The European Chronicles 2025.6 - Forza Italia! and an Austrian Amble

 Timmelsjoch, Passo del Giovo and walking around the Kristall


Divide and Conquer - Krisanne goes for a stroll, I tackle multiple passes in Italia.

Krisanne:


Me:



Me first...  ðŸ˜‚

I've got a "loop ride" planned into Italia...first over Timmelsjoch, into Italy, over Passo del Giovo, little roads to skirt all highways, then back to Austria.

Looks like this:


And like this:

  From the Kristall, I take little roads toward the Otztal Valley and Timmelsjoch.  Heading over the Inn River.



You head south into the Otztal Valley and climb a fairly wide, easily accessible pass to The Top Mountain Motorcycle Museum.  Very orderly, sane and pretty.




Krisanne and I did this last year, left our mark.

Last year, still there!



Added this year's!


Skipped the museum this time, but lunch was a requirement.  ðŸ˜Ž



Caddy drivers everywhere seem to have parking issues...a new electric Lyric.  ðŸ˜‚


Pay the toll, get your sticker (garage door/wall bound, I'm sure!) and you're heading into Italia...now called Passo del Rombo.  The road gets instantly narrower, steeper and keeps climbing, eventually to 2474 meters, 8117 feet.  

At the top:







It's a Friday, and Motogp weekend at Mugello, and...Italia...so coming down the pass is busy, fun, crazy and interesting.  Nothing quite like riding passes in Italy...controlled chaos, but everybody "figures it out."  I love it.  ðŸ˜Ž

Twenty years ago this month, I did my first European motorcycle trip with Edelweiss.  We rode Timmelsjoch and the Italian side, Rombo, stopping here for a coffee.



Managed to talk my best friend Bill into coming along...that's him on the left.


We had this view:


Mia carried me around that same curve today, as elegantly as the 916 did its rider...twenty years ago.    

Twenty years now, where'd they go?
Twenty years, I don't know
I sit and wonder sometimes
Where they've gone




After Passo del Rombo, head east for just a bit and you climb Passo del Giovo.  


Building a new hutte at the top.





Heading back to Austria, the highway route is Brenner Pass, a well known, well traveled link between the two countries.  I'm not gonna do THAT...  

Looking up a Brenner Pass, I'm taking the small roads over the mountain...





A series of small ridge roads link little villages, running parallel to the highway.  I'm on the "blue line."


You can see Brenner Pass in the distance, and all the stopped traffic!



Yeah, no...I'll take the small roads every time, thank you.


Meanwhile, Krisanne is exploring the area around the Kristall.





And that included the stunning all stainless steel rooftop infinity pool...



See the three cushions?  If you look closely, you can see that there are stainless steel "lounge chairs" built into this area; there are also massage jets.  ðŸ˜Ž


Cue the Jaws music...

See this screenshot on Krisanne's new iPhone 16?  It's from the bottom of this five foot pool, under the stainless steel lounge chairs.



Oops.

In five feet of water for about 15-20 minutes until they were able to fish it out.  Quick internet search indicates the iPhone 16 is "rated" for 30 minutes at 20 feet.  Instructions are to shut it off, let it air dry for at least 5 hours.  Fingers crossed, we let it dry overnight...turns right on, no issues, charges fine.

All good...oh, iPhone, how I love thee, let me count the ways...



Ciao!


xxxxxxxxxxxxx

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