If not now, then..... when?

[HPPants]

Day 16
Tirano, Italy to Lago de Garda

My expresso on the balcony was quite nice.

Greg was talking with our host last night, and he suggested we try a local road. Why not? We get going that way first thing. Turns out, it was a bonified goat trail, but this time, an actual REAL goat trail. For a short while, we were dual sporting it. But it topped out at a nice paved road and everyone enjoyed it – even Greg on the FJR.

The roads going up were damm fine, and everyone was thankful to our host for suggesting this. You can’t beat local intel.

Now close to the top, things are only getting better.

This is another one of my favorite photos for the trip. I like the lighting, and the way it is framed.

Then …. Gary’s motorcycle died and it didn’t want to re-start. His fuel gage hasn’t worked since we left Heidelberg. Apparently, he pushed the fuel range a bit far. The good news is that we are at the top of the mountain. Gary gets the bike to start and starts running downhill very gingerly but deliberately. He made it all the way down, and even a few miles to a gas station to fill up. Crisis averted.

While I’m on the subject, let me say something about the gas stations in Europe. In a phrase, it’s “hit and miss”. Some of them allow you to pump first, and then go to the clerk and pay. Those are awesome. The others utilize some kind of kiosk that requires a PD’d in computer science, with a minor in foreign languages. Those I don’t care for much. And the pump handles are not commonly color coded – you better check EVERY one or you might be getting a fuel you don’t want.

Oh well….. moving on….

This goulash at the top of the pass was very good for lunch.

Greg is calling this moto-trip our “Dessert Tour”. He’s not wrong.

What goes up, must come down……

And … it’s yet another beautiful day in central Europe.

Bryan and Marissa had some stickers made to commerate the passes – they had great fun during the trip personalizing the pass signs.

Now late in the afternoon and we find ourselves down in the valley near Lago de Gardo (Lake Gardo), Italy. It’s warm down here. We pulled into a park area on the lake.

Nice

As we walked toward the shade on the lakeshore, I couldn’t help but envy these people that were swimming in the lake.

A few of the ladies were topless. Interesting. No photos of that – I didn’t want to seem creepy.

Well – after a few minutes, I couldn’t take it anymore. I stripped down to my riding shorts and jumped in.

Ahhhhhhhh……

The water was the perfect temperature. Just a little chilly on initial plunge, and then a few seconds later – lovely.

While I was swimming, the others found hotel rooms here for us to stay. I semi-dried off on the shore, and then we rode the short distance to the hotel.

Our room has a view. We were just in time for happy hour.

This is a nice place.

I called my wife and enjoyed telling her about the day. I’m starting to miss her, but she is encouraging me to enjoy the ride. I got a great lady, ya’ll.

We walked into the old town for dinner. It’s very “European”, not surprisingly.

Pretty cool shot of this Motley Crew.

Cheers to good friends.

The restaurant we picked was excellent. Marissa had Sea Bass. Bryan and I had Risotto. Everyone enjoyed their meal.

And then I had a thought:

Let’s play Musical Desserts! Everyone picked what they wanted and the game goes like this: You take a bite of the dessert in front of you, then pass it down, then repeat.

That was HUGE fun! We all had 3 or so rounds of all choices, and then we finished off our own choice. Excellent dinner – a fitting end to a great day.

Passes today:
Gavia Pass
Mortirolo Pass
Passo Tonale
De Toron Pass
Daone Pass
Durron Pass
Passo Ballina

 

[Moto-Charlie]

When people ask me what my favorite pass is I can't pick just one, but Passo Gavia is in my top 5, maybe top 3. I love the views, wide open panoramas and the wild ruggedness of it. The narrow side that goes from the top south down to Ponte di Legno was originally hard packed dirt (sometimes not that hardpacked after a storm), and not easy on a street bike. There would often be closed signs on that side due to storms and washouts. The bikes would take their chances, go around the signs and turn back if need be. I rode it that way maybe 10 times and only had to turn around once. Then one year around 1997 - 98 we came and it was fully paved - seemed like a miracle.

Mortirolo is another quasi-Goat Trail gem of a road depending on how you go up/down the Tirano side. The first half dozen times I went over it was always mid-week, and it was always deserted. I thought no one really knew about it. Then I went over it one weekend and it was amazing to see all the people picnicking, bicycling, loads of motorcycles, etc. - a completely different experience. Apparently close enough to some major population areas and high enough to enjoy some cool air on the weekend.

 

[the Ferret]

The 5th picture down is frame worthy

 

[Erdoc48]

Looks like an outstanding trip! I would love to do something like this, but I will probably have to wait till after I am retired. I’ve been to Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and out there, a lot of the roads are really impressive. However, the Alps looks quite a bit different. I would say the only thing that would bother me a little bit is not having one of my own bikes up in the Alps, but I guess you get used to using a loaner bike while you’re on a trip like that.

 

[Uncle Phil]

Looks like an outstanding trip! I would love to do something like this, but I will probably have to wait till after I am retired. I’ve been to Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and out there, a lot of the roads are really impressive. However, the Alps looks quite a bit different. I would say the only thing that would bother me a little bit is not having one of my own bikes up in the Alps, but I guess you get used to using a loaner bike while you’re on a trip like that.

You do get used to the loaner pretty quickly (rented ST1300s several times).
IIRC, the 'break even' point of 'ship vs rent' used to be about 4 weeks.
In the current economy probably longer now.
And you never know what sort of hoops and loops you will go through when your bike 'lands' across the pond.

 

[Willsmotorcycle]

@HPPants although we never met, I feel as if I was sitting next to you as you told the story of this great adventure, thanks for sharing! Now I'm hungry and gotta ride the bike!

 

[HPPants]

Looks like an outstanding trip! I would love to do something like this, but I will probably have to wait till after I am retired. I’ve been to Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and out there, a lot of the roads are really impressive. However, the Alps looks quite a bit different. I would say the only thing that would bother me a little bit is not having one of my own bikes up in the Alps, but I guess you get used to using a loaner bike while you’re on a trip like that.

This brings up an important issue. For me, this wasn't a "Riding Trip". This was a trip to the Alps, in which I happened to be riding a motorcycle. In other words, the priority wasn't to wear out the sides of the tires, even though in reality, that happened without even trying. I've only ridden with a few of you here, but those that know me know that particularly in the mountain twisties, I'm about as aggressive as they come. Admittedly, keeping up with Bug Doctor in his backyard (Arkie) is quite fun. Like all of you, I'm sure, on the first "pass" of any new road, you hold back a bit so that you can learn the road, check for gravel, etc. On this trip - with rare exception, there is no "second pass". Every mile is new, and as such, no matter which bike I'm riding, I'm thinking "ride your ride Pants, be conservative, don't do something stupid for 5 seconds of an adreneline rush and ruin a lifetime bucket list". You see what I mean? I gotta be smart - mature. Admittedly, it's a work in progress.

Moreover, I went there to see the land. The motorcycle I rented was more "utilitarian" than "dance partner". The africa Twin is a very capable motorcycle - it's not an R-1, obviously. OTOH - riding a sport bike, or even to some degree, a sport touring bike 30 days straight has it's disadvantages. There were times that I missed my FJR. But overwhelmingly, I got very used to the AT, and it's neutral riding position and long travel suspension was very comfortable, even with the stock seat - THAT reallly surprised me.

Uncle Phil is spot on in his "rent v/s ship" assessment. The cost for me to rent the bike on a 30 day trip was nearly identical to the cost for me to ship the bike. Knofpt Tours does MOST of their business in shipping and storing other people's motorcycles. For me to ship my FJR over there, with intentions of starting June 1st, I would have to get it on Stefan's October shipment. If you try to ship it on your own, you end up waiting for months anyway - shippers wait until the container is full. By the time I crate and prep my bike, get it to Orlando (another issue - you can't ship a bike realistically from anywhere), and then handle the reverse for the return shipment - I'm out of my FJR for nearly a year. Everyone knows what happens to a bike when it sits for a year - now I'm worried about having motor issues when I get there. I've got to add a few days to my trip to handle more prep before and after (with expense).

And then there's the issue of the shipment arriving on time. Maritime cargo is a funny business. The boat gets there when it gets there and if there are problems with customs, civil unrest, boat issues, papers issues - you name it - then your ***** just sits there waiting. I've heard (and read) about horror stories with this.

Of course, all of this says nothing about the very real possibility of your bike being damaged in shipment.

At the end of the day, I pressed the "easy" button. Greg shipped one of his bikes over there years ago. He goes most every year, and in that context, overall I think he's ahead of the curve. Knofpt puts the battery on tender, helps get the bikes ready, etc. I figured that if this becomes a more regular thing, then I'll buy a bike and store it at Knofpt. I'd likely buy a bike over there and avoid the shipping cost.

 

[HPPants]

Day 17

Lago de Gardo, Italy to Capriana, Italy

Once again, the weather is good today, and so we are off and running on time. In a rare series of events, I am leading this morning for some reason. I say we can’t be lost if we don’t know where we are going.

I love taking pictures when the morning light is behind me.

Again – almost like clockwork, when we fall to about 600 meters of elevation, row crops start to appear, such as this vineyard.

This is another one of my favorite pictures for the trip.

Almost on cue, we can easily find a café or restaurant of some kind at the top of a pass, where it’s cooler. Today, I ordered rabbit and polenta for lunch.

After lunch, we get back on the bikes, enjoying Italy as we should. Last night (or perhaps the night before), Greg got more ambitious in his routing and set us up with 3 or 4 days of route moving forward. Apparently, he knew where he wanted to go during this phase of the trip.

So I’m following Greg and the purple GPS line as always in the afternoon. At one point, I notice that Greg veers off the route, but I stay quiet. This happens often as he is using Kurviger on his phone for additional navigation. Often there is a small discrepancy between the programs, and it usually rectifies itself. We just go over “one block” for example and the road we veered off ends up right back on the route. It doesn’t matter to me – ALL of the roads here are great.

Well, apparently in this case, Greg realizes that he missed a turn, as he shares this with all of us on the intercom. We are on a curvy road (shocker) and he pulls off the road thinking he will turn around. Then he realizes that it’s pretty tight to do a U-turn, so in the shoulder of the road, he accelerates back onto the road, and….

I had a front row seat for this. The front wheel washes out and Greg ejects as the bike is low siding. Then the low side highway peg digs into the pavement and the bike flips over to the high side.

Seemingly, before I even pulled off and stopped, Greg stands up on the road and has this body language that says “***** just happened?” It didn’t take long for us to realize that there was some loose gravel in the shoulder and it was EXACTLY the same rock that was used for the roadway. The front wheel washed out in the gravel and Greg ejected as the bike low sided. Then the highway peg on the low side dug into the pavement and flipped the bike over. NO ONE could have seen that loose stuff. It mixed in with the roadway (im)perfectly.

The bike is damaged pretty bad, but it would have been rideable if it were not for the highway peg puncturing a hole in the oil filter. When not running, the bike doesn’t leak oil, but under pressure, it spews it out pretty bad.

I waited a few minutes for some of the adrenaline to wane before I started questioning Greg more specifically about his well-being. We were all pleased to learn that in fact, he was OK. He had a strawberry on his hip, but otherwise, the gear did what it is supposed to do.

Gary and I left the others and backtracked a little to see we could find someone to store the wrecked bike for a few days, as opposed to an expensive tow. That didn’t take long – the first place we came upon about ½ mile away said “sure” and we went back quickly to share the news. While we were gone, Greg called Stefan at Knofpt Tours. Stefan suggested that Greg get himself back to Heidelberg, then take his (Stefan’s) van back to the bike to retrieve it. By the time he got back to Heidelberg, Stefan would have a bike for Greg to rent and thus continue the trip.

At the same time, Bryan found an apartment for the rest of us to stay in this village and reserved it. We would call it an early evening and help Greg get himself going back to Heidelberg. As previously mentioned, we have 3-4 days worth of riding already stored in our GPS units. So tomorrow, we will just continue on without Greg, and hopefully in a few days, he can catch up with us and resume the trip.

AWESOME PLAN!!

Let me say something very important about this particular juncture of the trip. Within minutes after the accident, when Greg realizes that he is not hurt, the FIRST thing that goes through his mind is “how to continue the trip”. That impressed me so much. If I put myself in his position, I’d be so bummed out as Greg was. But instead of finding the glass half full, I’d likely be figuring out how to get myself back home as fast as possible. Kudos to Greg for being optimistic.

Greg rode the wrecked bike ½ mile to the neighbors and they were super nice about letting him leave the bike. After that was done, Greg rode on the back of my bike up the hill to the village. we stopped at a bar a block from the bus station and had a bier.

Then Greg made his way to the station and we rode to our ABB. There’s more to this story – I’ll let Greg chime in as appropriate.

Everything is closed this evening except the grocery. So we walked there and bought Charcuterie fixings for dinner.

This all speak to what I wrote about earlier – ***** is gonna happen. But you keep your head clear and work the problem together. Honestly – it was impressive to watch everyone chip in where they could to solve issues. We are doing just fine. Tomorrow is another day.

It’s hard to imagine it, but we are now halfway through this month-long tour. We’ve experienced more in the past 15 (riding) days than I can hardly remember. It’s gone by like greased lightening, but it’s exciting to see what the next 15 days will bring.

Indeed - tomorrow is another day.

Passes today
Passo S Barbarbara
Valmonte Pass
Some 3rd Pass that has a name, but it was so covered in stickers, I have not idea what it’s name is (LOL)

 

[Uncle Phil]

Curious - how does Greg deal with keeping a bike over there (if you can share it with me)?
Usually the govinmints are pretty picky about that.

 

[Erdoc48]

Sorry to read of the low side/ high side. That’s really unfortunate, but as you said, he wasn’t injured. If it was a rental bike that took the fall, I’d assume I’m paying the deductible (like $1000) and let insurance on the rental take care of the rest (that’s how it was when I rented in Colorado some years ago). Really unpleasant when it’s your own bike that took the hit. The charcuterie for dinner looks amazing!

 

[Moto-Charlie]

Then Greg made his way to the station and we rode to our ABB. There’s more to this story – I’ll let Greg chime in as appropriate.

I am looking forward to reading how Greg made out. Hopefully he was able to get back to Heidelberg, sort out the motorcycle and rejoin the tour.

I went twice a year for 15 years on my own and now 27 years running small group tours. I can tell you without hesitation that stuff happens, bikes fall over, tires go flat, diesel instead of gasoline in the tank (despite specific info prep), waking up to all your planned routes closed due to unexpected snow, even people inadvertently locked inside restaurants after the owner closed up. Fortunately, serious injuries are very rare. My kids keep telling me to write a book. You simply deal with it, find a workaround and move on. It is all part of the lore that makes the tours memorable.

I would say the only thing that would bother me a little bit is not having one of my own bikes up in the Alps, but I guess you get used to using a loaner bike while you’re on a trip like that.

The good news is that nowadays there is no such thing as a bad motorcycle, different yes, some more fun, etc. but they all work. I often end up riding 3 or 4 different bikes during a tour season, changing every 10 days, 2 weeks, etc., if need be. I usually end up changing bikes because a tour member will request the bike I have rented, so I let them have it and take an alternative. I could be on a F900GS, a R1300RT, then a KTM 890 and then F900XR. I have ridden BMWs, KTMs, Honda, Yamahas and Aprilia. I am comfortable with them after 2 - 4 hours. It always takes me an hour or two to get used to my 2018 Goldwing Tour when I get home.

Curious - how does Greg deal with keeping a bike over there (if you can share it with me)?

Stefan Knopf in Heidelberg is perhaps the best know outfit that helps with this. He has been at it a long time, keeps refining his offers and does a great job. @HPPants can probably provide more info. Basically, Stefan will provide storage, basic servicing, green card insurance for the motorcycle and even transport to/from the airport and overnight lodging at his B&B. He also arranges for a a container in Florida (during bike week?) where you can drop off your bike for shipment to his facility.

You have to maintain the registration on the bike (here in NH that is independent of any annual inspection requirement and easy to do, even if the bike is overseas). As long as you have the green card insurance you can ride in the Euro countries covered by the insurance. On the negative side the green card does not cover damage to the motorcycle, so you are often at risk for full loss on the bike, you obviously pay for all the maintenance and repairs, and you cannot sell in Europe, but you can sell it to another person from your country. American riders who store bikes at Sfefan's often sell to other Americans when they no longer want to ride the bike and/or pay to ship it home. He shows the bikes for sale on his website.

I was all set to take my ST1300 over when COVID hit and that put the kibosh on that, so things may have changed a little bit since then. There is also an outfit in Ireland and one in Croatia that does something similar, but Knopf is the more full-service provider with a solid reputation for good servcie.

 

[mello dude]

OMG.... dont know why but coming in late on this thread.... Fantastic photos! Wow! Holy carp... I am waaaaay overdue to get a touring capable bike and hit the road...
Yes! If not now, when? I aint getting any younger...

 

[ChucksKLRST]

When I went over in 2019 for my Solo Euro ride. I rent a V-Strom 650 from All Around Motorradvermirtung for a couple of reasons. 1. I own a V-Strom 650, so getting used to it was a non issue 2. it was one of the lesser priced bikes to rent, and 3 a 650 CC was big enough for me even on the Autobahn. I got "going fast" on the Autobahn out of my system years ago when I lived in Germany. The company was based out of Frankfurt but had a small rental shop about 6 miles from the Munich airport and down the street 600 meters from the hotel. They picked me up and dropped me off at the Munich Airport. The V-strom I rented was a 2016 red model and my V-Strom was a 2014 Red model. Fit like a very familiar glove.


My 2014 V-Strom




My Rental 2016 V-Strom

 

[Uncle Phil]

I rented a ST1300 out of London (as I was doing some riding in the UK also).
Unfortunately the rental place (I had used it several times before) got 'Covided' out of business.
He was fine taking the bike across the Channel as long as he knew what countries so he could arrange 'rescue service' if need be.

 

[HPPants]

Curious - how does Greg deal with keeping a bike over there (if you can share it with me)?
Usually the govinmints are pretty picky about that.

I"m afraid I can't write to the intricacies of that, but I do know that Greg has had a bike over at Knofpt for years. His bike is registered in Arizona (his home State), which, in addition to the obvious paperwork simpicities, AFAICT, the european speed cameras can't do anything with that plate. As luck would have it, the bike I rented, although owned by Knofpt, carried a valid Texas license plate - I got the same privledge.

Greg gets insurance for the bike through Knofpt - their policy isn't like ours. He can activate the insurance for only the days he rides, and consequently only pay for those times as well. MUCH cheaper.

Otherwise, I can't really say much.

 

[HPPants]

Sorry to read of the low side/ high side. That’s really unfortunate, but as you said, he wasn’t injured. If it was a rental bike that took the fall, I’d assume I’m paying the deductible (like $1000) and let insurance on the rental take care of the rest (that’s how it was when I rented in Colorado some years ago). Really unpleasant when it’s your own bike that took the hit. The charcuterie for dinner looks amazing!

Greg wrecked a bike that he owns and stores over there. Stay tuned for the "rest of the story" (shameless plug for Mr. Harvey, RIP).

 

[Uncle Phil]

I"m afraid I can't write to the intricacies of that, but I do know that Greg has had a bike over at Knofpt for years. His bike is registered in Arizona (his home State), which, in addition to the obvious paperwork simpicities, AFAICT, the european speed cameras can't do anything with that plate. As luck would have it, the bike I rented, although owned by Knofpt, carried a valid Texas license plate - I got the same privledge.

Greg gets insurance for the bike through Knofpt - their policy isn't like ours. He can activate the insurance for only the days he rides, and consequently only pay for those times as well. MUCH cheaper.

Otherwise, I can't really say much.

Thanks - I'm still amazed that Knopf can pull it off but my 'helmet' goes off to them!
The real problem in my mind about doing yourself is you don't know what you will run into from the local 'govinmint' once the bike 'lands'
It could be days, it could be weeks - IMHO you can't plan a trip very well with that type of unknown logistics at the start.

 

[HPPants]

Day18
Capriana, Italy to La Villa Stern, Italy

We were a little “cozy” last night in one large room but the mattress on my bunk bed was comfy. The view this morning from our balcony is lovely.

Our host brought us a hearty continental breakfast. The temperature is cooler this morning than yesterday.

We got wind that Greg had a long night getting back to Heidelberg, Germany, but indeed he did get there and now he is driving the van back toward us. We will leave him to the task and press onward.

Bryan/Marissa took the lead and off we go!

Greg’s route continues to produce, even in his absence!

The countryside in northern Italy is absolutely stunning. Everything is so clean looking.

Par for the course, we found a nice café with a view at the top of a pass. My goulash and dumplings were quite filling.

For “winging it”, we are doing pretty good!

The Africa Twin is very capable. I now know that I wouldn’t want to own one, but that doesn’t distract from the enjoyment that I am having on this trip.

Bryan’s doing a fine job of leading the ride.

And we have found…. The Dolimites!

Once again, while only a short distance away in all cases, the topography here is different than the Swiss Alps, the French Alps, etc.

The peaks here are much more steep and “jagged” looking.

The varied light from the partly cloudy skies is providing some wonderful views today.

We stopped in the afternoon and started looking at options. Greg’s route just took us on a spectacular loop LOADED with incredible views. That was just too enticing to draw us away. We decided to stay here 2 nights and have a day off the bike tomorrow to explore. Bryan found a nice apartment in the village of La Villa Stern, right in the middle of all the good stuff.

And the view from the back door of this apartment ain’t too shabby either. Here, we are at 4700 feet and it is delightfully cool.

We bought groceries and I cooked something for dinner – I can’t remember what it was, but it was simple, I’m certain.

Today was Father’s Day. I had mixed emotions about that. Obviously, I would have enjoyed spending the day with my wife and children. I also thought about my own father, who is the greatest man I will ever know. During the day, everyone sent well wishes via text – and these were received with love, and reciprocated.

But intended or not, this year, I spent Father’s Day selfishly, riding a motorcycle in paradise.

Passes today
Passa Pordoi
Passa Sella
Passo Del Barbara
Passo Del Erbe
Passo Costalunga

 

[HPPants]

Day 19
La Villa Stern, Italy

I had a great night’s sleep in my private room. We found out that yesterday, Greg made some good progress. He got back to his wrecked bike with the van, loaded it up, and was getting close to Heidelberg with it. Stefan has a bike for Greg to rent. Greg’s plan is to get some sleep and ready the rental bike to go today. Tomorrow, he plans to meet us and continue the trip. This is great news, indeed.

Today – everyone is on their own as we are staying in the same place tonight. Bryan and Marissa have made arrangements to take a Gondola up to the top of a mountain and spend the day together up top. Gary’s foot is flared up again – he’s going to try and find a clinic he can visit and hopefully get some relief.

And I’m going hiking! Last night, I brought up All Trails to see what is available. We are in high elevation here, and so I better pick something on the easier side. I chose 2 trails to try, and so I packed a lunch and headed toward Stella Pass under beautiful skies and cool dry temperatures.

The public parking lot at the pass was full. I pulled into a bar and grill next door and asked a waitress if I could park there. She said “yes”, and the trailhead was right across the road. Score!

This is a nice walk that offers really good views of the Dolomites,

Lots of hikers on this trail today, but there is plenty of room for everyone.

The Dolomite mountains are beautiful. Visibility today is fantastic.

There’s something to be said for walking in nature. The activity is innate, involuntary, almost subconscious. It’s just vigorous enough to stimulate deeper breathing, which clears your lungs. On a day like today, there so many colors and varied topographies, your eyes are challenged to process all of it. The air is thin, but it’s fresh here, free from all of the odorous and non-odorous pollutants we have all grown accustomed to. Nature smells clean. And of course in this environment, one has unlimited opportunity to touch the world around him.

It’s quite an engaging activity for me, one that I often prefer to do alone.

I took my time walking the 3 mile loop trail and got back to the bike later in the morning. Then I geared up and took the long way to the village of Livinailongo del Col di Lana. Public parking there was only a couple of blocks from the trail head.

Soon, I’m walking down this beautiful meadow with a stunning view.

This is exactly what I was hoping for today. Two distinctly different hikes that will give me a good taste of the area.

Unlike earlier, I’ve got this trail completely to myself.

This little fella was going a LOT slower than I was…..

The trail seems to work its way through some farm property. There were trail flash markers to follow. I think it’s admirable that private property owners would offer public access to their land for people to hike. Admittedly, I don’t know the nuances of this, but most assuredly, this is FAR different than in the States.

I get into the woods and soon come upon this interesting rock formation.

That noise I’m hearing is unmistakeable. Time to cool off!

This is a great place for lunch.

Pretty cool to have this little paradise all to myself.

After lunch, the trail takes me along a hillside ridge, and the show continues.

I can’t remember the name of these offered on my mushroom phone app, but it did say they were edible. Never the less, I passed.

It didn’t take long for me to find the 2nd waterfall on the trail, a ways further upstream from the first one.

This 2.5-mile loop trail is not very well used. In places, if it weren’t for the flashes (or my All Trails App), I likely would have veered off the trail. None the less, I got back to the bike kind of sweaty. So I left my riding jacket partially unzipped, and started climbing. At the top of Passo Falzarego, I found a LOT of riders stopped and my sweet tooth would relent no more!

What goes good with ice cream? This!

From there, it was a twisty run back down to the ABB. Gary was able to get some medication to hopefully relieve his foot. Bryan and Marissa had a nice day on the Gondolas. Everyone seems to be doing pretty good.

I cooked us some hamburgers and fixings for dinner.

We are looking forward to seeing Greg tomorrow, hopefully.

 

[Moto-Charlie]

I'm glad you were able to get off the bike and actually go up into the mountains - looks like you had a fabulous day. The Dolomites are absolutely beautiful, which is why in part they are a UNESCO World Heritage site.

I truly enjoy riding the various Alpine roads, which is my main reason for returning year after year. For the first 30 years or so I rarely got off the bike long enough to actually venture up into the mountains by foot. About 10 years ago I was in between tours and took a day ride loop which included the Col du Pillon in the French part of Switzerland. There is a nice restaurant at the top and also a cable car - so I decided to go up the cable care (Glacier 3000). I discovered another whole world up there and have been taking as many cable cars as possible since then, some on my tours and some just when traveling solo, or with my wife. One of my very best memories of the Alps was several years ago when my wife and son came to Switzerland with me prior to the start of my tours. We took the Gornergrat train from Zermatt up to view the Matterhorn and then an easy 2-hour hike recommended by our hotel owner. It was one of the very best days I have spent in the mountains.

Among my favorite cable cars is the 5-minute ride up from the top of the Passo Falzerago to the Rifugio Lagazuoi at 2,752 meters (9,030 feet). The views are almost 360 degrees and some of the best in the Dolomites. We go up every time we are there unless it's raining or the top is fogged-in, which you can easily see from the pass.