Milton Keynes to Vienna, Part 4
With our time in Vienna at an end it was time to start the return journey home, albeit it nearly a month to go. We set off upstream along the Danube Valley. I did not think that the river was that picturesque near to Vienna and you have to go a bit further upstream for it to be classed as pretty. Our first stop after Vienna was Krems which was only about 50 miles. We stayed at Donaupark Camping Krems which is only a small site of about 60 pitches right on the Danube. We were concerned we wouldn’t get in but the owner found us a space. Krems is a departure point for river steamers, mainly going upstream to Melk.
Krems is a reasonable walk from the campsite and is quite grand in appearance. A nice “Gate” forms the entrance to the old town. I was a bit surprised to learn that it is the fifth largest town in Austria although it did not feel that way. High above the campsite on the other side of the river is Göttweig Abbey. We were able to use the bikes on paths along the river.
Having stayed three days at Krems we continued our journey upstream towards a small town called Grein. We used the road which ran alongside the river for most of the short journey of about 50 miles. The river valley becomes more wooded and bends start to appear which is gives a much more pleasant vista. At this point the Danube is still used by commercial traffic which, at least to me, adds an extra interest. Grein is right of the river and the campsite was right at the end of a long riverside promenade. There is lots of easy cycling direct from the campsite.
Leaving Grein we headed back, albeit it briefly, into Germany at a small town called Inzell which is quite near to Salzburg. We didn’t realise that we would have to go up the side of a mountain!!! The site, Camping Landbuer, is fairly new and has a lovely natural setting. It seems not to have any physical boundaries but just placed in the countryside. The weather had taken a turn for the worst so we were grateful for the hardstanding pitches. The facility block was superb. The town is an easy walk away and there are plenty of cycling opportunities. Given the number of restaurants it looks as if it is a big winter sports venue. The sun did come out now and again and when the clouds cleared from the surrounding mountains we could see the full beauty of the place.
After Inzell we moved back into Austria to Imst. Those that use the Fern Pass will recognise the name and Camping Imst West would make a good stop over point before heading into Italy or further into Austria. The site has recently rebuilt its toilet block and they are really excellent. Many French and UK campsites could learn a lot about quality from the Austrians and Germans!!! It’s not the shortest uphill walk into the town centre but you could reward yourself at the lovely Regensburger Café/Konditorei with a coffee and a large variety of cakes!!! It was a much easier walk to the supermarket, or should that be supermarkets as we had three within easy walking distance.
Our next stop was on the Bodensee back in Germany. It had not been our intention to stop here but our original choice of site we were concerned about the steep gravel access road and the second was closed for a three hour lunch break. I am sure both are fine campsites but we pressed on to Camping William on the shore of the Bodensee. The site is a bit remote but we did use our electric bikes to get into the charming lakeside town of Allensbach which was about four kilometres away. There is a nice lakeside gardens and trip boats leave from the quay.
More of this story and many more pictures can be seen on my website here
To be continued.