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
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