Life is not a Practice

It was Thursday night but no one wanted to bike - or they had other appointments or ...

So I was out on my race bike and did a quick tour up the Ellegg and back down.

32kms and 490 meters of climbing.
track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=vtirhzpzzvmcwpzn

A picture taken as autumn sets in here in the Alps

Out with the race bikes - just the two of us. We took a wrong turning in Seeg and ended up pushing the bikes through a wood. At one point I took a wrong turning and we did a complete circuit of a clearing - watched by a hunter up on his seat.



Luckily we have good lights because it was pitch black when we got back.

At the end of August you need warm clothes and good lights but if you have them then life is good.

38km with 500 meters of climbing
Track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=excczuguysujgwsh

Almost no biking this week - except Thursday night. So this evening Heidi and I braved the rain to cycle up the Alpspitz. Actually it turned to drizzle as we passed the Explorer Hotel and started again when we got home.

12km with 580 meters of climbing.
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=kfoubesghzjabsgp

Alison and I are spending my birthday weekend in Flumserberg in Switzerland. Yesterday we drove here stpping off for lunch in Vaduz (the capital of Liechtenstein).



Today we caught the cable cars up to the Prodkamm at 1939m and then walked along the ridge to the Maschgenlücke where we stopped for a coffee. Alison also bought some local cheese.


From left to right - Ziger, Leist and Sächsmoor.

From the hut we walked up to the summit of the 2074 meter high Ziger where the view was there one minute and gone the next as the clouds passed by. We then continued on up to the summit of the 2222 meter high Leist.



From here we had amazing views down on to the Walensee and in to the surrounding mountains. The sun was shining and we ate some of Alison's cheese.

We then returned to the Maschgenkamm for coffee, cake and enjoying the views and then caught the cable car down to Tannenboden. There we saw the "Floomzer" sommer bobsleigh so caught another lift back up to try that.

Then it was just a gentle walk back to the apartment in Tannenheim and a swim in the pool next door.

In the evening we went to Rappenswill for dinner by the lake.



All my photos are at https://plus.google.com/photos/103827427036815679772/albums/6061488741284750049?hl=de

Thursday evening and there were only three of us out cycling in Group 2 - Bettina, Karin and I. We originally planned a gentle ride round the 7 lakes but once we got in to the Wertach Valley, Bettina changed the plan to the hanging bridge tour.



Group 1 rode up the Alpspitz and got soaked but we stayed dry. Afterwards we visited Suzi for food and drink as it was her birthday.

24km and 430 meters of climbing. Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=nssizyajygemjqtm

A morning tour to finish our long weekend in Livigno. We rode up one side of the valley and then down the other side. Trails all the way - partly flowy and partly challenging but all great fun.



Four days of dream tours in a beautiful valley with a fun group of people.



18 kms with 520 meters of climbing
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=hugoalmjnogaudhz



In the four days we climbed a total of 4600 meters!

My photos are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103827427036815679772/albums/6058985831149643201

Jon's pictures are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/+JonFrench/albums/6059274502830412641?cfem=1

Max was also in Livigno but he was cycling with the heros in group 1. His blog is here.

Started the third day in Livigno by catching the Tagliede cable car 500 meters up the mountain. We then pushed and biked across a lunar landscape up to the top of the Monte della Rezze at 2858 meters above sea level. There we drank a Grappa that we found in the refuge hut and enjoyed the view.



We cycled back to a small lake near the top of the Carosello3000 lift and then down a challenging but fun trail to the Fedaria Alm. From there we followed the valley down to a stunningly beautiful restaurant on the side of the valley - La Tea da Memi. The farmhouse is 140 years old and has been perfectly restored by the owner (a carpenter) and his wife. They now live there all year round and run it as a restaurant.



We came back to the hotel along a track that followed the side of the main valley and so, for the first time, cycled downhill to the hotel at the end of the day. From here we can see the Monte della Rezze a thousand meters above us and it is hard to believe we really cycled to the top of it.

31km and 1100 meters of climbing + 500 with the lift.
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=zrljyckxjvkqxvyv

My photos are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103827427036815679772/albums/6058982472128112385

Jons photos are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/+JonFrench/albums/6058601229724589249

Second dy in Livigno. It had snowed on the mountain tops but at breakfast we saw a patch of blue sky so we knew it would be a great day.
First we took the Mottolino lift to the top of the mountain and then cycled over the pass to Lake Adda. Three then took another pass back to Livigno and three of us carried on to do the Passo del Gallo before returning via the old military road over the Passo Alpisella.



Another amazing tour.



64km and 1587 meters of climbing (+600 meters with the lift).
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=wjzjfisckhdzjelr

My pictures are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103827427036815679772/albums/6058978607863573969

and Jon's are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/100547066824249637955/posts/eE7YRmj5W6h?pid=6058214176864064514&oid=100547066824249637955

15 of us were up in the early hours of the morning to drive to Livigno in Italy. Breakfast (bacon and eggs) in Austria and then a drive through Switzerland before reaching Livigno.
The bikes were quickly unloaded and almost as quickly we were all changed and ready to go. There were 6 of us in Group 2.



The first route of this long weekend was absolutely fantastic. Easy, if steep, tracks. Flowy downhills, stunning views, a quaint little hut to eat our lunch in front of and great friends.



The weather was "threatening" but after a 5 minute shower, it stayed dry.

37km and 1400 meters of climbing.
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=yomwcvhchlyjmogk

All my photos are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103827427036815679772/albums/6058975351830826593

Jons photos are at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/100547066824249637955/albums/6058064944974487937

The first time I came to Germany was 30 years ago and it has taken me that long to get to Berlin. Back then we were in the middle of the Cold War and nowadays it is a long way from home But now I have been invited by the Federal Ministry for Economic Development and they are paying the bill so here I am.



Didn't get here until eight at night so only had two hours for site seeing - they are expecting me to be awake tomorrow - but I put it to good use.



I forgot to photograph the most impressive thing - the new main railway station.

Heidi and I with the race bikes through Tannheimertal.

54km and 600 meters of climbing.
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=kerbbbqotuvqglms

Max received his "sailing boat license" this morning after a sailing course last week so today Max, Daniel and I went sailing on the Forgensee. Started of very calm but got better a little later. We managed a top speed of 10.2km/h - according to my GPS. There is something amazing about sailing - the feeling of freedom.

It is so great to live here and have so many opportunities "just down the road".



All the photos are at
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103827427036815679772/albums/6056014088141952449

Evening tour on race bikes with Barbara. Brotzeit at the Schnitzlertal-Alpe



44.5 kms and 1300 meters of climbing
Track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=ffadlrbjznowqoof

Another rainy Tuesday and once again it was just Heidi and I. I had been working outside all afternoon and didn't feel like a trip up in to the mountains so we went across to the Moorgang and then up through Mittelberg on to the Ellegg. It only rained a bit and was not so cold.

Didn't take my GPS but I guess it was about 25 kilometers.

Despite the showers and low cloud we had a fantastic day doing the Karwendelrunde. The 2000 meters of climbing was challenging for me but the scenery was stunning. Almost the entire route was on forest tracks but we found a few trails to add to the fun.

Until the Karwendelhütte we only met two other cyclists and they were in the process of abandoning their planned tour. Once we saw four hillwalkers far off on the other side of the valley. Obviously the rain kept every one at home. It was amazing having so much mountain just for us.


During the worst rain of the trip we had to ford a river. Heidi fell in as we were jumping from stone to stone and did the rest of the tour in soaking shoes.

The day before this ride I was in Friedrichshafen with Jon at the big bike show. The amazing thing there was almost everything was about "Image". There were bikes for eight thousand Euros, cool looking clothes and accesories of every kind but it all seemed to be about "buy our stuff and show people what a great biker you are".Today was very different. Just the two of us, our "normal" bikes, the mountains and the rain. But today was what biking is really about - getting out there and enjoying yourself even without people applauding your great taste in clothing or your expensive bike. I still believe that the most important things are your legs for getting you uphill and your head for getting you back down.

75km and over 2000 meters of climbing.
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=czrpwdszgdnwmlrn
Actually the distance was nearer to 77km. The distances that I write in this blog are those shown at gpsies.com but these are those measured on a flat map. The actual distance covered needs to take account of the ups and downs. But, at the end of the day, who cares about 2km.



Photos at https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/103827427036815679772/albums/6050786238514201409?authkey=CM6y9qnHhfj9mAE