Bike ride to Blackwater Bridge (Schwarzwasserbrucke)

The rain let up but it was as windy as a spring day in Flagstaff when I headed out on my trusty steed (I'm hoping it is trusty - I'm trying to give it good vibes...) toward Koniz - a small town just southwest of Bern.  Katherine had stayed here and commented on how pretty it was.  She booked several different adventurous stays at "air bed and breakfasts" when she was here for the INQUA conference.  See www.airbnb.com if you are interested in budget housing in other people's homes for your travels.

Koniz was up a decent hill but my "new" bike was doing fine so I kept heading uphill and against the wind to see where it would take me.  After an hour I ended up on this bridge with an amazing view to the river below.

Trusty steed on top of the bridge

Here is a picture without my bike in the way:

Schwarzwasser

Notice the trail to the left of the river below?  I found a path that headed down to the river and was happy to have a mountain bike for that section!  Then I took a picture of the river bed where a lower bridge crossed the river.  It was eroded limestone - and reminded me of Slide Rock in Oak Creek Canyon - though that is through sandstone and is even steeper in places.

The Swiss version of Slide Rock

Before I climbed out of the canyon (walking my trusty steed up part of the way) I took a picture of the original bridge I had crossed high above me.

Looking up at the high bridge

It took me just half as long to get home - now that it was mostly downhill and with the wind!