Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Thanks man!

Thanks a lot Haroon! I was just lucky to have had clear blue skies which truly presented the landscape in its best

Haha, the games these days are extremely realistic Nice to know that both you and your son enjoyed the pics and videos and thanks for your compliments

I have a long weekend coming up here so hopefully I can finish up the log.

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Just One word.............MESMERIZING......

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Somebody block this guy right away!

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Second you...

What a travelogue man.. awestruck.

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Thanks a lot Pragyanand!

Looks like somebody forgot he is a moderator

Haha, thanks man

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Dream like !
Subscribed to the Thread !


OT- reading your signature, came to know the full form of KTM

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

@Adarsh_Bk
Dude, posting pics that makes others sad and jealous isn't allowed

Jokes apart, What an awesome thread man..!!! And the 650 looks even more menacing in that color, and i am surprised that the panniers actually make the bike look even better..!!

Awesome pics buddy..keep uploading more..!

Cheers
Ride Safe
Krishna

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

WOW!! Simply WOW!! No better word to describe the pics and what seems to be an Awesome ride

Thanks for sharing. Ride safe and God Speed

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Thanks a lot man!

OT- That was the main intentions of putting it as signature

Haha If its any consolation, all I have right now is an old rickety cycle!

And thanks for your compliments. Initially I didnt like the gray much, maybe because I was too used to seeing green Ninja, but it started to look better and better as I spent time with it And yes, the panniers didnt spoil the looks at all. But there are few angles from which it can look a bit awkward though.

Thanks a lot for your encouraging words Hope you enjoy the rest of it as well.

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Day 2, Part 2 : Of mountains and passes



Continuing where I left off earlier, I was finally close to Grimsel pass, my first mountain pass of Alps.

But before that, few pics from GoPro on the way to this region.


This pic perfectly sums up how the ride was.. Endless twists and turns







Even tunnels have corners







A nice stream flowing beside the road...







Some beautiful straights as well












It must be really hard to skate uphill!







Bikers attacking the corners!







I agree solo riding has lot of advantages like no waiting for fellow riders, total freedom to decide where to go, when to go, how much time to spend at a place, stop wherever you want for pics etc but there were moments when I wished fellow riding buddies from Blore were here to enjoy the corners and the views esp when I saw that the majority of riders here are in groups. Watching those spectacular landscapes alone & talking & enjoying it with others are totally different experiences. Also, having others with you no doubt helps if things go south.
I did try to strike short conversations with other bikers whenever I stopped and it was great to see everyone being friendly and the curiosity they had for India!


Back to pics,

Me attacking the corner







Soon after all these riding, I almost reached the pass.

But seeing a lay bye just near snow, I had to stop for pics







You never realize how much time passes when you keep admiring landscapes like these







Played with snow along with the bike You can see some snow near the headlights, it also helped clean it a bit







As soon as I entered the top of the Grimsel pass, I was greeted to this beautiful Grimsel Lake! I simply got down from the bike and stood there soaking in the place and then realized I had to click as well


Simply marvelous!
















Helmet seemed to enjoy the views as well







When I was clicking above pics an old Chevy Corvette pulled into the parking lot. I had the exact same toy car in yellow when I was a kid but had I never seen it in real! Here are few pics












Hotel Alpenrosli which overlooks the lake is a famous place to relax and enjoy the views. But I was neither hungry or thirsty so didnt want to spend time there and wanted to continue ahead. Also near the lake, a narrow road continues for few kms to reach Oberaar lake and the road is supposed to be ectremely scenic! I am not sure how much better can it get but that road is one way at a time with traffic lights at both end indicating the current state and when I checked it was red. I was not sure how long I had to wait so skipped it.



After packing the cam and gearing up, I had to stop and undo all that just after two minutes. Why? Because of this!
Both Grimsel and Furka pass are visible in this pic. Grimsel is the one right below, can anybody spot Furka?












Here is the Furka pass. It is cropped from first pic, hence lack of clarity and its on the menu for tomorrow







The other side of the mountains, no intervention of man here







While I was clicking these pics there was an old guy on a Mazda MX5 which looks a lot like Night Fury from the movie How to train your dragon! . Had a quick chat with him and it turned out he was doing same route as what I planned the next day. We both wished luck and he sped off in his car.







Once I started from here, I didnt stop much for pics and let GoPro do whatever it wanted to


Here are few pics of what GoPro managed to do.







Gletsch is the valley below, between Grimsel Pass and Furka Pass.







Hairpins... here I come!



























In an hour or so, I reached my hotel in Ulrichen and this was the view from the room







My initial plan for the day was to check into a hotel and cover few passes before calling it a day but then I realized it would become too late by the time I finish the intended passes and riding in dark is totally pointless as you miss the views totally and cant enjoy corners as well. Discussed this with one of the waiters and he advised to postpone to tomorrow. So I took it easy, emptied the bike luggage, freshened up and then rode towards a place called Riederalp which was around 20kms away. The place was mainly famous for winter sports but I had read that the road to that place is interesting so thought of giving it a shot.


I decided to ride to the planned passes early morning next day and I had to be back before 10 am because that's when the breakfast closes This turned out to be one of the best decisions but more on that later


The road went through old little towns which looked like they were from Harry Potter's movie set! It was also getting dark slowly so I didnt stop much for pics but here are a few.


Somewhere along the way








Deer crossing sign board








Nice little hairpin







BMW convertible vs Yamaha MT07/09 (not sure which)







Finally back to hotel







It was 740kms total for two days







Went back to room, had some food and sat in the balcony for sometime browsing and planning for tomorrow. The sky was clear and I could see many stars. I thought that I will wake up by 3-4 am to click pics of starry sky (maybe milky way as well?) but then saw the full moon lurking behind the mountain which spoilt all the plans! So went to bed eagerly waiting for next day's ride which turned out to be the best day of all!
Also most mountain roads in Swiss dont have Google street view so I was not sure what to expect, how good the views would be and this curiosity made the experience even better!

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

It's raining heavily. A cup of garam adrak wali chai and kachori. And your ride log! Nothing gets better!!

Awesome, man, awesome!

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Monsoon rains + garam chai + kachori/samosa/pakoda! Damn I miss all that here.

And thanks a lot man, really glad that you enjoyed the log

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Man oh man! Damn!

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

From RTR to KTM to Ninja ... Bangalore - Leh - Alps, what else? :P

Fantastic pics buddy.


Edit : No leh :P

Re: Mission Alps : Accomplished!

Wow! Living the dream mate!
Awesome pics and narration. Congrats!