Lake Constance does not do dramatic. It does soft: a huge sheet of water, a far shore that comes and goes with the haze, and little towns with tidy promenades that seem to have been tidied again while you were not looking. Allensbach's Strandbad is one of those spots, a lido on the Gnadensee, the western arm of the lake, with a swimming area, grass banks and a view across to the Reichenau island and the Swiss shore beyond.
That island is the reason the ride exists. Reichenau holds a monastery founded in the eighth century that became one of the great centres of learning and manuscript painting in medieval Europe, and its churches carry a UNESCO listing. A few minutes away by road, a causeway leads out to it. On the way, Allensbach itself, with about 7,000 people, is a quiet lakeside town with a long history of fishing and market gardening, and the mild lake climate is why Reichenau is also covered in vegetable plots and greenhouses.
For riders the pleasure is gentle. The lake roads here are flat, with the odd rise through orchards, and the best times are early morning and early evening, when traffic thins and the water is calm. On a warm Saturday the roads fill with cyclists, day-trippers and caravans, and the little car parks near the water fill by mid-morning. If you want a quiet swim, go early or late, and bring something to lock your kit into, since a bike jacket and boots on a beach towel are an odd sight.
Practical bits are straightforward. Allensbach has shops and cafés, and the Radolfzell side to the west and Konstanz to the east have the bigger fuel stops and supermarkets. Swimming here is a straightforward pleasure from late spring through early autumn, and the water on the Untersee side warms quicker than the deep main lake. Allow time for fish: Felchen, the whitefish of Lake Constance, are served pan-fried across the shore, and the local vegetables from Reichenau are worth asking for. The border with Switzerland is only a few kilometres off, so carry a passport or ID card if the day's plans wander.