itsmylife: Germany 5 (A very very long way(But Denmark's getting closer)).

Saturday 11th May. St Margarethen - Busum. Sunny but still that NW breeze mostly in the face.
A good trail led through the outer grounds of a power station and into Brunsbuttel. Good signage showed the way through some of the back streets and to the ferry, which was free! The ferry took you across the mouth of the Nord-Ostsee Kanal and into the main part of Brunsbuttel, again I was looking for the Tourist Information office to update maps. A quick coffee before getting back in the saddle and away. Good well marked trails, but the wind not helping, brought me to Friedrichskoog sluice bridge, then the heavens opened with a vengence!! An hour of struggling to just to make a bit of headway!! Eventually got to JDH Busum 1900 drookit!! (70.6k)

Bike track goes through the power station grounds on way to Brunsbuttel

I could have jumped that if it wasn't for all the luggage on my bike!!

Sunday 12th May. Busum - Tonning. Slow start today, in at breakfast early enough but gear strewn all around bedroom, all dry except shoes. Off at 0945, two choices ahead, picked the wrong street and found a harbour between me and where I wanted to be. Soon rectified and with a following wind made reasonable time. A well marked nice trail to follow. Rolled into Tonning around 1230 and enjoyed an hour dozing in the sun in the town square. Eventually I felt I should move and do something about finding the hostel, a couple of wrong turns but soon sorted, arriving 1425.
The building was open but officially reception not manned until 1600. I was dozing inside this time, out of a cool NE breeze which had sprung up. Two staff members were sorting out bed linen and moving boxes about kindly leaving me dozing in peace. Around 1520 one of them asked if I was there to check in, Membership card handed over, I was signed in, bedding issued, showered and had a brew before anyone else had turned up. (34.8k)

View back to Busum

The tide coming in to Katinger Watt

Gates in the dyke at Tonning

Tonning DJH

Wall mosaic in DJH

Monday 13th May. Tonning - Niebull. From JDH it was back into town to the Tourist Info office, where I was given a map covering much of the last leg of my journey through Germany.
About half an hour into the riding the rain started, no messing this time, jacket, overtrousers, even overshoes went on. Head down and keep pedalling!! Approaching a junction there were two bikes parked at the road side and standing back under the trees, two bedraggled Germans. As I approached they started waving a map around and shouting stuff which was intelligible to me, so I pulled up and replied with the usual Brit understatement "Not very nice is it"? The florid faced bloke was appoplectic!! he was almost jumpin up'n doon! waving the map, shouting and pointing at right angles to where I'd come from, or was going. His missus had her head screwed on, she just shouted "Tonning"? so I pointed back the way I'd come and said "I've just come from Tonning. At that hubby bellowed even louder! so just to stir things a bit I only spoke to the wife, pointed the way I'd come and repeated that I had just come from Tonning and it had taken nearly an hour. She gave me a smile as I took of and I last heard her giving hubby 'what for'. It sounded as though a good old domestic ding dong starting up!!
Midday-ish I rolled into Husum having done the last few km on a track by the main road; it was a relief to just have to get around the slightly more sedate town traffic.
This was another gold star and smiley face for the tourist info staff! a free map and help negotiating the Scandinavian computer keyboard to get through and book a place at the JDH in Niebull. First pit stop during the afternoon!! A wee back road, back tyre gone spongey then on to the rim. Off load, strip the old tube out to fix later, feel around inside the tyre to make sure I'm not putting a good tube into a tyre with a thorn, nail or piece of wire poking though; nothing there, tube in, pump up, load up again. Forty mins and was good to go. Arrived Niebull 1820, found hostel loaded with three classes of Hamburg primary pupils! Christina (Evening reception) had all my details from the lunchtime e-mail, and because the kids were full board and there was plenty of food spare I got a big bowl of pasta, meatballs and salad!! She even aimed me at a quiet spot to eat undisturbed by shrieking kids!! (83k)

After a long hard day to Niebull

Tuesday 14th May. Niebull - Hojer (DK). Cool, variable S wind.
Today's route meant the wind would be side or behind but rarely into!! Whoppee!!
Stoked up on a good breakfast again eaten in peace away from the kids and their natural ability to create a racket!
Got the bags packed up and out by a picknic table all ready to load. Got the bike, yep, you probably guessed, flat tyre!. When I repaired the first tube I noted that the hole was near opposite the valve. A careful check of the tyre tread showed up a piece of grit which wouldn't clean off. I did a quick job of opening the tyre and exposing that bit of inner tube, sure enough there was the hole; puncture marked, I used a pointy bit of my Leather Man multi tool to excavate the piece of grit, and the pliers to finally extract it. It was a bit of quartz shaped like a minature tooth! I couldn't feel it on the inside of the tyre so it must have been the weight over the back that finally caused the damage. Problem solved and finally sorted, loaded and away, eventually! About a km up the road I pulled in again, this time an Aldi store, away to get some lunch goodies.
The ride was easy going, the border a 'non event', see pics! No guards, no passport required! Hojer, about 5k into Denmark. Well, that's Germany done.
Time for bed.