Well, I made it across the alps and into Italy. Leaving my comfy campsite this morning – where I could happily have stayed for a few more days because of the facilities – I made my way east towards Innsbruck.
It was a chilly 16 degrees when I left and during the morning the temperature started to rise, which made me break out into a sweat as I’d attached my inners to my riding jacket and trousers. After Innsbruck I actually stopped and removed the inners as it was just too uncomfortable at 22 degrees.
Before I got to Innsbruck I was flagged over by a policeman. Immediately I thought it was about my speed, as I must admit, I was enjoying myself on some nice roads a few miles back – but he informed me that the cows were coming. What…? A few minutes later a heard of cows came trotting past, all with bells around their necks which made a real racket. While I was stopped, a Triumph, a Ducati and a GS also pulled in. They were all from Reading in the UK and we were heading in the same direction. Once the cows had passed and the road opened up we carried on, passing each other throughout the day.
After Innsbruck I was planning to head south to Bolzano and then Trento but while I was heading south I diverted to the west and towards the Stelvio Pass. This is a stretch of road I’ve wanted to ride for years and it certainly lives up to its reputation of being a long and winding road.
At its highest point the pass is around 2750m high and you spend a good 30 miles just climbing and climbing with lots of hairpins and switchbacks, then when you reach the peak it’s downhill all the way – with even more hairpins and bends. At the top the temperature dropped down to around 13 degrees, but to be honest, I was so engrossed in trying to stay on the road I didn’t notice the temperature. Mind you, I did have my heated handlebar grips turned on…
At the bottom of the pass I stopped at Bormio for a break and when I got off my hands were shaking and I felt all giddy. It was the adrenaline rush from the sheer excitement of that marvellous road. What an adventure. I found some wonderful roads in Morocco, but this was something else. A cup of coffee and a baguette solved my giddiness and before long I was on my way with a big smile on my face. Even though you do come down to Bormio, I still had another 50+ miles to exit the Italian Alps – most of which was downhill.
Before long I popped out of a tunnel at Lake d’Iseo and was confronted with the wonderful sight of this blue lake surrounded by mountains and with small villages on either side of the lake. The day was starting to get late and I still had no idea of where I was going to camp so although I’d planned to wild-camp I had a look on iOverlander and saw there was a lake-side campsite about 5 miles ahead at a town called Pilzone. Decision made I headed to the campsite as there was a shower cubicle with my name on it…
Arriving at the campsite I found there was actually three sites at this location, two being posh (expensive) and one being normal (reasonable) so I opted for the normal one and it’s pretty good. Excellent toilets and showers, very quiet, two minutes walk to the beach and it’s even got a trattoria – and all for 12eu a night. Excellent.
I’ve still not decided where to go next, presumably south but I don’t know. 60 miles to the west is Milan, 60 miles to the east is Verona and 120 miles south is Florence. Decisions, decisions, decisions….
All in all it’s been an utterly superb day. I’ve ridden about 280 miles, maybe a little more, and the weather was kind as I know that there’s a lot of bad weather due on the alps for the next few days. But I’m sat outside my tent and it’s 26 degrees so the effort has been worth it. The highlight for me was the Stevlio Pass, which is a road I’ve wanted to ride for a long while. The bike was superb and took everything in its stride. The V-Strom is an amazing beast. I spent most of my time between second and third gear negotiating the bends and the short straights to the next bend, both going up and coming down. The torque on that beautiful v-twin engine made my day – even with me onboard and with a fully loaded bike. Now for some tea, some grub and that long awaited shower and then over the next few days I’ll make a decision about where to go next.
