Day 7: Oh, beautiful Oberfrankenland!

On today's day we went from Erlangen via Baiersdorf, Forchheim, Strullendorf and Bamberg to Breitengüßbach. So we drove along the Regnitz through the beautiful Oberfrankenland.

We started the day with a very nice breakfast at the Creativhotel Luise. After that, we drove through the Erlangen city center in finally dry weather. On this Sunday, it was practically empty; a contrast to yesterday's overcrowded Nuremberg. We followed the course of the Main-Danube Canal or the Regnitz northwards. We passed Bubenreuth, as well as Möhrendorf. Then we took a short break on an old Regnitz bridge in Forchheim; Janina had her picture taken with Nepomuk and Jörg with a Madonna with child. In Forchheim, in the year 911, Konrad I was elected the first East Frankish king (analogous to the West Frankish kingdom), which marked the beginning of independent German history (according to Wikipedia). It is also referred to as the gateway to the Franconian Switzerland, which lay east of us. Afterwards, we passed bee meadows and sunflower fields, which shone beautifully and brightly in the sunlight.

In the afternoon we reached Bamberg, whose old town has one of the best preserved city centers, with buildings from the 11th to the 19th century. We cycled leisurely from sight to sight. So we looked at the new residence from the cathedral square, the Bamberg Cathedral, the Michaelsberg Monastery, the old town hall, various bridges and facade paintings. From the park of the monastery, we had a great panoramic view over the city with its different buildings and green areas. Of course, we also strengthened ourselves at the backyard café 'Leander'; they offered fresh waffles, delicious cakes and salad variations. We also had the pleasure of listening to the music of a nearby Blues & Jazz open-air event. Luckily, it was Sunday, otherwise the city would have been even more crowded. Even so, we saw many tourists.

After Bamberg, we went a short distance to Breitengüßbach. We had booked the hotel 'Vierjahreszeiten', which was located near the local sports field. Since Jörg had only entered 'Am Sportplatz' as a destination in the Naviki app, we first drove directly to the sports field. It was quite decent :-)) What was not so decent: It started to rain lightly! What else? And that even though the last few meters were uphill. On the other hand, it went downhill to the hotel; where there is shade, there is also light.

The hotel and its restaurant were very busy, especially with older guests. The owner informed us that today was a church consecration. That's why there was also a (very) small fair (origin of the word "Kirchweihmesse") in the (very) small town center of Breitengüßbach. Since we assumed that the hotel's restaurant was closed, we bought some delicacies to take away at the Levantine restaurant 'Lemon Tree' in Bamberg. Overall, it was a beautiful bike route with a lot of variety :-)

Data for the 7th stage:

Distance: 65.6 km
Travel time: 4:29h
Average speed: 14.6 km/h
Max. speed: 27.6 km/h
Elevation gain: 194 m