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European Summer

czerwca - października 2023
Spain, Switzerland, Austria, Netherlands, Scotland, England, Faroe Islands, Germany and more!
Prides, motorcycling, hiking, running, scuba, and more! Czytaj więcej
+9
  • 130ślady stóp
  • 17kraje
  • 138dni
  • 1,8kzdjęcia
  • 89filmy
  • 42,3kkilometry
  • 19,5kkilometry
  • 4,8kmile morskie
  • 4,7kkilometry
  • 3,0kkilometry
  • 2,2kkilometry
  • 1,4kkilometry
  • 296kilometry
  • 282kilometry
  • 223kilometry
  • 104kilometry
  • 45mile morskie
  • 63kilometry
  • 62kilometry
  • 22mile morskie
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Data rosnąco
  • European Summer
    1
    Dzień 25

    Gornergrat Greatness

    2 lipca 2023, Szwajcaria ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    We were greeted with a gorgeous morning. The sun was up and the birds were singing. A fair bit of hustle and bustle out on the streets many were out early to go hiking, or whatever their intended day's activity.

    We woke up at our usual time despite going to bed a bit earlier than usual. Surprisingly we were not as stiff and sore as was anticipated.

    After enjoying a yummy simple breakfast, A put together a picnic lunch and we set out to explore the area a bit more. Our race passes gave us free admission to the mountain train, so we decided to head back up to Gornergrat to enjoy the views we were too exhausted to enjoy yesterday.

    The views were amazing, but we were unable to see the Matterhorn due to swirling clouds around the summit. Despite a forecast of 4C at the top of the mountain, we found the sun rays very intense. A used his jacket to cover his knees, and still they got a bit pink. The picnic lunch was perfect while we were entertained by wandering tourists 🤣

    We decided to hike down to the next train platform at Rotenboden. The landscape was dotted in alpine flowers. A enjoyed capturing it, flowers, vistas, and all.

    Once the train reached Zermatt, we headed up to CERVO Mountain Resort to use our free beer vouchers! It was a bit of a hike up but worth the trip. We sat on the terrace lounge under shade sails hoping for a view of the Matterhorn, still elusive in clouds. Their Huntsman beer and lounge atmosphere was perfect. Quite a few other runners trickled in for their brews too, though I think we were the only ones to order some fries and a second beer 🍻🍟😋

    We then walked back across town to our accommodation to prepare another cheese fondue dinner. 😁     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    Dzień 26

    Furi-Hangebrucke Hike

    3 lipca 2023, Szwajcaria ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    The day started off looking a bit dreary, but the sun soon came out. We were looking into hiking trails in the area, and came upon a loop hike near Ronda, a short train ride north. The loop included a suspension bridge, being the longest in the Alps at 494m. The logistics and efforts to get there were more than we had planned.

    So, Plan B! Luckily there is another suspension bridge much closer at Furi, just up the mountain from Zermatt. The loop in total was just over 8km, with the bridge being 100m long, and 90m above the Gorner Gorge. Along the trail we read up on some the local history on information boards. Apparently the Gorner Glacier advanced rapidly in the late 1860s during a mini ice age, destroying one alpine village, and coming very close to Furi.

    On the return portion of the loop we spotted at a convenient picnic table for a refreshing lunch picnic.

    We meandered back through town to our accommodations where we sampled different flavours of the local brew. A delectable dinner again on our monster deck 😋

    https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-ch/experiences…     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    1
    Dzień 27

    Butterflies and waterfalls

    4 lipca 2023, Szwajcaria ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C

    The last day of our Swiss experience. A pretty relaxing and gorgeous day, although the forecast mentioned some showers that never precipitated.

    Decided to go for a relaxing walk around the northern part of Zermatt, then follow the trail along the train track towards Tasch. We saw some amazing slopes, broken by waterfalls and dotted with bushes and wild meadow flowers; the pollinators were busy!

    It got warmer than expected, despite a very steady breeze. We decided to grab a few items from the grocery store for our last dinner and head back to our accommodations.

    Time to pack up for our next adventure Austria, here we come!     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    Dzień 29

    Exploring Innsbruck

    6 lipca 2023, Austria ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    Woke up to a gorgeous, fresh, sunny morning. We were surprised as the forecast wasn’t looking promising. The mountain summits were all cloaked in cloud… so there went the idea of taking the gondola up to look at the valleys beyond.

    A quick coffee at home, and we headed out to explore. First stop was the SPAR grocery where we picked up some delicious pastries for breakfast, and snacks for later. A found a motorcycle store just a few blocks away, and thought it prudent to buy rain pants to cover his vented motorcycles pants, considering all the rain we just had. Luckily they had a 15% off store wide sale, and J bought some waterproof gloves too. Not so lucky finding a wonderful pair of boots. Hope the vented boots that were packed do the trick. 🤞

    A also noticed there were bike share/rental stations around town, and they were associated with the app we signed up with in Ibiza. So we grabbed a couple bikes to explore Innsbruck. The trail system for pedestrians and cyclists is pretty extensive and impressive!

    Arriving back in the old district, Innenstadt, found our way to Maria-Theresien-Strabe, a wide pedestrian area where we found a quick late lunch. The hot kebap donair sandwiches hit the spot. As we started making our way back, a subtle shift in the atmosphere was occurring, and the sky began to look menacing. A few heavy drops had everyone scurrying for cover. We waited out the downpour with a perfectly placed bubble tea store.

    Ended our day in Innsbruck with a scrumptious meal at a less traditional fare restaurant. We were going to do a cafeteria at a fancy grocery store that reminded us of Whole Foods, but they only served lunch. So we found Glorious Bastards for burger and salad, with local brews too.     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    Dzień 30

    Alps Tour - Untermieming to Abtenau

    7 lipca 2023, Austria ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    An adventure always starts out with an adventure, right?! Despite the best plans and intentions, anything is possible 🙈. As expected technology only adds to the fray…

    We woke up early to catch the bus to Untermieming to pick up our rented motorcycles. However, when all the busses have similar numbers and arrive at same time, you may find yourself going to unintended places. Luckily J was watching google maps and discovered the "errors in their ways". A quick bus ride back, and an hour later, the original plans began to unfold.

    After a much longer than anticipated time getting the bikes sorted, found numerous navigational issues uploading preplanned routes to the Garmin GPS unit. We had to pull over a number of times to verify our intended route was going to plan. We’re not sure how anyone in Europe can read the posted signage, we found it quite confusing! After a few extra detours getting through Innsbruck, and avoiding tolled motorways, we finally settled into enjoying the ride.

    We passed through many villages, and were impressed with how clean, orderly, and well maintained everything looked. And the various routes were bustling with productivity of all the local farmers. You could say the farmers were having a "hay day"!

    We made a quick stop in Strass, at the Gasthof Hotel Post for a late lunch. It's interesting ordering food as it isn't always what you think you are getting. Our order of what we thought was a bun, sausage, and saurkrat was a plater of sliced baloney with slightly picked onion drizzled in a light vinegar and a bun on the side 🤣

    Many hair-pins and straight-aways later found our way in to Abtenau, a rural resort community outside Salzburg. We arrived in time too as the kitchen closed at 8pm! Veggie Burger and Lamb chops 😋

    https://calimoto.com/calimotour/t-ZPG3h8Anpl     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    Dzień 31

    Alps Tour - Fields & Forests

    8 lipca 2023, Austria ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Feeling well rested after the previous stressful day, A made coffee with the beans we picked at the coffee roaster in Innsbruck; delicious!

    A also discovered the update he was trying to push on to the Garmin GPS didn't complete during the night; the joys of slow rural internet... Once the updates completed, with hopes the previous day issues would be resolved, we headed down for a buffet breakfast. We also got to witness the "run of the gondolas". Apparently they put the gondolas away every night. 🤔

    Once checked out, we back tracked a bit and headed north to Salzburg. An hour later we were enjoying a coffee and lemon pastry next to the walls of Fortress Hohensalzburg!

    Venturing on, the navigation App A used for finding twisty, and off the beaten path routes, didn't disappoint! However, many of the instructed turn-offs caused some skepticism as they looked more like driveways for homes, not roadways. It was another warm day in the low 30s 🥵 Don't stop too long in the sunbeams, or its roasting.

    Venturing on, our path happened to lead us through Mattighofen, past the KTM Motohall. They were featuring a Dakar racing display. No idea that KTM was Austrian.

    We were enamoured with the endless rolling hills of corn, grains, and other agricultural productivity. We thoroughly enjoyed the occasional reprieve from the heat in the the cool forests with seemingly endless curved roads.

    A decided not to pre-book accommodations, and leave some things to chance, but always with a fall back option. Plan-B never happened, and we were very impressed with the first option. We arrived at Gusthof Silvia pension, and were greeted by Barking Deer that they farm. The room was comfortable, and dinner amazing. Very quaint and comfortable country setting to say the least.

    Amazing video for this local business:
    https://tv1.nachrichten.at/oberösterreich/sendu…

    https://calimoto.com/calimotour/t-iIonEDMP3l     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    Dzień 32

    Alps Tour - Charming Czechia

    9 lipca 2023, Republika Czeska ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    A much earlier start to the day today. We arrived promptly for Gasthof-Pension Silvia's 8am breakfast service, then headed on our way by 9. Our day's route took us a short ride down a twisting forest road where we were surprised with a ferry crossing the Danube River over to the village of Untermuhl. The whole area was already quite busy with droves of cyclists.

    We criss-crossed the country side through little farming villages, endless fields, and patches of forests. Most of our journey, once we entered Czechia, was along various waterways. We noticed a lot of people beating the heat by floating down Vltava river. Eventually we found ourselves in the historic Medieval town of Cesky Krumlov, Czechia. After a brief break, we eventually we wove ourselves a detour around snarled traffic including using an old road (turned pedestrian path) and past a lumber mill and back onto the main road 🙃. Onwards down to Grein, next to the Danube, for our evening stay.

    It was very refreshing when we arrived at Goldenes Cruz as the protected courtyard was shaded and cool. Once settled in, and showered, we ventured out to walk around Grein. We stopped for dinner at a restaurant next to the river; good location, mediocre food, and questionable service... 🤔

    The evening was relaxing enjoying the self-serve beverages (honor system) on the courtyard balcony, with the sparrows chirping and darting about.

    https://www.hotel-in-grein.at/hotel/     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    Dzień 33

    Alps Tour - Head for the hills!

    10 lipca 2023, Austria ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    Although we went down for the Gusthof 7:30 breakfast service, our day started much later than expected. The original accommodation and route previously planned was scrapped due to the unexpected heatwave! We needed to ride to a hotel with AC, which most don't.

    Once again enjoying the cool solitude of the hotel courtyard balcony, we found a hotel with A/C and a pool, a bit further south, but near Vienna. We decided to head south across the Danube on a twisty route more in the mountains and forests to avoid the heat of the day.

    The roads were a perfect balance of twisty mountain switch-backs and sweeping forested valleys with babbling streams. We passed through a number of industrious towns separated by long stretchs of uninterrupted riding.

    We definitely felt the heat on the final few kilometres once we started to meander through the vineyards to our final destination.

    Wow, Hotel Landhaus Moserhof is a gem! A bit more fancy than we need, but the room was cool like a fridge! Once settled we headed down to the cozy garden pool to cool off and relax.

    Before dinner we explored a few blocks of old town of Gumpoldskirchen. Vineyards right next to town. A map search for a wine store revealed that they have a few vending machines, open 24/7!

    Our hotel does not serve dinner, and most restaurants near us close Mondays. We ventured for a 20 minute walk out of the old town. The BBQ restaurant was calling my name! We had a great server, and delicious food. The walk back to the hotel was much needed.     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    Dzień 35

    Alps Tour - A Good Hare Day

    12 lipca 2023, Austria ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    We were awoken in the early morning by a thunder shower. Finally, after a couple evenings of menacing clouds, the fury of the heavens was finally released. Luckily by the time we roused for the day the storm had passed. J enjoyed watching the birds hop and bath in the puddles outside the hotel window.

    The hotel breakfast spread rivaled that of the hotel in Grein, and set the day with sufficiently full bellies.

    The day's route headed south, and flirted with the foothills in Slovenia. Any deeper would have added hours to the journey through rugged mountain ranges.

    A quick stop for fuel turned in to a wardrobe change as the clouds returned, and unleashed more showers. Nothing too violent, but enough to cause a good drenching, but we were dry.

    Our day started and ended in the Styrian province of Austria, while briefly entering Carinthia. It is interesting to note that the church steeples in Carinthia are much simpler, as with the bell ringing, than in Tyrol and the other northern Austrian provinces.

    While in province Carinthia we encountered a Billy bi-colored goat crossing the road and a hare running on the shoulder of the road. In a last minuet dash the Hare passed before A's front bike tire and narrowly escaped.

    We went through a couple of interesting towns. The first being Diex where J noticed the church wasn't like the rest, it looked very old, and appeared fortified. Further readings found that it was established in the early 1100s.
    https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pfarrkirche_Diex
    The next town of Eberstein had a castle (but not the original castle) perched on a rocky mass in the middle of town called Schloss Eberstein.
    https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schloss_Eberste…

    We finally arrived in the late afternoon to Gasthof Jera which was perfectly situated in the countryside on the southend of a lake, Furtnerteich. Sadly the place looked a bit tired and in need of repairs; you had to watch your step on the balcony of the room due to broken/rotting boards... Once checked in and settled, set out for a refreshing swim. The warm water and the waning afternoon sun was a perfect combination. The lake was fairly busy with various age groups. It was nice to see such communal interaction of apparent strangers, and yet everyone was respectful of their space without being loud and obnoxious.

    To finish the day we enjoyed outdoor dining on pizza and pasta. Eventually the evening sun was blotted out by clouds, with distant rumbles of thunder...     Czytaj więcej

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  • European Summer
    11
    Dzień 36

    Alps Tour - Here Comes the Rain!

    13 lipca 2023, Austria ⋅ 🌧 20 °C

    After a simple breakfast we were out and on the road by 9am. We wanted to get ahead of the promised impending storm. Decided to take the fun route instead of the direct route to Villach, where we had found a laundromat!! Yes, there are not many anywhere in this country 🙃

    It was a brisk and fresh morning(16c), with sun for the most part, but gradually darkened with the clouds moving on. For the second day in a row we took things easy, as the roads were quite damp and a lot of debris and gravel from the early morning thunderstorm.

    More meandering roads through mostly forests and valleys. Some road sections were pretty rough, and in dire need of repair. Early on in the day we passed through the town of St Lambrecht and noticed a very large church complex that turned out to be Benedictine Abbey of St. Lambrecht, founded in the 11th century.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Lambert&#03…

    Somewhere around this time J noticed a burning sensation on the upper-inner thigh. Turns out a bee had hit him, and managed to sting through multiple layers of cloth, including his riding jeans!

    Although Villach is the 7th largest centre in Austria, navigating through town was much more relaxing than previous city centres. Managed to find the laundromat without too much trouble, and enjoyed a coffee and tiramisu at the next door cafe while the laundry washed.

    Arriving at the alpine resort town of Bad Kleinkirchheim, and not a moment too soon, as a sudden rain burst happened right after we unpacked the bikes and were inside. The rain didn't take too long, but we continued to hear thunder in the distance for a while.

    Since we decided to bypass the ridiculously priced dryers at the laundromat, we proceeded to drape the damp clothing about our room. The hairdryer did a fine job to assist the process, so proceeded to dry our clothes that way. 🥳

    Our hotel booking included the half-board, three course dinner. Definitely an interesting cultural experience guessing how they do the service. Turns out you need to get your own soup and salad from the buffet (which A is not a fan of because of the germs...), then you are asked if you'd like the next meal plating. 😂🥗

    With a full belly, we decided to relax in the spa area and take advantage of the special late night saunas and pool.     Czytaj więcej

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