Is EV 15 Along the Rhine Rideable on 28mm Road Tyres?

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oldcarltonfan

Veteran
Location
UK
Ladies and Gents of CycleChat.

I’m considering riding part of EV15 along the Rhine, probably the section between Strasbourg and Cologne/Koln. I would be lightly loaded with a single pannier on a Van Nicholas Yukon, shod with 28mm GP 4 Season tyres.

I after the opinions of anyone who has ridden that section recently on the following questions:

What is the majority of the surface like? Is it comfortably ride-able on 28mm GP 4 Season tyres? Normal-ish surfaces and smooth gravel doesn’t bother the bike (or me) but muddy tracks and rocky ‘stuff’ are less pleasant.

If some sections are not suitable, roughly how long are they and are they easy to avoid with a bimble along quiet roads?

Are there better sections of EV 15 to ride, either smoother or more interesting?

Or would you say, forget it, ‘borrow’ your son’s Specialized Sirrus hybrid with 32mm or bigger tyres on it?

Thank you.
 
Ladies and Gents of CycleChat.

I’m considering riding part of EV15 along the Rhine, probably the section between Strasbourg and Cologne/Koln. I would be lightly loaded with a single pannier on a Van Nicholas Yukon, shod with 28mm GP 4 Season tyres.

I after the opinions of anyone who has ridden that section recently on the following questions:

What is the majority of the surface like? Is it comfortably ride-able on 28mm GP 4 Season tyres? Normal-ish surfaces and smooth gravel doesn’t bother the bike (or me) but muddy tracks and rocky ‘stuff’ are less pleasant.

If some sections are not suitable, roughly how long are they and are they easy to avoid with a bimble along quiet roads?

Are there better sections of EV 15 to ride, either smoother or more interesting?

Or would you say, forget it, ‘borrow’ your son’s Specialized Sirrus hybrid with 32mm or bigger tyres on it?

Thank you.

I cycled from Nijmengen to Koblenz and it was about 95% surfaced. Most of the rest was gravel. It was a lovely ride all the way.

As far as I know it has since been improved but I can't comment on the tyres, as I've never used anything thinner than a Schwalbe Marathon plus.
 
Location
Cheshire
Cant comment on EV15 but managed the below on 28mm Schwale Durano
20190706_192917.jpg

This would be limit for me as concerns with wheels/tyres taking a pounding and me falling off!

Fine if short stretches but i would feel more comfortable with 32mm+ personally. Great area to tour though, Mosel to Trier is wonderful as well.
 

robgul

Legendary Member
I've ridden Koblenz - Koln* on the Rhine path and I understand almost the whole length is the same surfaces - it was 2015.

A mix of a very small amount of hard-pack, lots of tarmac and lots of concrete interlocking blocks. No problem whatsoever although the concrete rattles your teeth a bit!

I rode it on a Galaxy with 28mm tyres - the others in the group had a mix of 25 - 32 tyres on a mix of road bikes and tourers ... all with panniers (not camping). You'll be fine.

BUT - it was a bit boring with just a very wide brown-ish river beside you with the odd giant barge (usually full of scrap metal) - Bonn was interesting stop - and the Bridge at Remagen (or lack of it!) was interesting. Very little actually on the path - you have to deviate to find food and drink.

Rob

* When we got to Koln we turned left and rode across to Brussels to get the Eurostar back to London.
 
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oldcarltonfan

oldcarltonfan

Veteran
Location
UK
Andy in Germany, Grant Fondo and Robgul,

Thank you for the feedback. It sounds perfectly achievable on my Yukon.

Robgul,

Thank you for the reminder about the boredom factor.

I didn’t want to clutter my original question with all of my plans, but I speak reasonable German and was planning to detour from the route for historic, cultural and culinary visits as required, staying in B&Bs or small local hotels. I’ve got a 3-bottle fit on the bike and will make sure I fill the top of the pannier with snacks in case I miscalculate. I haven’t even worked out the exact plan yet, thank you for the answers.
 

Brains

Legendary Member
Location
Greenwich
We have cycled alongside the German River system extensively
We think its wonderful and never boring, but each to their own I guess.
Surface wise, it's all pretty good, mostly tarmac, some packed gravel.

Get the BikeLine book, it's by far the best one for the maps
It also lists all the B&B's
 

adoli

Member
Location
Switzerland
I recommend using the app Komoot or use it online. Just google for it.

I use it all the time for making new routes; what is really very good is that it tells you very accurately the type of surface you will be riding on.

If you select 'racing bike' then it will route you on known paved roads; if you choose 'touring bike' it will take you along unpaved roads.
 
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oldcarltonfan

oldcarltonfan

Veteran
Location
UK
Thank you all for the help. I’ve just googled Komoot and I will play with it at the weekend, starting with familiar routes, to see how it performs.

The Bike Line books/maps look interesting, when I’m doing the ‘proper’ planning rather than the ‘what if’ I might use it; how does it compare to the Cicerone guides (apart from being written in German)? For routing and navigation, I have a Garmin Montana with all of the Rhine area loaded, including the basic cicerone route. I would pre-book accommodation before going; nowadays I prefer to plan an easy daily mileage with the certainty of known accommodation.

Thanks again for the advice.
 

robing

Über Member
I did 40 miles along the Rhine south from Koblenz. I liked it but decided to take a more direct but much hillier route through southern Germany. I use Komoot/Wahoo so navigation easy peasy. Horses for courses really but I prefer not to follow the crowd plus saw lots of interesting stuff away from the Rhine and one of the best campsites I have stayed at on a vineyard. On the way back I was going to follow the Rhein from Vaduz to Strasbourg via Basel. But found it quite busy and Switzerland pricey so headed to Strasbourg via the Black Forest (even more hills!)
 

Brains

Legendary Member
Location
Greenwich
Thank you all for the help. I’ve just googled Komoot and I will play with it at the weekend, starting with familiar routes, to see how it performs.

The Bike Line books/maps look interesting, when I’m doing the ‘proper’ planning rather than the ‘what if’ I might use it; how does it compare to the Cicerone guides (apart from being written in German)? For routing and navigation, I have a Garmin Montana with all of the Rhine area loaded, including the basic cicerone route. I would pre-book accommodation before going; nowadays I prefer to plan an easy daily mileage with the certainty of known accommodation.

Thanks again for the advice.

The BikeLline books have one page of map and one page of info
Text for major routes (such as the Rhine) is also available in English
Having said which, Google translate app where you point the camera of your smart phone at the page and it instantly translates means text in other languages is not the problem it once was.

The BikeLine books are spiral bound and designed to fit on top of a bar bag.
The info is excellent.

The cicerone guide books in my opinion are not even comparable
 
The BikeLline books have one page of map and one page of info
Text for major routes (such as the Rhine) is also available in English
Having said which, Google translate app where you point the camera of your smart phone at the page and it instantly translates means text in other languages is not the problem it once was.

The BikeLine books are spiral bound and designed to fit on top of a bar bag.
The info is excellent.

The cicerone guide books in my opinion are not even comparable

Can't speak for the Cicerone books, but I used the Bikeline ones and they are pretty good: large scale, accurate and informative and clearly written by someone who has actually cycled the route. I didn't realise they were available in English.
 
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