Events in this story happened on the 19th of June, 2019. We paddled our inflatable canoe named ‘Zucchini’ from a small village near Regensburg named Friesheim to the bigger town Straubing. It was a distance of 36 kilometers, which is a new record for us. Leaving Friesheim for Straubing As you might know from the previous post, Friesheim was a little bit of a struggle for us. The town is very small and we didn’t have food security on arrival. All those troubles disappeared with the help from our hosts and their vehicle and the local butcher’s shop, which alsoContinue reading
Danube Trip
Ahhh, the mighty Danube!
I’ve had an obsession with the idea of kayaking the second-longest river in Europe – after the Volga – since 2013. In 2019, that dream came half-way true.
Jonas and I began paddling at the source in Donaueschingen, Germany. From there we continued downstream to the border with Austria, which we crossed. Then we paddled a short distance in Slovakia, followed by a lengthy stretch in Hungary. The original plan was to end in Budapest, but we had enough summer days left to continue another 200 kilometers. We came to a stop in the last Hungarian town on the Danube: Mohács.
We planned to continue this trip in 2021 after 18 months of traveling in Asia, but then 2020 happened. One day, the trip will continue into Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, a touch of Moldova, and Ukraine.
To the Black Sea. That’s where this river ends.
I wrote about each and every kayak day, which resulted in some 50 Danube-themed articles. I recommend you to start at Day Zero in Donaueschingen. If you’re searching for the statistics of our trip, look no further than the interactive Danube kayak map page with our spreadsheet. We did this entire trip while also working online on our non-paddle days, hence the name Kayak+Work.
The first half of the Danube trip was a literal dream come true. I can’t wait to continue this journey once the world opens up a little more again.
Kayak Trip Day 16: Regensburg to Friesheim
The events described here happened on Monday the 17th of June, 2019. Jonas and I paddled our inflatable canoe named Zucchini down the Danube from Regensburg to Friesheim, a distance of 19.2 kilometers. We finally passed the northernmost bend in the Danube in Regensburg, so from now on we’ll generally head east-southeast. The pictures might look a little more shabby than usual because my other camera malfunctioned. Four Nights in Regensburg We had booked 3 nights at our Airbnb in Regensburg, but we extended with one more night after checking out the room. Technically, we were staying outside of RegensburgContinue reading
Kayak Trip Day 15: Kelheim to Regensburg
This article relates to events that happened on the 13th of June, 2019. Jonas and I paddled our inflatable canoe named Zucchini from Kelheim to Regensburg in Bavaria, south Germany. We covered a distance of about 30 kilometers. Taking Care of Jonas Jonas had been sick since arriving in Kelheim on the 10th of June. He spent the next two days in bed with a fever and zero appetite. Luckily, we have a big box of paracetamol and unlimited tap water. So those two days we nuked that fever away with a regiment of medicine, a cold wet cloth onContinue reading
Kayak Trip Day 14: Vohburg to Kelheim and the Donaudurchbruch
This is a story about the events surrounding our canoe trip down the Danube between Vohburg and Kelheim. It happened on the 10th of June, 2019. We paddled about 30 kilometers between the two towns. Contents1 Our Stay in Vohburg2 Leaving Vohburg for Kelheim3 Paddling Past the Military Base4 The One-Hour Mark Challenge5 Overtaken By the Red Canoe6 The First Ferry and Camping Haderfleck7 Weltenburg – the Last Stop Before Kelheim8 The Donaudurchbruch9 Paddling on to Kelheim10 Arriving in Kelheim11 The Naming Ceremony12 Good Read? Please Share! Our Stay in Vohburg We stayed in the ’boutique hotel’ Zur Post forContinue reading
Kayak Trip Day 13: Ingolstadt to Vohburg
Events chronicled in this story happened on the 8th of June, 2019. Jonas and I paddled our inflatable canoe from Ingolstadt to Vohburg, 16.5km away. It was our 13th paddle day on the river Danube. Ingolstadt is a special place because that’s where the TID (Tour International Danubien) starts. That’s the people who paddle the Danube as a tour group. Five Nights in an Airbnb in Ingolstadt We took a break. For five nights after our arrival from Neuburg an der Donau, we slept, cooked for ourselves, and worked at a very pleasant Airbnb in Ingolstadt’s suburbia. We’d booked aContinue reading
Kayak Trip Day 12: Neuburg an der Donau to Ingolstadt
Events chronicled in this story happened on Monday the 3rd of June, 2019. We paddled our inflatable canoe from a village called Neuburg an der Donau to the big regional city Ingolstadt. It was a distance of about 18 kilometers. Packing Up in Neuberg an der Donau We both slept alright in our tent on the campground in Neuburg an der Donau. Getting up was very difficult though, because we woke up first at 6:00 and considered it too early, and then again at 7:15 when it got too hot in the tent. Edeka opened at 7:00, and we’d alreadyContinue reading
Kayak Trip Day 11: Donauwörth to Neuburg an der Donau
Events happened on June 2nd, 2019. We paddled from Donauwörth to a town called Neuburg an der Donau. In Neuburg an der Donau, we wanted to camp at the canoe/rowing club in town. We paddled some 32 kilometers that day, which was a new record distance. Two Nights in Donauwörth We spent two nights in hotel Buena Vista in Donauwörth. Unfortunately, our room of hotel ‘Good View’ looked out on the wall of another building. No natural light entered our room which was wholly depressing. The internet also wasn’t very reliable. To be fair, we had tried to book threeContinue reading
Kayak Trip Day 10: Dillingen an der Donau to Donauwörth
These events happened on Friday the 31st of May, 2019. We paddled our inflatable canoe from our riverside campsite in Dillingen an der Donau to Donauwörth, a distance of 28 kilometers. This was the first time we paddled this far and the first time we paddled two days in a row. If you want to know more about what this trip is about and why we’re doing it, I suggest starting here in Donaueschingen. Packing Up Our Camping Gear We woke up quite early at 7:00 in our beautiful tent. Soon after, we started our day of packing our campingContinue reading
Kayak Trip Day 9: Günzburg to Dillingen an der Donau
Events in this article happened on the 30th of May, 2019, which was also Ascension day. We paddled in our inflatable canoe from Günzburg to Dillingen an der Donau, a distance of about 24 kilometers. Both towns lie in Bavaria in Germany. In Germany, Ascension day is a public holiday and they celebrate father’s day on this same day. Father’s day is actually more generally ‘men’s day’, which means that a lot of groups of men go outside to drink and revel in shitty activities like fishing. In Dillingen an der Donau, we finally went camping for the first timeContinue reading