palatinate Forest, Swabian Alb, German Wine Route
- Overnight stay: Hotel, campsite, with friends and fellow travellers
- Packing list: Sleeping set-up, rainwear, toothbrush, sun cream, first aid kit, change of clothes
Challenges on the road
Every bikepacking tour comes with its own challenges. Sometimes they are predictable, sometimes not. The two biggest difficulties on this tour were:
1. a defective tyre
On the first day, a defective tyre cost us time and nerves. Two days before the start, a large cut in the tyre was initially sealed with a tubeless patch. On the first 5 kilometres of the real tour, the hole in the tread returned. A second "sausage" was unsuccessful, as was topping up with sealant. Last resort: a tube. Paul from TriShop Saar helped to patch the tyre before the shop opened.
2. hunt for a parcel
I send myself parcels so that I don't have to carry as much to and from the airport. This time it went wrong. The parcel with the hydration pack, overshoes, rain trousers and more didn't arrive. Another delivery attempt to the hotel in Saarbrücken failed, but I can't understand why. After much toing and froing, the only thing left to do was to re-plan stage 3 and drive to the logistics centre; to the delight of fellow cyclist Theo, who was now able to present his favourite routes.
Thank you!
The tour showed once again that you don't need to travel far to discover the unknown. There are many beautiful places right on our doorstep. A special thank you to all those who helped to organise and accompany this route - you made this tour a special experience!
Sandra Schuberth
Editor
