Along the Rhine River

When my Dad came back, he only had a day with us. We decided to take him to the Rhine River.

We ended up having a lovely day, with the weather getting more and more beautiful as the day went on.

We started by crossing the river at Mainz, then took the 42 along the north bank of the river. We found a place for a picnic right away and enjoyed some sandwiches while watching the river go by, as well as some kayaks, ducks, and barges.

There was a fest in Rudesheim, but we couldn't find parking so we drove on. We stopped instead in Assmannshausen, strolled through the pretty town, and bought some ice cream bars.

Our next stop was to take the ferry to Burg Pfalzgrafenstein, the shiplike castle in the middle of the river. It was used to demand tolls from boats wanting to go by (like most of the castles). The boys swung on a tire swing tied to a tree while my Dad and I went through the castle.

The drive itself was beautiful, as castle after castle lines the river. Our final step was at Burg Lahneck. We'd been to this castle before with Stephanie and Bruce, but that time we were too late to go inside. This time, my Dad and I took a tour while the rest had a snack at the castle restaurant. When the tour was done, we all had dinner there, on a terrace overlooking the Rhine River with a breathtaking sunset. It made a very lovely day, and we were glad that Dad was there to share it with us.