The second Stage of the Tour de Tall was more zig-zagging across Berlin to visit the twelfth to the eighth tallest structures. More impressive stacks from power plants and an Eiffel Tower imitation .. I mean .. inspiration, plus a bonus spaceship.
Spring made a welcome return just in time for the final BRC Endspurt Meisterschaft route. A lovely sunny day cycling through nature reserves, forests and along waterways. Bonus visit to the Schloss Dammsmühle with an interesting CV and yet another foiled sabotage attempt!
The penultimate BRC Endspurt Meisterschaft route passed through the prairie landscape of the Döberitzer Heide, along canals where I raced against barges and through many lovely trails. Lots of wildlife spotting too plus some bike balancing acrobatics were needed to cross over a ditch. Thankfully my clumsy nature was hibernating.
The shortest of the BRC Endspurt Meisterschaft routes was the toughest one so far. Rooty trails, sandy paths and high blood glucose made for a very tough ride. At least the gorgeous lakes and spring weather made up for it.
The next BRC Endspurt Meisterschaft route took me through pine forests, along the Oder-Spree-Kanal and over the river Dahme. Blood glucose fuelling just about paid off and I learned that my German sounds like Swiss-German when my blood glucose is low. Good to know.
With Flash fixed, I had another crack at the BRC Endspurt Meisterschaft route that was previously derailed. This time I successfully sped around lovely lakes and through dense forests despite my blood glucose being super-needy!
My second attempt at one of the BRC Endspurt Meisterschaft routes was unfortunately a short lived one. One of the dangers of cycling through forests threw a spanner in the works aka a stick in the derailleur.
I registered to take part in an off-road cycling series presented by the BRC Endspurt cycling club. I tackled the first of six loops on a window of spring after a week of snow! Here are my thoughts and experiences of the beautiful (but sandy) forests and lakes just south of Potsdam.
A beautiful autumn day was ideal for visiting all 8 of Berlin’s mills. This was a lovely loop in the city focussing on buildings not really associated with big cities! The back stories, as well as the current uses, of these mills is also very interesting – featuring a “Murder Mill” going up in flames, World War II and people getting caught in the vanes.
Cycling the Berliner Mauerweg (Berlin Wall Path) has been on my To Do List for ages! I finally managed to complete the whole path in a single day and it was well worth it. Starting (and ending) in central Berlin, passing along waterways and along fields – the varied terrain and sights were fantastic. But also a reminder of how West Berlin was surrounded by a huge concrete wall and that many East Berliners risked their lives to cross that border.