We had to leave the hut at 6 o’clock in the morning. Our alarm clock rang at 5am. It was a short night.
There were 4 different “garages” on the ferry. So 4 different meeting points. Ours was in the bar, where Hasan had already arrived.
We waited with him until we were allowed to go to our bikes at 8:15.
We said our goodbyes and everyone went their own way. Hasan is an incredibly nice person. He also invited us to his home if we ever come to Sweden. Now that we already have two invitations to Sweden, we are actually thinking about embarking on this adventure next summer. We will see.
After about 2.5 hours, we had left the ferry port. Whatever is wrong with our sat nav, sometimes you could just throw it far away. It kept taking us round in circles in Genoa. We were beginning to get the feeling that it didn’t know any one-way streets, dead ends or through roads. So, annoyed by the navigation system, we first took the highway. We took the first exit onto the highway and it was clear that we were going in the wrong direction. After we didn’t get breakfast on the ferry and the coffee machine went on strike, we took a short breakfast break at a rest area. Then we continued our relaxed journey towards Lake Garda.
Another short drink break. We are sweating, we stink, we are totally exhausted, but the 30 degrees feel good and are not too hot.
We’re doing well at the moment. We’re really looking forward to being back in Europe.
It wasn’t easy to find accommodation today. Some were closed, some cost well over 100 euros, others had no rooms available.
At one accommodation, Alex said I didn’t need to carry my luggage into the small street, he would check if it was suitable. We both stopped briefly at a suitable place where I was told to wait. In my clumsiness, I banged my suitcase against Alex’s suitcase and of course this time I gently placed my bike on the ground. At least nothing happened this time and so Alex was able to ride off after we righted my bike to find that this hotel was also closed.
After 320 km and 6 hours of riding, we finally found a nice hotel with a very nice owner on Lago d’idro in the Brescia region. We were allowed to park our bikes safely. After freshening up, we had a really delicious meal.
After a very tasty and extensive breakfast, we drove on towards Germany.
We really enjoyed the drive through Trentino today. We love this region, have been there many times and really feel at home here. We are always fascinated by this beautiful landscape and think the area is not just great for motorcycling.
We were very well on schedule today and actually wanted to have found accommodation by around 2 pm. We had an appointment in the evening to look at a motorhome. But Alex AT probably had other plans.
When we pulled into a parking lot to stop at a bakery, Alex said it smelled funny. Like rotten eggs. But we thought nothing of it.
After our break, Alex’s bike wouldn’t start. We thought that maybe it was because he had forgotten to switch off the sat nav. But we were suspicious, because it shouldn’t use any power when the bike is switched off.
After just a few kilometers, Alex’s bike simply switched off while he was riding. However, it started up again immediately and shortly afterwards, at the crossroads in the middle of nirvana near Bad Tölz, it didn’t feel like riding any further.
How good that there was a parking lot right at the crossroads.
Alex already suspected that the alternator regulator was faulty and immediately checked the battery.
It had become damn hot and was already steaming away.
After a brief phone call with our workshop mechanic Wastel, we searched the internet for a workshop or similar to get spare parts.
There was nothing to be found in the immediate vicinity. We called pretty much all the workshops and finally found a nice dealer in Munich, about an hour and a half’s drive from here, who at least had a regulator for us.
So while I waited here at Alex’s bike with my luggage, he took mine to Munich to get the regulator and then look for a battery.
After getting everything he needed, he was back less than 3 hours later.
Alex successfully installed everything again and at around 7:45 p.m. we were finally able to move on and have a look at the camper after all.
The tour ended at almost exactly 10 pm. We hadn’t eaten anything apart from our breakfast, nor did we have anywhere to sleep.
Finding accommodation at this time of night was impossible. The nearby hotels were full and the guesthouses were no longer occupied.
As all the restaurants had already closed or were about to close, we opted for MC Donalds. It’s open 24 hours a day here.
Due to the amount of work that we still see in the camper, we had decided against it and so it was clear that we were heading home. As we had no accommodation anyway, we set off at around 1:30 am. As most people “back home” have to work or get up later, we took a few breaks in between.
We made one last stop at a lake, just outside our front door so to speak, and actually dozed off for a while before finally heading to my parents and our youngest daughter.
