hutzlmandl on tour
The way is the goal
Category: Long Distance Riding
TLRJ – Day 31 – Japanese Alps II
I woke up early today. Yesterday I was so tired I couldn’t finish my report. I wrote it before and after (the rich Japanese) breakfast. Just before the allowed check-out time, I left the ryokan. To my surprise, it was cloudy and dry! For…
TLRJ – Day 30 – The Japanese Alps (Gassho-Zukuri)
After another sumptuous breakfast, I prepared my luggage. Everybody of the staff asked me if the motorbike was ok. Yesterday, I thought it was a good idea to place the jacket in the shelter of the XBR for drying – but it wasn’t. The…
TLRJ – Day 15 – Khabarovsk
Of course I woke up at 6 a.m. And at 7 a.m. Difficult to change a habit when you’ve been preparing your bike during 14 days. Finally I got up at eight and had breakfast. The rain front was moving slower than predicted, it…
TLRJ – Day 13 – Вперед!
When I woke up, everything seemed normal – but then I had a strange feeling….and two seconds later, I rushed to the bathroom. I made it in time. Only just. What was that??? Had I eaten something bad? I follow strictly the “Cook it, peel…
TLRJ – Day 12 – The worst road of he world….not!
I got up at six in the morning, took the bike out of the parking and parked it in front of the hotel. I was waiting when the breakfast room opened at seven. At 7:25 a.m., I was on the road. I expected it…
TLRJ – Day 10 – highway feeling
When I was writing the last post yesterday, I sat close to the reception for best internet coverage. I got to chat with the receptionist and told her a bit about the trip. Apparently, the hotel is frequented by Russian celebrities and rock stars….
TLRJ – Day 9 – Incontinentia
This morning breakfast was served only at 8 a.m. – too late for me. I had ordered a pastry in the restaurant the night before and made some tea in the kitchen. At 7:30 a.m., Alexander was waiting outside the hotel and we took…
TLRJ – Day 8 – half time (Omsk – Novosibirsk)
In the morning, I had breakfast at seven and started the day with sunshine. I could not leave before it was checked that everything was ok with my room. This was the case so I entered the Omskii morning rush hour. I had to…
TLRJ – Day 7 – Downs and ups
This morning, the sky was grey and rainy. I had the luxury of a proper breakfast again. I advised that I wanted to remove the bike and that they should take care of the “Sabaka” (dog), I wanted to come out of the parking…
TLRJ – Day 6 – Europe to Asia (“Doing more with less”)
Before going to bed last night, I had a brilliant idea….what if…I would consider the idea I had the first morning after our border disaster? Instead of desperately catching up the lost half day – what about falling back a half day and be…
TLRJ – Day 2 The Baltics
Got up early today, had a shower and packed my stuff. At 6:30 a.m. I met John at breakfast. At 7:10 a.m. we started our day in nice sunshine. The hotel was conveniently located next to the motorway, in no time we were rolling…
The Long Ride to Japan – Preparations are finished!
The XBR was refurbished some 18 months ago – another used, but younger motor and a lot of goodies and new spare parts. I rode it for 1000 km last year and had no issues (of course). As written in the last post, I…
The 2018 motorbiking review
Another motorbiking year gone, time to look back. It was a good year with many new impressions. It started with my new bike, the new K1600GT. A true monster bike. There’s plenty of everything. At the end of the year, it has 38.000 km…
Going North 2018 – days 21 to 25. The “European Tour 2018” rally.
In the rider meeting, it turned out that this rally had a certain twist. In addition to the usual bonus points and some extra points for combos, there were also extra points for time spent on ferries and there were additional points for so-called…
Going North 2018 – days 18-20
At night, I played around with my camera until I had an acceptable night picture of the Geiranger Fjord. Could be improved still, but the necessary lens would cost more than the whole trip. The view in the morning was breathtaking again. What a…
Going North 2018 – days 16-17
Thanks to the drying room and the Austrian drying/ozonator device, our gear AND helmets were perfectly dry in the morning. Very well, because it started to drizzle again. After our breakfast we said good-bye to this time capsule of the fifties. We headed north…
Going North 2018 – days 13 to 15. Bergen to Sognefjord, Nigardsbreen and….rain???
We arrived in Bergen at lunchtime, but had to wait until 2:30 p.m. until we could finally leave the ship. As everything else, this very well organised. We rode the 2 km to the Hotel right next to the main highlight in old Bergen:…
Going North 2018 – Days 10-12
Going with a Hurtigruten boat is very relaxing. It is basically constant eating, interrupted by sightseeing, taking pictures, cultural and other lectures and excursions. On the third day on the boat, we entered the Vesterålen, a large group of islands north of the Lofoten….
