Bei Nässe rutschig – Slippery when wet

Today was our first “real” day of riding. We left Baden and traveled through some varied (intermittently wet) terrain up to Semmering for 67 miles, and ~6500′ gain.

Josh decided that he is going to move into a tree house we found along the way, and I decided that I want to cover our entire house in planter boxes full of flowers at every window. I’m pretty sure Josh is going to divorce me if I say “Ooooh, look at the flowers on that house” one more time….and it is only the first day.

There was a gorgeous stretch of downhill through a gorge carved by the Schwarza with steep rock walls and crystal clear water, a narrow winding one lane mountain road through thick tree canopies that seemed like something from a movie, and three sections of sustained climbing with double-digit grades for 3-5 kilometers at a time.

We are staying at the Hotel Panhans, which is atop of the last of the climbs today, and looks like your classic little Austrian ski resort town. The hotel is old, but very nice, and reminds us of the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. With its wide halls, early 20th-century decor and musty smells, all that is missing is a set of twins outside our room.

We are already feeling very spoiled with the amazing accommodations and food. Overall, we are both pleased with how good our legs felt with our first day of actual climbing. Tomorrow, it is on to the “steep” stuff.