PHOTOS: If you want to see the photo’s full-size, click the photo, it isolates to a new page and click it once again. Use browser’s “back” to return to blog. |
CURRENT LOCATION: Upper right corner is my SPOT Satellite track provided by SPOTwalla. When activated, it provides a real time track of my travels. The tracks are archived back to my arrival in Heidelberg, April 25.
Use the zoom slider on the left to open up the map to see our entire route. The History allows you to see day-by-day routes. Satellite replaces the map illustration with satellite photos. |
Finding a lost road… |
Date: Monday, June 10, 2013
Route Location: Figline Valdarno, Italy to Lago Di Iseo, 480 km or 298 miles. Lodging: Hotel on the north end of Lago Di Iseo, Italy. Money Conversion: June 11, 2013: €1 = $1.327 USD or $1 USD = €0.77537 Gas/Fuel, Italy: €1.789/l or $8.775 USD/gal! |
We depart the Gallo Nero HOG Rally at 8:00AM. We ride directly to La Spezia, approx. 200 km or 2.5 hours. Cinque Terra area consist of five towns from the south to north: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, Monterosso. The normal way to access these villages is by train which stops at each village. 4 wheeled access is very time consuming and along a semi-dangerous road. |
This road runs along the mountain ridge above the villages. Off this road are little spurs that switchback down to each little village. Last year when we tried to ride the road that connects all five towns, the heavy rains resulted in a landslide that washed away several sections of the road. We came to blocked fence that required us to backtrack back to La Spezia. We wanted to see if the road was now open. |
The little spur road that goes down to Manarola had a sign “Road Closed, Use the Train!”
The road is quite twisty and as we came the same gated-fence that said “Road Closed” there is a couple on a motorscooter opening the gate. |
We asked if the road was open all the way and the reply was yes. So in we went. The road was washed out in a half dozen places with a dirt road bypassing the missing paved road. The missing sections were easy for motorcycles. |
It’s mid afternoon and time to ride north to find a place to stay. We end up at the north end of Lago Di Iseo, Italy in a town of Pisogne. |
Hotel La Pieve Di Pisogne, S.R.I., Single room with garage parking and WiFi was €67 |
The Stelvio Pass
All hotels include breakfast with room rate. Breakfast starts at 7:30 / 8:00 AM. We are on the road by 9:00AM. |
We are riding north to find a couple more passes.
The first was Passo della Foppa, Mortirolo, 1852 slm. |
Tunnels
You had better like tunnels if you want to ride the Stelvio Pass. We went through at least 30+. The longest was 8 km! (5 miles). Italian tunnels are very different than the ones in the US. They are rarely straight. They might twist like a snake path, have intersections in the middle to different valleys, go in circles up or down, and all are only 2-lanes. The air inside the tunnels stink of auto exhaust. |
The second, the infamous mother-of-all-passes … Stelvio Pass. This is from Wikiipedia – “The Stelvio Pass (Italian: Passo dello Stelvio; German: Stilfser Joch), located in Italy, at 2757 m (9045 feet) is the highest paved mountain pass in the Eastern Alps, and the second highest in the Alps, slightly below the Col de l’Iseran (2770 m, 9088 feet).” |
GPS Coordinates: N 46° 31’ 43”, E -010° 27’ 10” |
From the south the pass is 18+ km. It’s been on my “Bucket List” of things to do. Bob Higdon is my inspiration for riding this pass. He had mentioned Stelvio Pass in an article.
The Stelvio has several levels of hair-pin climbs. The first is fairly steep then there is a long valley then a second series of hair-pins to a mountain road to a final set of hair-pins to the top. I apologize for lack of road photos. This pass is extremely steep and narrow. I kept looking for turn-outs to take photos but there was no level ground to park or space on the sides of the road. |
The top was beautiful, cold, windy and alternated between rain and snow. It was a beehive of activity with 40+ bicyclists, 40+ motos, and 30+ 4-wheel vehicles all squeezed on the top. Many people talking and shopping at many souvenir booths, two food carts, several restaurants, and a couple hotels. |
While we were having lunch it started to snow hard and like magic … everyone disappeared. Just to be safe, everyone rushed to get off the mountaintop before the roads get icy. We also were rushing to get on the road but after 15 minutes, the heavy snow turned to light flurry’s. It was weird how empty to top was. |
We ride very slow in these conditions. It takes a lot of concentration to stay on your line and not cross over in the hair-pin turns. I do all the turns in 1st gear and sometimes standing on the pegs. All the time we are maneuvering around bicyclists, other passing motos, and cars, trucks, and campers. |
Today we will touch Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, and Germany. |
|
Down the north side is a sheer face with tight hairpins then halfway down the hairpin legs get longer and longer. |
Our last pass is Fernpasshohe 1210 m (Fern Pass).
All day it was mostly blue skies and light scattered showers except for the pass. We ride north to the Bavarian town of Fussen. At 18:00 when we pull up the hotel and it starts to pour. Life is good! |
A couple German beers, a light dinner and bed. I was dreaming of riding the Stelvio all night with a big grin and chuckling. |
The room with 3-beds is €180. This includes evening beers, dinner and €5 to park 3 bikes in the garage, €5 for all of us to use the internet.
|
Dean, You needed Susan with you so she can run the camera in Stelvio Pass
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sq1DsUwPi70
Watt
I’ve been living vicariously through your blog since the start of your pan-American trip. Thanks for letting me tag along! (Thanks Tina Cronkhite for telling me about Dean’s blog!)
Thanks Michelle,
I get to have all the fun!
Tina was a long lost cousin that our family finally connected with.
Dean – Another awesome adventure. Great post…you seem to find yourself on mountain tops with snow, wind and most of all – heart stopping adventure!!! Good on you Dean – IMHO, Dean Tanji – True American Hero – I mean it – you walk the talk and are a true inspiration – Thanks Dean!!!
Thanks Side Show Dave! I’m just having a little fun with some friends.
Tremendous write-up on Stelvio, thanks Dean. That’s on my bucket list too. There’s a Moto Guzzi named after it.
My words do not do this pass justice. This is a “I can’t believe I just rode up that mountain face!”
This is truly a “man’s gift to motorcyclists!”