Paging wessie

A change of plans means we're now going to spend the last two weeks of
July going to Lake Bled and back, probably meandering through the
Dolomites on the way there and the Tirol on the way back. I seem to
recall you doing a nice write-up of a similar trip. To save me
googling can you point me in the general direction?

 

Cor, sounds wonderful

 

Don't it just. We're actually skiing in Wengen (Swiss Alps) the week
after next, so we'll come back through there in the summer as well to
compare and contrast.

 

Cobbled hairpin in the rain? Interesting!

 

Dingly ding dong dell.
I've done just this. In fact with an ex we took a K100RT (yes heated
grips) to Wengen in late March. Skiing was still on. Actually rode up to
Grindlewald on the gritted snow track having let air out of both tyres.
Lodged in the infamous Balmers Herberge in Interlaken (0700 revelrie!).
Thank god for the original lined Rukka pvc 2 piece suits. They were the
warmest thing ever.
I like skiing Wengen and hopping over to Murren, it's not too strenuous.
Watch out in the Schilthorn, that mogul field down is a bitch after
Bubbly. You get wrecked on 2 glasses at 10,000ft.
I've been back every year or three, winter and summer, it is biking
nirvana.

Lord but you have the wee grey cell buzzing away now.

 

Er.... I think I'll keep my biking and my skiing in two separate
compartments, TYVM!

Yep, planning to do that - although Pat'll take the cablecar back
down.

So come along.

 

Oh I would love to but until I have some reassurance that the back
trouble is not going to keep re-occurring I'm not stepping far from the
door.
When are you thinking about doing the biking bit then?

 

Last two weeks in July.

 

Colin Irvine emerged from their own little world to say

It may not be cobbled now. Last summer, that pass was closed for repairs. I
went across it in 1999 over the cobbles. The were rutted from the large
number of coaches that transverse the passes. Hopefully, the repairs last
summer will have put down a better surface.

It is certainly worth riding.

I'll post some more detailed stuff to you OP later on.

 

Colin Irvine emerged from their own little world to say

Here's the thread I started after my trip last summer:
http://groups.google.co.uk/group/uk.rec.motorcycles/browse_frm/thread/78ed8
be2da93f540/46eb988718c04c36?q=wessie+croatia&rnum=4#46eb988718c04c36
or http://tinyurl.com/77khc

I can't be bothered to trawl through the thread so here's some stuff about
Slovenia that hopefully helps:

1. Bled itself is a very pretty place. It's worth setting aside at least a
day off the bike to have a look around at the church on the island, the
castle and generally chill out.

2. Hotel: stayed for 3 nights here
http://www.hotelastoria-bled.com/eng/index.php
Whilst the hotel is a bit dated, the service was excellent. It is staffed
by graduates from the Catering & Tourism College next door. My room had a
superb view of the lake.

3. Bled is an ideal base for tours around the Triglav National Park.
www.alpineroads.com list the passes. See my comment about the Vrsic pass in
reply to Les. The Predil pass is excellent too. You can combine it with the
Vrsic pass to make a nice circuit from Bled. Another superb road is from
Bovec south along the Soca river.

4. Other places in Slovenia worth visiting: Postonja &/or Skocjan caves.
I've only done the former but I'm told the latter are actually better.
http://www.park-skocjanske-jame.si

5. If you go to Postonja then Predjama Castle is nearby - also worth
visiting apparently.

6. The road that goes north from Postonja along the Idrija valley is
another cracker.

If you have any further questions just ask.

 

snip>

I stopped at the Golf hotel in Bled when I was working in Jesenice and
though it was apparently quite expensive it was really nice. The food
was good and it was only a couple of minutes walk to a series of steps
and terraces down to the town.

Bled was good in that it's got a wide choice of bars and restaurants
with most being pretty reasonably priced and to make things even
better most staff spoke English.

I didn't really get many chances to go sight seeing but it looked as
if it'd be good for bike touring as long as you like mountain
hairpins.

 

<big snip>

Perfick. Ta!

 

Ah yes Lake Bled, where me and SWMBO had our honeymoon in the Hotel
Toplice and she got the worst food poisoning I've ever seen which
rather took the edge off the whole affair. Pretty place, then at least.

 

Andy Bonwick emerged from their own little world to say

Dbl room about 160 Euro a night B&B which is about twice the rate of the
place I stopped in.

However, the Golf has been modernised whereas the Astoria is still much
the same as it was when built during Tito's dictatorship: although by
this summer the owners may have started/completed their upgrade plans.

The other Bled hotels and other info are listed on here:
http://www.bled.si/en/

It is possible to avoid steep mountain roads if you find your way to
Bovec from the Italian border to the south. The roads through the river
gorges would suit those that prefer to avoid 1st gear hairpins. However,
the roads in the Triglav NP afford some of the best views in the Alps
and are the main reason why I returned last year.

Just to the north of Jesenice is a tunnel into Austria. The pass over
the top is very good for those that like that sort of thing.

 

Ouch. I know my company negotiated a good rate but when you consider
we had about 16 blokes stopping there (out of season) for just over 3
weeks you'd expect a decent reduction in price.

I could probably still walk or drive to most of the places we used for
eating but I'm fucked if I can remember the names. We found a place
about half way to Jesenice that served awesome steaks with whatever
side dishes you wanted very cheaply. You soon suss out where to eat
when you're on day rate expenses rather than receipted. I really
enjoyed working and staying in the area and if it wasn't such a drag
I'd be tempted to take the bike their myself.

 

Andy Bonwick emerged from their own little world to say

It is a long way. However, if you are taking 2 weeks holiday then it is
easy. Early ferry to Calais. 2 overnight stops in say Strasbourg and
Bavaria and you are ther having ridden through the Black Forest, Bavarian &
Austrian Alps. Spend a week in Slovenia and return via a different route
with overnight stops in Italy or the French Alps.

 

Just had a look at Via Michelin. Amsterdam to Bled is 1,190
kilometres. That's not the route we'll take, but I was surprised how
close it actually is.

 

Very pretty place and one I was seriously contemplating taking the bike to
this year (and had started making the odd plan for last year - possilby
taking in the Mugello MGP as it's "just over the border"- alas not to be for
various reasons).

Think it's going to be peak season then so expect thigns to be a little more
expensive and a lot busier - we went in the first week of June just before
the peak last year and it was lovely - definitely somewhere we'd go back to.

If you're spending any time around Bled, Lake Bohinj is worth a visit too -
and a trip up the cable car. The hotel by the crossroads did a lovely fish
dish with teh local varient of trout that was deglightful (and cheap).

The Vrsic pass as alluded to by others is something to consider if you like
your hairpins - my S/O didn't and therefore we didn't go down it

Watch the drivers though - Slovenia's got one of the worst accident records
in Europe and when you see the way some of them drive you'll understand why

 

dwb emerged from their own little world to say

We? Together? Have I missed something?

I didn't find them any worse than their Italian neighbours.

In July most of the vehicles on the road will be Germans and Austrians
heading for the Adriatic.

If you stay off the main trunk roads you will encounter very little
traffic. Even in the peak season the Triglav NP is quiet compared to other
regions in the Alps. Most of the visitors are there on walking &
watersports holidays.

 

Noted, ta.