Swimming

I’ve often said that a sign of a good holiday is to arrive home with wet bathers. Well I’m not yet ready to come home, but certainly wet tonight…

but first … Bad Vöslau is a spa town. You got a photo of the central Thermalbad in an earlier blog. But ‘thermal’ doesn’t necessarily mean hot.  Unless of course the temperature of the water stays the same through winter? After the Austrian event finished on Sunday, several of us went to the Bad.  Two pools – quite large  one at 19 deg, the other at 25. The others (mainly New Zealanders) went in the cooler pool. I’m definitely a Queenslander when it comes to swimming. I did the warmer. I reckon it’s the first time I’ve ever been in a ‘tin’ pool.  Quite an odd feeling with metal and metal joins underfoot.  Didn’t take my camera so can’t show you an inside pic. Quite a large expanse of pool with small box-changing rooms surrounding the concourse. And ‘Victorian’  motel-style rooms overlooking on the upper 2 stories, all around.

So here I am now, 200+ km further west in St Georgen im Attergau. A bit east of Salzburg. St G is a small village in the hills above the Attersee, one of the larger lakes in the Lakes District of Austria. (Free range chooks in the Main Street!)

The lady at the Info Centre suggested I could ride down to the town of Attersee which is on the lake, have a swim, and catch the train back up the hill.  Sounded like a great idea so that was the plan for this afternoon.

at least 2 options for swimming. The one I picked seemed to charge by the hour. Lots of people streaming out as the hand neared the top of the clock.  “If you wait 3 minutes I can give you a better price.” And at 4pm, 2.40 EU got me until until closing time.  Large expanse of nicely mown grass. Changing facilities of course. Several interlocked swimming pools with a circular-type slide mainly inhabited  by children. The Info lady said they were heated but I didn’t try them out. And of course the lake with two piers. One pier had a diving board and I guess they must have hollowed out a deeper area there because the rest of the lake area there was quite shallow. And rocky/stoney at first, so going in/out via the stairs on the piers was a good idea. I went out a fair way but it didn’t go over my head. The Info lady had said the temperature was 25. It was ok.  I swam down to the neighbouring enclosure. They didn’t have as much lake-front but probably more grass. I reckon mine was better! But after a total of nearly an hour I’d had enough. Just too late for the 5 pm train, so the plan was to check out the town, find then find the station.

But look at those clouds!  My breakfast companions had said there would be thunderstorms at midday. That didn’t happen until 5:10pm. Thankfully the station was right there. The trains on this short route are like large trams (with tram-type articulation) and the station shed was just long enough for one train. Me and my bike sheltering from the impending storm. Soon joined by others and as the Blitzen and Donner increased and the wind and rain got quite severe, more drowned rats joined us. And waited for the 6 pm train. Only 7 min to St G and I rode home in sheets of rain and flooded streets. The little stream near the chooks was a strong torrent.  And now more than my bathers are wet!

I’ve got to go out to find dinner but 90min later it’s still raining though less severely. The first pic is my first glimpse of the lake on the ride down. The alps are quite close on the other side.