Last preparations
First we have to fill in the leasing contract for the bike rental.
After our scheduled arrival on time at 9.38 hours in Mals, a form has to be filled in at the bike rental, a few meters distance from the platform. Together with the Event Card our data is being registered and with our counterfoil we can proceed to the big hall, where a lot of bikes are waiting for their riders.
There we get, as requested, a city bike for Bärbel and 3 trekking bikes for the rest of the team. For our orientation we quickly acquire a bike map, which shows the route through the Vinschgau and gives useful information about the course of the route.
With a cloudless, blue sky and approx. 20 °C, we make final adjustments on our bikes. Except for the hight of the saddle everything else is fine, so our tour can get startet at 10.05 hours – after we have taken the appropriate departure picture.
- Left: View from the Etsch cycling track back to Mals, our starting point.
- Centre: Medieval Glurns in the Vinschgau is our first stop.
- Right: Already from far Churburg castle near Schluders can be seen.
From Mals to Glurns
The Market place in Glurns with the inn Grüner Baum.
Mals (1,051 m), the main town of Obervinschgau, with its distinctive silhouette with the 5 towers, lies already behind us, when 5 minutes later, after a breathtaking ride, we enter Glurns, the smallest town of Soutyh Tyrol, 150m subjacent. (By the way, it can be done slowlier, provided the brakes are being used more often!)
From the railway station Mals a partly asphalted cycling track leads downhill to Glurns.
Glurns (908 m) with its medieval character and completely preseved town wall of the 16th century is worth a walk algong the beautiful, old row of houses and arcades.
Since we already know Glurns a little bit, we are satisfied with a stop at the Stadtplatz with its two inns. Today’s inn “Krone” was once a grand palais.
and then we continue to Schlunderns
A bit outside of Glurns is the late gothic Parish Church of St. Pankratius an der Etsch.
Beyond the town wall of Glurns on the other side of the Etsch is the late gothic Parish Church of St. Pankratius with its romanic steeple, which is crowned by a baroque dome.
After we have passed the town gate our cycling track takes a sharp left turn, so that we no longer bike over to the church. Furthermore, the feeling creeps up that we will be short of time today if we linger too long at the start, since we still have 60 km in front of us to Merano.
So we decide to make a view kilometers, after our sightseeing programme.
However, nothing much became of our sporty intentions, because now the impressive scenery of Churburg castle, high above Schlunderns, is greeting us from the left side of the Etsch.
