It was a wonderful morning cycling down the upper Danube with soaring cliffs on either side topped by the occasional castle. The sky was bright blue, the wind in my favour and the road clear of traffic. I eventually reached Sigmaringen and stopped for lunch. It would be a long 80 mile haul to Ulm but with the comfort of another Youth Hostel beckoning, worth pressing on.
People were friendly all day, stopping to offer directions and once or twice cycling alongside which tested my German but also provided useful advice on the coming weather and keeping me on the right track. With about 10kms to go to Ulm and the evening light drawing in I decided to stop to fix my lights- a head torch at the front and the backlight clipped to the tent between the panniers - big mistake.
After about 2kms there was an awful crack from behind me and the bike shuddered to a halt. The back light was laying far behind and the rear mudguard had snapped in half. The light had dangled free and been forced up under the mud guard by the turning wheel. Something had to give.
Eventually I retrieved the light and bodge-fixed the mud guard. It was now almost pitch black. Someone did stop to check that I was going in the right directions and I evetually limped into Ulm and found the Youth Hostel at the top of the ubiquitous hill, after having been cheered by a really nice girl who was so enthusiatic on hearing where I was headed. Proper repairs must await until tomorrow
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