Top Bicycle Trails recommended route Stage 5

Danube Cycle Path, stage 5, south bank: Melk – Mautern

Top Bicycle Trails · Donau-Niederösterreich closed
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  • Altstadt von Melk und Benediktinerstift Melk © Donau Niederösterreich/www.extremfotos.com
    Altstadt von Melk und Benediktinerstift Melk © Donau Niederösterreich/www.extremfotos.com
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    Current information: The cycle ferry between Aggsbach-Dorf and Aggstein is back in operation.

     

    Baroque monastery and robber-knight fortress

    Along this section of the scenic Danube Bike Path, you ride from Melk, the western “Gateway to the Wachau”, along the Danube to the historic city of Mautern, which played a major role in Ancient Roman times. On your ride, you pedal through the lovely Wachau and towns such as Schönbühel, Aggsbach and Rossatz-Arnsdorf.

     

    Current Notices:

    Due to the construction of flood prevention measures, there are a number of small diversions in the Schönbühel-Aggsbach Dorf-Aggstein area; these are locally signposted. 

    Due to construction works on the bridge between Mautern and Stein (the Mauterner Brücke), there will be restrictions for cyclists, starting immediately! We recommend allowing enough time to cross the Danube elsewhere.

    closed
    moderate
    Distance 33.3 km
    2:40 h
    78 m
    85 m
    246 m
    195 m

    This stage takes you by the Dunkelsteiner Wald, one of the biggest contiguous woodlands in Middle Europe. The advantage of the route on the south river bank is the sweeping view of the grand landscape of the Wachau, a UNESCO World Heritage landscape on the opposite bank. It has enchanting wooded slopes interspersed with rocks, terraced vineyards and amiable villages. Before leaving Melk, the “Gateway to the Wachau”, behind you, make sure to visit the Benedictine Abbey of Melk, founded 1089, with its magnificent library of 85,000 books, a ceiling fresco by Paul Troger and a fragment of the Lay of the Nibelung.

    This old epic reminds you just how steeped in history this area is, a fact also attested to by prehistoric finds in Schönbühel. You pass through this town with its charming castle on the bank of the Danube on your way to Aggstein. There the legendary 12th c castle ruins of the same name entice you to climb 300 meters up the steep hill. The robber-baron Jörg Schenk once resided here. He forced the ships on the Danube to stop and pay him a toll. Those who failed to do so were put on a high rock ledge within the fortress called the Rosengärtlein (Garden of Roses) and left to starve to death.

    Relax and simply enjoy the scenery until Mautern. Along the way, you encounter villages graced with charming churches and old wineries and farmhouses. Near Bacharnsdorf, you see the remains of fortifications that formed part of the old Roman limes along the Danube, now incorporated in buildings and gardens.

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    Author
    Donau NÖ
    Update: November 06, 2024
    Difficulty
    moderate
    Overall difficulty
    moderate

    Derived from the technical difficulty and the stamina requirements.

    Experience
    Landscape
    Highest point
    246 m
    Lowest point
    195 m
    Best time of year
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    Public transport

    You can reach Melk easily by train.

    Directions

    In Melk you change from the A1 to the B1 and continue into the city center of Melk.

    Parking

    There are a number of parking lots in the city.

    Coordinates

    DD
    48.227600, 15.328220
    DMS
    48°13'39.4"N 15°19'41.6"E
    UTM
    33U 524375 5341649
    w3w 
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    Get there by train, car, bike, or on foot!

    Similar routes nearby

    • Danube Cycle Path, stage 5, north bank: Emmersdorf - Krems
    • Ybbstal Cycle Route
    • Danube Cycle Path, stage 6, south bank: Mautern – Klosterneuburg
    • Danube Cycle Path, stage 6, north bank: Krems – Tulln
     These suggestions were generated by our system
    Status
    closed
    Difficulty
    moderate
    Overall difficulty
    moderate

    Derived from the technical difficulty and the stamina requirements.

    Distance
    33.3 km
    Duration
    2:40 h
    Ascent
    78 m
    Descent
    85 m
    Highest point
    246 m
    Lowest point
    195 m
    Multi-stage route Scenic Refreshment stops available Cultural/historical interest Flora Fauna Linear route

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