LOH's mini (2013 JCW-GP) adventure
Discussion
So after a few days in French speaking Strasbourg its pretty strange to go over the river & find yourself in a German petrol station but hey ho, no different to those funny speaking sorts that live just over the border up here in Cumbria 
As I said we had the journey planned out to go through the Black Forest & after the slightly monotonous motorways of France from a couple of days back this was a welcome change!
We only had a short hop to go before we found the mountains & what a motoring paradise! Unfortunately the weather was a bit overcast so the pictures aren't amazing but if you've ever driven through the Eiffel mountains to the ring you'll know what to expect, stunningly finished roads, beautiful villages, friendly local & some cracking sights.
This was at the summit of our first mountain pass, I think it was a Thursday & the roads were virtually deserted. Switchback after hairpin & then right before the summit we went through the clouds to come out on top, a superb road!
When we left Strasbourg we visited a little bakery & stocked up on goodies (& cheap French wine) for a picnic en route & we were spoiled for choice. In the end we passed through a quaint little village that was build on the banks of a little river, most of these towns are bypassed by the Germanic efficiency of tunnels but you soon learn to deviate from every tunnel & just bimble through the village to see what's on offer;
Another typically German touch is the habit of a little tourist information board at the beginning of every village by a lay by, pull over & you'll see what museums or local attraction there is close by (mostly wood related in the black Forrest!), like some waterfalls or something;
Once we got through this half of the region & started heading further south towards Switzerland the roads started opening up more & getting faster, skirting past lakes & such like. It's a really stunning part of the world & if you get the chance take some time to explore it
It's a bit weird being so high up & then seeing the terrain rise up above you knowing that you need to go even higher, but that's the alps I suppose & it could be worse-we could be on push bikes!
Mountains & lakes ahead, that'll be the alps;
To be honest, coming through the black forrest was superb but it doesn't drop you into Switzerland at its best, coming in from the French side is much more picturesque than the Zurich side which was a bit of an anticlimax after the wonderful Forrest lined roads of Germany
But needs must, & although I didn't know too much about lake Lucerne or weggis where we were heading after a bit of motorway we suddenly dropped into a little bit of paradise. Lucerne is a typically picturesque posh little swis lakeside town but further down the coast of the lake lies weggis, a sort of spa region with health spas & hotels dotted along the lakes shores-our hotel was no different.
Some of the places round here were just amazing, we saw a hospital for people recovering from neuro surgery & although not one to pity insurance companies I wouldn't like to be the man picking up the tab for a stay in that place!
Our hotel had indoor & outdoor pools, a lido on the lake (considered healthy to go for a dip before breakfast apparently) & a big German speaking woman who sorted us right out. As a surprise I'd booked some treatments for us & on the first night before dinner we had a private spa room with some kind of milk bath that we had to spend 40 mins in or so-bliss!
As I said the weather was a bit overcast & the forecast was for rain the next day so we just chilled for the night & mapped out a plan to tackle some of the regions alpine passes the next day seeing as sunbathing didn't look to be on the cards.
As I said we had the journey planned out to go through the Black Forest & after the slightly monotonous motorways of France from a couple of days back this was a welcome change!
We only had a short hop to go before we found the mountains & what a motoring paradise! Unfortunately the weather was a bit overcast so the pictures aren't amazing but if you've ever driven through the Eiffel mountains to the ring you'll know what to expect, stunningly finished roads, beautiful villages, friendly local & some cracking sights.
This was at the summit of our first mountain pass, I think it was a Thursday & the roads were virtually deserted. Switchback after hairpin & then right before the summit we went through the clouds to come out on top, a superb road!
When we left Strasbourg we visited a little bakery & stocked up on goodies (& cheap French wine) for a picnic en route & we were spoiled for choice. In the end we passed through a quaint little village that was build on the banks of a little river, most of these towns are bypassed by the Germanic efficiency of tunnels but you soon learn to deviate from every tunnel & just bimble through the village to see what's on offer;
Another typically German touch is the habit of a little tourist information board at the beginning of every village by a lay by, pull over & you'll see what museums or local attraction there is close by (mostly wood related in the black Forrest!), like some waterfalls or something;
Once we got through this half of the region & started heading further south towards Switzerland the roads started opening up more & getting faster, skirting past lakes & such like. It's a really stunning part of the world & if you get the chance take some time to explore it
It's a bit weird being so high up & then seeing the terrain rise up above you knowing that you need to go even higher, but that's the alps I suppose & it could be worse-we could be on push bikes!
Mountains & lakes ahead, that'll be the alps;
To be honest, coming through the black forrest was superb but it doesn't drop you into Switzerland at its best, coming in from the French side is much more picturesque than the Zurich side which was a bit of an anticlimax after the wonderful Forrest lined roads of Germany
But needs must, & although I didn't know too much about lake Lucerne or weggis where we were heading after a bit of motorway we suddenly dropped into a little bit of paradise. Lucerne is a typically picturesque posh little swis lakeside town but further down the coast of the lake lies weggis, a sort of spa region with health spas & hotels dotted along the lakes shores-our hotel was no different.
Some of the places round here were just amazing, we saw a hospital for people recovering from neuro surgery & although not one to pity insurance companies I wouldn't like to be the man picking up the tab for a stay in that place!
Our hotel had indoor & outdoor pools, a lido on the lake (considered healthy to go for a dip before breakfast apparently) & a big German speaking woman who sorted us right out. As a surprise I'd booked some treatments for us & on the first night before dinner we had a private spa room with some kind of milk bath that we had to spend 40 mins in or so-bliss!
As I said the weather was a bit overcast & the forecast was for rain the next day so we just chilled for the night & mapped out a plan to tackle some of the regions alpine passes the next day seeing as sunbathing didn't look to be on the cards.
Cheers guys!
So, the weather reports weren't wrong & the morning dawned wet & cloudy but although not what you really want on your honeymoon it at least gave us the chance to get in the car & try & find some clearer skies & it wasn't exactly cold.
I'd already made some plans & asked some questions on the PH roads forums so we at least had some good ideas. I'd made a loop that took us over a few passes & through to a couple of other valleys that looked a bit like this;
We tracked the lake down to Altdorf & then started climbing pretty quickly up the Klausenstrasse. The scenery, what we could see of it was absolutely epic. I've no idea why grass grows there at such higher heights than ours but you'd think it was lawn turf freshly cut that clings to the side of the mountain.
The road just kept on climbing, like nothing I've ever driven before & even though it spoiled the view there was a certain point when we were driving through the clouds where we were on a very narrow two lane bit of road with just rocks placed by the side to stop you going over a couple of thousand foot drop
you really wouldn't want to be looking over the edge here;
We made it to the summit & emerged from the car to the sound of cow bells ringing in the distance through the clouds, very strange, obligatory pic from the obligatory hotel at the top;
The summit levelled off for a short while before winding its way back down into the next valley & mindfull that the pads had done a few track days I went with the minimum use of the breaks technique much to the wife's amusement (that's sarcasm by the way). The exhaust note was absolutely fantastic throughout all this as it popped & banged all the way down, echoing off the valley walls
(Temptation for handbrake application ignored)
A few hairpins like the above & we started to come across a large plateau a thousand or so feet below the summit, turning one particular corner to be greeted by the most incredible waterfall I've ever seen- the pictures just can't do it justice.
We took some videos & you can watch plumes of water burst over the edge & take around 6 seconds to reach the bottom, I'm not sure how high that makes it but it was bloody impressive!
The road continued down & we followed it as it changed into the hauptstrasse towards Glarus Sud & from there we followed a stunning motorway through some epic mountains to Chur, where we would join our next pass.
(We weren't stuck behind him for long)
The olberalpass was, diving wise, one of the best stretches I've driven in my life. Heading east to west the road is full of fast open sweepers that have just enough tough & technical parts to make it a challenge & just enough villages to give the other half a break & not get sick! Also there's a radical dealership up there too
On the last stretch before the top we caught up with two very well driven Italian registered Porsche 356s, we followed them for a while listening to the air cooled thrum before making our way past with a hoot & a wave
We were also that bit luckier with the weather in this valley & we had dry Tarmac pretty much all the way allowing some good heat to get into the tyres & to really push on. The car was absolutely fantastic throughout all this with just enough power, more than enough grip & a soundtrack that made everyone point.
Doing it in this direction also meant that the really steep part with all the hairpins were done on a trailing throttle of course but I think it's still the best way. We didn't really get the opportunity to enjoy that quite as much as dropping down to Andermatt we headed back onto the really wet side we left that morning, so a leisurely drive back along lake Lucerne & back to to the hotel....
By this point it was probably around 4pm & our treatments that night didn't start until half 5 (a treat for her after putting up with my driving all day) so we thought we'd use the fluffy bathrobes & slippers & enjoy the spa.
We got talking to an old boy in the lift who looked like he was doing the same but as it turned out he was doing his daily dip in the lake. Now, this guy must have been 80 if he was a day so not to be out done I reckoned we should do the same. All I'll say is it was bloody freezing & she bottled it before it got to knee level
After warming up in the indoor pool we made our way over to the spa to meet the German masseuse & honestly what a craic. As I said I'd booked all this as a surprise for the wife & it was part of a romantic package the hotel offered, last nights milk bath jacuzzi was awesome, as was the champagne that went with it.
Anyway, we get into this room & the woman was (read in German accent) "ok, remove ze clothes", err what love? "Yes, remove ze clothes, I seen everything before"
Cue nervous glances while we figure if she's serious, which of course she assures us she is. Before we know it we're covered head to toe in different types of mud before eyeing put I a steam bath prior to getting oiled up & massaged.
I did consider whether I should post about this & I apologise if the mental image of me going through this has put you off your breakfast/lunch/dinner/supper but rest assured, it was very nice & if you ever get the opportunity to do the same just laugh & get on with it, apparently she's seen it all before
Any road, while you try & erase that thought from your head I'll try & write down what happened next (dont worry that's the last I'll talk about me being naked).
Getting ready for dinner we could genuinely see the weather improving right in front of our eyes, the clouds rolling over the mountains & the sunlight bursting through at the Lucerne end of the lake. Over a glass of wine we literally watched the evening turn from a grey showery day to a beautiful summers night.
I'm sure you'll have heard it before but if you're ever away on holiday you really should try the "it's our honeymoon" trick sometime as folk really do pull out the stops. We got flower petals on the table cloth with dinner that night & the staff couldn't have been more helpful, I'm pretty sure they didn't organise the firework display as we went to bed that night but it was cool all the same.
The next morning we opened the curtains to this;
Breakfast was served on the terrace which gave me a chance to check over the passes we were going to do today as this was to be the main day of fun driving. We had 5 main passes to do before getting to Gstaad later that afternoon so by half 9 we were loaded up & ready to go.
Updates to follow
So, the weather reports weren't wrong & the morning dawned wet & cloudy but although not what you really want on your honeymoon it at least gave us the chance to get in the car & try & find some clearer skies & it wasn't exactly cold.
I'd already made some plans & asked some questions on the PH roads forums so we at least had some good ideas. I'd made a loop that took us over a few passes & through to a couple of other valleys that looked a bit like this;
We tracked the lake down to Altdorf & then started climbing pretty quickly up the Klausenstrasse. The scenery, what we could see of it was absolutely epic. I've no idea why grass grows there at such higher heights than ours but you'd think it was lawn turf freshly cut that clings to the side of the mountain.
The road just kept on climbing, like nothing I've ever driven before & even though it spoiled the view there was a certain point when we were driving through the clouds where we were on a very narrow two lane bit of road with just rocks placed by the side to stop you going over a couple of thousand foot drop
you really wouldn't want to be looking over the edge here;We made it to the summit & emerged from the car to the sound of cow bells ringing in the distance through the clouds, very strange, obligatory pic from the obligatory hotel at the top;
The summit levelled off for a short while before winding its way back down into the next valley & mindfull that the pads had done a few track days I went with the minimum use of the breaks technique much to the wife's amusement (that's sarcasm by the way). The exhaust note was absolutely fantastic throughout all this as it popped & banged all the way down, echoing off the valley walls
(Temptation for handbrake application ignored)
A few hairpins like the above & we started to come across a large plateau a thousand or so feet below the summit, turning one particular corner to be greeted by the most incredible waterfall I've ever seen- the pictures just can't do it justice.
We took some videos & you can watch plumes of water burst over the edge & take around 6 seconds to reach the bottom, I'm not sure how high that makes it but it was bloody impressive!
The road continued down & we followed it as it changed into the hauptstrasse towards Glarus Sud & from there we followed a stunning motorway through some epic mountains to Chur, where we would join our next pass.
(We weren't stuck behind him for long)
The olberalpass was, diving wise, one of the best stretches I've driven in my life. Heading east to west the road is full of fast open sweepers that have just enough tough & technical parts to make it a challenge & just enough villages to give the other half a break & not get sick! Also there's a radical dealership up there too
On the last stretch before the top we caught up with two very well driven Italian registered Porsche 356s, we followed them for a while listening to the air cooled thrum before making our way past with a hoot & a wave
We were also that bit luckier with the weather in this valley & we had dry Tarmac pretty much all the way allowing some good heat to get into the tyres & to really push on. The car was absolutely fantastic throughout all this with just enough power, more than enough grip & a soundtrack that made everyone point.
Doing it in this direction also meant that the really steep part with all the hairpins were done on a trailing throttle of course but I think it's still the best way. We didn't really get the opportunity to enjoy that quite as much as dropping down to Andermatt we headed back onto the really wet side we left that morning, so a leisurely drive back along lake Lucerne & back to to the hotel....
By this point it was probably around 4pm & our treatments that night didn't start until half 5 (a treat for her after putting up with my driving all day) so we thought we'd use the fluffy bathrobes & slippers & enjoy the spa.
We got talking to an old boy in the lift who looked like he was doing the same but as it turned out he was doing his daily dip in the lake. Now, this guy must have been 80 if he was a day so not to be out done I reckoned we should do the same. All I'll say is it was bloody freezing & she bottled it before it got to knee level
After warming up in the indoor pool we made our way over to the spa to meet the German masseuse & honestly what a craic. As I said I'd booked all this as a surprise for the wife & it was part of a romantic package the hotel offered, last nights milk bath jacuzzi was awesome, as was the champagne that went with it.
Anyway, we get into this room & the woman was (read in German accent) "ok, remove ze clothes", err what love? "Yes, remove ze clothes, I seen everything before"
Cue nervous glances while we figure if she's serious, which of course she assures us she is. Before we know it we're covered head to toe in different types of mud before eyeing put I a steam bath prior to getting oiled up & massaged.
I did consider whether I should post about this & I apologise if the mental image of me going through this has put you off your breakfast/lunch/dinner/supper but rest assured, it was very nice & if you ever get the opportunity to do the same just laugh & get on with it, apparently she's seen it all before
Any road, while you try & erase that thought from your head I'll try & write down what happened next (dont worry that's the last I'll talk about me being naked).
Getting ready for dinner we could genuinely see the weather improving right in front of our eyes, the clouds rolling over the mountains & the sunlight bursting through at the Lucerne end of the lake. Over a glass of wine we literally watched the evening turn from a grey showery day to a beautiful summers night.
I'm sure you'll have heard it before but if you're ever away on holiday you really should try the "it's our honeymoon" trick sometime as folk really do pull out the stops. We got flower petals on the table cloth with dinner that night & the staff couldn't have been more helpful, I'm pretty sure they didn't organise the firework display as we went to bed that night but it was cool all the same.
The next morning we opened the curtains to this;
Breakfast was served on the terrace which gave me a chance to check over the passes we were going to do today as this was to be the main day of fun driving. We had 5 main passes to do before getting to Gstaad later that afternoon so by half 9 we were loaded up & ready to go.
Updates to follow
This really is a brilliant thread!
I had been planning a 2 week European road trip, but haven't got the car for it at the moment, this thread is making me regret buying a silly car with no boot - although I think a Spa/Bruges trip would be doable!
Since reading this thread I see the Mini JCW-GP that's on my street in a new light.
And lastly - congratulations!
I had been planning a 2 week European road trip, but haven't got the car for it at the moment, this thread is making me regret buying a silly car with no boot - although I think a Spa/Bruges trip would be doable!
Since reading this thread I see the Mini JCW-GP that's on my street in a new light.
And lastly - congratulations!
So, where were we?
Leaving weggis in lake Lucerne with some pretty impressive weather! Knowing we had some good driving ahead of us (or so we thought anyway, this was the first time we'd ever driven this area) we got a decent start at around 10am & went to fill up the car with v power at the station in town, I'll add up all the fuel costs at the end of these posts btw.
Having headed clock wise around the lake the previous day I'd planned to go the other way so we followed the lake until we hit Lucerne itself, a truly beautiful town.
Ignoring the sat nav slightly we followed the contour of the lake so we could get the best scenery & drove through the centre of town before heading off south to catch up with the roads that were the real reason for coming.
The plan was to again link a few passes together that had some cracking reputations, namely the susten, gothard, furka & grimsel passes. It essentially made a loop of a few hours cracking driving that would get us back to where we started (sort of) & then heading in the direction of gstaad where we would be spending the night.
After a short run of autoroute we gradually started heading up & up to the beginning of the susten pass. It's easy to run out of super,actives on roads like this but without a doubt this was the highlight (pass wise) of the trip. The weather probably helped as it was around 80 degrees by 11 o clock but the scenery was absolutely mind blowing all the way up, passing those glorious turquoise green rivers & lakes as the road wound up & sometimes down through small villages as before the pass started proper.
on the run from one mini pass to the next we got behind a guy with an amazing old motorbike that was properly giving it some so we tucked in & followed his obvious local knowledge. Windows wound down so we could hear his twin through straight pipes it was obvious when the slow corners were coming up as he downshifted until unfortunately he had a fuel problem that he couldn't fix while riding & waved us past.
At the bottom we had a nice little tussle with a Ferrari 430 spider but as with most of the trip the confidence that the mini instilled with its grippy rubber & tiny size meant we were really hanging onto his bumper before we could find a place to pass. Once past him we wound in a group of motorbikes that weren't hanging around & what followed were some of the best miles I've ever driven off track. Four wheels grip better than two so we were gradually working our way through the pack with the wife even getting into the swing of things by keeping her eye open for straights after the right handers that I couldn't spot.
One after the other we worked our way through until we got behind the leader of the pack who really didn't feel like losing out to a little mini but leaving one village we got the drop on him & had the next few miles to practically ourselves.
By this point I'd started to wonder just how much driving I'd set ourselves in for as the pass just kept on climbing & climbing, the sun was still shining so we kept on going as the weather just seemed to get better & towards the top we rounded a corner to find the most amazing sight of a waterfall cascading over a cliff with the road tunnelling underneath it. We were so blown away by it we didn't even think to get a photo but I've found this one off the internet;
A few more corners & we realised just how high we were as across the valley only slightly lower than we were was the glacier that provided the valleys below with their gorgeous blue waters. By now the were amazingly still patches of snow at the side of the road on the shaded slopes but the mini just kept on going, the forced induction seemingly not concerned by the thousands of feet we'd climbed.
Yet again at the summit we pulled over at the obligatory hotel for a few photos & low & behold we were approached by some blokes on push bikes who actually work with the wife! They'd seen the mini come flying past & didn't think anything of it until they saw the reg at the top, unfortunately we were taken so by surprise we didn't take a photo.
The run back down the other side was pretty easy going as it wasn't as short as some of the descents that we'd tackled so it was just keep the car in 2nd or3rd with the occasional run up to 5th on the straights.
At the bottom there was a short traffic jam (it was a Saturday in August after all) while we had to join the traffic waiting to get into the gothard tunnel but it was short lived, just long enough to catch up with a swiss family obviously heading into Italy for the weekend. Mum & daughter in the Ferrari California (obviously with the luggage I'd guess!) & dad & son up front in the veyron-how the other half live eh?
The gothard pass is a short & steep collection of switchbacks that lead onto the furka pass, another great stretch that had some truly steep edges & a great bunch of British bikers that we seemed to group together with pretty much all of the way, leading to a summit at just above 8000ft & a surprising chill in the air when we got out for the pictures. The run down was remarkable for the way that at the top you can pretty much see the road you're going to take all the way down through the valley & luckily we again got behind a local who seemed to not want to waste any brake pad material on the way!
(You can just see the grimselpass on the other side of the valley)
At the bottom of the pass (relative, it was probably still at 5000ft) lay the village of gletch where almost immediately you start the climb towards the grimsel pass, a thoroughly picturesque run taking you past some lakes & reservoirs to the huge lake of grimselsee with its huge dam stopping it from flooding the valley below.
The grimsel pass is one of the best rated passes in the alps & I can truly see why, if you're into the views obviously. As for driving its still fantastic but there's so much to see you tend to bimble along marvelling at the stunning vistas & sheer granite walls of the mountains that surround you.
After this we made our return loop to where we started on the sustenpass & headed east towards our final destination of Gstaad. This part of the route was mostly autoroute but seeing as it clung to the hillside oboe various lakes the views were never less than spectacular & the hour or so it took seemed to fly by. At spiez we turned left & yet again took in another "mini" pass en route to Gstaad, the fabulous route 11, much lower due to the smaller mountains on that side & much more open & faster with lush countryside & picturesque little farms & villages to pass through.
Arriving in Gstaad we found the hotel immediately, this place http://www.bellevue-gstaad.com/
Rolling up in your little Mini Cooper to see a vintage Bentley & E-Type outside can be a little disconcerting but the staff were amazing, some bloke jumping out to open the car door for the wife & taking the car keys off me & whisking it away. In reception the girls asked us how far we'd been & after hearing what passes wed done prepared some energising tea cocktail for us while they showed us around this amazing hotel. When we got to the suite they'd prepared for us the luggage had been removed from the car & was waiting for us as was the most stunning room with flower petals spread over the bed, a mini bar stocked with drink & a toilet with more functions than you could shake a stick at.
Ah the toilet, listen, if you ever sit on a toilet that comes with its own remote control just think carefully what each symbol means before you start pushing buttons-it's an experience I'll never forget! To be fair I did price one up on our return but the cost was the deposit on a new alfa 4c so I don't think we'll be wowing guests with such an extravagance any time soon.
(Heated seat, air extraction, hot wash & dry & perfumed too, yep, I googled the spec)
The hotel has a Michelin star restaurant & the food was simply stunning, though the wine list was a bit daunting when you start consider some bottles were ,ore than the mini but the sommelier picked us an inexpensive white that went superbly with the first two courses we had. After the main the hotel sent a driver over to take us up to a church above the village where the string quartet from the film Titanic were playing, we got to meet the band & had a really special night before they came back to pick us up for dessert. Occasionally she says I'm not romantic enough but I have my moments
Oh & they had a menu for which pillow you wanted in your bed, we did consider ordering a different one for a laugh but thought better of it, I have no idea quite how different one can be from another but hey ho.
The next day we were heading over to verbier but we couldn't get there until 4pm so we spent the day in the gardens of the Bellevue & enjoying the spa & pool before having a wander through the beautiful little town-I can't recommend Gstaad enough.
Anyway, that's enough for now, I'll take you through the next part soon as.....
Leaving weggis in lake Lucerne with some pretty impressive weather! Knowing we had some good driving ahead of us (or so we thought anyway, this was the first time we'd ever driven this area) we got a decent start at around 10am & went to fill up the car with v power at the station in town, I'll add up all the fuel costs at the end of these posts btw.
Having headed clock wise around the lake the previous day I'd planned to go the other way so we followed the lake until we hit Lucerne itself, a truly beautiful town.
Ignoring the sat nav slightly we followed the contour of the lake so we could get the best scenery & drove through the centre of town before heading off south to catch up with the roads that were the real reason for coming.
The plan was to again link a few passes together that had some cracking reputations, namely the susten, gothard, furka & grimsel passes. It essentially made a loop of a few hours cracking driving that would get us back to where we started (sort of) & then heading in the direction of gstaad where we would be spending the night.
After a short run of autoroute we gradually started heading up & up to the beginning of the susten pass. It's easy to run out of super,actives on roads like this but without a doubt this was the highlight (pass wise) of the trip. The weather probably helped as it was around 80 degrees by 11 o clock but the scenery was absolutely mind blowing all the way up, passing those glorious turquoise green rivers & lakes as the road wound up & sometimes down through small villages as before the pass started proper.
on the run from one mini pass to the next we got behind a guy with an amazing old motorbike that was properly giving it some so we tucked in & followed his obvious local knowledge. Windows wound down so we could hear his twin through straight pipes it was obvious when the slow corners were coming up as he downshifted until unfortunately he had a fuel problem that he couldn't fix while riding & waved us past.
At the bottom we had a nice little tussle with a Ferrari 430 spider but as with most of the trip the confidence that the mini instilled with its grippy rubber & tiny size meant we were really hanging onto his bumper before we could find a place to pass. Once past him we wound in a group of motorbikes that weren't hanging around & what followed were some of the best miles I've ever driven off track. Four wheels grip better than two so we were gradually working our way through the pack with the wife even getting into the swing of things by keeping her eye open for straights after the right handers that I couldn't spot.
One after the other we worked our way through until we got behind the leader of the pack who really didn't feel like losing out to a little mini but leaving one village we got the drop on him & had the next few miles to practically ourselves.
By this point I'd started to wonder just how much driving I'd set ourselves in for as the pass just kept on climbing & climbing, the sun was still shining so we kept on going as the weather just seemed to get better & towards the top we rounded a corner to find the most amazing sight of a waterfall cascading over a cliff with the road tunnelling underneath it. We were so blown away by it we didn't even think to get a photo but I've found this one off the internet;
A few more corners & we realised just how high we were as across the valley only slightly lower than we were was the glacier that provided the valleys below with their gorgeous blue waters. By now the were amazingly still patches of snow at the side of the road on the shaded slopes but the mini just kept on going, the forced induction seemingly not concerned by the thousands of feet we'd climbed.
Yet again at the summit we pulled over at the obligatory hotel for a few photos & low & behold we were approached by some blokes on push bikes who actually work with the wife! They'd seen the mini come flying past & didn't think anything of it until they saw the reg at the top, unfortunately we were taken so by surprise we didn't take a photo.
The run back down the other side was pretty easy going as it wasn't as short as some of the descents that we'd tackled so it was just keep the car in 2nd or3rd with the occasional run up to 5th on the straights.
At the bottom there was a short traffic jam (it was a Saturday in August after all) while we had to join the traffic waiting to get into the gothard tunnel but it was short lived, just long enough to catch up with a swiss family obviously heading into Italy for the weekend. Mum & daughter in the Ferrari California (obviously with the luggage I'd guess!) & dad & son up front in the veyron-how the other half live eh?
The gothard pass is a short & steep collection of switchbacks that lead onto the furka pass, another great stretch that had some truly steep edges & a great bunch of British bikers that we seemed to group together with pretty much all of the way, leading to a summit at just above 8000ft & a surprising chill in the air when we got out for the pictures. The run down was remarkable for the way that at the top you can pretty much see the road you're going to take all the way down through the valley & luckily we again got behind a local who seemed to not want to waste any brake pad material on the way!
(You can just see the grimselpass on the other side of the valley)
At the bottom of the pass (relative, it was probably still at 5000ft) lay the village of gletch where almost immediately you start the climb towards the grimsel pass, a thoroughly picturesque run taking you past some lakes & reservoirs to the huge lake of grimselsee with its huge dam stopping it from flooding the valley below.
The grimsel pass is one of the best rated passes in the alps & I can truly see why, if you're into the views obviously. As for driving its still fantastic but there's so much to see you tend to bimble along marvelling at the stunning vistas & sheer granite walls of the mountains that surround you.
After this we made our return loop to where we started on the sustenpass & headed east towards our final destination of Gstaad. This part of the route was mostly autoroute but seeing as it clung to the hillside oboe various lakes the views were never less than spectacular & the hour or so it took seemed to fly by. At spiez we turned left & yet again took in another "mini" pass en route to Gstaad, the fabulous route 11, much lower due to the smaller mountains on that side & much more open & faster with lush countryside & picturesque little farms & villages to pass through.
Arriving in Gstaad we found the hotel immediately, this place http://www.bellevue-gstaad.com/
Rolling up in your little Mini Cooper to see a vintage Bentley & E-Type outside can be a little disconcerting but the staff were amazing, some bloke jumping out to open the car door for the wife & taking the car keys off me & whisking it away. In reception the girls asked us how far we'd been & after hearing what passes wed done prepared some energising tea cocktail for us while they showed us around this amazing hotel. When we got to the suite they'd prepared for us the luggage had been removed from the car & was waiting for us as was the most stunning room with flower petals spread over the bed, a mini bar stocked with drink & a toilet with more functions than you could shake a stick at.
Ah the toilet, listen, if you ever sit on a toilet that comes with its own remote control just think carefully what each symbol means before you start pushing buttons-it's an experience I'll never forget! To be fair I did price one up on our return but the cost was the deposit on a new alfa 4c so I don't think we'll be wowing guests with such an extravagance any time soon.
(Heated seat, air extraction, hot wash & dry & perfumed too, yep, I googled the spec)
The hotel has a Michelin star restaurant & the food was simply stunning, though the wine list was a bit daunting when you start consider some bottles were ,ore than the mini but the sommelier picked us an inexpensive white that went superbly with the first two courses we had. After the main the hotel sent a driver over to take us up to a church above the village where the string quartet from the film Titanic were playing, we got to meet the band & had a really special night before they came back to pick us up for dessert. Occasionally she says I'm not romantic enough but I have my moments
Oh & they had a menu for which pillow you wanted in your bed, we did consider ordering a different one for a laugh but thought better of it, I have no idea quite how different one can be from another but hey ho.The next day we were heading over to verbier but we couldn't get there until 4pm so we spent the day in the gardens of the Bellevue & enjoying the spa & pool before having a wander through the beautiful little town-I can't recommend Gstaad enough.
Anyway, that's enough for now, I'll take you through the next part soon as.....
Edited by LaurasOtherHalf on Saturday 21st September 18:50
LaurasOtherHalf said:
Do you have any secret family recipes for those tarte flambes?! Bloody lovely!
My mum went to catering college in Strasbourg and learnt to make tarts flambees from a local, this is the recipe she uses:Mum's recipe said:
Tarte flambee
Ingredients
500 g Flour
20 g Active Dry Yeast
pinch of salt
1/2 Glass Tepid water
Crème fraîche
Sliced onions or shallots
Lardons
Seasoning to taste (salt, pepper)
Directions
Prepare a bread dough
Spread it on one or 2 pizza pans turning about 1cm back around the edges.
Spread the bread base with crème fraîche so it covers the base, sprinkle the onions/shallots and the lardons. Season
Cook in a very hot oven (220 centigrade) until bread is cooked, brown and crispy.
Serve straightaway with assorted salad.
Ingredients
500 g Flour
20 g Active Dry Yeast
pinch of salt
1/2 Glass Tepid water
Crème fraîche
Sliced onions or shallots
Lardons
Seasoning to taste (salt, pepper)
Directions
Prepare a bread dough
Spread it on one or 2 pizza pans turning about 1cm back around the edges.
Spread the bread base with crème fraîche so it covers the base, sprinkle the onions/shallots and the lardons. Season
Cook in a very hot oven (220 centigrade) until bread is cooked, brown and crispy.
Serve straightaway with assorted salad.
Craikeybaby said:
LaurasOtherHalf said:
Do you have any secret family recipes for those tarte flambes?! Bloody lovely!
Matt_L said:
Best thread ever!
This is really inspiring me to take a Euro road trip, hopefully next year, just got to sell the idea now to the girlfriend and take a decent set of wheels too!
Where do you get all the info and where to go? Any advice would be brilliant.
To be honest pistonheads was a good start, I started a thread in the "roads" forum asking for advice & got loads of advice, plus the Internet in general was I great help.This is really inspiring me to take a Euro road trip, hopefully next year, just got to sell the idea now to the girlfriend and take a decent set of wheels too!
Where do you get all the info and where to go? Any advice would be brilliant.
Essentially when planning I have a few pages open;
Google maps
Booking.com
Trip advisor
General Internet search
So, I look on google maps for a region I want to go (in this case the alps), then put my ferry port in as a start point & see which way is the quickest. If its a long journey I just look & see what towns there are on the way roughly that we might want to stop at (in this case Strasbourg). Then I check booking.com for an average hotel price (making sure I set the filters to include in site parking), then trip advisor to see what there is to do, what restaurants etc etc.
If it all looks good, I usually google search which ever town + tourist information & I've found that usually there are a few nice hotels (like the one in Gstaad for example) doing package deals with dinner thrown in, or tickets to a show or spa treatments etc.
This means you're making the most of your time in each stay by not faffing on looking for stuff, though it does take some of the spontaneity out of it I suppose!
Finally, if everything looks good I'll go back to google maps & see if there's a less direct route we can take that isn't just motorway. All the passes are searchable on google maps by the way so you can find them easily if you want to link destinations around those.
Craikeybaby said:
LaurasOtherHalf said:
Do you have any secret family recipes for those tarte flambes?! Bloody lovely!
My mum went to catering college in Strasbourg and learnt to make tarts flambees from a local, this is the recipe she uses:Mum's recipe said:
Tarte flambee
Ingredients
500 g Flour
20 g Active Dry Yeast
pinch of salt
1/2 Glass Tepid water
Crème fraîche
Sliced onions or shallots
Lardons
Seasoning to taste (salt, pepper)
Directions
Prepare a bread dough
Spread it on one or 2 pizza pans turning about 1cm back around the edges.
Spread the bread base with crème fraîche so it covers the base, sprinkle the onions/shallots and the lardons. Season
Cook in a very hot oven (220 centigrade) until bread is cooked, brown and crispy.
Serve straightaway with assorted salad.
Ingredients
500 g Flour
20 g Active Dry Yeast
pinch of salt
1/2 Glass Tepid water
Crème fraîche
Sliced onions or shallots
Lardons
Seasoning to taste (salt, pepper)
Directions
Prepare a bread dough
Spread it on one or 2 pizza pans turning about 1cm back around the edges.
Spread the bread base with crème fraîche so it covers the base, sprinkle the onions/shallots and the lardons. Season
Cook in a very hot oven (220 centigrade) until bread is cooked, brown and crispy.
Serve straightaway with assorted salad.
Rest assure we are going to try these this week! Pretty much the same as a pizza dough recipe then, just mega thinly rolled out. I'll add some pics if they're a success!
So as I said, if you're in the region you must check out Gstaad. I kind of fluked choosing it as the only time I'd heard of it was in the film "trading places" when dan ackroyds character has to sell his watch he mentions it tells the time in all these different places & one of them is Gstaad, I figured it must be some posh place if his character mentioned it so I decided to go.
Whilst browsing the posh shops before we left we were in hermes & while I was waiting to pay there was a bloke buying his young daughter something who was struggling to get his credit card accepted. After much faffing on it eventually went through & I spied his receipt & it was over 7 grand! Anyway, I tells the wife this & while she was browsing the handbags she reckoned some woman was buying two bags for work with a combined total of nearly 16 grand! You could get two of those fancy toilets for that!
Anyway, that sort of gives you an insight to some of the folk that go to Gstaad for their jollies, what a place. As I said because we couldn't arrive in verbier too early the kind people at the hotel let us use the spa & gardens for the day so for the most part we were having a swim & sunbathing.
Once we were ready, a quick shout to reception & the car was waiting for us, bags packed from the room & a couple of bottles of water for the journey-nice touch.
As we were getting ready to leave I noticed a mclaren Mercedes slr leaving the hotel & as luck would have it we caught him up on leaving town
(The noise!)
There actually was a mountain pass that we could have taken to get to verbier (one that had been used on the Tour de France) but after searching on the net it apparently wasn't fully surfaced & was more of a cyclists route so we left it & used the main roads. Which to be fair turned out to be no hardship, the guy in the slr up front with the little mini snapping at his heels through some stunning scenery. We followed him for about half the route before he pealed off & after that we had a local boy racer racer behind who was up for a bit of fun, not wanting to disappoint we pushed as hard as we could to have a little fun
Interestingly we started going through loads of vineyards which we didn't expect, it turns out Switzerland produces a nice few types of wine but as their growing season is so short they don't export it & just keep it for themselves.
After this we joined a familiar route that we'd done before when we took the R26.R skiing (yes on 888s!) one year that leads to the st Bernard's pass. As another main alpine route into Italy there are always some exotica knocking around but my favourite sight was of two turbo bodied 964 cabriolets (yellow & red) out for a run together, didn't get a picture unfortunately but they looked just superb & it was the only time on the trip I was a little bit jealous!
Verbier had to be one of the proper highlights of the trip. Richard Branson's Lodge was just the best place I've ever stayed. We honestly went with the idea of it being a once in a lifetime experience but came away promising to return.
Essentially, it's a catered lodge, so you share it with up to 9 other couples or families. It's all inclusive so you can make a bit of a pig of yourself & with such good food it's hard not to! The chef trained under Raymond Blanc & his food was absolutely superb.
(Better than an after eight on your pillow, as was the bottle of champagne on ice they'd left at bedtime!)
Even better than that was the craic we got with a great bunch of other guests (including a fellow PH'r!). When we arrived we were introduced as the honeymooners so naturally the champagne was opened for our arrival & I can't remember it stopping. We were shown round the place & had everything explained including the fact that no one has a key, the rooms are unlocked at all times. I was a bit suspicious of this (& they did offer a key if we wanted one) but the atmosphere immediately put us at ease, the idea was if you put the St. Bernard toy dog outside they knew to "let sleeping dogs lie".
(Our little balcony, the woman who lived opposite was obviously some musician as we got to hear her practicing her opera singing & piano skills)
(Me checking out PH as usual)
The place had its own spa, cinema room, pool table & basement bar, the list goes on, oh & their own dog too. For me, it was a bit more "us" than the super posh place we stayed the night before, all the staff were young & great craic which just made us feel more at home. To get an idea on our last night we had a great party where we recreated our first dance from the wedding as the lodge had a sound system where you could download any song you wanted.
The weather was really hot while we were there too so our days mostly consisted of sunbathing, chilling in the outdoor jacuzzi with a cocktail or taking pebbles the dog for a walk through the woods, great fun for us as we were missing our dog.
Pebbles
Man them shorts are short!
Our stay there really did go way too quickly, on the morning we were leaving we were genuinely sad to be leaving-not something I thought I'd be saying on my way to Monaco, but the place ally was that special. The fact that the staff were so good & we met some people we will genuinely keep in touch with just put the icing on the cake.
Whilst browsing the posh shops before we left we were in hermes & while I was waiting to pay there was a bloke buying his young daughter something who was struggling to get his credit card accepted. After much faffing on it eventually went through & I spied his receipt & it was over 7 grand! Anyway, I tells the wife this & while she was browsing the handbags she reckoned some woman was buying two bags for work with a combined total of nearly 16 grand! You could get two of those fancy toilets for that!
Anyway, that sort of gives you an insight to some of the folk that go to Gstaad for their jollies, what a place. As I said because we couldn't arrive in verbier too early the kind people at the hotel let us use the spa & gardens for the day so for the most part we were having a swim & sunbathing.
Once we were ready, a quick shout to reception & the car was waiting for us, bags packed from the room & a couple of bottles of water for the journey-nice touch.
As we were getting ready to leave I noticed a mclaren Mercedes slr leaving the hotel & as luck would have it we caught him up on leaving town
(The noise!)
There actually was a mountain pass that we could have taken to get to verbier (one that had been used on the Tour de France) but after searching on the net it apparently wasn't fully surfaced & was more of a cyclists route so we left it & used the main roads. Which to be fair turned out to be no hardship, the guy in the slr up front with the little mini snapping at his heels through some stunning scenery. We followed him for about half the route before he pealed off & after that we had a local boy racer racer behind who was up for a bit of fun, not wanting to disappoint we pushed as hard as we could to have a little fun
Interestingly we started going through loads of vineyards which we didn't expect, it turns out Switzerland produces a nice few types of wine but as their growing season is so short they don't export it & just keep it for themselves.
After this we joined a familiar route that we'd done before when we took the R26.R skiing (yes on 888s!) one year that leads to the st Bernard's pass. As another main alpine route into Italy there are always some exotica knocking around but my favourite sight was of two turbo bodied 964 cabriolets (yellow & red) out for a run together, didn't get a picture unfortunately but they looked just superb & it was the only time on the trip I was a little bit jealous!
Verbier had to be one of the proper highlights of the trip. Richard Branson's Lodge was just the best place I've ever stayed. We honestly went with the idea of it being a once in a lifetime experience but came away promising to return.
Essentially, it's a catered lodge, so you share it with up to 9 other couples or families. It's all inclusive so you can make a bit of a pig of yourself & with such good food it's hard not to! The chef trained under Raymond Blanc & his food was absolutely superb.
(Better than an after eight on your pillow, as was the bottle of champagne on ice they'd left at bedtime!)
Even better than that was the craic we got with a great bunch of other guests (including a fellow PH'r!). When we arrived we were introduced as the honeymooners so naturally the champagne was opened for our arrival & I can't remember it stopping. We were shown round the place & had everything explained including the fact that no one has a key, the rooms are unlocked at all times. I was a bit suspicious of this (& they did offer a key if we wanted one) but the atmosphere immediately put us at ease, the idea was if you put the St. Bernard toy dog outside they knew to "let sleeping dogs lie".
(Our little balcony, the woman who lived opposite was obviously some musician as we got to hear her practicing her opera singing & piano skills)
(Me checking out PH as usual)
The place had its own spa, cinema room, pool table & basement bar, the list goes on, oh & their own dog too. For me, it was a bit more "us" than the super posh place we stayed the night before, all the staff were young & great craic which just made us feel more at home. To get an idea on our last night we had a great party where we recreated our first dance from the wedding as the lodge had a sound system where you could download any song you wanted.
The weather was really hot while we were there too so our days mostly consisted of sunbathing, chilling in the outdoor jacuzzi with a cocktail or taking pebbles the dog for a walk through the woods, great fun for us as we were missing our dog.
Pebbles
Man them shorts are short!
Our stay there really did go way too quickly, on the morning we were leaving we were genuinely sad to be leaving-not something I thought I'd be saying on my way to Monaco, but the place ally was that special. The fact that the staff were so good & we met some people we will genuinely keep in touch with just put the icing on the cake.
Edited by LaurasOtherHalf on Wednesday 7th January 12:13
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