Motorradtouren

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Warren

Welcome to my two wheel travel blog. You can view my photos in higher quality by clicking on them and I love to read your comments.

Latest posts by Warren (see all)

• Motorradtouren - July 8, 2025
• A Fast Bike Through the Badlands - July 3, 2025
• Free Ride - June 27, 2025

I have returned to Europe to tick off my last bucket list ride item – riding to the Artic circle but before that I have a week to do a side trip.

It’s a long way from Australia to most places in the world and even longer to Europe. Some people spend extended time abroad, be that via overlanding or shipping a bike to Europe but it suits me currently to limit my trips to 4-5 weeks max. Without elaborating too much I have ongoing medical treatment and other things that influence how long I am away.

Within my current time in Europe I wanted to fit in a 2nd ride and I had long been interested in riding some of the official German Motorcycle Touring route and since my arctic ride starts in Germany that would tie in nicely.

I already sourced a copy of what might be the best guide to motorcycle touring in Germany. This book contains a huge amount of local knowledge. There are so many routes which are not documented on ‘good road’ sites like Motorcycle Diaries. I mapped out a tour within Germany but then hesitated. The mountains were calling me.

The idea of revisiting a little of the European alps kept nagging me. I knocked out a rough route and realised I could tick off the top passes I considered revisiting and still ride some German biker roads within a week. Theoretically then after my arctic circle ride I might be able to convince myself that having completed many trips to Europe I have seen and all I want here and can pivot my focus back to Asia.

Australia to Germany

I start this journey with a short but scenic flight to Cairns with nice view of the Barrier Reef. Cairns is quite lively mid week. I hear lots of Japanese and Chinese as well other languages. Terrific selection of food here, I enjoyed excellent Khao Soi. It’s actually not so far by road from me. When I get myself another bike I must ride up occasionally do some loops to the tablelands and enjoy the dining options.

Couple of quiet beers in hotel room, it’s a very long day tomorrow.

Jetstar restarted flying from Cairns to Tokyo which seems smarter for me than flying 2 hours south only to turn around and fly same back north. I flew in their quasi business class which is similar now to a premium economy product on other carriers but at 1/2 the price and a huge improvement from what they offered previously.

I have to pass through immigration at Tokyo and get lots of puzzled faces at immigration arriving and departing. Are you a resident? I cancelled my permanent residence in 2022. Given how valuable that sort of visa is I guess it’s fair for people to wonder but that’s a long story and short version is I am much happier since I moved back to my own country despite it being stupidly expensive and have no plans to be an expat again.

From Tokyo I flew Qatar my favourite airline as a reward for beating cancer and reaching my superannuation that I worked so hard for when younger. Still not being reckless, I got the Qatar fare at 1/3 the price if I had booked from Sydney. Keep that in mind if you are flying to Europe. Depart Townsville Wednesday arrive Munich Friday, it’s still an exhausting journey no matter how nice the airline accommodations.

New Gear

I don’t like to start a ride overseas with untested gear but not owning a bike currently I had no opportunity prior to test all the items I will be using. To try prepare myself for the artic circle I got laminated rider pants from Merlin to match the laminated jacket from them I debuted on my Victoria ride. Both acquired on sale.

Also new laminated gloves from Rev’it. Laminated gear (also called Gore-grip) like the name suggests bonds the Gore-tex waterproof liner to the inside of the outer layer. This eliminates the problem of the outer layer becoming waterlogged which allows water inside of the outer layer and usually finding a seam or other way to get inside.

Well that’s the claim, but if any of my gear doesn’t work my route on the morning of the final day in Germany takes me past the flagship store for Held, the German motorcycle rider gear brand so I have an opportunity to replace any item before I tackle the arctic circle.

I also have a new onboard bike camera. I’ve been disappointed with my Ricoh Theta X but the low quality GoPro photos my friend posts to Facebook left me with zero interest in one of those but recently I saw how superior DJI images were so I picked up a Osmo Action 5. This cam takes 40mp photos in jpg and raw. Also the method of operation is so good – one press it turns on takes a snap and then turns off, plus magnetic clip on mounts and magnetic mount tripod.

Off the bike I have a new Rog 14 laptop from Asus that replaces my old Asus laptop which was damaged when my birthday party guests consumed a little too much wine (◔_◔). Oh well it was 5 years old and I was probably going to upgrade it sooner or later. Also this new Panasonic shaver which is not only compact but charges from USB C thus further saving the space and weight of carrying the wall socket charger my regular Panasonic shaver requires.

That is certainly a lot of untested gear to be setting off with and Murphy’s law says I am bound to get caught out.

The ride

I’m starting this tour in Erding which is a town near the Munich airport and the same place I started my 2010 Europe Alps motorcycle tour which showed me how enjoyable travel by a motorcycle could be.

I have rented a BMW R1250RT from Allroundvermietung. There is no Uber in Germany (all it does is book a meter taxi) so I take a regular taxi to the rental shop. The owner is a very friendly guy so we chat an extended time and I end up getting away bit late but with lots of good advice. (tip the business is located in the next drive way after the actual street number)

Erding is small town so I was riding country roads in 5 minutes, no big city congestion to navigate then looking for the autobahn.

But I had navigation woes. This is my first real ride overseas where I am trying to follow my own routes not using my Garmin. Yeah I know I used my phone a little in NZ but I could simply navigate looking at road signs there.

I am using My Route App (MRA) with my routes also in Ride with GPS as a back up. Short version of this mornings stuff up is I got confused with MRA before I worked out it was trying to navigate me back to the start point. Seems if you don’t ride over the exact start point then you need to stop and tell it to skip that.

Eventually I reach the autobahn only to find it was at a standstill and I was forced into lane splitting for next 30 minutes which whilst I am well practiced at from riding Tokyo expressways is still not something I’d describe as fun ha-ha.

Eventually the traffic thins. I never get a clean run to wind up the 1250 much before I have to exit but it is super stable at speed.

MRA skipped a portion of my route this afternoon so I will need to investigate what went wrong. Above the view from the Rossfeld Panorama road which is now a toll road that visits Hitlers Eagle’s Nest. It’s a restaurant now not a museum so I wasn’t so interested to visit.

The view from just above where the restaurant is.

Once down from the mountains the temperature soars. Seems a heat wave has hit Europe and of course I did not bring any hot weather riding gear because I’m heading next to far north.

Had to abandon last 40 km of todays route as my ETA had blown out after the mornings delays but a good day all things considered.

Austria to Italy

Today is hotter than yesterday so I try get on the road early but am foiled by one of my health issues and need to rest a little but eventually am under way by 9.00am.

Magnificent scenery all morning with 100’s of bikers on the road all riding very fast so I wave them past or stop occasionally to let them go and take a photo.

Whilst it is hot I am presented with perfect visibility for riding the Glossgockner today.

It has an expensive toll, about $60 AUD. I guess people pay the price knowing it’s a private road no cops and spend the day there.

It is certainly one of the best mountain passes in Europe for riders.

Last time I stood here the weather conditions were poor. Today they are perfect!

While still having some switchback corners they are a generous radius not like most European passes where the corners are a 1st gear u-turns that you can barely get a big bike around while staying in your lane.

I enter Italy via the Staller Pass which I have not ridden before. There was a 45 minute delay at the border. The road on the Italian side is only one lane so they control the traffic. Its endless tight switchback corners like many of the older alpine passes probably built by military.

The heat is becoming too much for me this afternoon. It’s only 35 degrees but I’m in this laminated gear sitting behind the RT’s barn door fairing getting no air and am soaked through with perspiration and realise I need to drink lots more water but there has been no shops.

I reach the Dolomites but can feel some heat stroke affect with a mild headache. I decide I have to abandon my loop of the dolomites which is unfortunate but if I don’t get under cold shower and drink copious amounts of water soon I will be in trouble.

Last part of todays route abandoned.

Italy to Austria

I managed to get away by 8.30 today which is still bit late however I was waiting for the weather to clear as the these mountains were shrouded in clouds earlier and I really wanted to see them again before leaving this region.

Low clouds in the Dolomites and grey light so I am not going to attempt more of ‘the loop’ as it is not photogenic conditions. The roads here are all switchbacks and not much fun (for me) so I’ll move on.

The weather is threatening but I kept telling myself not to mention the r-a-i-n word. ‘The first rule of moto touring is you never say “Well at least it is not raining” and the second rule of moto touring is YOU NEVER SAY “Well at least it is not raining”‘.

Huge traffic jam many miles long at the town of Pozza Di Fassa. Had to do some mad SE Asia style illegal riding or could easily have been stuck for an hour. I had no idea how high the volume of traffic was in the alps during summer as I have only been here off season.

Besides the cars there are also many motorhomes doing 30kph and literally 100’s of bicycle riders weaving all over the road which cars are obliged to stop and wait until they can move into other lane to pass which causes log jams as well passenger busses crawling along.

All this on old WW1 surveyed roads with tight switchbacks is partly why I never desired to ride here as much as others do. Perhaps I would have if not for discovering Japan has alpine roads almost as high but with modern surveying, better surface and less traffic.

Above: By chance I arrived at the same viewpoint I visited on the loop ride from Bolzano when on the 2010 Edelweiss moto tour.

I ride some lovely backroads on my way to Bolzano where I was sitting up above a deep gorge which I unfortunately did not photograph well.

At Bolzano MRA decides what is best for me and skips my waypoints to take me briefly via the AutoStrada then bypassing the city. I did not know what was going on but appreciated not being stuck in city streets in 32 degrees heat. I later learned that MRA can skip waypoints if it feels traffic is bad or there is a better option, which might not always be better for bikers but today was. Then I learn that I can make a waypoint a viapoint and these are never skipped.

Todays famous pass is the Timmelsjock and the weather has cleared to be perfect.

Looking ahead to snow where the road will climb to.

Looks very different to when last I was here and everything was covered in snow.

At the top there is a motorcycle museum but I decided to skip it. My shirt was still soaked in perspiration and despite drinking much more water I could feel fatigue from the heat hitting me so I wanted to get to the hotel and under a cold shower.

I have a nice room at my hotel today but again no air conditioning or a fan and it is stifling. So I wander across the road to a furniture shop that is similar to Ikea but this being Europe I can buy a beer in their cafe so I sit in air-conditioning until they close at 6pm.

I ponder why the woman at the hotel reception after inspecting my Australian passport got her nose out of joint because I don’t speak much German. Sometimes in Europe, (and always in Japan) people get in a huff when I don’t speak their language while anywhere else in the world it’s no big deal and people just whip out a phone to translate.

Leaving the furniture shop a thunderstorm arrives to cool things down. Phew! thank you mother nature.

I trimmed about 50 km from this route (and all my routes) as this distance is too much here.

Austria to Switzerland

I woke up early ate then packed and had my wheels turning by 7.30 to try cover miles in the cool.

Today I cross into Switzerland which the rental shop warned me has crazy expensive speeding fines like Norway where the amount can be based on how much they think you can pay according to your income. He told me of a recent rental customer from Mexico who was issued a speed camera fine of 7000 euros for 14kph over the limit. This was after he had returned home so he just ignored it.

MRA advises me every speed camera of which there are 1000’s and shows the current speed limit which has been essential as the speed limits fluctuates so frequently I often have no idea what it currently is while riding. For Switzerland I also have set MRA to buzz me every time I exceed the limit just to play it safe although I probably will never be here again so could throw any fine in the bin.

I came across this park with art that I do not know the meaning of but enjoyed a picnic lunch on provided seats under a shady tree which as I have mentioned previously is something I enjoy very much when on tour.

Next up I ride up the Oberalp pass. It’s all switchbacks.

And then the Gotthard pass.

And then it’s my favourite Swiss pass.

On my way up the Susten pass

The Susten pass is better surveyed than most and it has a scale to it that few other passes can match I think.

Some switchbacks but they are not the dominant feature here.

The view from the western side is also grand.

I stopped to take a look back before I leave the high alpine Swiss region.

I have not really looked at the photos from my Osmo cam until tonight which was foolish as I now realise that when I press the shutter button it takes image almost immediately when I though it was after it beeps a few times. Anyway good to know going forward.

Tonight I stay in Meiringen which is the Swiss town featured in a Sherlock Holmes story. I am staying in the Sherlock Holmes hotel which has seen better days and no air conditioning. I walk into the small town centre to the Sherlock Holmes museum but alas it is closing as I arrive. Oh well the heat is easing, a storm is brewing and the wind is picking up. I enjoy a nice Indian dinner which I chose simply because after last nights experience with a snooty Austrian waitress I presumed a Indian waiter will speak English and be friendly as indeed was the case.

Switzerland to Germany

Today is forecast to reach 34 so I decide only thing is get up early and skip breakfast to try cover as many miles as possible before it gets hot.

I’m on the road by 7.15 and it is lovely and cool.

The Osmo Action struggles a little in this morning light but still seems much better than a GoPro.

I note that even with the temperature hovering around 18 degrees and the air vents open my gear seems to not to breath well. But it may just be that the RT flows almost zero air to me. I decide to reach out to Stephan in Hamburg who I am renting from next about the rider gear he has available just in case I decide to change.

Next I ride the panorama strasse route and it is superb.

I continue on some back roads which I enjoy considerably.

I have to reconsider my words about the European Alps as this mornings riding has been mostly car free and very enjoyable.

After here I just put my head down and aim for the German border as the cool morning air is quickly vanishing.

I wind up well ahead of schedule and look for somewhere to take a break from the heat. Some people turn their nose up at McDonalds but I find they can be very handy places on tour offering air conditioning and a toilet as well most of them now days can make a passable coffee. The German McDonalds is fancier than Australian ones. Spotless hotel style toilets as well a beer garden outside.

I’m riding some nice motorcycle roads in Bavaria this afternoon but it is hellishly hot and as INXS once sung “I’m melting in the sun” as I sit at the many stop go traffic lights for road works.

It’s not really the temperature, hell I rode in 46 degrees in Oman but more the design of the R1250RT which is so poor for these conditions. The fairing and winglets let very little air reach the rider and the large screen only lifts at rear, never slides up/down so I basically get no air to cool me. There is also a huge amount of heat coming from the cylinder heads and lower engine region bathing my legs in heat even when moving because zero air flows to there. I am basically in a sauna.

Germany, Bavaria

On the road early again to try beat the heat.

I don’t get very far before I am stopped by a road closure. How to detour with MRA? With my Garmin I would just touch screen to go to map mode then see what route runs adjacent and find my way there by visually looking at where I am on the map and the Garmin would auto skip the waypoints. Easy to do while moving and while wearing gloves. With MRA stopped and deleted the waypoints for the closed route then eventually it realised this and rerouted.

Mini revival of my Tin Coffee Adventures which were a feature of my Japan rides.

German farm roads are nice. Sweeping curves, gentle rolling hills and very little traffic. I am enjoying riding these more than the alpine roads.

Next I am on part of the German motorcycle touring route and it is superb. All the roads linked together seem to be carefully chosen to limit riding into towns and most are 100kph. I make excellent time and am way ahead of where I expected to be by lunch.

Afternoon more of the official touring route and more great roads. I am now wondering should I have just ridden these sort of roads as I originally planned however to get all those consecutive fine sunny days in the Alps really was something special. What would be great is another 7 days to ride more of the German Motorcycle Route however I am already booked for the north.

I’ve seen some of these spring water spouts in this region. Reminds me of my ride in Turkey when there were natural springs everywhere for me to refill my water bottle. Naturally chilled spring water is great.

From here I join part of the German Alpine route which is superb set of curves but busy with cars and no lookouts to grab a photo.

Big storm brewing and my route seems to be taking in an arc directly into it so I stop and prepare which does the trick and thus I am in my hotel room before the rain arrives.

In a small town I am surprised to find a wine shop with a superb selection so I stock up with the intention of taking these to Norway where everything is super expensive however it remains to be seen how many are left by next week ha-ha 😀

Germany – Austria – Germany

I’m a little late to get under way as I waited for the opening of the Held flagship store this morning located in the next town to where I stayed.

This place is huge. I could easily spend a large amount of money here but I must use willpower. I settle for just a new pair of gloves. Even that was difficult with so many to choose from.

I previously owned two pairs of Held gloves which were superbly comfortable however their leather Gore-Tex gloves only last a few hours in rain because leather becomes waterlogged so I switched to mostly non leather gloves since every ride in Japan involved rain.

I have been looking for gloves to replace my Rough & Road Gore-Tex gloves which have been the best I have ever owned. They are not Winter nor Summer gloves but rather Spring gloves which work over a wide temperature range. So when I found Held’s Spring Ride glove today that seemed to be mostly what I have been looking for. Review to come.

And then it is back to the German Alpine route.

The calm look of this lake belies the fact that there are 100’s of bikers roaring by as I take this photo.

Soon I join them.

This German Alpine region is also part of the official German motorcycle touring route. I say this will be my last trip to Europe but I’ve said that before. If I was to return I would focus on riding the German touring route with perhaps some of neighbouring Poland which I enjoyed previously.

Very scenic region.

Todays ride was going so well until the weather suddenly turned but I can’t complain.

I stopped and checked the rain modelling on the Windy app and my best option looked to be abandon the rest of my route in the mountains and turn north to Munich.

I join the Autobahn for what should be a easy ride back to Erding only to run into a gridlock (again). As great as the Autobahns are to us foreigners who have more conservative speed limits the network around Munich is inadequate for the capacity. Same thing back in my home town the M1 has 8 lanes which seemed incredible when it was built but now it is one long car park.

The German drivers are remarkably courteous to bikers. The left fast lane mostly moves over to left creating more space for rider to lane split (see the blue car above) and the cars in middle lane when they see a biker approaching often move to right thus there is at times a wide clear path but of course some people don’t like seeing a bike pass them and close the gap hence why I hate doing this.

After about 15 km of this I take the exit ramp and ask Google maps to navigate me to the bike shop avoiding highways. Google maps navigation can be rather dumb taking you though every town centre rather than a longer route with less traffic and higher speed limits but eventually I got back to Erding slower but less stress than lane splitting.

Each town in this region has one of these totem poles.

Easy return of the bike. Owner again is chatting to me at length, this time sharing some of his favourite recipes and stories from Ukraine where his wife is from. I am actually rather keen to get to my hotel and out of my rider pants but then how often do I get to chat to such a friendly person so let it slide.

I had planned to go into Munich next day and visit BMW but I have been there before and a day of total rest was more appealing so I took the opportunity to lie in and recuperate, then prepare things for my next ride which I expect will challenge me much more than this one did.

Thanks for reading, next up, Norway.