Day 26 - Kobarid to Innerkrems

Sunday 22nd July 2018

There is thunder in the night and some rain, but nothing like the night we stayed here four years ago. We had watched the World Cup Final in a tiny bar in Kobarid (Germany 1 Argentina 0) and just got back to the tents when the heavens opened. Thunder and lightning echoed and flashed around the mountains and the rain came down in a massive deluge.

There was a group of Czech push-bikers with minibus backup camping near us. All they had were pop up festival tents and in the morning I remember seeing them wringing litres of water out of sodden sleeping bags.

The Napoleon bridge, just below our campsite in Kobarid


With our quality gear we were fine, but felt very sorry for those guys.

Our breakfast is a lovely Slovenian hard cheese and local bread we bought at the nearby supermarket last night. Then we are off early , heading for Italy.

We take the tiny Ucja Pass road from Zaga. I first found this road on a road trip with my son Jake back in 2011 or 2012. It is hard to spot on the map , just a tiny little back road that looks like it may go nowhere. But where it goes is up the Ucja river and through the Della Prealpi Guili Park into Italy at Resiutta. 

On the Ucja Pass road

It is tiny. So narrow that every blind corner is an adventure. Fortunately very few travellers use this road and we pass maybe two other bikes and a couple of cars during the hour or so that it takes to get down into the Fella River valley on the Italian side.

We stop for coffee at a little cafe  near the summit then begin the descent down to Resiutta. The road winds down through a beautiful forest, with multiple tournanti to keep us sharp.

At the cafe at the top of the Ucja Pass
Tight hairpins in the forest dropping down into Italy


I love this road


When we arrive down in the valley we follow the Fella River, a tributary of the larger Tagliamento, to Pontebba at the southern foot of the Passo di Pramollo aka Naßfeld Pass.

Naßfeld is a particular favourite of mine. The southern ascent is all twisty corners and hairpins on a long climb up to the summit. Unfortunately now it is in need of some resurfacing work. It’s time for the Giro d’Italia to come this way again.

In the Fella River valley


We eat pasta at the cafe at the top of Naßfeld then drop down into Austria and turn back east towards Spital where we join the motorway in the sky for a short run up to Gmünd. Then onto the familiar B99 before turning off right for the final run up to Innerkrems and the start of Nockalmstrasse.

This is our destination for the night. Tomorrow we will spend the whole day riding the incredible Nockalm. Booking.com has led us to the Pension Zirbenhof and it is perfect for our needs. 

Parked up under the eves at Pension Zirbenhof


Right next to the turn for the start of the Nockalmstrasse


We have two rooms, both doubles, at Pension Zirbenhof for €32 each per night including the standard (fabulous) Austrian breakfast. Can’t argue with that! So we book in for two nights. Tomorrow will be a luggage-free Nockalmfest.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 27 - A day on the Nockalmstrasse

Image
Monday 23rd July 2018 Today’s dawn brings blue skies over the Nockalmstrasse. There is a cooling wind blowing but the conditions will be close to perfect. The last time Mick and I rode here it was a wet day which spoiled the fun a bit. Another time there was a classic sports rally event on with some of the drivers treating the road as a race track, completely ignoring that it is a two-way road. So the prospect of finding a 50-year-old souped up coupe in your face as you round a blind corner was rather unnerving. Then one of them blew its engine and left a 400-metre long trail of oil down the road. That was scary as hell. Empty roads and perfect curves But there are none of those problems today. The road is empty in the early morning. It’s great to ride without the weight of the luggage on the bike. The K1200rs has a sporty side that needs unleashing every now and again. It is a heavy bike but beautifully balanced and it’s 130+ ps is more than enough for this sort of roa...
Read more

Day 25 - Kamnik to Kobarid

Image
Saturday 21st July 2018 The hills on the other side of the valley are bathed in sunshine at 6am but it will be another hour before it makes it’s way to our camping place. We pack up the gear and move the tents over into the sunshine that is creeping slowly across the field. There has been a very heavy dew and they are very wet this morning. But we’re ok as we make an impromptu breakfast on the little sheltered bench next to our camp. We set off just after 8am and ride back through Moste to the A2 motorway that will take us to Kranjska Gora at the foot of the Vrsic Pass. Just before the highway we stop at a fuel station and buy a 7-day Slovenia vignette for €7.50. Dark clouds are gathering and after 30km or so of fast highway riding the rain starts.  Fortuitously there is a rest area just ahead and the loo block has an overhanging roof. We scoot under before the heavens open and a short sharp rainstorm hammers down turning the highway into a maelstrom of spray. But...
Read more

Day 1 - Let’s Begin With France

Image
Wednesday 27th June 2018 It's that time of the year again, EuroBimble2018 is all set to go. This time Mick and I are heading south to visit some old haunts and some new. We will ride down through the Alps before taking a ferry to northern Greece from Venice. Then back the long way round, looping through Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania and Hungary and back into the eastern Alps in Slovenia. So it'a mixture of old and new routes. I am riding my trusty old BMW K1200rs and Mick is on his BMW R1150GS. Both bikes are now 16 years old from a time when BMW still made quality machines.  At Mick's house, all ready to go It’s a lovely morning, a little bit misty at first but as we head down the A1 the sun burns off the last of the cloud and the day starts to really heat up. We are going via the Eurotunnel so the ride down from Yorkshire to Folkestone is the usual boring drag. But at least there are no holdups so we are in good time for the crossing and are allowed to ...
Read more