Micky very kindly stirred us into action and decided to loosely organise a trip to Germany....................loosely - he booked us all a ferry to kickstart us into gear.
There were 7 of us...................6 on GS's (including 2 on new TwinCam 12GSA's, Mick on his 800GS) and then me......................on my R1100RT
I took the RT, thinking that the weather in late April, could be inclement.............how wrong was I - we had superb weather with temps of 22-28c everyday and full sun
Should have taken the GSA
Here's Tour Dad, Micky .......................disembarking @ Zeebrugge
Andy took the helm as route plotter so we all fell in behind
We headed to Brussels via the E40 and then cut off the m/way through the Ardenne, heading near to Dinant and over to Bastogne
Must be Belgium.....................frites
Lunchstop
From Belgium we cut across Luxembourg and into Germany near Kaiserlautern, stopping for the first night in Wolfstein
Beautiful hotel opposite the Church
Sign of a good day in the saddle
Village statue..................very apt for Wolstein
Sunday dawned dry, hot and clear and after a quick circumvent of Kaiserlautern, we headed south via the German Ardenne on beautiful roads, towards Wissembourg in France
Coffee at the Bannhof
A proper tourer.....................the Gentleman's Express
We then crossed the Rhine and into Baden-Baden, then up on the famous 500 -HoheAlpenstrasse for a blast and lunch ........................which was mega busy on a hot Spring Sunday and as such we entered a crash between a bike and a car and one of the vehicles had left the road and set the Black Forest on fire
So we cut across to Freundenstadt and back down the 500 towards Tittisee area
Andy and Bilko had used this hotel in 2009, so we used this lovely place - the Sonne Neuhausle and stayed there for 2 nights
Even had its own chapel in the hotel carpark and splendid views on the Southern Black Forest
I took a ride around the local roads to sample the views
Monday morning...................free day, so we headed over to Touratech DE in the morning
Proper BMW GS advertising............
Found this Swiss minmalist BMW tourer, in the TT carpark
After an hour in TT HQ.......................we were bored and set off for lunch, Mick knew this lovely hotel, high up in the Black Forest meadows and we climbed up a small singletrack road to get there...................but it was worth it
They love their hounds..................
One of the things, Black Forest is most famous for
Tuesday.......................we decided to head off through the Southern Black Forest and cross the Rhine @ Freiburg, over to the French Vosges
I love these Southern Black Forest roads and countryside
Last coffee stop in Germany.....................
Black Forest Gateau....................proper stylee!
Bilko
We headed up into France and headed towards Munster and over the Col du Bonhomme............before stopping at a downmarket hotel in Gerardmer
So we were up early on Weds, to get up into the Vosges - via the Route de Cretes and Grand Ballon - these are some of the most stunning roads
After lunch, we cut back towards Strasbourg and came across this most poignant place - the only German Concentration camp on French soil - Struthof
Tourdad....Mick @ Struthof
I will go back, for a proper look around, one day
That night we stated at Hotel Hirsch @ Bad Peterstal, back in Germany - a great hotel and at 37 Euro for B&B in a single room, in a 3 star hotel.............a veritable bargain of the week. Food was good and the cellar bar was excellent
From Bad Peterstal, we headed north on Thursday, back over a deserted 500 (superb) to Baden Baden and up to the Mosel, staying the night at the biker Hotel Post @ Klotten, near Cochem and then the final 2 nights at an old favourite..................the Hotel Forsthaus, near Mayen and the Nurburgring
Thanks Mick....................for bringing this type of 'no plan trip' together and the others whose company was excellent, plus Mr Sunshine who provided an excellent week's dry weather with balmy April temps of an average 25c
There were 7 of us...................6 on GS's (including 2 on new TwinCam 12GSA's, Mick on his 800GS) and then me......................on my R1100RT
I took the RT, thinking that the weather in late April, could be inclement.............how wrong was I - we had superb weather with temps of 22-28c everyday and full sun
Should have taken the GSA
Here's Tour Dad, Micky .......................disembarking @ Zeebrugge
Andy took the helm as route plotter so we all fell in behind
We headed to Brussels via the E40 and then cut off the m/way through the Ardenne, heading near to Dinant and over to Bastogne
Must be Belgium.....................frites
Lunchstop
From Belgium we cut across Luxembourg and into Germany near Kaiserlautern, stopping for the first night in Wolfstein
Beautiful hotel opposite the Church
Sign of a good day in the saddle
Village statue..................very apt for Wolstein
Sunday dawned dry, hot and clear and after a quick circumvent of Kaiserlautern, we headed south via the German Ardenne on beautiful roads, towards Wissembourg in France
Coffee at the Bannhof
A proper tourer.....................the Gentleman's Express
We then crossed the Rhine and into Baden-Baden, then up on the famous 500 -HoheAlpenstrasse for a blast and lunch ........................which was mega busy on a hot Spring Sunday and as such we entered a crash between a bike and a car and one of the vehicles had left the road and set the Black Forest on fire
So we cut across to Freundenstadt and back down the 500 towards Tittisee area
Andy and Bilko had used this hotel in 2009, so we used this lovely place - the Sonne Neuhausle and stayed there for 2 nights
Even had its own chapel in the hotel carpark and splendid views on the Southern Black Forest
I took a ride around the local roads to sample the views
Monday morning...................free day, so we headed over to Touratech DE in the morning
Proper BMW GS advertising............
Found this Swiss minmalist BMW tourer, in the TT carpark
After an hour in TT HQ.......................we were bored and set off for lunch, Mick knew this lovely hotel, high up in the Black Forest meadows and we climbed up a small singletrack road to get there...................but it was worth it
They love their hounds..................
One of the things, Black Forest is most famous for
Tuesday.......................we decided to head off through the Southern Black Forest and cross the Rhine @ Freiburg, over to the French Vosges
I love these Southern Black Forest roads and countryside
Last coffee stop in Germany.....................
Black Forest Gateau....................proper stylee!
Bilko
We headed up into France and headed towards Munster and over the Col du Bonhomme............before stopping at a downmarket hotel in Gerardmer
So we were up early on Weds, to get up into the Vosges - via the Route de Cretes and Grand Ballon - these are some of the most stunning roads
After lunch, we cut back towards Strasbourg and came across this most poignant place - the only German Concentration camp on French soil - Struthof
Tourdad....Mick @ Struthof
I will go back, for a proper look around, one day
That night we stated at Hotel Hirsch @ Bad Peterstal, back in Germany - a great hotel and at 37 Euro for B&B in a single room, in a 3 star hotel.............a veritable bargain of the week. Food was good and the cellar bar was excellent
From Bad Peterstal, we headed north on Thursday, back over a deserted 500 (superb) to Baden Baden and up to the Mosel, staying the night at the biker Hotel Post @ Klotten, near Cochem and then the final 2 nights at an old favourite..................the Hotel Forsthaus, near Mayen and the Nurburgring
Thanks Mick....................for bringing this type of 'no plan trip' together and the others whose company was excellent, plus Mr Sunshine who provided an excellent week's dry weather with balmy April temps of an average 25c
