Monday 14th July
Today’s agenda was a tour of the lakes of Upper Austria: Traunsee, Attersee, Mondsee and Wolfgangsee. Our final destination was in Kaprun which is well known for being part of the ski region of Zell am See, but also has plenty of walking and cycling activities during the summer.
We were soon out of Linz via the motorway and the scenery just got better as we got closer to the mountains. Even though it was summer there was still plenty of snow to be seen on the highest peaks, but we would not be heading up that high today, just taking in a tour around the valleys and lakes.

The roads were pretty fast and sweeping and the Diavel took everything in its stride. I was actually beginning to enjoy riding the bike – maybe even surprised at how much I was enjoying riding it! – and it really didn’t feel as big as it looked. It was super-stable in the corners and motorway so maybe that was the only time you noticed the size?
We stopped for another good lunch and soon got going again, but although it looked rather grey and dull it was still quite warm (for an Englishman!) at around 15 degrees and riding in a textile jacket with just a t-shirt was not a problem at all.
We arrived at our hotel in Kaprun for the night and it could not have been more “Austrian” if it had tried! It was a lovely wooden chalet style with pointed roof and windows with shutters nestling in the hill-side next to a running stream and cows on the hill. The view from the balcony was stunning and you could even see a bob-sleigh run on the hillside opposite!

Distance today: 264 km