Day
4 (Kranjska Gora to Hallstatt)
The day started with our spirits dampened by the
shocking news from back home of the tragic Air
India plane crash that killed more than 150 people.
A few of my wife’s distant relatives &
some known people were among the dead. Nothing
much we could do from here but pray the departed
souls RIP.
After
staying in one of the best accommodations of the
trip and probably one of the most beautiful towns,
it was time to do the daily packing ritual, loading
the cases ritual and hit the road. As usual we
were treated to a wonderful breakfast by Mr. Lubo
and we take the road to Villach.
The
daily charging ritual- Camera battery, mobile,
video cam & Intercom
The
roads signs & directions are all very well
marked in Slovenia. The route from Slovenia is
a slow & steep climb over the mountain, but
once you cross over into Austria on the mountain
top (again no border control guards there), it
is an almost straight & crazy sudden descent
down and in no time you are already in Villach.
Surprisingly,
in all these twisty, steep sections the speed
limit is 100kmph and some of the local riders
made sure they don’t disappoint the people
who originally fixed those speed limits. Villach
is a small city in Austria well known for its
rich cultural variety.
From
Villach we take road B100 towards Spittal. Fantastic
piece of road with everything a biker would love
on a ride.
Spittal
is a large town with all the normal things that
you would expect to see in a large town including
an occasional red Ferrari!
Can
you see a nice trike parked there
We
then head on road B99 towards Katschberg. Here
if you however opt for the E55 motorway, that
goes straight thru the Katschberg tunnel, however,
all thru this trip I avoided motorways (although
it keeps running parallel and sometimes criss-crossing
above/below our route) and stayed with secondary
roads and hence we went the long way round over
the Katschberg Pass on road B99, which is again
a slow & winding climb upto the top of the
pass. Temp at the top was about 4 deg C. From
the top it is again one steep & fast descent
into St. Matin. All along the route today we have
mountain to our left & a nice little stream
on the right twisting & turning with the road.
The speed limit is 100kmph and hence I was having
a blast, but on one particular sharp left curve,
I went too close to the guard rail on the right,
but somehow managed to tilt the bike further into
the curve & get things under control. That
was a close call!! The beautiful road continues
till Mauterndorf.
On
the top right corner is the E55 motorway that
runs parallel to our B road
At
Mauterndorf we stop for lunch at the Hotel Gasthof
Weitgasse, where we enjoy an excellent meal of
fried chicken with potato salad & Toglatelle
with Salmon in cream sauce accompanied with delicious
soup.
With
the stomach refueled, we are back on the road
passing Mauterndorf Castle on
our
left and the following stretch from Mautendorf
to Radstadt was a bikers delight. There was everything
from lush green mountains to rolling fields to
fast flowing streams to long sweeping curves and
what not- absolute delight. In Obertauern we saw
fresh snow on either side of the road and also
ran into mild rain.
Ofcourse,
half way thru this scenic route oncoming bikers
were flashing their lights and gesturing to slow
down- which meant big uncle was lying in wait
somewhere with a speed camera. I was well within
the speed limit of 100kmph as my Garmin GPS is
programmed to continuously show the speed limits
on all the roads we travel and here we come across
the cops standing on the roadside with a speed
gun. Well to my surprise, it was a pretty looking
Austrian lady cop and I told my wife wow, that’s
one hot looking cop. The next thing I get is a
pinch on my lower back and a mild whisper on the
intercom ‘please concentrate on the road’!!
he he, these women…. By the way all thru
the trip I stuck to the speed limits that is-
50kmph within village & town limits and 80
or 100 on the secondary highway roads that we
used. Anyway after we pass the cops it was my
turn to gesture to other oncoming bikers about
whats waiting for them (biker brotherhood you
see!).
From
Radstadt, we turn left heading towards Annaberg
on road B166 and from there onto Russbach, Gaschutt
Pass, Gosaumuhle & finally passing thru the
large & picturesque Hallstatt lake on our
left side and going thru a tunnel that lands us
directly into the final destination for the day-
Halstatt., which is a small village that nestles
beside the Halstatt Lake.
Hallstatt
is famous for having the worlds oldest salt mine
that dates back to 1400BC. There is a cog rail
car that takes you up a steep mountain where you
can visit the salt mine. Its about 3 hours for
the whole visit and hence we didn’t have
the time for the salt mine visit. We quickly started
our search for the B&B and soon found a nice
cozy place along a stream called Haus Holl Herta.
Mrs. Holl who owns the place is a friendly but
no-nonsense person and talks to the point. Reminded
me of my old school teacher! Cost Euro 25 per
person.
Our
accommodation for the night
Some
homes overlooking the Halstatt lake
These
guys spend the day shifting between the lake &
the streets….how nice a life!
 Another
mothership parked at a nearby B&B
In
the background is the rail carriage that takes
you up the mountain to the worlds oldest Salt
Mine
Do
I say- another room with a view?
There
was slight drizzle, but we went for a stroll and
found most places closed by 6pm. Settled for dinner
at Brauhaus Lobisser pictured above. Nice food,
but pricey.
The
whole village of Halstatt can be toured on foot
in 10 minutes, but you can immerse yourself into
the tranquility of this place for hours &
hours by simply sitting and admiring the pristine
lake, its surroundings, the gorgeous mountains
all around, the sound of the rapidly flowing stream
that goes into the lake etc. Very beautiful place.
Total distance traveled for the day 221 kms.
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