Daily Stats*
| Distance |
86.28 km |
| Time |
5:20:23 h |
| Avg. Speed |
16.2 km/h |
| Max. Speed |
46.8 km/h |
| Avg. Heart Rate |
121 bpm |
| Uphill |
864 m |
| Downhill |
1260 m |
| Avg. Temperature** |
33.0 °C |
Elevation profile [m]
*measured by Garmin Forerunner 945 & Sigma ROX 4.0
**measured at the lower back
Daybook
On this day, the route was to go from Dahlem via Aachen to Kerkrade, a more “relaxed” ride than yesterday in terms of distance and elevation, and a first partial success of the tour by reaching the Netherlands.
With heavy legs, I swung myself out of the tiny house in Dahlem onto my bike in the morning. The sun was already shining brightly in the blue sky, telling me that today would be another sweaty one. Spoiler alert: it was.
The first part of the day trip was not very spectacular. From the high plateau around Dahlem, the route went downhill and uphill through the Urfftal nature reserve with its side valleys via Kreuzberg, Winten, and Manscheid to Reifferscheid. In Reifferscheid, I had briefly hoped that the route along the main road would continue slightly downhill, but instead it went up to Reifferscheid Castle (see first impression). From there, you can catch a great view of the Eifel! And so I (involuntarily) made a small detour when I took the wrong turn at the next junction ...
Back on the track and feeling spiritually enriched by some additional meters up, the road led me via Hönningen to Hellenthal. There I came across the Oleftalsperre (second impression), a flood protection and drinking water reservoir that holds around 20 million cubic meters of water from the Olef River (I didn't measure it myself, it was written on the information board :-) ). The accompanying bike path runs beautifully along the shore of the reservoir, offering several kilometers of shade thanks to the vegetation on both sides. I'd say that was my highlight for today!
But well, we have already learned that beautiful sections are often followed by more exhausting ones. In fact, the upcoming climb of about 150 meters with an incline of about 7% to 11% towards Höfen and Monschau was “crunchy,” but I have to say, this forest had something picturesque about it, and for a moment, while climbing through the trees, I thought: can I still register for the 2026 Tour de France?
The section via Roetgen could then be put down as “speed rush.” A wide bike lane next to the federal highway, smooth asphalt, and long downhill stretches allowed speeds of 30–40 km/h. I can only add at this point that such speeds should be approached with great caution, as touring bikes with a lot of luggage are very sensitive to small changes in direction! I quickly reached the city of Aachen (third impression), where I was about to experience a technical mishap. Or two, if you like ...
First, my navigation device stopped displaying the route because the memory was full. I did a complete reset, reloaded the route, and quietly buried the old route (which is why the elevation and slope profiles are inaccurate or missing). Maybe it was my fault, since I was stupid enough to leave the actual route ("How dare you" - my navigation device) in favor of Aachen Cathedral. I guess it would have been a nice picture for the impressions, but now you'll just have to google it ;-) Then, while trying to return to the original route, I underestimated the turning circle of my bike (again, note: with luggage, it might be larger...) and was just able to get off the bike before doing a very artistic sideways slide. Puh, there are definitely some dangers to urban cycling!
After a quick shopping trip, I finally found myself on the road to Kerkrade. It was a bit of a balancing act, as I had to attach the shopping bag to the right handlebar, but the generosity of the Dutch when it comes to cycling infrastructure and my own skill got me safely to my destination.
Another intense day of travel comes to an end. From tomorrow, the terrain will be flatter, which I will appreciate after nearly 450 km and 5,000 meters uphill. Now I shovel down some salad, yogurt, berries, a little pineapple and peach, a few drinks, and something sweet for my reward system. On that note, hold the fort, we'll talk later :-).
Impressions
Reifferscheid castle
Oleftalsperre dam near Hellenthal
Arrival in Aachen