ADV Banned Camp

Of course this led to an excited Kiwi

It was here I made a mistake. I ended up missing the turnoff to Santa Maria and found myself at the bottom of the ALps back in Italy. Oh well, nothing for it but to turn around and ride up to the top again









The wrong way down, but as far as wrong ways goes it was a highlight


So up I come again


This time I find the right route


Some decent elevation

A person following my ride report (which I was doing as I rode it) on Adventure Rider dot com, PM'd me and offered a place for man and bike to stay. I took him up on the offer. The biking community around the world is fabulous. I met and made a new friend.

On the way there...

looking back at where i had just come from


A lot of ups and down and also tunnels. Notice all the crazy cyclists. I mean, who the hell rides 2000 metres up a hill on a push bike


Approaching a car train to go 17 kms under a mountain range


Lots of old building and of course typical Swiss vistas

But time was running as the day progressed. I still had along way to go so I ended up buying another vinette to ride the motorway system. However, in Switzerland you can only buy an annual pass. $70NZ later I had the green sticker - ouch.

It was also hot deep in the Swiss valleys. The motorways meant i made it across Switzerland in one day and found Peter's place. He owns several of the old original Africa Twins.



When we arrived we went to a local river for a swim to cool off (and to clean up. Was refreshing!)

The next day Peter took the morning off work to head towards the border with me. Unfortunately the video is crappy and I did not take many photos. Here are the few I have





About to part our ways

Some video of Switzerland, such that it is.

I cross the border back into Germany, the fourth time on the 2017 European rides, and head towards the black forest.

But first a stop for coffee and and treat. I stopped by Lake Titisee for a snack and rest. As I was buying coffee the elderly gentleman in the cafe asked me where I was from. When I said New Zealand his eyes light up and he said he had been there many times. He had been a sailor on a ship for 40 years and visited most of our bigger ports during his working life. It was nice to talk with someone who knew a little of home and we had a nice chat.



The black Forest has some nice bits to it, especially the bit in the video below


But shortly after this my emotions caught up with me, the realization that this trip was now over hit me full force. Where had the six weeks gone. It was all a blur. I eventually made it to Dobel for the night. The WiFi in the hotel was hopeless, kept dropping out. But in any event I was drained, tired and now starting to think about all the things I need to do to get home.

Wednesday 28 June Dobel, Black Forest to Veendam - 598 kms.

It rained overnight and was raining when I left the hotel. It rained for all but about 100km of the ride. The last 150 kms was in heavy rain. I didn't mind, I was on a mission to get to Veendam as quickly as possible besides, my gear and bike needed a wash

Today I asked The Mistress to find me the quickest way back. She obliged and I rode the autobahn for most of the way. Total time for riding was just under 7 hours for the 598 kms, and noting the first 40 kms to get to the autobahn took about an hour in peak morning traffic that was not bad.

I cruised along the motorway at about 115 to 120 km/hr for the most part but in the fine part of the day I decided to see how fast Red could go. At 151 km/hr by the GPS I decided to call it quits that was fast enough on an old bike of 583 cc in capacity.

I was drained. It had been a hell of a ride and as I sit at my office desk today writing this, almost a year after the trip I can still remember the feeling I had when all my goals for the trip had been done. I had nothing left n the tank, but hell it was a ride and a half.

Me at the end of the trip




A short video of me at the end of the day's ride

Time for me to wrap up this ride report. About six weeks after getting home I wrote the notes below:...

What did I learn from this trip:

- the first week is fun, the second week is a bit harder then there comes a point where you settle into a routine. - This is the first time I had been on the road on a bike for more than two weeks.
- Stuff I didn't use found their way to the bottom of the panniers and stayed there. They came out of the panniers before I headed off on my solo ride and I never missed them.
- I could have traveled lighter but I didn't need to.
- The rebuilt seat was worth every cent I spent on it
- So to the suspension. With the changes changes made to Red she was a different bike to ride, a lot more fun and a lot more comfortable.
- Group dynamics take time to evolve and settle
- Riding by yourself is a hell of a lot of fun until you stop for the day and wonder who to share that drink with.
- Talking to myself is not a lot of fun.
- Next time I will ride with my wife, at least that way we can drive each other batty than just ourselves :lol3
- Getting sick on tour is not fun
- Having good wet weather gear is essential. Thankfully I did and I was glad for it.
- Writing a Ride Report on the go is not as easy as one hopes. I admire those that do it. It takes time and effort and good Wifi connections.

Highlights of the trip were:

- VIM 19 on Gotland Island, had a lot of fun, especially riding with some inmates on the gravel
- Riding up to the lake district in Finland and playing on some forestry roads, although not enough it was fun
- The night staying in cabins in Sweden on the way up to VIM 19.
- St Petersburg
- The really rough roads on the way out of Russia
- The even more rough roads in Poland - the new suspension on Red meant I could have a heap of fun on the rough roads
- Catching up with my mate in Olching
- Meeting up with @DunkingBird in Switzerland


AND

The big highlight was the perfect day I had riding up Stelvio Pass. I have wanted to do this ride for as long as I have owned motorbikes so to finally ride it was extremely rewarding.

A special thanks to @Two Plugs for being Red's manager and helping me with a tonne of organizing stuff. When he comes to NZ my AT is waiting there for him to use.

This is MrKiwi over and out on this this ride report. Until my next one...

And of course the foot note is Red is now with me in NZ

A lovely place!

Yep, and if is getting used

From a ride I did over the weekend

And a pic of where I rode from in the video above. The end of the road...

Recently I did a four day trip from home around the east Cape of NZ and back home.

Day one route was this - https://goo.gl/maps/vyjzhtyzTb42" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Day two this - https://goo.gl/maps/tQZQfP7BE2q" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Day three this - https://goo.gl/maps/F4WbSKANVsn" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Last day this - https://goo.gl/maps/1vavRbFZjY92" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


A total of around 1750km in four days. The first day rained 90% of the time and it was very windy. Temperatures were in the range of 5-9C. The second day it rained around 30% of the time with temperatures in the range of 5-14C. The third day around the East Cape it was fine for all but ten minutes with temperatures at a more comfortable 12-18C. The last day it did not rain at all, and the temps ranged from 14-19C.

The first three days of the ride comprised 80% twisty roads, with around 40kms of gravel on day one. The rest of the time it was black top. The last day was a mixture of slab and twisty.

Some pics

Day one




Notice the various Adv stickers

Day Two







Rural NZ has lots of small towns like this


The southerly storm that blew through on the first day of the trip left its mark, hence the cool temperatures for our ride




Looking down on a water fall