Advice for my trip to the Alps please

[King Cnut]

Do The Vercors in April. Beautiful large valley not far from Grenoble with interesting WW2 history. Also dip down towards Valence and the Rhone Valley (for Hermitage) if you need to warm up.

[markw996]

I'm pretty much set on revisiting some of the places that I remember around the Briancon / Grenoble area, especially as I speak enough GCSE French to get by whereas I can't speak Spanish or Italian at all which makes me nervous when I'll be travelling alone.

Would a more sensible option be to stay somewhere lower altitude (i.e. warmer?) like Mens which is only 2500ft as opposed to 4000ft and go to Briancon as a day trip? Or do I really have to find somewhere further south like Spain or Italy for it to be warmer in March?

Sorry if my questions seem daft, but I normally never venture out of Bedfordshire!

[annsxman]

Well if you're taking 2 weeks off then Italy is an option but only 1 week off and it's less of an option, likewise Spain unless you take the Portsmouth/Plymouth Brittany Ferries ferry to Santander/Bilbao.

At that time of year you'll have no problem finding hotel availability so you could do what we've done on our last 2 European tours which is to have a laptop/iPad handy so you can check out the weather and then just head where the weather is best.

I wouldn't worry about the language barrier, whether in Spain or Italy, let alone France. Likewise travelling alone. Bikers tend to get a pretty good reception and a simple phrasebook will get you through most situations. if you want to book hotels from here then www.freetranslation.com gives you the ability to ask whether they have a room on a given night in their language.

If I had a week to spare then Southern France is achievable and I'd look to book the first night's accommodation in advance and then the remainder on the fly - if you have a laptop/iPad then this can be done the following morning when you know the weather and have decided how far you want to ride that day.

If longer then the same approach but I'd go through France and head for Northern Spain. Plenty of great roads to go for.

If it's any help then check out www.bbot.co.uk

[spareparts]

April is still spring skiing in the Alps. There will be snow. And this year is expected to be a great ski season in the Alps.

Go to Spain. Take the Pont Aven or Cap Finestere. Ride the N260, the N152. Biking heaven

[Hooli]

annsxman said:

if you have a laptop/iPad then this can be done the following morning when you know the weather and have decided how far you want to ride that day.

Or at lunch when you stop in a nice cafe near enough to somewhere like MaccyDs to use their free wifi

[snowdude2910]

spareparts said:

April is still spring skiing in the Alps. There will be snow. And this year is expected to be a great ski season in the Alps.

Go to Spain. Take the Pont Aven or Cap Finestere. Ride the N260, the N152. Biking heaven

I tend to go boarding this time of year and you rarely find snow below about 1500m/5000ft I can remember driving out to delavouy (1500m) one year and it was mid twenties at resort level and below was a good drive trying to keep a 911 turbo in sight in a seat leon but there wasn't any snow in site even in resort there was just enough snow cannon generated snow to get you back down the lower slopes. There's definately some good riding to be had this time of year but then it can probably vary quite massively so I'd book last minute based on the weather les arcs at 1800m last year had clear roads until a mile or so from resort on the 22nd of march

[black-k1]

markw996 said:

I'm pretty much set on revisiting some of the places that I remember around the Briancon / Grenoble area, especially as I speak enough GCSE French to get by whereas I can't speak Spanish or Italian at all which makes me nervous when I'll be travelling alone.

Would a more sensible option be to stay somewhere lower altitude (i.e. warmer?) like Mens which is only 2500ft as opposed to 4000ft and go to Briancon as a day trip? Or do I really have to find somewhere further south like Spain or Italy for it to be warmer in March?

Sorry if my questions seem daft, but I normally never venture out of Bedfordshire!

If you're not keen to go to Spain on your own then then you'd be more than welcome to join us. You could do the first part of the trip in the Picos and Pyrenees then ride across the south of France to the Alps. www.old-gits.org/thenexttrip

[markw996]

Thanks for all the tips and advice, and the invite.

I guess I don't really need to be booking accommodation this early, a greater priority should be getting a suitable bike.

I was looking for a cheapy like a BMW F650GS for around £1500 but might now consider something a bit bigger with more of a fairing to help cover higher mileages per day.

[SteelerSE]

black-k1 said:

If you're not keen to go to Spain on your own then then you'd be more than welcome to join us. You could do the first part of the trip in the Picos and Pyrenees then ride across the south of France to the Alps. www.old-gits.org/thenexttrip

Looks like a great trip - I wish i could put my name down. The problem with a young family and only 20 days holiday a year is getting away on something like this.

[black-k1]

SteelerSE said:

black-k1 said:

If you're not keen to go to Spain on your own then then you'd be more than welcome to join us. You could do the first part of the trip in the Picos and Pyrenees then ride across the south of France to the Alps. www.old-gits.org/thenexttrip

Looks like a great trip - I wish i could put my name down. The problem with a young family and only 20 days holiday a year is getting away on something like this.

As I'm sure you can imagine, we're really looking forward to it. If you get a chance to join us on future trips you'd be very welcome.

[creampuff]

SteelerSE said:

Looks like a great trip - I wish i could put my name down. The problem with a young family and only 20 days holiday a year is getting away on something like this.

I have a 7 month family vacation booked for next year

[EvoBarry]

markw996 said:

Thanks for all the tips and advice, and the invite.

I guess I don't really need to be booking accommodation this early, a greater priority should be getting a suitable bike.

I was looking for a cheapy like a BMW F650GS for around £1500 but might now consider something a bit bigger with more of a fairing to help cover higher mileages per day.

I would assume you'll get rain as much as sunny days so I'd recommend a bike with some wet weather protection if nothing else. Cheap BB is the obvious choice, or a leggy Pan? Thunderaces seem to get ignored too, great bikes for this type of thing.

[markw996]

EvoBarry said:

I would assume you'll get rain as much as sunny days so I'd recommend a bike with some wet weather protection if nothing else. Cheap BB is the obvious choice, or a leggy Pan? Thunderaces seem to get ignored too, great bikes for this type of thing.

I must be getting old because I'm really starting to like the idea of a BMW R1100RT, I'm watching one on eBay that's running a bit rich for £2k. I'm thinking setup the valve clearances & balance the throttle bodies over the next few months, worst case replace a leaky injector, good to go!

[black-k1]

markw996 said:

EvoBarry said:

I would assume you'll get rain as much as sunny days so I'd recommend a bike with some wet weather protection if nothing else. Cheap BB is the obvious choice, or a leggy Pan? Thunderaces seem to get ignored too, great bikes for this type of thing.

I must be getting old because I'm really starting to like the idea of a BMW R1100RT, I'm watching one on eBay that's running a bit rich for £2k. I'm thinking setup the valve clearances & balance the throttle bodies over the next few months, worst case replace a leaky injector, good to go!

For just a little over your stated budget (£2000) you'd be able to pick up a reasonable Aprilia Futura. Great handling, superb engine and all day comfortable. Also, you should be able to find one with integral hard luggage. IMHO a much better bike to enjoy the mountain roads on and it gives excellent weather protection.

ETA: Like this one

Edited by black-k1 on Thursday 4th December 08:06

[Hooli]

black-k1 said:

markw996 said:

EvoBarry said:

I would assume you'll get rain as much as sunny days so I'd recommend a bike with some wet weather protection if nothing else. Cheap BB is the obvious choice, or a leggy Pan? Thunderaces seem to get ignored too, great bikes for this type of thing.

I must be getting old because I'm really starting to like the idea of a BMW R1100RT, I'm watching one on eBay that's running a bit rich for £2k. I'm thinking setup the valve clearances & balance the throttle bodies over the next few months, worst case replace a leaky injector, good to go!

For just a little over your stated budget (£2000) you'd be able to pick up a reasonable Aprilia Futura. Great handling, superb engine and all day comfortable. Also, you should be able to find one with integral hard luggage. IMHO a much better bike to enjoy the mountain roads on and it gives excellent weather protection.

ETA: Like this one

I've chased on of them around the Alps, they seem to go rather well.

[SteelerSE]

creampuff said:

I have a 7 month family vacation booked for next year

I hate you.



Having said which that is 7 months with family - is that a good idea?

[creampuff]

SteelerSE said:

creampuff said:

I have a 7 month family vacation booked for next year

I hate you.



Having said which that is 7 months with family - is that a good idea?

If we get divorced we will know it was a bad idea

I'll see if I can sneak in a bit of California Superbike School either in Australia or Los Angleles. Along with the hookers in the Far East obvs

[markw996]

black-k1 said:

For just a little over your stated budget (£2000) you'd be able to pick up a reasonable Aprilia Futura. Great handling, superb engine and all day comfortable. Also, you should be able to find one with integral hard luggage. IMHO a much better bike to enjoy the mountain roads on and it gives excellent weather protection.

ETA: Like this one

Edited by black-k1 on Thursday 4th December 08:06

I'm not saying that I'm impulsive, or that I make rash decisions.... but... I've just bought it

[black-k1]

markw996 said:

black-k1 said:

For just a little over your stated budget (£2000) you'd be able to pick up a reasonable Aprilia Futura. Great handling, superb engine and all day comfortable. Also, you should be able to find one with integral hard luggage. IMHO a much better bike to enjoy the mountain roads on and it gives excellent weather protection.

ETA: Like this one

Edited by black-k1 on Thursday 4th December 08:06

I'm not saying that I'm impulsive, or that I make rash decisions.... but... I've just bought it

Congratulations. I'm sure you'll love it. All you need now is that Euro tour to try it out on! (See me e-mail of yesterday.)

A few things are worth checking on it:

Check the side stand cut out switch as these fail, causing the bike to die. The best option is to simply bypass it and don't ride off with your side stand still down!

Check the coils are all working. As it has twin plug heads, it's quite common for one of the coils to fail but not to be noticed other than the fuel consumption figures increasing. When I had the coils on mine sorted it went from about 150 miles to a tank to about 180 plus miles to a tank!

Check the fuel pipe and connector under the tank has been upgraded to the metal version. The plastic ones crack and split, spilling the tank contents onto the engine, normally when the engine is hot! Most have been sorted but worth a look.

The pannier keys are so fragile they break off, often while in the pannier locks. They all do that sir! There's nothing you can do other than take extra care to be very gentle. Not always easy after a long tiring run in the cold and the dark while you're trying to get access to the pannier contents and the locks are a little sticky.

Other than those things, normal maintenance should ensure that it performs well and delivers as a sports tourer should.

Ride safe and enjoy!

[Wedg1e]

Hooli said:

I've chased on of them around the Alps, they seem to go rather well.

If you mean Martyn's, it went even better when he'd rebuilt the front suspension