Hatcho's Solo deTour of Europe

[Hatcho]

The Hahntennjoch didn't disappoint. A few years back we missed out on it as the weather rough. But this time it was blue skies and lovely dry tarmac to play on.



You've got a deep valley on your right hand side and for the most part some armco between you and oblivion. Eventually even the barrier disappears and there's just a mad drop to one side. Love it!

The Hahntennjoch pass leads you onto the Bschlaber Landesstrasse which is a whole bundle of fun too. I messed around with the camera mounts for a bit and even managed to catch the left peg scraping the tarmac! Mostly because I'm a fat bastard, not because of any heroic lean angles!

At the end of the Bschlaber Landesstrasse you come to t-junction where I pulled over for a quick breather. The views of the valley are nothing short of stunning. Austria is a very beautiful place indeed.





Met these two lovely fellas on scooters who asked me to record them - I used both their phone and mine to capture their antics

Whilst parked up I researched my accommodation for the night and settled on the Hotel Goldene Rose in Reutte. 'Twas only about 20 mins away which was great as I was yet again heat weary and keen to shed the bike gear for the day. So north on the 198 I did head towards Wangle (gotta love it!).

 

[Gavla04GS]

Cracking thread this Hatcho, great images and peg scraping vids, fair play fella.

 

[Hatcho]

Now that my digs were booked and al was good, I just bimbled along the valley enjoying the scenery...not that difficult a task to be honest

Soon enough I arrived at my hotel and it turned out to be a lovely spot indeed. Lovely big room with a small balcony outside.


I freshened up and headed down for some dins. Seeing an outside dining area and thinking it was quite warm indoors, I asked was it possible to sit out. It would be a few minutes for a table to be free so I sat and chatted to my new friend Pauline


After conversations with two Paulines, my table was ready and it was well worth the wait to sit outside....


I settled on grilled salmon on a bed of risotto for dinner followed by lovely ice cream for desert. Heaven.




Of course, Pauline came back for another chat before I headed back to my room.

 

[Hatcho]

After a hearty breakfast I set off from the hotel.



Today's weather forecast was far from good, but so far it was only grey skies without rain. I decided I'd head to Garmisch, the location of the famous BMW meets, and stop for a wee coffee. My final destination today was Memmingen and this was my last bit of biking, so I wanted to make the most of it.

This was time for my last biking brew. I stopped by a wee lake and put the kettle on for a cuppa...

I could see the clouds approaching with their payload of water, so I packed up and headed on towards Garmisch. Met a few horsies along the way so stopped for a wee chat. First time I've seen horses with cowbells, or horsebells I suppose.




In Garmisch I spotted an unusually named café and it was time for coffee and strudel, which even came with a wee love heart!




This wee fella was all ears!

 

[Hatcho]

Refreshed with coffee and cake I hopped back onto the bike and reluctantly made my way to Memmingen. This was the very last leg of my biking journey. And what a journey it had been - twisties, mountains, gravel, rain, heat, dust, sweat, smiles, tarmac, pizzas, beers, tents, rivers, rocks - it was nothing short of epic. I'd had such an awesome time, met some really cool folks (whom I'm still in touch with) - how lucky was I? The big difference this time was that all these memories were mine, and mine alone.

As predicted, the rain arrived and on went the waterproofs. Just in case you though the trip was all sunbeams and fairy dust!

 

[wessie]

Nice report. I love the Hahntenjoch as well. Last year, we transferred from Kempten to Bregenz and did that loop, starting at Stanzach to Bschlabs and then over the Hahntenjoch and on to Egg. We had coffee in Lermoos and found a Ducati themed cafe
The wife of one of my group flew into Memmingen to join us for that part of the trip.
Highly recommended roads but they have a 95dB noise limit so I had to ride my R1200RS as the S1000XR is 96dB on the V5C.

 

[Hatcho]

Soon I arrived a the hotel in Memmingen where the Overlanders lads were already hard at work and I parked the bike up for the final time.


Inside the garage there were plenty of bikes awaiting their owners...


Close enough to 2.5k kms - that's an awful lot of grinning!


Soon I was checked into my room - very good value as they have singles at a decent price (especially compared to Switzerland!).


I spent the next wee while sorting out what bits to keep with me and what to send home with the bike. I had two more nights in Memmingen before flying home on the Sunday - a nice way to wind down especially as I was straight into work on Monday morning. The hotel is out by the airport so there's not much to do - the hotel only has food in a vending machine. Luckily there was one nice food establishment nearby so I went for the inevitable schnitzel to celebrate being back in Germany.

Delicious!

The next morning I loaded my kit onto the bike and in no time the overlanders lads had her all crated up - what an excellent service!


Then it was time for me to hop on the bus and head into the town centre for some people watching until my next two nights accommodation was available.

 

[Mzokk]

Great report. A lot of work pulling that together. Thankyou

 

[Hatcho]

I was staying at the Limehome apartments. Similar price to a hotel room, but you get some living space and a wee kitchen area too. Perfect for a tea addict like myself! Highly recommend if you find yourself staying in Memmingen, no parking though so only suitable if you're not still on the bike.



Memmingen is a lovely little town with plenty of pretty buildings. There was a wee street festival on that evening with lots af food stalls selling their wares...


For dinner I opted to go to this spot - we had stayed here back in 2018. The hotel section had closed, (some sort of serious plumbing issue about eight years ago apparently ) but the restaurant was still on the go.



I indulged in a lovely steak with salad.


The next day was spent wandering about just taking in the sights. As it was a saturday the town market was on which added a nice buzz to the place.


The buildings really are quite pretty...



I stopped into St David's church for a wee gander - very impressive even to a non-believer like me.




Some nice sculptures around the town centre...


I do love an oul' manhole (fnarr fnarr!)

 

[Hatcho]

I picked up a few pressies before the shops closed - always good to earn a few brownie points with the boss back home! Then it was back to people watching over lunch...

 

[Hatcho]

I had booked myself in for a Thai massage (steady now) and on the way out I bumped into a lovely Irish lady, Angela, who'd been living in Germany for over 30 years. we chatted for a while as we walked through the town until she went to meet her husband and I headed back to drop off my loot of pressies.


That evening I went all out and ate at a sushi restaurant. Having no clue what to order I went with my waitresses advice and it was absolutely yummy!


I treated myself to a streetside ice cream and took in my last look at the town as I wandered home...

 

[Hatcho]

The next morning I checked out of my apartment and indulged in a final lunch and beer before heading to the airport to catch my Ryanair flight home and return to the real world

 

[Hatcho]

So there ye have it. A tad later than expected, but I finally got to finish the trip report. If you made it this far, fair play to you - I have been known to natter too much! Suffice to say I had an amazing time - the highs outnumbered the lows by a factor of lots. Just writing this up is bringing a smile to my face. I won't drill down into the detail of costs etc. - I just spent enough to make sure I had a great trip. But if anyone wants advice about where to stay, what to see, what to avoid etc., just pop me a message and I'll be glad to help. Ride safe.

 

[Rusty]

What a super trip and a great report to go with it. Thank you for taking the time to entertain us all .

 

[Burridge01]

Bloody hell !! A thumb ring.

Thats not his thumb.