R1.01 Inn-Danube-Round

Schärding – Austria’s most beautiful baroque town is a picturesque starting point. Located at the legendary Alpine river Inn, the riverside with its own city gate, city wall, colorful burgher houses... tells of prosperity as a river trading place. A genuine river gem! From the riverside, you follow the broad Inn stream – one of the longest and mightiest Alpine rivers – downstream. Once this was an important trade route between Tyrol and the Danube, today it serves as the border river to Bavaria. After the Pram bridge, you cycle on sandy paths through rustic riverside woods next to the stream. Relaxed pedaling, hidden views of the Inn... river cycling at its finest! After the wide Inn valley, the last breakthrough valley of the Alpine river begins with the Bavarian monastery Vornbach. The entrance is the nature reserve "Vornbach Gorge": In the idyllic forest gorge, the Inn forces its way through a 60 m narrow gorge! No wonder they say that you once could hear the Inn's debris "singing" here.

The bike route briefly climbs a narrow terrain step above the river. On paved bike paths, lonely secondary roads, a sandy path, and finally the Inn street, you reach the end of the gorge, the artful Marian footbridge in Wernstein! The 145 m long suspension bridge over the Inn is supported by a single(!) 30 m high pillar and from its middle offers a magnificent view into the gorge. The Bavarian castle Neuburg reigns over the scenery. Pure river romance! After Wernstein, the breakthrough valley becomes wider and lonelier. Wonderful mixed forests shape the valley flanks. The Neuburg forest on the Bavarian side is known for tree giants up to 50 m high and its species diversity – a natural jewel! You relaxedly accompany the slow river on sand roads. The ease of cycling gives space for daydreams.

Civilization begins again in the rural area of Ingling and via secondary roads you head to the cultural highlight – the three-rivers city Passau! Inn and Ilz flow into the Danube here. The medieval Inn city tells of flourishing trade, the magnificent old town on the peninsula opposite of Gloria, power, and wealth as the residence city of the "Danube East"! The UNESCO World Heritage Site "Roman Museum Kastell Boiotro" is dedicated to reviving life on the Danube limes. Passau is a cultural gem with many facets! So, be sure to plan time for exploration. After the mouth of the Inn into the Danube, you follow the mythic river a bit through the Upper Danube valley – one of the longest breakthrough valleys of the Danube at over 90 km (!) – and with rare gorge and hillside mixed forests, a natural jewel of central European dimension. In Haibach, you leave the urban area and cycle further on the Danube bike path.

After the Austrian border, the 180-meter ascent begins onto the Sauwald plateau. The first section leads in shady mixed forest in switchbacks through the steep valley flank, then it goes uphill over a ridge through rural cultural landscape. At Gasthof Blass, a resting place of the Danube trail impresses with an unusual view of Passau. Shortly after, you stand in Freinberg on the Sauwald plateau. Congratulations! Now begins enjoyable highland cycling on rural roads in the rhythm of hills. Lush meadows, fertile fields, scattered farms, small forests, small settlements... pure rural idyll! Beautiful views provide elevation experience. In the rural settlement Schafberg, the plateau is crossed and a dreamy panoramic descent leads back into the Inn valley – to Wernstein. You already know the rest of the return route. Feel the primal power of the currents!