St. Johann im Mauerthale - Wachtturm and Traismauer - Kastell südwestlicher Fächert

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. St. Johann im Mauerthale - Wachtturm

   Above the Wachau, in the forested hills on the south bank, a watchtower stood in the Roman period, and its stones are a quiet reminder that this valley was once the border of an empire. The Danube was the northern frontier of the province of Noricum, and the Romans guarded it with forts and signal towers every few kilometres, a chain that now forms part of the UNESCO listing for the Danube Limes. The tower near St Johann im Mauerthale was one of these, placed to see along the river and warn of anyone crossing from the north. Not much remains but the foundations, and they sit in a place with a long view.

   Read the complete St. Johann im Mauerthale - Wachtturm write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   St. Johann im Mauerthale - Wachtturm is where the day begins. Next is Mautern - Kastell Westbereich.

2. 2. Mautern - Kastell Westbereich

   On the south bank of the Danube, just where the river leaves the Wachau gorge and swings out onto the plain, the Romans built a fort called Favianis, and its successor, the town of Mautern, still has the pattern of the Roman streets. The fort was part of the Danube frontier, and in the fifth century, when the empire was crumbling, it became famous because of a monk named Severinus, who came here to help the population and negotiate with the barbarian kings. His life, written by a disciple, is one of the few detailed accounts of life on the Danube at the end of Roman rule.

   Read the complete Mautern - Kastell Westbereich write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Mautern - Kastell Westbereich comes up about 17 km into the recorded legs. Next is Traismauer - Kleinkastell.

3. 3. Traismauer - Kleinkastell

   Traismauer is a small town with a very long memory. Before it was a market town on the Traisen river, it was the Roman fort of Augustianis, one of the posts on the Noricum stretch of the Danube frontier, and some of the Roman wall still stands in the town. The Kleinkastell, the small fort, is part of that chain: a compact stone enclosure, a few watchtowers and a garrison, one of the many modest strongpoints that made the limes more than a line on a map.

   Read the complete Traismauer - Kleinkastell write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 33 km into the recorded legs you reach Traismauer - Kleinkastell. Next is Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich.

4. 4. Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich

   In the fifth century, as Roman authority along the Danube collapsed, a holy man named Severinus lived at a place called Favianis, organising food supplies, ransoming captives and negotiating with barbarian kings on behalf of the remaining Roman population. His biography, written by his disciple Eugippius, is one of the most vivid accounts of the end of Roman rule in central Europe, and Favianis is generally identified with Mautern, a small town on the south bank of the Danube opposite Krems. The Roman fort here, parts of which survive in the town walls, is part of the Danube Limes World Heritage listing.

   Read the complete Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich, about halfway. Next is Traismauer - Kastell südwestlicher Fächert.

5. 5. Traismauer - Kastell südwestlicher Fächert

   Traismauer is a small wine town on the south side of the Danube, just where the Traisen river comes down from the Alpine foothills to meet the big river, and it has been a fortified place for something like eighteen centuries. The Romans called their fort here Augustianis, one link in the chain of camps and watchtowers that guarded the frontier of the province of Noricum. In 2021 the Danube Limes was added to the UNESCO list, and Traismauer is one of the places where you can still see the old walls doing a job.

   Read the complete Traismauer - Kastell südwestlicher Fächert write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Traismauer - Kastell südwestlicher Fächert sits at 72 km, about halfway. Next is back through Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich.

6. 6. back through Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Mautern - Kastell Ostbereich comes up about 81 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Traismauer - Kleinkastell.

7. 7. back through Traismauer - Kleinkastell

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Traismauer - Kleinkastell write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 97 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Traismauer - Kleinkastell. Next is back through Mautern - Kastell Westbereich.

8. 8. back through Mautern - Kastell Westbereich

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Mautern - Kastell Westbereich write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Mautern - Kastell Westbereich, late in the day. Next is St. Johann im Mauerthale - Wachtturm, 18 km on.

9. 9. St. Johann im Mauerthale - Wachtturm

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete St. Johann im Mauerthale - Wachtturm write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   The route ends here after 129 km.