The 'Selle Runde' and more!

Back to the posts after a long time in the hills! My last post, as you will probably know, was sent from Cortina D'Ampezzo, where we stayed in Carravanamania campground. Hundreds of caravans, virtually nowhere to tent and the place was desserted, very odd. We spent a day there lazing around before packing up and taking a 'shortcut' up to Falzarego pass, via a rediculously steep 4wd track, and then a walking track that is illustrated wonderfully in the following image! Chris's 'Fantastic Short Cut', hmmmm!

So, after some time shuttling bikes, panniers etc we made it to the main road, for a remarkably gentle climb up to Falzarego Pass (2016) and another warmupachino. Then we cruised over the final bit of the pass in the evening light and were given the most amazing view down valley with all the pines turning golden. We drifted down valley, excited that all the snow seemed to have melted and found a nice spot beside a pretty lake to camp just before it got dark.

Emily cooking the most gigantic Italian pasta shells!

In the morning we continued down valley and located a supermarket to do another big load up. We seem to be terrible at buying vast quantities of food to lug, because we can't be bothered stopping at supermarkets all the time, and keep planning overnight excursions into the mountains. So with laden panniers we climbed the Passo Gardenia, part of the Gruppo di Selle which is a loop over four passes in the Dolomites. We planned to only do 3 of the passes, bacause that fitted in better with our plans.

The pass was a 600m climb, then a descent to about 1800m, then another 400m climb to Passo Selle. There were heaps of Roadies out, it seems this is a very popular cycle route (and lots of buses and motorbikes too).

Unfortunatly (and for a reason that will not be disclosed in this blog!) we ended up having to drop down 800m to the town of Canazie from the Passo Selle(2244) instead of continuing up to Passo Pordoi (2388). Then in Canazei we had to keep going down to Pozzo di Fassa, so by the time we had sorted out what we needed to sort out we had over 1000m to climb back up to where we needed to be! We got back to Canazie in time for a yummy pasta dinner, then continued up the winding road to Pordoi in the dark. The few cars that drove past must really have wondered what we were up to.

We camped in the forest, and in the morning it was raining with some thunder (brrr), so we waited in the tent till it stopped around 1 pm. After that we cruised the last 400m climb up to Passo Pordoi in time for yet another warmuppachino and a repack for another little hiking mission.

We stashed the bikes up the hill beneath a gigantic gondola, then wandered up the steep rocky slopes to the first Refugie, which was shut. Then on up to the Piz Boè (3152) there was a wee sign pointing us down to the winterroom at the next hut about 30 mins away. So we descended on a bit of easy via Ferrata, and made it to a very cozy little winterroom (a wee room with some bunks) just on dark.

In the morning we sat out in the sun and laughed at the trails of people making their way out of the gondola towards the huts "early bird catches the worm again" we laughed - it was 10 oclock in the morning! Then we hiked back up to Piz Boe refuge and cooked up a brew in the sun, and admired the spectacular view. We wandered back down to the pass beneath some wonderful towers, admiring all the Via Ferrata routes we will have to come back and do! Once we got back to Passo Pordoi we retrieved our bycycles and headed down some switch backs to another turnoff half way down the pass.

From this point we had yet another cunning plan to bike around some ski roads sidling around the hillside, the to pop over a wee pass up to a bivy we noticed on the map. The late afternoon sun looked great on the tussocky slopes, and it was wierd biking past all these huge buildings and ski tows which were deserted, but looked as if they were bristling in anticipation for the coming ski season. Getting up the pass actually consisted of us pushing our bikes up a freshly mowed ski slope, which was rather tough! Once at the pass we stashed our bikes behind some rocks again, and did another 'transition' to our tramping packs and walked for half an hour up to a cool Bivacco. It was nestled amongst some big rocks, looking directly out towards Mt Marmolada, which is one of the biggest mountains in the Dolomites with a glaciated face and a hut right on top!

The bivvy was cozy, and clearly a climbers hangout. There is a huge via ferrata starting right by the hut. In the morning we wandered up to the very top of the hill and had the most amazing view over the Dolomites, as well as an eerie drop off a cliff looking back down to the valley we had sidled around yesterday. We lazed in the delicious sun for some time before mustering the enthusiasm to head down from the 'molto bella' spot.

This cunning side excursion meant it was only a small descent down a very rocky 4wd road and we were at the top of another pass to add to our belts (-: We hit the main road at Passo Di Fedaia (2057) then wound down the valley on yet another fantastic descent to Alleghe were we bought a record number of new supplies from the supermarket, mmm. We continued down valley and once the sun set it was freezing, so a little hunting and a suitable flat spot was located beside an old 4wd road. Sleep and food... delicous, and we readied ourselves with some map planning for our next expedition starting the following day!

Dolomighty Dolomites!

Well, just a quick post while we are in Cortina D'Ampezzo (same story - very expensive internet).

The afternoon in Bruneck made an interesting little story - our bag of groceries got nicked. This might not sound that bad, but it contained our precious titanium spoons, and $50 worth of groceries. So while camping in a nice wee spot in the forest near Bruneck I managed to eat dinner with our little spatular, and Chris considered the billy grip, or a tent peg, but resorted to a nacho as the best option - it was highly amusing and we reminisced a similar situation when I recall Joe eating his dinner off a chain whip! It's amazing how irreplaceable spoons are (-:

We went back down to Bruneck in the morning and sadly replaced all the groceries. Just before we left town we went to throw away our rubbish I noticed that the bin contained most of our groceries untouched! So we spent the next half hour quietly delving into the rubbish bin to retrieve all our precious belongings! Phewee.

So away we went up past Enneberg in the rain. Once we reached Enneberg we stopped for another warmupuccino and then continued up the misty valley until we noticed a picnic area with a wee wooden hut. After a brief inspection it was deemed 'an excellent place to stop' and we settled down for a nice dry evening.

In the morning we were woken by the sun, and emerged to a sepctacular steep sided valley. Back on the bikes we continued up the Val Dei Tamersc to the Rifugio Perdu. There the road steepend dramatically and became unsealed and it was a real chug up to a flatter point, then another grunt up to the Faneshuette. There was fresh snow on all the surrounding peaks, and only a few other bikers about and we basked in the sun on the deck of the hut for lunch - it was great. Then a short snowy uphill section and we crossed the Ju de Limo and bumped down a rather tricky gravelly road for several hours till we made it out to the main road. From there we cruised along to Lago Misurina, the lake everyone has told us to go to. It was beautiful, and we could see the famous Tre Cinne di Lavaredo. All coated in fresh snow, unfortunatly including our little campspot in the forest, brrrr.

Another sunny day dawned, and we ate a leisurely breakfast by the lake then started a mission of a climb up to the Auronzohuette right beneath the Tre Cinne. Once there the view out over all the Dolomites made the climb worth it. We repacked our gear, hid our bikes, and set out for a little wander on the track which goes around the Tre Cinne. It was incredibly snowy, and the plan had been to stay at the nice warm hut on the other side of the Cinne, but we passed a man who commented that the hut was 'geschlossen' (shut!).

It was a fantastic evening but we were a bit worried about where we would stay. However, on arrival the hut we discovered a little 'Winterraum' with nice little bunks - just like an NZ hut. So we enjoyed having the beautiful view and hut all to ourselves after the crowds of the daytime.

In the morning it took some time for the crowds to arrive so we enjoyed breakfast on the benches outside the hut in peace. Then we went and some amazing caves up one of the ridges which were built during the war. They went up the mountain for ages with heaps of little holes in the cliff you could peak out from. The climbing and via ferata here also looked awesome, and we are now quite excited to come back in summer with some gear.

In the afternoon we headed back down to Misurina, then into Cortina D'Ampezza to a campground for a much needed shower and some washing after 10 days scungyness (0: Now it's on to planning our continuing journey south, first through the Marmalada, then on down to Venice where we will probably arrive in about ten days. Well, better get biking!

Brrrrrrrrrrrr Brunico...

Again from the warmth and free interneting of a fantastic public library I write another post! This time in Brunico Italy! (Make sure you also check out the ´Lienzer Dolomiten´post I also published a few minutes ago).

After a rainy night camped beside the riverbank in Lienz we cruised off up another valley towards yet another pass. The forecast was not good, and it was very chilly so we coaxed ourselves along by the prospect of a warm coffee in St Leonard.

Biking in the wet and cold is horrible, I now officially declare! So, as we reached St Leonard, due to a small break in the rain and a few wee arguments between a sodden Emily and a sodden Chris we continued up valley. The weather was supposed to get even worse on the following day (Friday) and climbing the pass before the snow got thicker did seem the sensible if unappealing decision.

We turned off up towards Klammjoch Pass (2288) which is a recommended cycle route and shingle road. The valley was beautiful and would have been a fantastic bike route were it not for the rain come sleet come snow. We stopped for a hot coffee at the Oberhausalm and put new brake pads on the bikes seeing as neither of us really had any brakes left.

Then it was up up up over the pass as the snow fell thickly. Luckily we stayed warm all the way up, and cunnigly put all our warm gear on 100m before the top, so as to descend with some internal climbing warmth remaining. I commented to Chris that this part of the trip was starting to feel a bit like an adventure race! He just grinned in reply.

We descended quickly and found a patch of dry forest right beside the small town of Luttach. After a dinner brew up we jumped into our sleeping bags and gradually began to warm up.

However, Chris got colder in the night, and we couldn´t understand why until we unzipped the tent in the morning to discover lots of fresh snow! We had descended at least 600m below the snow line last night so it had got even colder. So maybe it was just as well we had already climbed the pass.

Above: Chris in the morning in the snow, in the bushes to his left you can just make out our little purple tent.

We put every clothing item we had on and did lots of star jumps before descending another 800m, and continuing down valley to Brunico, where it is not snowy, just grey and rainy. Here we have spent several hours drinking yummy coffee and eating pizza! (What else do you do in Italy?) The forecast is now expected to improve, so we really hope so. Until it does I think coffee and pizzas will be our biggest goal (0:

Above: Emily rides around the ´cycle only´round-about in Brunico! Wooopeee!

A chilly night in the Lienzer Dolomiten

Above our campspot by the Tristacher See where the orienteering event took place the road wound up the hill into the large granite Lienzer Dolomite mountains. So after some debate the pull of these wonderful looking peaks and the prospect of a cozy hut high up amoungst them lured us back to the lake to camp after our day spent internet hunting in Lienz.

The next day dawned remarkably warm and we enjoyed a slow paced cruise up, up, up through by now very autumnal looking forests. We were able to mountain bike all 1400 m up to the Karlsbader Hütte, and from there the veiw was spetacular.

In the evening we cruised up the nearby ´Rote Turm´which was a easy rock climb (Chris went right to the top...but i didn´t because easy as it was I would still have preferred a rope) (Anne is exclaiming "Christopher!" right now (-: ). I was a little annoyed at not getting to the top.... Anyway, we got back to the hut just as it got dark, and cooked outside in the freezing cold while everyone else bought expensive food in the warm inside, as usual.

In the morning there was snow everywhere! Rather a contrast from the day before and our initial thoughts were to stay at the hut another night, but the owners were not very friendly, and we had the impression we were only welcome if we were spending lots on food...grrr. We don´t like this commercialism in the moutains, we miss happy simple little NZ huts.

So, down we headed, back to Lienz where we found a cozy public library to warm up in... go libraries!

Östereich und das Großglockner Abenteuer!

Well, back to the internet finally! We´ve had a very cool week and it seems like ages ago since I last added a post. I have to say that it is so hard to get good internet access here in Lienz, Austria, which is rather surprising, but after a whole day hunting around we finally found this place (its now 8 pm), a small smelly pub with 3 PC´s where they have let us use our USB card.

So now I have to think back ten days ago to Sterzing Vipitino where we set out in the sunny afternoon up valley once I finished blogging at the Cafe. After a short climb (and a beesting because one decided it liked my bosom!) we entered a wonderful steep sided valley and cruised up towards Pfitzerjoch Pass (2246). After some time the road turned to gravel and there was no traffic, it was great. About half way up we came out of the forest to a nice flat grassy spot with a magnificent veiw down valley so we decided to camp there. We spent several hours brewing hot soup and coffees.

In the monring the sun was slow to rise so we decided to climb our pass and have breakfats in the sun on top. We got hotter and hotter as we climbed and ended up stripping down layer by layer till i was in my bra and shorts and Chris just his shorts! We looked pretty strange with our towing mechanism also in action, but luckily when we arrived at the Hütte on top there was no one really about. We sat on a bench with a great view and gradually put on more clothes as the clouds rolled in.

Spiders...

After about an hour we set out on the most awsome downhill. The track was more a walking track and provided some tricky mountain biking, much to the amusement of all the predominantly older walkers pouring up the other side of the pass. Eventually we reahed a big lake for lunch, then down the valley into Zell. At Zell we turned off and headed up again towards the Hohe Tauern National Park. As it grew darker we spoted a cycle path and a foresty park and found a good wee shady spot to hide our tent. This spot was to become known as the ´spider spot´because of the hundreds of daddy long legs spiders which kept crawling up us! It was a big relief to zip up the tent!

We ate breakfast in the park, then headed through Gerlos on a hunt for topo maps of the area. We found a map with some moutain bike tracks on it, and decided to take that round the Gerlos Lake, then up the Wildherlostal Valley. The mtb trail turned from a nice open track t a fallen down tree mission which was pretty interesting with panniers and nvlved much pannier then bike lugging, and highly amused an Austrian family out for a walk. After several hours we finally reached the other end of the lake, and collapsed in a heap on the lake shore for a chilly swim and several hours food consumption.

As the sun went down we climbed further up valley till we spotted the Zittauer Hütte high up on the ridge, and decided we really ought to go there. So, we stashed the bikes and panniers and strapped all overnight gear to our daypacks. The route climbed steeply past a waterfall and it was beauiful in the late evening sun walking up surrounded by towering snowy peaks. We managed to halve the estimated track time, and found a cosy and unsnowy wee spot hiden from the Hütte right besdie the lake just before it got dark.

Sunny but windy in the morning and Chris had only just managed to keep warm all night in his thin wee sleeping bag. We ate breakfast in the lake in the sun and watched enviously as two climbers scaled the snow capped summits of the peak abve the lake. We decided to wander up to the upper lake, which proved interesting due to many large boulders with snow which you fell through up to your waist! We found it easier just to slide on our stomachs in the end, and we reached the lake after several hours which should have taken about 20 mins!

A little frustrated and rather wet, we trudged back down to our cycles in the valley, then out for a 70 km blast through Kramml and Mittersill to Zell Am See where we camped. We glanced up at the snowy peaks asd they whizzed past and wondered which ones it was that Ed climbed a few weeks earlier.

Großglockner Hochalpenstraße

In the morning it was the big climb up over the Großglockner Hochalpine Strasse! So we set off early (for Em and Chris) and with our towing technique down pat we flew up the mountain past heaps of other cyclits, much to the amusement of a bunch of French motorbikers who later tooted and cheered as they past us again. The weather deteritorated as we neared the top, and as we entered the tunnel on the top of the pass we both felt pretty knackered and even Chris thought it was time for a rest day! We had climbed for about 3 hours solid.

We piled on the clothes and descended to a Hütte for heiße Pommes, Apfelstrudel und Kaffee mmmm(our usual favorites by now). It turned out the waiter had spent 3 years in NZ as a ski instructor, and he gave us a good weather report (which was bad, actually) a free hot tea, and a serious warning that our plan to go up to the Erherzhog Johann Hütte (3451) up on the Großglockner, Austria´s highest mountain was crazy - he assured us we would most certainly need an alpine guide...hmmmm.

Rocks!

We pedalled on up to Kaiser Franz Josepf, which is really just a few wee Alpine Hütte at the head of the road. In the mist the place was absolutly deserted and rather eerie, and we found a campspot above the road, which was to become known as ´the Rocks´. This was because we were amongst a grassy boulder field with a crumbly looking cliff above us which during the windy night in Emily´s mind became even steeper and crumblier! Chris spent some time repegging the tent during the night. So all in all not the best sleep.

The days mission was finally REST DAY! And the weather was crappy, so we decided to catch the bus down to Heiligenblut for a supermarket to restock for our planned tramping trip. We bought hundreds of Semmeln breadrolls and Apfelstrudel, then caught the bus 800 metres back up to Kaiser Franz Josepf, where it had started snowing! We biked around trying to find somewhere to stay, but most Hütte were shut because the summer season is over! Finally we found the warm friendly Glocknerhaus, and we stayed in the Lager, which is the bunk room on the top floor, and because of the heavy snow we opted not to cook outside but instead to have a yummy meal inside in the warmth....luxurious!

Brave Sheep!

The morning was sunny but still cold, and we spent several hours organising all our gear for our 4 day trip. It was a logistical mission fitting it all into our day packs, cos we had to take our tent as well snce not all the Hütte were still open. Finally we biked down to the dammed glacial lake and hid our bikes in some pine trees. Then it was a carefull ascent over a slippery snow covered grass pass. Just as I climbed the track up the last gully I heard a loud ´baaah´bhind me and was shocked to see a wee flock of sheep charging up behind me! I moved out the way and the lead sheep sniffed me, then trotted boldly off leading the rest of the flock along the narrow track with hijm round the corner to some grassy fields! Much different species from Kiwi sheep that´s for sure!

We continued along the hillside teeming with squeeking marmuts, but not a sole in sight! We reached the Salmhütte, dropped the packs and headed up valley to check out the gully we needed to climb to get to the Erherzog Johann Hütte. We thought this route seemed the only possibility because it involved no snow.

The gully looked very tricky until we discovered it had been roped. It was still a bit scary but we reached the ridge where we joined a more major route up to the alpine hut. On the way down Chris gave me some rope ´technique´lessons, and by the time we were wandering back down to the hut I felt alot more confident. We came across an old hut built into a cliffside, it was neat and tempting to stay there, but the valley felt like a freezer, so we retreated down to the warmth of the Salmhütte.

High Ropes

Emily heads up the rope ladders...

Followed by Chris!

In the morning it was a bit warmer and we followed our tracks back up the valley and up the ropes which seemed like fun now! On up the ridge there was some exhilarating climbing up ladders and ropes wih big drops, but it was all straightforward and we were buzzing when we reached the point where the glacial route intersected. Up till that point we had seen no one, and were somewhat dismayed to meet many guided parties chugging laboriously up the much easier glacial route and looking at us very suspisciously for our lack of gear and bycycle helmets!We noticed the lack of oxygen a bit, and arrived at the hut puffing more than normal.

The summit of the Großglockner was tantalizingly close - only 300m above the Hut! But sensibleness fortunatly prevailed, for the sumitt climb was up a steep snowy gully whcih would have been dodgy without an ice axe, but it was sooo tempting, specially with all the bungling amerian tourists going up and down with their guides. Instead we ate apfelstrudl at the hut, then hurried away from the alluring peak across the galcial route, which was by now completly tracked out and very safe to cross. We continued round another wee roped section to the Glorer Hütte.

The Hütte was full with a school group and a hippy crusading group. We cooked outside in the freezing cold, then retreated inside for two delcious ´Kaiserschmarrns´(a traditional Austrain dish made of kind of crumbled pancake with apple sauce). The people in the hut were amazed to meet kiwis tramping in Austria (?), and we had a really nice evening. We met a friendly Austrian fellow in the hut named Niko who planned to walk the same way as us the following day, so we agreed to walk together.

In the morning we headed up the Böses Weibl, (Niko translated: Mad Woman!!) (3119). On the summit you could see thousands of snowy peaks, it was beautifully clear and warm and we bathed in the sun on the summit munching on snacks and generally enjoying ourselves. Then we descended steeply down a snowy ridge and further down into the grassy slopes at which point Niko headed off down valley. We continued around past the closed ElderfeldHütte and past 2 alpine lakes, to a third where we found a campspot in the sun. We were still at about 2500m, so it was pretty chilly, but we had a wee feast and contemplated our fun trip.

In the morning we were woken by shepherds calling down all the sheep from up high (winter is coming!). We walked down into the lovely pine forest for breakfast, then it was 3 hours walk back to the bikes at the dammed lake. Many trees are going ominously red and yellow - which was beautiful but a tad concerning! Once the panniers were retrieved and lunch had been eaten we cruised down back through Heiligenblut to Winkerln. From there we climbed a small pass (Emily in the lead...and she could hear Chris puffing!! so she had to put in an extra strong push at the top, tehehe), and Niko came past honking in his car. He was glad to hear we had survived our chilly night at the lake. Then on down into Lienz.

Orienteering!

What? Orienteering? Somehow, and I don´t know how on earth he managed it, but the random wee campsite Chris picked up by a lake on a hill just up from Lienz turne out to be the site of the Austrian champs...and Chris really didn´t know it was on. In the morning, right beside our campspot, were erected many Silva tents, and people in brightly coloured O gear milling all around. So, of course, we went and found out if we could run. It turned out the actual champs was the previous day, but today was a teams event which Chris and I could compete in unofficially. So we set off and Chris got lots of the controls while I got some. It was cool terrain, open forest with heaps of big boulders, and was apparently a brand new map! Big Dolomity mountains towered in the background.

After the orienteering we swam in the lake, and decided to spend another night in the campground which was actually now closed for winter, but they were happy for us to stay another night so we had the place to ourselves. Today has been a day of shopping and interneting, preparing to finally enter the Dolomites and head out of Austria and into Italy...looking forward to our idealized picture of pizzas, warm beaches and ice creams...hmmm we shall see!

OK, bis bald und tschüß!

And here (fingers crossed) is a video of us mountain biking over the pass! Let me know if it works or not...I think I´m getting a bit technologically advanced for my own good!

So the Cycling Saga Begins...

We finally set off on our cycling journey after spending a great evening at Albert and Ingrid's place in Ingoldstadt, where we had bought paniers and carriers from Albert's shop and got some good tips about where we should go. It was pouring with rain and the forcast wasn't good for the rest of the week.

We managed to pick my bike up from the lady I bought it off on ebay and it looked ok, pretty old, but hardly used. We caught the train through to Hausham, which was the town South of Munich where Chris's bike was. We arrived in the pouring rain and headed off to the house navigating using our little google earth printed map. Using my somewhat limited german I managed to converse with the people selling the bike, and we finally had 2 bikes! Unfortunatly we had some serioous mechanical problems getting carriers and things on and spent most of the day huddling outside this funny little bike shop in the pouring rain and snow getting all our gear sorted. Eventually we did, and we biked into a wee foresty spot and camped in the bush (with some huge slugs!).

The next day it was pouring and very cold and we were really wishing we didn't send so much of our warm gear off to Scotland! We biked for a couple of hours, then warmed up in a cafe for about 4, then biked a bit more and camped beside a very beautiful lake in the mist. (more ginourmous slugs!)

Again we woke to rain and cold, and set off with the goal of making Fussen, the famous German town where the fairytail Neuschwannstein castle was built by King Ludwig. We spent some more time in a cafe eating hot chips trying to warm up, before we arrived in the town just on dark and camped hidden behind some trees in a paddock just below the castle.

The next day it wasn't pouring! So we cruised up to the castle and decided we should do a tour. So we took lots of photos and wandered around the spectacular grounds, then continued through to the next town and found a cool spot to camp beside the river...but it was still freezing. We had crossed the border into Austria.

And finally it stopped raining! We woke up and continued down river with the plan of climbing our first big pass today, 1900 metres. It was sunny and warm and we cruised happily down some wonderful cycle paths. We went through the town of Egg, and Chris had the ingenious idea of attching a bungy tow rope to my bike (see photo for demonstration) so that way I was pulled (and pedalled) to the top of our first pass called Steinjochen. The downhill was great and we continued through Imst, and camped in a spectacular valley up in a clearing that a friendly Austrian guy showed us.

The weather was steadily improving as we continued the next day up valley into Solden, then on up to Vent at 1900, a high mountain town where we found a really neat place to camp, but it was really cold, again. In the morning it was what Chris termed our 'rest day'...ha! It involved biking up to an Alpine hut at 2400 (me on the tow rope cos it was really steep!) then we climbed up to the Kreuz Spitze at nearly 3500 the biggest peak I've ever climbed! It was really cool, a really beautiful day and a fun walk. We sped back down the valley to Vent and our nice little camp spot. We ate pizza in town and then went to sleep after a wonderful rest day!!

In the morning the weather was a bit colder with fresh snow on all the surronding peaks, and it was spectacular as we headed down valley to Solden. Unfortunatly Chris's gear cable broke so he only had three gears! There were no bike shops at Solden, so we continued up and over a massive pass, 2500 called Timmelsjochstrasse. It was so freezing on top, and the downhill was unbelievably long through several large tunnels, and we crossed the border into Italy. We eventually found somewhere to camp on the grassy patch on top of one of the big tunnels!

It was lovely and sunny in the morning and we continued over the JoufenPass, a mere 2100 after the previous days effort. We sat on top of the pass in the sun and ordered two big cappuchinos, mmm. Then we enjoyed a warmer and wonderful gradiented downhill into a nice town called Stezing. Here we camped in a campground so we could have a hot shower and clean some of our very smelly gear. We also got Chris's bike fixed, and some new brake pads cos we have already worn ours out! So, that's where we are at now. Apologies for the hasty blog, the internet is very expensive here so I've written this as fast as I could! Hopefully when we get into a slightly bigger city I'll hav some time to email and blog a bit more at a slightly cheaper rate! Today we cross another pass back into Austria, and then I'm insisting on a real rest day!