Intro

This is my third attempt at writing a travel blog.

First was a record of my trip with four mates riding our bikes to Morocco and back. I never completed the blog and thanks to the boys I did complete the trip! link here:  maroc-or-bust
Second attempt was going to be a photographic record of my solo trip to France - Spain and back (using blog software Tumblr - inspired by my friend Alex Kaula and his friend Charlie New Orleans to Panama  - I was inspired by the blog software, not the trip - I'd never be that brave !!) but apart from a few initial photos uploaded prior to departure I was unable to upload anything while I was away.... the bear travels ... another failure. It was a fab trip btw.... apart from attempted murder by a Mercedes-driving Spaniard .... but that's another story.

So this trip is really an excuse to ride through some European countries en route for the annual Water & Ham Festival (aka Festival of San Juan) in Lanjarón in Andalusia, southern Spain. The idea for a crowd of us to meet up for the festival was mooted last June at Kate's 50th b'day bash. Not for me the simple act of jumping on a cheap Ryanair flight.... oh no! The excuse to make it a bike ride was just too great. So the plan started to germinate in my little brain sometime last year and quickly came to fruition just a couple of months ago. The steed of choice was to be Peg - my trusty Italian Mule (Aprilia with a Yamaha 660cc single cylinder engine).  She was in pretty good shape and only really needed fresh rubber for the trip.
I decided to forego another set of 'dual sport' tyres as the rear was wearing at an alarming rate- no doubt something to do with the incredibly shite condition of the Isle of Wight roads.... So proper road jobbies were fitted this time: Avon Storm Ultra 2 for the rubber fetish fiends among you!!

I spent many hours pouring over Google maps planning my route which was to be a quick blast across Belgium to Berlin spend a few days there with my lovely German family and zoom down to Czech Republik with the pretext of checking out some skiing resorts... then a few days in Austria mostly in the Tyrol region culminating with attempting to ride the  Grosglockner high Alpine pass (nearly 3,800m) link here . As I'd always wanted to visit Pompeii (and just seen a couple of TV programmes abut the place) a sojourn into Italy seemed apposite. By now I'm running out of time so decided it might be fun to see if I could get a ferry to Spain from Italy rather than ride around the top of Italy, through Monaco, south east France and into north east Spain (saving around 1,500km of riding). Yes! Grimaldi Lines sail to Barcelona (from Civitavechhia near Rome). I did wonder about getting a ferry to Tunis (which is possible from Sicily- again with Grimaldi) - ride through Algeria into Morocco and ferry from Tangier to Gib or Algericas but (probably fortunately) the border between Algeria and Morocco is closed at present. So ferry to Barca it is. A slightly different ride down Spain is planned: this time taking in the Cazorla National Park wiki link (where I did my 2-day off road training (for the Marok adventure) with Touratrail in 2011.

Plan is to camp as much as possible: at least 3 nights in Spain en route for Lanjaron. 2 or 3 in Italy and probably same in Austria and a couple in Germany. This plan is very dependent on the weather!

I managed to get my timing for the departure completely wrong! I decided to leave a few days before what I thought was the Bank Holiday weekend - turned out I left after the Bank Holiday and same week as half term! Why don't people tell me when it's a Bank Holiday - I always seem to get it wrong?

The adventure begins!

DATELINE: Tuesday 28th May 2013 
Wightlink ferry to Portsmouth - missing my planned departure - those who know me won't be very surprised!
Had a little task to carry out in Pompey prior to embarkng on the trip proper to Dover: Peg's tax disc was due to expire on 30 June so had to visit the DVLA office due to the fact that there are no Post Offices on the Isle of Wight capable of issuing a tax disc more than a month in advance ... eeesh  ....
So after a couple of hours messing about trying to find the place the mission was accomplished - kudos to Portsmouth DVLA - extremely efficient, pleasant and helpful.

My B&B in Dover was excellent and comes highly recommended (especially if you are on an early ferry). Which is more that can be said for the check-in arrangements at the port... a huge queue of lorries completely obscured the view of the check-in kiosks and no port staff around to ask for directions, etc., ...  but fortunately a kindly British trucker pointed out where I had to go....

Slight trauma unfolded trying to find the way to the passenger area on the very nicely appointed DFDS ferry to Dunkerque. Another couple and I found ourselves trapped in a stairwell with all the deck doors closed for nearly 15 minutes - even the lift would not let us out at the right deck level. Eventually we found the deck door would open.... 2 hours sitting on a metal stairway was not an enticing prospect!!

A pleasant crossing and no problem finding my way out of the port. However, for reasons I can't work out the satnav sent me onto the A16 motorway despite the fact I had programmed it to use country roads only. I wasn't too bothered as it was dry and continued for quite a while on this road until the rain started and never stopped until I got to my first overnight stop at Neuendorf in the Eifel region of south western Germany. I stayed at the wonderfully-named Vetus Tempus biker's B&B - highly recommended.

All the rooms are named after race courses and mine was the Assen TT ...

My hosts, Rob and Mia, couldn't have been kinder or more hospitable... and from the very short time I spent riding in this area I am sure that I will be back to explore it properly and spend some quality time at Vetus Tempus.

The next morning, this view as I glanced out of my bedroom window made me grin....

After a very hearty breakfast, it was time to head off on the next leg and the weather was fine ... but only for a short while.

Rob kindly took some photos of me prior to my departure ....
look, I know its only got one cylinder .... sure, isn't that enough for anyone?

notice the rain-laden clouds in the pic below

Neuendorf to Hohegeiß

DATELINE: Thursday 30th May 2013
2nd Leg: Neuendorf to Hohegeiß (Harz Mountains)

I had located another biker-friendly guesthaus about 450km north-west of Neuendorf, just near the start of the Harz Mountains, well-known to German bikers (at least) as being an excellent area for the twisties and had planned to head to that area. However, once more the weather intervened and turned foul. So, when the heavens opened again, I decided to get as close to my safe haven - Berlin -  as quickly as possible.  So back on the motorway and another nightmare, although not as bad as the Belgian experience. I was amazed at how many motorists on the motorways there didn't use dipped headlights in the atrocious conditions. It was really dangerous as you couldn't see traffic coming up behind you - crazy!!
The only real concern I had on the German motorways is that some of the traffic is moving at very high speed and constant awareness of what was happening behind is as important as what is happening in front, if not more so.
At about 7pm I came off the A2 motorway to re-fuel and felt so knackered that I resolved to stop at whatever  accommodation I came upon next. This happened to be the Hotel Friso in Helmstedt, about 250km south of Berlin. And it proved very fortuitous as it was an excellent hotel and biker-friendly as well!
Started writing this blog when I retired for the night - after a couple of very welcome beers of course.

Next morning up around 8am and although dry - rain clouds were gathering.  Das frühstück (breakfast) was better than any English fry-up.... apart from the usual boiled eggs, hot rolls, fruit juice, cereals, yogurt, cold meat selection, there was gravlax (cured salmon) and trout ... yummy.

Final push to Berlin . . .

DATELINE: Friday 31st May 2013

Left Helmstedt around 10am and headed towards Magdeburg, but went wrong somewhere and ended up in completely the wrong direction, in fact going back towards Helmstedt!!

Following the requisite mid-course correction, a fairly brisk ride before the weather reverted to what seems to have become the norm: rain, rain and more rain. At one stage I had to come off to re-fuel and took the opportunity to dry my gloves on the engine.

Not an original idea but effective.

Cracked on in the rain and eventually left the motorway and headed for Potsdam which I knew was south of Berlin. Leaving Werder (just south of Potsdam), had to leave the road and take shelter in the forest!
Couldn't see a damn thing...




An enormous angry thunder & lightening storm ensued with very heavy rain for about 15 minutes.

Peg hiding in the forest!


A lot of roadworks on the motorway slowed down progress, but eventually made it to my destination around 6pm

Berlin to Horni Blatna, Czech Republik

Tuesday 4^th Jun 2013

Pretty straightforward ride down, almost due south of Berlin, to just inside the Czech border to meet up with my Czech friend Denisa whose family have a holiday cottage there. Due to the unseasonal flooding all over central Europe, many roads and town centres were closed off to prevent water ingress and I encountered quite a few detours… one road closure prevented me from visiting Colditz Castle which was on my route. But at least it was a dry but overcast day, so making for a good paced ride. The tarmac included some motorway mixed with country roads – the only disadvantage with the country roads are the low speed limits: top speed frequently only 80kph and most bends limited to 70kph, and the Germans mostly appear to obey the limits which is most unhelpful for us ‘foreign johnnies’.

Checked the oil at a fuel stop and as it looked like the engine had burned a bit (it hadn’t) bought a litre: €15 yikes!!!

The road quality deteriorated very noticeably as the Mule & I headed towards Czech – I guess quite a large part of the country we were travelling through was former East Germany. Some of the Czech roads were covered in potholes and it was a pleasant surprise at how well the new tyres coped – no twitching or slipping, etc. In fact the only ‘moment’ happened on Friday, when I was coming off the very wet A111 motorway ramp to Hermsdorf in north west Berlin when the back gave a bum-twitching shimmy in tandem with a slight front weave due to some right-hand exuberance upon spotting a road sign displaying my destination. 

At one stage wandered into part of Leipzig, which has many large, ornate and formerly grand-looking buildings and trams all over the place. It’s very alarming when a tram crosses your path at an angle especially if you’ve only just spotted the red light overhead!!

Took the ‘over the top’ mountain route into Czech from Germany which is obviously a ski-centric area. It was very misty (and cold) at the border (no controls) and got to my destination at about 6pm – a good day’s ride. Was soon tucking into hot-from-the-oven homemade cake and a steaming mug of tea, courtesy of Denisa’s Granny. Quickly followed by venison (deer meat as Denisa says) goulash and Czech beer.  

R & R in Czech!

Saturday 8 June 2013 1.30pm
Horni Blatna, Karlovy Vary & surrounding area

Originally, I had planned to spend two days with Denisa, but in the end spent 4 nights and 3 & half days ... could easily have spent that many weeks. This is an incredibly beautiful country. Never seen so many trees!!
Once I collate my photos I will update this post, but if you have never been to Czech Republik, I can't recommend it too much... and if you have a guide like Denisa, then it can't get any better.

Shot down the almost empty motorway from Karlovy Vary re-fuelling just before Cheb and then into Germany. As the rain seemed to be mostly just behind me, I managed to miss most of it, only getting caught for a few minutes once or twice, not enough to have to stop and change into my winter gloves. I had to buy a new pair (summer gloves) in what seems to be the one & only bike shop (Yamaha as it happens) in Karlovy Vary - had brought a spare pair but foolishly managed to lose one in Berlin.

Re-fuelled again in Regensburg, after wandering around for a while trying to find a petrol station. The satnav has a function which lists nearby fuel stations but it had gone completely nuts listing those about 250km distant!!

Original route was to take the ring road around Munich, but having had enough of motorways, came off and headed towards Augsburg, just clipping the southern suburbs. On this route, saw a signpost for Dachau to the east, which sent a chill through my heart.

Once I got well south of Augsburg, I started looking for a likely stopover spot and soon came upon Hohenfurch and the very nice Gasthof-Hotel Negele. This route was about 400km, just right for a full half day's ride.

Austrian Sojourn

Sunday 9th June 2013

I have always loved Austria - an affection garnered over many years skiing there and this trip’s experience met all my expectations and more. Austria just never fails to satisfy, irrespective of the weather!  Fantastic roads, gorgeous countryside, great food & drink and beautiful women!! what more could a young man want!

Left the Hotel Negele at Hohenfurch at about 11am, having spent an hour on the free wi-fi, checking emails, etc. It was a beautiful hot (temp gauge recorded 25C at 10am) sunny day and for the first time donned my snazzy (cheap, too cheap as it turned out) sunnies...
Making good time with some speedy roadwork found me approaching the turn-off for Füssen which  I stupidly missed! But what a lucky break as I then enjoyed some cracking roads, with some absolutely perfect bends - pure joy to ride - amongst some stunning scenery.

This blog is becoming more like a weather report...

On my way to Garmisch, I made a planned diversion to Plansee where there is a large lake (and a campsite I had noted as a possible stopover). On google maps I had spotted a small track that led to Garmisch making quite a shortcut and I wanted to see if it was passable. It wasn’t -  it was gated and looked like a track for bicycles & walkers only. 

So I carried on in a north-easterly direction for Oberammaergau (where I re-fuelled) - was a fabulous ride but have to say the famous Passion Play town did nowt for me - a bit touristy & tacky for my liking. The nearby village of Ettal looked far more interesting and devoid of grockles.

Turned south for Garmisch-Partenkirchen (to give the town its full name) where the heavens opened - soaked again!!and never stopped - at one stage I had to leave the road and take shelter in some woods (again!!).

The amended rain-soaked plan was to go south towards Italy via Innsbruck but after studying the map I thought that heading for Sölden and taking one of the Tirol alpine mountain passes would be best, thinking these would not be as high as the Brenner Pass etc.  Once again I was wrong!! eesh...

Despite the rain it was a great ride to Sölden and part of it was on the well-known Romantische Straße (in English the Romantic Road - see the Wiki link) and it really is such a photogenic region - well worth a visit - I sound like a travel agent!

Got to Sölden around 5pm and looked at some hotels, but most looked a bit pricey and posh, and with me now looking like an old drowned rat, I didn't feel great walking into these pristine halls of perfection dripping like a wet Wednesday....

so pushed on for a few more km where I spotted the splendid-looking Bruckenwirt Gasthof in the little village of Zwielsetstein.

Photo of the mountain stream running right past the guesthaus

The charming barmaid, who spoke perfect English, soon sorted me a room in their nearby family haus and I returned to her bar later to sample some delicious pizza and a couple of beers.

I was amused to note that Austrian efficiency is as prevalent as ever. I did a double-take when I went to use the bathroom handbasin - only one tap!! and not the usual continental type with a lever... No doubt my more astute readers will have realised how hot and cold water can be dispensed from only one tap....

... and drawing on my previous Austrian experiences, I note that the predeliction for examining one’s stools still remains an Austrian obsession - I won’t inflict any photographic evidence on you, dear reader, probably best left to the imagination!

Fruhstuck was at 8am where another Austrian fraulein looked after me and I was under way by 9.30am heading up the valley for Obergurgl & Hochgurgl and the Timmelsjoch pass into Italy.