The European Chronicles 2022.10. The Grossglockner High Alpine Road
Some Of The Most Stunning Scenery Yet
If anything deserves its own post, this is it.
The Grossglockner High Alpine Road was opened 3 August 1935, and fittingly christened the next day with a car and motorcycle race. The planners had estimated it would attract 120,000 visitors/year and were widely mocked for that large number; by 1938, there were 375,000. By 1962, it was 1.3 million. By 2003, 76,000 motorcycles went up and down each year. It is Austria's highest paved mountain road, at 2504 meters (8215 feet).
And unlike many of the mountain passes, it really is built "just for fun;" it is essentially a dead end road.
This gives you an idea of the topography:
Every great ride has to have a frolic and detour...road construction sent me into the sunflowers to start the day...
Honestly, not a bad way to begin. Who doesn't like a field of sunflowers? 😎
Pay the toll and start your climb.
Lots of "cloud drama" today...some rain, but nothing bad...except for the hail...more on that later...
Tunnels, there are always tunnels...
From here, you turn around and start the descent. If you were looking down on the road from above, it would look like a ladder; a series of switchbacks left to right. As I head down, the hairpins on the left of the ladder,, i.e., the right hand turns, are all under a cloud that's dumping hail. The hairpins on the right side of ladder, i.e., the left hand turns, are all in bright sunshine. Wish I could have snapped a picture, quite bizarre!
Adjacent to this:
Truly stunning...so glad the weather cooperated.
Honestly, not a bad way to begin. Who doesn't like a field of sunflowers? 😎
Sunflowers to the left, corn to the right. Mountains to climb.
Pay the toll and start your climb.
Lots of "cloud drama" today...some rain, but nothing bad...except for the hail...more on that later...
Tunnels, there are always tunnels...
From here, you turn around and start the descent. If you were looking down on the road from above, it would look like a ladder; a series of switchbacks left to right. As I head down, the hairpins on the left of the ladder,, i.e., the right hand turns, are all under a cloud that's dumping hail. The hairpins on the right side of ladder, i.e., the left hand turns, are all in bright sunshine. Wish I could have snapped a picture, quite bizarre!
Coffee stop after I work my way down...
Adjacent to this:
Truly stunning...so glad the weather cooperated.
Ciao!
