chrisk
Hero member
- Location
- Brisbane, Australia
Not the gas heater though
North Cape by GTL
- Thread starter sfcpiet
- Start date
We left our Hotel near Riga under overcast skies, all went well until we crossed the border to Lithuania. Just managed to take cover in a roadside cafe to avoid the first showers. Took 2 cappuccini until the road started to dry, but we did get rather moist later on... The ride was overall rather uneventful, again, with heavy traffic going around Riga and into Kaunas, no different to any other major cities. Our humble lodging for the night is part of a former monastery built in the 17th century, magnificently located on the Memel estuary and beautifully restored.
Along the way
Pažaislio vienuolynas, monastery in Kaunas, this part of the complex is still in ecclesiastical use. Apparently the most beautiful baroque catholic church in Lithuania.
Due to the weather promising to turn foul for the planned remainder of our trip, we've decided to cut short and take the Klaipeda-Travemünde ferry Friday afternoon. All good things must come to an end...
piet
Along the way
Pažaislio vienuolynas, monastery in Kaunas, this part of the complex is still in ecclesiastical use. Apparently the most beautiful baroque catholic church in Lithuania.
Due to the weather promising to turn foul for the planned remainder of our trip, we've decided to cut short and take the Klaipeda-Travemünde ferry Friday afternoon. All good things must come to an end...
piet
Laverdalothar
Hero member
- Location
- Germany
Safe trip back then, Piet! Great ride and read as well as some awesome pics. thanks again for sharing!!
pf1
Hero member
- Location
- Portsmouth UK
I like those aircraft, part of the past that looks futuristic even now.
pf1
Hero member
- Location
- Portsmouth UK
Russian stuff was unbelievably crude in some ways but very effective. I'm assuming they are Russian jets.
The market In Riga was in the old airship hangars, when I went it was full of people selling animal pelts etc. Lots of people trying to sell their personal jewellery to get some money as well.
Old decrepit Russian trams with beautiful female drivers, groups of drunks sitting on the waste ground pissing it up during the morning. Had some pretty good food too but as I said someone showed me around so they knew where to go.
I even got a tour of the Soviet style flats and an explanation of the animosity between the indigenous Latvians and the left behind Russians. Not much love lost there. Oh and those huge Soviet war monuments too.
I actually like all that stuff ha ha! They just wanted to demolish it all.
I spent a day at Jurmala which is a Baltic beach resort, old Russian train full of day trippers and lots of big old houses in a state of semi dereliction. I believe it was a favourite with the old Soviet leaders like Brezhnev back in the day.
All in all very interesting and enjoyable.
The market In Riga was in the old airship hangars, when I went it was full of people selling animal pelts etc. Lots of people trying to sell their personal jewellery to get some money as well.
Old decrepit Russian trams with beautiful female drivers, groups of drunks sitting on the waste ground pissing it up during the morning. Had some pretty good food too but as I said someone showed me around so they knew where to go.
I even got a tour of the Soviet style flats and an explanation of the animosity between the indigenous Latvians and the left behind Russians. Not much love lost there. Oh and those huge Soviet war monuments too.
I actually like all that stuff ha ha! They just wanted to demolish it all.
I spent a day at Jurmala which is a Baltic beach resort, old Russian train full of day trippers and lots of big old houses in a state of semi dereliction. I believe it was a favourite with the old Soviet leaders like Brezhnev back in the day.
All in all very interesting and enjoyable.
breganzane
Hero member
- Location
- NSW Australia
No updates? Ferry and then just hammered home from there?
Brilliant trip coverage, loved every km.
Brilliant trip coverage, loved every km.
Headed to Klaipeda Thursday in sweltering heat and slogged through unbelievable traffic jams, mostly caused by endless road construction sites. After checking in, we trotted down to the harbour for a meal, apparently the entire town, especially the harbour area, was readying itself for the upcoming Sea Fest taking place from Friday-Sunday. Food stalls, souvenir vendors and loads more were setting up all over the place. As we were waiting for our meal, a trio of BMW 9Ts rolled up at the adjacent hotel, my Fratelli Rasanti mates Volker, Burkhard and Beat with whom I had ridden the 2022 Milano-Taranto! They had started their baltic tour a week prior and just arrived from a very wet Poland. Nice surprise for all of us! They hadn't booked and the hotel was full. After a short chat they headed off in search of accommodation.
Volker & Co.
Klaipeda MC. They still use the original germanic name of the city, Memel.
Woki and I spent the evening drinking and laughing, making our way from one watering hole to the next, but still found our hotel on the first try. Much to our surprise, we found Volker sitting in the foyer, the 3 had found room in our hotel. Breakfast took a little longer...
Checked out late to roll to the ferry terminal with riding gear strapped to the luggage, no way we were trawling through the de-toured traffic jams (half the inner city streets were closed due to the Sea Fest, most notably our route to the other end of the town/harbour!) in that heat again! The automated check in was a breeze, so we returned to the city to walk around and enjoy the buzz. Had a nice lunch and a few (soft) drinks before heading off to the terminal once again. Rolled in line and a guy stuck his head out of his camper and yelled, "Jeez, a Laverda!" Turns out he's good buddy of Andy Wagner who runs Laverda Paradies in Constance, Germany. The securing of the bikes was done by the ship crew, pretty rough and ready... fuckin' big rachet strap over the seat and tightened that I feared for my centre stand!
We soon realised why the booked passage was so much cheaper than the competitors, no room for a headache in the cabin, no bar on the sun deck (to which I was looking forward
), no sun protection on deck, no lounge/bar, only a cantine-like service counter with just a few basics. Oh well, it's only 24 hours... Our pre-booked dinner turned out quite mediocre, typical cantine slop. Breakfast was no better unfortunately. TT Lines cannot really be recommended, unless you bring along provisions of your own. At least the outer cabin was relatively quiet and we arrived in Travemünde on time and still floating!
Entering Travemünde harbour:
Travemünde and Lübeck threw all the traffic it had at us Saturday afternoon, hot and humid again. We had booked on the bank of the river Elbe some 80km from the port and arrived just in time for dinner before the kitchen closed. Left next morning in light drizzle, clad in rain gear. Due to road works, we couldn't use the route Miss Garmin had worked out and before I realised it, we were too far for an alternative in the correct direction. It took us 60km east to reach the next ferry, the Elbe has very few crossings, before we could head south again. Roads had mostly dried and we were already sweating in the rain gear, so off it went. Pretty uneventful, mostly moist ride through the Lüneburg Heath with a bit of Autobahn thrown in to circumnavigate Celle and Hannover. We had booked into the Villa Löwenherz (Lionheart) in Lauenförde, in the midst of the Weser hill country, a bikers hotel that we have been visiting on and off over the past 40-odd years. Rain finally caught up with us before we traversed the Ith range, so we donned the rain gear again. Disaster struck just before we reached Höxter, my clutch cable threw in the towel! Old problem, the nipple didn't freely rotate in the hand lever, mea culpa. I had packed a spare, replacement took less than 30 minutes, including unpacking and repacking the bike. Arrived at the Villa shortly after and enjoyed an evening of chatting bikes with others over plenty of Bier and Schnapps.
Weather again looked rather dodgy Monday morning, but we decided to chance it without rain suits. The ride from the Weser hills through the Sauerland region is very pleasant, good biking roads with mostly little traffic, only a couple small showers this time. Dropped in on my sister-in-law who works in a bike shop in Hilchenbach for a coffee, then continued to her husband at home in Netphen. Woki and I separated at the A45 at Freudenberg while I took the slow route home through the forests and along the Sieg river. Got slightly moist again and arrived just before a major downpour!
Four weeks that far exceeded my expectations. We saw incredible landscapes, experienced fantastic hospitality and met awesome people. I have come to realise just how cramped and over-populated central Europe is, Norway and Finland did remind me a bit of Oz, roads to the horizon and unchanging landscapes for miles on end. Somehow bizarre, awesome and boring, all in one. We were extremely lucky in regard to the weather, I honestly expected to hardly get out of the rain suits, turned out we hardly needed them. 31°C at the polar circle doesn't happen that often, usually, but may be a sign of things to come!
Finally reaching the Cape was rewarding for me personally, would I want to return? Nah, don't think so... I'd rather explore more of the Norwegian coastline, already ear-marked a trip with wifey in the roadster, maybe in '27. Southern and Central Norway impressed me the most in regard to riding/driving fun, awesome roller coaster roads with majestic views. Not sure if there will be a next big ride in the near future, bum certainly needs a long recovery!
That's it from me, hope some of you enjoyed my ravings, perhaps they may be an incentive for some to undertake similar, before it's too late.
Cheers,
piet
Volker & Co.
Klaipeda MC. They still use the original germanic name of the city, Memel.
Woki and I spent the evening drinking and laughing, making our way from one watering hole to the next, but still found our hotel on the first try. Much to our surprise, we found Volker sitting in the foyer, the 3 had found room in our hotel. Breakfast took a little longer...
Checked out late to roll to the ferry terminal with riding gear strapped to the luggage, no way we were trawling through the de-toured traffic jams (half the inner city streets were closed due to the Sea Fest, most notably our route to the other end of the town/harbour!) in that heat again! The automated check in was a breeze, so we returned to the city to walk around and enjoy the buzz. Had a nice lunch and a few (soft) drinks before heading off to the terminal once again. Rolled in line and a guy stuck his head out of his camper and yelled, "Jeez, a Laverda!" Turns out he's good buddy of Andy Wagner who runs Laverda Paradies in Constance, Germany. The securing of the bikes was done by the ship crew, pretty rough and ready... fuckin' big rachet strap over the seat and tightened that I feared for my centre stand!
We soon realised why the booked passage was so much cheaper than the competitors, no room for a headache in the cabin, no bar on the sun deck (to which I was looking forward
), no sun protection on deck, no lounge/bar, only a cantine-like service counter with just a few basics. Oh well, it's only 24 hours... Our pre-booked dinner turned out quite mediocre, typical cantine slop. Breakfast was no better unfortunately. TT Lines cannot really be recommended, unless you bring along provisions of your own. At least the outer cabin was relatively quiet and we arrived in Travemünde on time and still floating!Entering Travemünde harbour:
Travemünde and Lübeck threw all the traffic it had at us Saturday afternoon, hot and humid again. We had booked on the bank of the river Elbe some 80km from the port and arrived just in time for dinner before the kitchen closed. Left next morning in light drizzle, clad in rain gear. Due to road works, we couldn't use the route Miss Garmin had worked out and before I realised it, we were too far for an alternative in the correct direction. It took us 60km east to reach the next ferry, the Elbe has very few crossings, before we could head south again. Roads had mostly dried and we were already sweating in the rain gear, so off it went. Pretty uneventful, mostly moist ride through the Lüneburg Heath with a bit of Autobahn thrown in to circumnavigate Celle and Hannover. We had booked into the Villa Löwenherz (Lionheart) in Lauenförde, in the midst of the Weser hill country, a bikers hotel that we have been visiting on and off over the past 40-odd years. Rain finally caught up with us before we traversed the Ith range, so we donned the rain gear again. Disaster struck just before we reached Höxter, my clutch cable threw in the towel! Old problem, the nipple didn't freely rotate in the hand lever, mea culpa. I had packed a spare, replacement took less than 30 minutes, including unpacking and repacking the bike. Arrived at the Villa shortly after and enjoyed an evening of chatting bikes with others over plenty of Bier and Schnapps.
Weather again looked rather dodgy Monday morning, but we decided to chance it without rain suits. The ride from the Weser hills through the Sauerland region is very pleasant, good biking roads with mostly little traffic, only a couple small showers this time. Dropped in on my sister-in-law who works in a bike shop in Hilchenbach for a coffee, then continued to her husband at home in Netphen. Woki and I separated at the A45 at Freudenberg while I took the slow route home through the forests and along the Sieg river. Got slightly moist again and arrived just before a major downpour!
Four weeks that far exceeded my expectations. We saw incredible landscapes, experienced fantastic hospitality and met awesome people. I have come to realise just how cramped and over-populated central Europe is, Norway and Finland did remind me a bit of Oz, roads to the horizon and unchanging landscapes for miles on end. Somehow bizarre, awesome and boring, all in one. We were extremely lucky in regard to the weather, I honestly expected to hardly get out of the rain suits, turned out we hardly needed them. 31°C at the polar circle doesn't happen that often, usually, but may be a sign of things to come!
Finally reaching the Cape was rewarding for me personally, would I want to return? Nah, don't think so... I'd rather explore more of the Norwegian coastline, already ear-marked a trip with wifey in the roadster, maybe in '27. Southern and Central Norway impressed me the most in regard to riding/driving fun, awesome roller coaster roads with majestic views. Not sure if there will be a next big ride in the near future, bum certainly needs a long recovery!
That's it from me, hope some of you enjoyed my ravings, perhaps they may be an incentive for some to undertake similar, before it's too late.
Cheers,
piet
Last edited:
Jo
Hero member
- Location
- Cologne, NRW Germany
Thanks for the great report and photos, Piet!
We were able to ride along and relive your experiences (at least a little)!
I've already reached for the ignition key several times ...
We were able to ride along and relive your experiences (at least a little)!
I've already reached for the ignition key several times ...
chrisk
Hero member
- Location
- Brisbane, Australia
Cool reports Piet.
In the throws of organising an 8 week European ride with a couple of mates.
May have to join the BMW Adventure bike forum (if the fuckers will have me
) as they are what we’ll be riding.
What better forum could there be to get the heads up on the best French bristle artists brushes to clean the dust out from between the tyre treads after a days riding!
In the throws of organising an 8 week European ride with a couple of mates.
May have to join the BMW Adventure bike forum (if the fuckers will have me
) as they are what we’ll be riding.What better forum could there be to get the heads up on the best French bristle artists brushes to clean the dust out from between the tyre treads after a days riding!
piranha-bro2
Hero member
- Location
- Melbourne
Been grouse following your journey, Piet. Very much appreciate the time you dedicated to keeping us informed. I need to chuck the panniers over the seat of the SFQ and ride into distant horizons!!
Andy
Hero member
- Location
- Auckland, roughly
Jeez Piet, seems a shame to stop, now that you’re ride-fit!
As can be expected, the GTL is grimy af. The pressure washer will make short work of that.
Total distance covered just shy of 8000km, Wokis odo shows slightly above 8000... chinese km maybe?
Casualties are the mentioned rear indicator and that stupid clutch cable, the RH fork leg shows some oil weeping from the gaiter. Chain required some lube and one tensioning over the distance. Oil consumption less than a liter. A squirt of grease into the swingarm pivot, lube for the levers and pedals, the primary chain needs adjusting, valves checking, that seems to be it. Oh, and a new clutch cable, the replacement is a tad too short to route as desired. I'll just knock up some nipples in brass and solder a new inner, the broken one was perfect. Not sure about the steering head bearings, I think I feel a little movement, maybe an adjustment will suffice.
Overall, not too bad for a 50-year-old old clunker with 70000+ on the odo.
piet
Total distance covered just shy of 8000km, Wokis odo shows slightly above 8000... chinese km maybe?
Casualties are the mentioned rear indicator and that stupid clutch cable, the RH fork leg shows some oil weeping from the gaiter. Chain required some lube and one tensioning over the distance. Oil consumption less than a liter. A squirt of grease into the swingarm pivot, lube for the levers and pedals, the primary chain needs adjusting, valves checking, that seems to be it. Oh, and a new clutch cable, the replacement is a tad too short to route as desired. I'll just knock up some nipples in brass and solder a new inner, the broken one was perfect. Not sure about the steering head bearings, I think I feel a little movement, maybe an adjustment will suffice.
Overall, not too bad for a 50-year-old old clunker with 70000+ on the odo.
piet
Schurminater
Hero member
- Location
- Surrey Hills
She did you proud Piet
pf1
Hero member
- Location
- Portsmouth UK
My bikes look like that after I've cleaned them.
Tippie
Hero member
- Location
- Dr?bak, Norway
I am surprised they allowed you back int Germany with the bike in such condition. Disgraceful.
We had our planned west coast fjords and mountains trip last week, Geir (who I rode to Breganze with for the 75th) and his daughter, and my son, all on modernish bikes. Day two, said daughter was helivac´d out after running off the gravel road into a ditch at low speed, she looked away from said gravel road to take in the fantastic view for just a second, broken vertebra the result. Our ride from there was chasing her flights to two different hospitals and then home via Sweden. The views are truly spellbinding, and best taken in stopped in a lay-by.
Thanks for the great travel log Piet, very happy I could contribute a bit.
We had our planned west coast fjords and mountains trip last week, Geir (who I rode to Breganze with for the 75th) and his daughter, and my son, all on modernish bikes. Day two, said daughter was helivac´d out after running off the gravel road into a ditch at low speed, she looked away from said gravel road to take in the fantastic view for just a second, broken vertebra the result. Our ride from there was chasing her flights to two different hospitals and then home via Sweden. The views are truly spellbinding, and best taken in stopped in a lay-by.
Thanks for the great travel log Piet, very happy I could contribute a bit.
That's terrible Lee!
Hopefully she'll get out of that OK, sounds like it could get complicated, broken vertebrae are never easy to deal with. Regards to Geir!
GTL has survived the pressure wash, polishing tomorrow, then on to the little repairs and service.
piet
Hopefully she'll get out of that OK, sounds like it could get complicated, broken vertebrae are never easy to deal with. Regards to Geir!
GTL has survived the pressure wash, polishing tomorrow, then on to the little repairs and service.
piet