The hotel in Zurich had been lovely, so it was a wrench to leave – particularly since it was raining again as we packed up. But it relented and we made good dry progress out of Zurich on suburban roads for the first part of the morning. After coffee we did a short climb and descended a valley to enter different country altogether. This was deeply wooded and rural.

We joined the Rhine valley in a wooded gorge – where repairs to this very small road had resulted in its closure to traffic but, because this was a significant bike route, a fully signposted cyclists diversion through the woods!

I love this country. Diversions just for cyclists! And even the smallest place has urinals that flush as you step back. (When I first came here, aged 16, my mate told me that the sensors also photographed your willy and that the police kept the photos for solving sex crimes. My mate was clearly ahead of his time – but luckily he didn’t go on to become a Labour Home Secretary.)

Just after lunch we reached the Rhine Falls – 120 m wide and 26 m high – allegedly the largest waterfall in Europe (by flow). This was a sight that I had wanted to see for years (sad man!). I took some video but haven’t been able to upload it yet. So here is a photo. The rock in the middle was under siege from people landing from the flotilla of tourist boats.

Now we are camping at Schaffhausen and surviving thunderstorms and more prolonged and heavy rain. Oh well. Tomorrow Germany!

Helen’s track of the day: The Hot 8 Brass Band, What’s My Name? After an hour of listening to Louis Armstrong tracks in the Italian pizza place tonight I needed to listen to something loud and a bit more contemporary. Thanks to Daniel for putting this on my playlist.