Get your motor runnin’, head out on the highway. Looking for adventure…. Easyrider? Born to be Wildâ Steppenwolf? Peter Fondaâs theme song? Well, maybe not but close when you talk with Herb and Jacqueline Pitzman (Neighborhood 7) about their motorcycle tour of Europe.
In 2014 the Pitzmanâs completed a 3 week tour that included Austria, Switzerland, Slovenia, Italy, and Germany on motorcycles. Avid bikers, they have since completed another trip to Colorado averaging about 500 miles a day! Europe was much slower â too much to see, too many places to visit. Here is Herbâs account of their trip.
(Photos provided)
Most everyone that enjoys touring on a motorcycle at some point has a bucket list of rides they would like to complete. My wife Jackie and I are still working on that list: most of the lower 48 (check), Alaska (check), Route 66 (check), and now riding the Alps in Europe (check). We planned our trip for the month of June, rented the motorcycle (a BMW 1200RT), booked our flights and accommodations, purchased extended medical coverage, obtained our international driverâs license through AAA, and weâre finally ready to go.
We flew to Zurich and then onto Ljubljana and checked into our pension where Adriatic Motor Tours brought our rental bike to us. The next morning we enjoyed a wonderful ride to Lienz, Austria. The highlight of this ride was a 17-mile tunnel through the mountains and enjoying dinner in the village at apparently a favorite restaurant of Arnold Schwarzeneggerâs! The next day we rode to Corvara in Badia, Italy. The pension there was very nice and more like an apartment. The next morning we rode four of the major passes in the Italian Dolomites. The weather was beautiful and the views incredible. One of the main reasons for the trip was to ride Stelvio Pass: 48 hairpin turns up the Italian side and similar hair-raising turns going down the Swiss side, all on a very narrow paved road with not much room for any oncoming traffic.
Riding back into Austria, we stayed overnight in Braz before heading through Lichtenstein and on to Grindelwald, Switzerland. We stayed three nights so we could take a recommended train ride to what they call âThe Top of Europe,â the Jungfraujoch. At approximately 11,000 feet, it is the highest train station in Europe. The two hour train ride was well worth the $178/each price. On the way up, we passed by the face of the Eiger, which has been used in several movies and challenged many climbers. At the top, we enjoyed a nice lunch, ice sculptures, hiking, and clear weather. The view was as picturesque as post cards complete with Swiss cows with their bells in the meadows.
Leaving Switzerland, we headed back into Austria to Innsbruck for the night and then on to Salzburg. We stayed here for a couple of days so we could visit Kehlsteinhaus (Hitlerâs Eagles Nest) across the border in Germany. This area in the Bavarian Alps served as a pivotal major planning center for the Third Reich during World War II. Martin Bormann commissioned the building of this structure for Hitlerâs Fiftieth birthday. We were most impressed with the Dokumentation building that appeared to not hold anything back about the Holocaust or what happened during the war. A very elaborate underground bunker system connected all the various buildings on this site. The only original items left from the place built for Hitler were the elevator and fireplace. The elevator ran up for 407 feet, held around 40 people, and was made of polished brass, Venetian mirrors, and green leather. The red Italian marble fireplace presented to Hitler from Benito Mussolini is the original. Today the building is a restaurant and part of a charitable trust. We thought it was very worthwhile to visit this site due to its place in the history of WWII.
Leaving Salzburg, we headed south to ride the Grossglockner, one of Austriaâs highest passes in Hohe Tauern National park. On the way, we stopped at one of the several castles visited on our trip. This beautiful castle, the Burg Hohenwerfen Fortress, was used for filming the World War II movie âWhere Eagles Dare,â starring Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood. This former archiepiscopal fortification dates back to the Eleventh century. We also enjoyed a spectacular flight demonstration by the historic State Falconry Center on the castle grounds.
With only a couple of days left, we headed for Bled, Slovenia, staying at Lake Bled in the Julian Alps. This is a beautiful place to visit and home to Bled Castle, first mention in a 1011 donation deed by Emperor Henry II and oldest castle in Slovenia. An island in the middle of the lake is home to a very historic church, The Church of the Assumption. The church can probably be dated back to the Eleventh century, however, the present form of the church dates back to the Seventeenth century. Several earthquakes had damaged the structure, requiring renovations to take place. Last but not least, Bled is famous for another reason, crème cake. You cannot get this tasty treat anywhere else, and we had to eat it several times while we were there. Bled was our last stop before turning in our bike and heading back home.
The food was very good where ever we were, however it was hard to get used to the breakfasts of cheeses, hard rolls, processed meats, and no scrambled eggs. The pensions, which are general family owned and offer fewer services than standard hotels, were very interesting, some very small with small beds pushed together, but always neat and clean and always served breakfast. All the roads were paved but generally very narrow, especially in small villages. One of our favorite things to do at the end of each day was to walk to the local church because they were all so beautiful inside. There are many, many motorcycles on the road; we never had any safety concerns. We also found all the people in each country were very friendly. Upon arriving in one village, we discovered there was nowhere to eat so we found a market with a deli and using gestures managed to purchase our dinner.
When we returned home I said if I never see another round-about I would be happy! We probably rode through an average of 25 per day and traveled through over 100 tunnels. Only occasionally did we run into traffic like we have in the US. We had no issues with directions as the motorcycleâs GPS was very accurate. I had also studied the traffic signs from a map book of Europe I bought before leaving. Our European motorcycle adventure was definitely the trip of a life time.
Jackie and I would like to do this again, perhaps the northern part of Europe next time.
