Germany - Homeward Bound

The temperatures had risen the previous day, and kept on doing so.  After packing up the bikes under their vine canopied parking, fuelling up, we left for Bruges once more but with temperatures rising to the high 20s quickly.

We stuck to second man stopping and it worked well again until................

After a petrol and drink stop, one bike in the middle of the pack died on the exit slip road.  The others had to keep going on the motorway and the rest of us stopped to see if they could work out the problem.  The temperature was 35ᵒ when we stopped, and many bikes were in the sun.  After phone calls to the UK dealer for ideas, it was decided to turn it round and run it back down into the service area.  One other stayed with him while the rest of us headed off again.  It turned out, on his return, that the engine temperature sensor needs changing, but the dealer he was taken to found nothing wrong next day (as the bike had cooled?) and he caught us up at the Channel Tunnel.

The Brussels ring road was dreadfully slow, stop and go, and my temperature gauge sat at 40ᵒ for most of it.  Our gear had to be turned inside out on arrival at the Bruges hotel, just to dry off!

We did have time to walk into Bruges for a drink and some dinner this time.

Next day, it was a short sprint to the Tunnel, to find similar hot humid weather in Kent, but this quickly deteriorated to thunder, lightning and torrential rain by the time we entered Surrey.  Goodbyes were said as we headed off home in different directions; the temperature fell to 15° although it did dry out some beyond Oxford.

It was an 'interesting' trip logistically, but very picturesque, although better weather would have made some of that even more so as the Eifel region is a very pretty upland and forested area with two very scenic river valleys to enjoy.  The company was good and we enjoyed many laughs.

Germany - The Mosel Tour

Next day, an even smaller group, just 4 bikes, took off for a pacey tour of the hills above the Mosel, plus a couple of crossings.  Jean didn't go, joining a group travelling by train to Trier instead.  Our leader this day wanted to keep up a good pace so I wasn't altogether disappointed not to have a pillion as we rounded many tight corners, climbs and descents, and encountered some very rough roads at times.  We were well rewarded with a fantastic via over the Mosel as we came to the top of a hill with a commanding view in two directions, vines all over the place, a barge in the river, and a pretty town on the other side of a couple of bridges all in clear view.

We finished off with a late light lunch in hot sunshine in a small cafe on the bank of the Mosel before returning to the hotel.  The valley is really stunning with its massive crops of grapes growing up the sides, many 'mega wobbles' of wine in the making and the sunshine just set it off so well this day.

All our evening dining had been in the hotel, the previous evening being a DIY BBQ, and the basement bar was an attraction to many of our group, plus other bikers from Holland, Germany and Belgium who stayed at the same time.

Germany - The Magic Bike Rally

Some of the late comers backed out of the ride to the Magic Bike Rally next day, on the banks of the Rheine.  Our leader reinstated second man stopping and overcame the separation problems.  We rode over high wooded areas, sadly with quite a lot of rain, en route to the Rheine valley, which we dropped down into on some very twisty road.  Then it was our first ferry crossing.

This first ferry wasn't too problematic as the metal deck was mostly dry and the exit ramp was fairly flush.

The Magic Bike Rally is a Harley-Davidson organised, but open, event, well attended and with a very pretty setting right on the bank of the Rheine.  We stopped for a couple of hours, had a walkabout, had some lunch, watched the parade, and encountered some rather strange people and miniature chopper bikes!

We then headed further up the valley and crossed the Rheine once more, on a rather hairier ferry, because the approach ramp and deck were wet on boarding.  Once across, we then saw that the pier was some 6" higher than the deck, and a piece of 4"x4" just laid in front.  One or two bikes had a 'wobble' on the way off.

Even with second man stopping, we got split up again passing through Koblenz on the return to the hotel, arriving back separately once more!  But, we did enjoy a length ride along the Mosel Valley, which was very pretty even in the dull weather.

Germany - Bruges-Bullay

Extensive route planning and way points had been created for those who had satnav to load into their devices.  Maybe that should have kept us together?  Nope!  Not everyone could load them and they can give separate routes in any case.

It had been agreed that we wouldn't use our normal practice of 2nd man stopping, where the second in the group stops and directs at a junction/roundabout, until others have passed, then joins up ahead of Tail End Charlie.  Primarily, this was because we had a diversity of riding experience in the group and using motorways for much of the day would preclude it.  So, off we set and it wasn't long on the busy motorway we got stretched out.  The last but one bike, behind us, had a puncture at 80mph, which was a bit hairy although we didn't know it at the time.  At the earliest opportunity we regrouped off the motorway to contact him and discover what had happened and that HOG Assist was already on the way, so we set off, now down to 18 bikes as the last one waited with him.  It wasn't long after that we got split up again into two groups.  The alternative buddy system, keeping the bike in front and 

behind in sight, wasn't possible with the road and traffic conditions, so it was inevitable.

We did have time to see the Lion and have a brief look in the shop area, but insufficient to climb the mound or look around the museum, so off we set again.

Road works and a closure got us next and the Deviation signs ran out after a while, splitting us once more into two groups of 9.  In the second group, we got separated from those in front and behind by traffic lights in a large town, so now we're 6-1-2, and we're the 1!  We stopped and waited for a while, saw no one, and decided to head straight for the hotel in Bullay, rather than detour via Bastogne, still 161km away, and Trier, which proved wise.  It was 3pm, and we still had some 240km to go.

The rain came at times and after we had been on the motorway for a short spell, we stopped for a coffee and bite, to see the group of 2 pass us on the motorway, taking the direct route as well.  The rain cleared a bit and we did enjoy a long stretch of picturesque countryside, plus a twisty detour to find petrol.  We thought we would be last at the hotel, but the group of 2 were only minutes before us.  The hotel owners greeted us with a beer each as we got off our bikes on arrival, which was very welcome.  The hotel is run by a very friendly Dutch biking couple and it enjoys and lovely position near to the banks of the Mosel river, which we crossed for the first time just before our arrival.

The main group didn't arrive until 1015, to much barracking from the rest of us on the hotel balcony, by now showered, watered and dined.  They hadn't had a great time!

Germany - Outbound

It was an early start to muster at the dealership in Cheltenham, a group of 20 of Milwaukee's finest with 33 riders and pillions, for a departure at 9am for the Channel Tunnel.  Staff there had kindly opened for coffee and loo facilities, and the weather was overcast, so wet weather gear was donned and turned out to be needed on the UK side.

After a steady ride with fuel and comfort stops, we crossed the channel and headed for Bruges for our first stop.  Nothing much eventful happened on the first day, but that was being stored up for the following days!