We ended up inadvertently trashing the room last night. When we returned to the room at about 1030 pm having been fed and watered in Ilirska Bistrica it was flooded. It appears that the water for the shower had not been turned off fully and had then overflowed across the bathroom and into the bedroom area. We busied ourselves with towels mopping up to find that as quick as we wrung the towels out more water would bubble out of a drain in the bathroom floor. Trying first to unblock it without success we wondered whether if we wrung the towels out into the toilet the water would go down. Discussing it we deduced this would only work if the sewage pipe and waste water pipe were not connected inside the house. I’m not sure which of us decided we could work this out by flushing the toilet but that’s what we did. Terrible decision the room previously just a cm deep in shower water was now joined by lots of sewage all floating around. Deciding nothing further could be done that evening, using towels we dammed the water away from our beds and went to sleep. In the morning we agreed our story and confessed to the owner that whilst showering, some water had gone on the floor and we used the towels to mop up. However I said the floor was in a bit of a state because the sewage had come up out of the drain. Awaiting some sort of suspicious disapproving look we were both very surprised when he said. “Yes, yes yes It’s ok, not a problem, the shit often comes up through the drains, happens all the times”. Well I said laughingly “it didn’t say that on your advert”.
After a quick breakfast we set off at about 8 am. We wanted to head towards the Grossglockner alpine pass in Austria but although the forecast looked good when we looked last night and again this morning it was currently closed to motorcycles . Andy was feeling down as I know he wanted to ride the it so I suggested we head towards Udine in Italy, and then look at the forecast and reassess.
The road through Slovenia was very green with lots of trees, farmland and grass in contrast to the rocky terrain of Croatia. Prepared with vehicle docs and passports in hand for the border between Slovenia and Italy we forgot that once inside the European Union there were no more border checks so we were pleasantly surprised when we saw the sign ‘Welcome to Italy’.
The Italian roads were not as good as the Slovenian and badly in need of repair but hey, we were across into our second country of the day . The scenery was similar to that of Slovenia very green and we saw lots of vineyards very close to the road.
Arriving at Udine, wanting to be extremely quick we headed for McDonalds. On this day a software crash impacting on their procedures meant service was extremely slow so we gave up on the coffee and just took advantage of their toilets. We sat outside and started to look at our options and looking again at the Grossglockner website, for the first time in a few days said it was open to motorcycles. The forecast was rain from 3pm so we headed off hoping to get there about 2;15pm. We needed to travel quickly though so few opportunities for photos.
As we headed through Italy we could see the Alps, massive and snow capped in the distance. The border crossing into Austria, our third country that day, was also insignificant and seamless and we were left thinking how much simpler it was when travelling on motorcycles which can be a lengthy process of dismounting removing your helmet and finding and showing your documents.
Once in Austria the road started to climb, the views of the Alps breathtaking. The roads were good but at times challenging and busy. We arrived at the start of the Grossglockner as planned at about 2:15, the weather perfect, blue skies and no sign of the rain or snow that was to come later. The Alpine pass is one of the most famous in Austria but it costs 28 Euros to travel the 35 km stretch of road (38 euros for cars). Money paid and with plenty of stopping points for photos we transited across the Alps, certainly a lot slower than some of the cars and motorbikes, who see it as a time to test themselves on the narrow windy roads. Although there was plenty of snow at the highest point, the lowest the temperature dropped to was about 4 degrees C and Andy who was dressed for colder weather was cooking inside his many layers.
We thoroughly enjoyed the route but with the time now pressing on once through, we looked for somewhere to stop to discuss evening accommodation. This in itself wasn’t easy but we eventually found a somewhere in the ski resort of Kitzbuhel, a place Andy remembered from Ski Sunday on TV.
At one point I had said that it appeared to be going darker earlier this side of the Alps but Andy pointed out it was probably because I was still wearing sunglasses!
As we sat drinking coffee looking for a place to stay we looked back at the Alps and we could see that the weather had changed, blue skies replaced by black and finding hotels very expensive in Austria we decided to travel to Germany, our fourth country that day where a hotel could be had for a more reasonable amount. We remounted and made our way towards Rosenheim,just across the border in Germany. After only a few miles the heavens opened and we had to stop to don waterproofs.
The last hour and half of riding was awful, heavy rain, poor visibility and visors that kept steaming up. We made it though, we didn’t even see the border between Austria and Germany and apart from having to backup from a motorway slip road which without pre purchasing a vignette we were not allowed on, no real problems.
Bikes secured in the hotel underground car park we headed into Rosenheim. Fortunately the hotel was very central and only 150 meters away from lots of restaurants. We finished the day chatting to a lovely elderly gent called Jan, who told us much about the region of Bavaria we found ourselves in. It had been a long but fantastic day travelling 285 miles and passing through 4 different countries.
