A taste of the Alps

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In 2019 my travel plans were completed with a multi-day trip in mid-June to the Alps region, mainly to Austria and northern Italy. It is a popular motorcycle destination, which while not requiring much preparation and organization, is not inferior to other destinations in Europe or the Balkans, mainly due to the inconceivable beauty of the mountain routes.

I chose to debark in the northernmost italian port, Venice, without a route plan to follow, but having a general idea of what i want to see and where to go.

Day 1: Venice – Lago di Resia

Highlights of the day some of the most famous mountain passes: Passo del Tonale, Gavia, Umbrail and Stelvio.

Passo del Tonale, SS42, 1.884 m.

Passo di Gavia, SP29, 2.652 m.

Passo Umbrail, SS38, 2.501 m.

The mountain pass on the Swiss-Italian border connects Santa Maria in Val Müstair with Bormio in the Adda Valley. On the Italian side, it is connected to the Stelvio Pass, while it is the highest asphalt road in Switzerland..

Passo dello Stelvio, SS38, 2.757 m.

The day ended near the small Tyrolean village of Curon Venosta, on the border with Austria. To be precise, the whole village is submerged under the water of Lake Resia, except for the church bell tower.

Day 2: Lago di Resia - Unterach am Attersee

The day's route included entry into Austria and passing through Innsbruck, Salzburg, Fuschl am See lakes and finally from St. Gilgen, where i stayed overnight in the backyard of a polite local, somewhere near Lake Unterach am Attersee.

Day 3 & 4: around lake Unterach am Attersee

The whole area has an ideal provincial road network for motorcycle exploration, which stretches along the lakes Attersee, Mondsee and Egelsee (Unterach). Among other places, i visited the famous Hallstatt and Zell am See.

Maria Alm

Hallstatt

Zell am See

My five-star free camping ground for a night, somewhere outside Hallstatt.

Day 5: Hallstatt - Lienz

I finally rode the high Alpine road «Grossglockner», one of the reasons i made this trip. At the end of the day, i stayed in Linz, Austria.

Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse

Edelweisspitze peak, 2.571 m.

Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe visitors' centre, 2.369 m. Views to Pasterze glacier.

Here's a [1080p quality] video of mine riding the Grossglockner High Alpine Road.

«Riding the Grossglockner» - Großglockner Hochalpenstraße, Austria

Heiligenblut

Day 6: Lienz - Cortina d' Ampezzo

I left Lienz and Austria behind me and, after entering Italy, i headed for Lake Misurina (Lago di Misurina SS51, SP49). I visited the Auronzo shelter at the beginning of the trail for Tre Cime (3 Peaks of Lavaredo) and closed my day camping outside of Cortina.

Day 7: Cortina d'Ampezzo - Rimini

Highlights of the day some of the famous mountain passes, like Passo Giau, Fedaia – Marmolada, Canazei, riding with initial destination the city of Trento and then in the direction of Rimini, where i spent a night. I can say that the whole Dolomites area would be worth expanding my schedule at least by two days, as the mountain passes are countless and really call you to ride them all.

Day 8: Rimini - Ancona

To fill my day until i boarded the ship from Ancona, i chose to visit the fifth smallest country in the world, the Republic of St. Marino. I didn't get to see much, but i will definitely return to my next visit.