Rollin’ Deep

Posted on June 28, 2026 by Jody Jett

The simple things. Human-powered propulsion. Two-wheeled exploration. Long quiet miles. Bike love. The past two months have been blessed with extended days in the saddle spent pedaling around in circles.

Slovenia

Eight days in Slovenia doing a bike loop created by daily decisions. Started near Kranska Gora, spent a couple nights around Lake Bled, couple more at Bohinjsko, several days along the Soča River, and a few hours riding through Italy to complete the route. Lush valleys with all-time views of snow-capped peaks lining the distance. Big climbs, steep descents, back roads, bike paths, and a couple train assists. Lots of sunshine and one full day of rain. Hearty local fare and too many (no choice but) pizzas to count. Dobri dnevi!

Ulm

Spent an evening riding along the Danube and around Ulm on the way back home from Slovenia. Birthplace of Einstein and home to the tallest church steeple in the world.

Vulkan-Express

Fun little day trip with one-way ride support from an old diesel locomotive. Enjoyable putter up a big hill in the well-kept old passenger cars and a great gravel route back down to the Rhine.

Bodensee

Four-day circumnavigation of the Bodensee and beyond. Spent an evening riding around Worms on the way down south. Started and ended the bike loop in Konstantz on the German side. Route cruises through Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and in and out of lots of neat little ‘beach’ towns and historic sites. Made it around the big lake, then along the lower lake, and finally to Rhine Falls before hopping a quick ride back on the train. Photos are scarce for this one and the rest because, really, there’s only so many photos of people riding bikes next to beautiful scenery that a person can take (not to mention subject others to).

Tour de Ahrtal

Slim pickin’ for photos of this one but deserves a mention for sure. Not too far from our house there was a local event a couple weeks ago where they closed down 50km of highway to host a day of biking! Each little town along the route had a small festival going on with beer, bands, BBQs, and homemade cakes. There were checkpoints along the way where you could get a mark on your punchcard and later enter it for a big drawing if you had visited at least four of the 20 sites. It was a super fun day and probably the most enjoyable event (out of all the Christmas markets, festivals, etc.) I’ve done since being here.

Schwarzwald

Finally made it to the fabled Black Forest last weekend. Triberg, Germany’s highest waterfall, world’s biggest and smallest cuckoo clocks, Black Forest cake, and lots of straight ups and straight downs. Will call it a scouting trip for the next time as my favorite tailgater had to unexpectedly head back stateside the day before. Sweaty solo rides up some of the steepest climbs I’ve ever ridden under the searing heat of the most recent (and reportedly most fierce) European heatwave to date. Rough! Good times on the last day, however, with happy laps around the Schluchsee and a few liters of the local Rothaus brew to celebrate the Solstice.

Still hangin’ in there… Thanks for reading and hoping you’re out biking around with a big smile on your face as well! Macht’s gut!

Ein Jahr

Posted on October 14, 2025 by Jody Jett

One year? There hasn’t been another in my life that passed half as quick. I arrived in Germany last October and find myself again surrounded by changing leaves, autumnal air, low-lying sunshine, the full effects of fall in northern latitudes. A nice place to be in moments of mindful presence. Elusive as they may occur.

Been some of the same and some of not the same. Bike riding, walking, climbing on rocks, tending to flowers, taking a few photos. Lots of local travel and a few extended ramblings. Been a couple of planned weeks off and a sudden stint of unrequested free time. Been unhealthy levels of news consumption—and too many unprecedented home-country happenings to ignore. Serenity prayer on repeat.

Highlights of the past few months: Another several day section of the Mosel Radweg biking upstream this time. Pedaled out of the garage, down to the Lieser, swung right at the Mosel, spent one night in Germany, one in Luxembourg, and one in France before doing the train/bike combo back home. A two-week family visit full of activity. Tours of German towns, rivers, and trails. Lots of castles, lots of spots, lots of memories. A week in the Netherlands checking out North Sea beaches, Texel Island, and the Afsluitdijk dike. A couple days in Liege, Belgium. A day of walking in the High Fens National Park. A weekend trip to Saarland. And so forth… One year in and more anxious questions than predictions as to what the next one might deliver. Deep breaths and a day at a time.

Château de Sierck, France where we finished the ride.

Völklinger Hütte UNESCO Ironworks Site. Amazing place.

If a photo can be a metaphor this one fits the time. Thanks for checking in und Bis spater!

Zeit Vergeht

Posted on July 6, 2025 by Jody Jett

Springtime was a fine time and summer proves equally pleasant. Days of hot. Days of not. Light until 11 pm makes for dreamy sunset bike riding, late night porch sitting, Bitburger swilling, guitar strumming, hammock swinging… Only hard part is going to bed when you should. 8 months in.

In that time, I’ve been trying to focus on two things. Figuring out how to best do my job and gaining a basic knowledge of local surroundings. If we’re around long enough, the time will come for broader travels in neighboring countries, but for now I’m quite content staying within a limited radius from the backyard. Exploring the trails, learning the customs, trying to speak a little of the language…

Rhineland-Palatinate. Farmlands, Woodlands, Vineyards, and River Valleys.

Every day I am grateful for the house and community we ended up in. The town has less than 2000 inhabitants, yet still supports a bakery, a nice restaurant, a convenience store, and a gas station. Like all the smaller villages around here (hundreds of them) the town celebrates festivals, sponsors sporting teams, and hosts social events. There is a bus that comes through every couple of hours from which one can access neighboring villages as well as the nearest train station. And the trails! I’ve mentioned this already, but even after months of walking and biking from the house we’re still discovering more routes, different loops, new possibilities.

We recently took some days to go on an extended bike trip from the house, down the Lieser and Mosel Rivers, and ended at the confluence with the Rhine and the city of Koblenz. This trip was well over 100 miles of riding on signed and paved paths with only a mile or so of sharing the road with cars! Unbelievable to imagine that a good portion of the country is set up this way.

After spending the solstice in Koblenz, we hopped on a train with the bikes, shuttled most of the way back, and then rode a different route home from the train station. The last couple of weekends have been similar with bus-supported bike rides to various named routes in the local region. Miles and miles and miles of cruising through vineyards, along waterways, through tunnels, across bridges, past churches and castles, and into the hearts of centuries old downtowns.

Other highlights from the past few months include four-days of hiking around the Mullerthal region in nearby Luxembourg, a day trip to a medieval festival at the Sedan Castle in France, a beautiful spring day in Cologne, Via Ferrata in Manderscheid, stumbling across too many other castles to count, a short canoe trip on the Sauer, a few music festivals, and more. Jede Woche ein neues Abenteuer. A new something to appreciate.