Sunday, October 18, 2009

Cycling in Copenhagen


We're in Copenhagen for the Velomobile Seminar (posts to follow), but also spending a few days biking around the city. Here's where we rode on Sunday, October 18:


Bike route 338766 - powered by Bikemap

The tour took us from our hotel, the Quality Airport Hotel Dan across the island of Amanger, where the Copenhagen Airport is located, to the Vestvolden bike path, then down through the city center and back to the hotel, a 30-mile loop.

We had rented a Winther trike, which weighs almost 100 pounds but carries just about anything you might want to transport. It's meant for carrying two children; we easily brought along a picnic lunch, camera gear, rain clothing, and some tools. The trike came from Copenhagen Bike-Rental, which supports bike-building and repair projects in Africa. We had a small-wheeled folding bike with us, but for this ride on mixed surfaces, we rented a conventional three-speed bike from the hotel.

The Vestvolden bike route follows an old line of fortifications from the 1800's. When advances in warfare made them useless, the system was abandoned, and it has been turned into a park. Much of the bike route is asphalt, but there are unpaved sections, and one bridge is accessible only for 2-wheelers. The small photo shows the trike and bike in front of one of the old forts.

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