Advice for my trip to the Alps please

[markw996]

About 10 years ago I tagged along with a few friends of friends on a biking trip to Monaco riding my 98 R1, we covered 2500 miles over a long weekend which was a great adventure but left me in agony for 2 days after I got back.

I should have expected it after we woke up and calculated that we needed to average 100mph for 600 miles in order to catch the ferry home!

I've decided that because I have to use up 2 weeks holiday by April 2015, I'm going to buy a cheap comfy bike and bugger off to Briancon (where we stayed) and spend a week exploring the roads and scenery that were just a high speed blur last time around. I've booked 2 weeks off work at the end of March and have been excitedly looking at hotels and maps etc.

I didn't have anything to do with the planning last time, although I seem to remember stopping late evening to ask passers by in our best 'Frenglish' if there were any B&Bs nearby... so it might not actually have been planned at all

Is there anything important I should consider, i.e. road closures and snow drifts etc as I don't remember what time of year we went... just that it was raining & cold when we left the UK

[markw996]

Thanks for the advice, I'll check out the websites asap.
Although I've got 2 weeks off I'll probably just go for one week i.e. spend 2 days getting there with a stopover at Dijon, 3 days in and around Briancon, then 2 days getting home again or I risk it being another mad dash.

[markw996]

Dibble said:

If you've got a smartphone, the other thing I'd recommend is the CoPilot app for a SatNav. The whole of western Europe is about 25 quid. Pair that up with a holder from Ultimate Addons and you're good to go. I used these for my Scandinavian trip last summer and it got me to the door everywhere I went.

I've not tried it in anger yet, but I have a Nokia Lumia 520 work phone with Nokia 'Here Drive+' with offline maps.
It looks up to the job, just needs a waterproof case and handlebar mount for about £5 off eBay.

Plus if it flies off into the undergrowth.... the IT dept can replace it

[markw996]

Andybow said:

Briancon is a great place to stay, but April is still early, you won't be able to go up the col du galibier, lauteret etc, that's a shame as there is some amazing scenery up there! You would be better of staying further south, there will still be loads of cols that will be open just none of the high mountain passes. You have to ride route napoleon, George du verdon etc
This was our jaunt this year.
http://youtu.be/iNMKerlR888

Great video, inspiring

[markw996]

creampuff said:

Thanks for that info: I had to do some 100mph+ running on a Euro trip to cover 650 miles in a day.... did you need to stop for wee breaks?

From what I remember it was the worst ride of my life.

Fuel up & a quick cigarette, pull away from the fuel station and accelerate straight up to 140mph.
Hold that speed until the first person had their fuel light come on at which point we all pulled into the next fuel station.
And repeat.... I guess it was a choice of a cigarette or a slash!

Can't remember exactly, but I know we had to stop for a cigarette before each toll booth on the way down too, just so they couldn't time us between the two tolls to get an average speed

I genuinely couldn't get out of bed the next day due to the stiffness and pain in my neck despite having a semi-touring screen fitted to the R1 and a gel seat

[markw996]

annsxman said:

The Lautaret will be open as it's the main road to Grenoble. The Galibier might be open via the tunnel but probably not.

I just streetviewed it and the Lautaret is the road we took last time. I remember one guy grinding a hole in the fairing on his Blackbird somewhere near that expanse of water, quite frightening at those speeds on my R1 loaded up with soft luggage.

[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!

[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.

[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!

[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