Today’s ride from Lengenfeld to Zeitz was satisfying, as we found some good bike paths and it was quite invigorating to do a long ride again – we achieved 95 km.

It was pleasantly cool in the morning and the bicycle paths between Lengenfeld and Greiz followed the Göltzsch river, a tributary of the Elster. The route went through Weissensand, Mühlwand and MyLau. We enjoyed the view of the MyLau castle from the bike path.

We had a bit of a climb through the fields to Reinsdorf and then a long downhill run to Greiz, where we also stayed in 2017. The town still looked just the same, bringing back memories as we rode through.

We crossed to the other side of the river, to follow a different path to the one we took two years ago. The trail now follows the White Elster river and is referred to as the Elster cycle trail on the signage. It took a romantic but slow path through the forest alongside the river. There were good river views and a wood carving alongside the bike path at Neumuhle.

The cycle route moved away from the river to Waltersdorf, Obergeissendorf, Berga and then a long stretch through the quiet wooded roads to Wünschendorf. We bought an ice cream at Gera, where we had also stayed two years ago. The ride became quite ugly after Salsitz, and we approached Zeitz past a large soap factory.

Zeitz has a small baroque castle, and a slightly run down historic centre. There are a number of empty buildings, including right next to our very basic, but friendly, pension. We self catered with a kebab/ pizza and some salads from the supermarket.