A Cuckoo Clock for ScooterBob

Another beautiful day and yes, the month is November. Since ScooterBob is scheduled to leave shortly in quest for warmer places we wanted to show him one last specific Black Forest feature. Of course there were several leaf peeping stops for us before we got the the place.

But eventually we arrived at our destination in Triberg, and introduced ScooterBob to the world's largest Cuckoo Clock. A scale of 60:1, as documented in the Guiness Book of Records. 4.5x4.5m (15x15ft) in size and 15m (50ft) in height, with a pendulum length of 8m (26ft), and a weight of six tons. It took five years to build it, and the inside can be visited (when open).

The last picture shows ScooterBob with pendulum and counterweights of the clock in the background. This is our goodbye. I have kept it long enough, it's time for the little world traveler to move on.

Tagline:
These are the voyages of ScooterBob. It's continuing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilisations, and to boldly go where no wooden scooter has gone before.

First Ride out with ScooterBob

It didn't take long to convince our 'guest' ScooterBob to come along for a ride on the famous Black Forest High Road. It hopped into my Vespa top case, and off we went on the touristy mountain rim road.

This stretch of federal highway B500 going from Baden-Baden to Freudenstadt is very popular with the two-wheeled crowds. But that distinctive chill in the air which reminded us of season's ending, had the fair weather riders already talked into mothballing their bikes. We were welcomed with next to zero traffic and a wide open road.

At Zuflucht we stopped to admire the view. Looking west, in the far we spotted the silhouette of the Vosges Mountains in France. This is usually a popular take-off point for hang gliders but the place looked abandoned this afternoon.

Finally I introduced ScooterBob to my absolute favourite spot in the area: All Saints' Abbey. We had visited many times before, at different seasons, with different guests, and this historic site never failed to impress.

By then the cold started creeping into our bones, and we decided it was time to return home for a nice hot cuppa.

The Eagle (a.k.a. ScooterBob) has landed!

Well protected in his black travel box the wooden trinket left Key West in Florida, fearlessly crossed the Atlantic on its own, and finally landed safe and sound in the heart of the Black Forest, Germany.

The evening of ScooterBob's arrival was mild, and so we sat on the front porch to enjoy the sunset, with a glas of Hugo Rosé cocktail (Prosecco, elderflower syrup, lime juice, fresh mint and soda water). Here's to my late friend, Bob Leong.

I met Bob, the man and his pink crocs, back in March 2010, after I moved to Vancouver. He became my riding buddy, and a good friend, and I miss him dearly.

Scooterbob shall spend some time with me, and together we are going to re-discover some of my favourite places in Germany before I'll ship it to its next destination. Please stay tuned for updates.

R.I.P. my friend Bob. I know you'll be watching.

SonjaM, Germany