The Alta via del Sale (Salt Road, Ligurische Grenzkammstrasse, LGKS) is considered one if not the most scenic road in the entire Alps - this why we saved this gem of road for our very last off-road ride of our 6-day off-road tour in the West Alps. In the morgning we figured out the electrical issue on Thomas KTM which we had to tow from the very top of the Varaita Maira Kammstrasse the evening before - the issue was indeed with a broken battery. We found a motorcycle dealership which was kind enough to order a battery for the same day delivery at noon. To save time we towed Thomas KTM to the dealership so that we could leave no our tour straight from the shop. Considering we spent a good 2,5-3 hours towing the bike the night before we did not do so well right from the get go (see for yourself). The initial dissapointment of all the techncial issues and the tension in the morning quickly went away once we were on the road again. For our last day of riding we were once more greeting with stunning landscape and some of the most amazing roads the Alps have to offer. Despite all the motorcycle breakdowns and technical issue we were blessed with beautiful weather almost the enitre time and close out one of the most memorable motorycle experience I have ever had.
So Thomas' battery is broken and we need to buy a new battery this morning.
Battery.
So guys, I'm on Chris' GS, we just went to the BMW dealership to get a battery for
the KTM.
We just took two bikes, we had to order, now we have to wait unfortunately, I have to go
back to the campground.
Anyway, I get to ride the GS, 1250 GS, I haven't ridden it in a while.
This is really funny, it's so spongy, it's like, but it's in road mode, so.
It's got no windshield, no mirrors, who needs mirrors, right?
The plan is to tow back Thomas' bike to the shop, put a new battery in and leave from
there with a bit of a delay, but we can still ride most of what we're planning to ride today,
so let's get going.
Oh, my balls.
Ah, shit.
I didn't know it was so tight.
I didn't know either.
What a piece of shit.
Oh, amateur.
It's in gear.
My rockets had too much to drink yesterday.
No, no, that was the thing.
Show me.
Oh, that was probably...
Hopefully it lifts when you screw it on.
Do you still have the eight?
No, I set it here.
Let's get in here first.
So, to a new one.
My last try now.
I'm getting in now, damn it.
Then I'll have my mouth full and then I'll go home.
Before I burn your engine.
But you can do that, I don't care.
Let's try this again.
Okay, second try.
We're moving, which is good.
So, guys, finally made it to the store.
The battery is there.
Felix just called in.
Pop in the battery and then let's get off-road riding.
Did they close?
See?
I told you.
The Italians like to close in the afternoon.
Okay, guys, we're entering the Via del Sal.
The Salt Road.
In German it's called the Ligurische Grenzkampfstraße
because it splits two countries.
The ridge splits Italy and France.
And it's considered one of the most beautiful roads in the Alps.
It's not very technical, supposedly.
But it is beautiful.
So it's the last day of riding for us.
And we decided to do this last.
And we just passed the toll booth.
Because 30 kilometers of this road you have to pay toll.
It's 15 euros, so it's not that cheap.
But I'm sure the money is being put to good use to maintain this road.
So money well spent.
So we can enjoy this in the future, too.
Yes!
This is nice. Wow!
Spectacular. Absolutely spectacular.
It's hard to focus on the road.
It's so beautiful here.
Yes.
So with all the bad luck that we had with motorbikes breaking down
and we were very lucky with the weather.
This is beautiful. It's a beautiful day.
It's nice and cool, sunny, some clouds.
You know, it could be raining, but it's not.
So that's nice.
Super nice.
Yes!
I really got to enjoy this ride.
It's the last day of off-road riding.
It's beautiful up here.
Yes.
Real Ligurian dust.
I don't think you hear it, do you?
I heard something.
Now I can't hear anything.
Wow!
Look at my glasses.
They look cool, don't they?
Where did you leave Chris?
There are...
The lady sweeper.
What did you have to think of in the video from this morning?
I thought, wow, now I have to...
There are... The coolest thing was,
there are one cyclist, two cyclists,
three, four, five.
They all stop where he is.
Hello.
Do you need to see the ticket?
Absolutely.
Okay, good.
Get out!
Oh.
Ho, ho.
Wow.
Damn.
I think I hit a big rock or something.
Making any way.
So, guys, we just left the
salt road.
Well, actually, the salt road itself was pretty short.
But we had to come down the mountain.
And that was
quite a long off-road track,
just coming down the mountain.
It was really, really cool.
There was a second part to this route,
which we didn't take
because of the bike travel we had
this morning. We didn't get a start
until almost 1 o'clock today.
So we're skipping the second part,
which is another 25 km off-road ride.
We will have to do that
next time we're in this area.
At the moment,
we're cruising through France.
We'll be back in Italy here momentarily.
And that's also
our last night together.
And then we're all heading home.
And I have
three more days of
on-road travel.
One more day with Thomas.
And then two more days by myself.
Day 2
Great tour!
Cheers!
Cheers everyone!
It was a great tour!
Oh, kids!
It would be so nice!
