On the flat farmland of the Lower Rhine, between Alpen and Rheinberg, there is little to catch the eye: fields of maize and potatoes, poplars along ditches, brick farmhouses and the occasional windmill. Yet this was once the edge of the Roman world. The Rhine formed the frontier of the empire, and along its banks the Romans built legionary fortresses, forts, watchtowers and temporary camps. Alpen-Drüpt is one of the sites included in the Frontiers of the Roman Empire, Lower German Limes, inscribed by UNESCO in 2021; like many on the list, it survives mainly below ground, known from aerial photographs and excavations rather than standing ruins.
For something you can actually walk around, ride a short distance north to Xanten. The Romans founded a major town there, Colonia Ulpia Traiana, and today its site is an archaeological park with reconstructed walls, a temple, an amphitheatre used for summer concerts, and a museum full of finds. Xanten is also linked to the legend of Siegfried, the dragon-slaying hero of the Nibelungenlied, who was said to come from here.
Rheinberg, a few kilometres away, is known for Underberg, a herbal digestif sold in tiny bottles wrapped in paper, still made in the town. Kamp-Lintfort has Kamp Abbey, the first Cistercian monastery in the German-speaking lands, founded in the twelfth century, with terraced gardens on a hill above the plain.
The riding is flat and relaxed. Country roads run between villages and farms, and the dykes along the Rhine offer lanes with views over the broad river, where long barges carry coal, containers and gravel between the Netherlands and the industrial Ruhr. The landscape is open, so wind can be strong, and fog is common in autumn and winter. Traffic is moderate, but tractors and cyclists are everywhere, and speed limits are strictly enforced in villages. Small ferries cross the Rhine at several points and make a nice change from bridges.
Alpen, about two kilometres away, has fuel, shops and cafés. For lunch, look for local asparagus in spring, served with ham, potatoes and hollandaise sauce, or a hearty plate of potato pancakes with apple sauce, and finish with a coffee overlooking the river.