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gerous riding, everyone just enjoying the ambiance. It had been a long day but I had promised coffee and ice cream at the summit of this Northern section. Although it was approaching 6:30, the car park was still full with many dealers just starting to dismantle their displays of a wide range of bikes. We could have stayed there for hours but it was time to leave for our hotel in Schenkenzell. Surprise, surprise, we left Schenkenzell next morning in the rain. It had rained all night and although the bikes were safely parked, not all were under cover. I had planned two routes to Ruhpolding, one taking us through Munich City Centre, the other taking us on a longer southerly route; it was unanimously agreed that Munich should be avoided. The rain soon eased and the roads began to dry. This was a longish 280 mile route with a little autobahn but it was Monday so the lorries were back on the roads. We left the A96 autobahn early to join the B17 to Schongau, B472 to Bad Tölz and B307 to Miesbach. Although the scenery as we approached the foothills of the Bavarian Alps was stunning, the queues of slow lorries and endless solid white lines were a pain, even though we were on bikes. Eventually we joined the A8 for 23 miles before leaving on the B305, better known as the ‘Deutsche Alpenstrasse’ to Ruhpolding. Ron Luke couldn’t believe how much this restrained pace had increased the range of his FireBlade!
Having refuelled, we continued on the B305 to be confronted with yet another road closure, with no detour! A local driver continued ahead on the pavement and I decided to follow. The roadworks were more extensive than anticipated but we finally got through OK; not before we’d irritated a group of ‘mature’ cyclists. ‘Verstehen sie nicht’ was my chosen reply. We continued on the Deutsche Alpenstrasse towards the Alps foothills, through Reit-i-Winkl and our hotel for five nights in Ruhpolding. Having covered 930 miles so far on this tour, day 4 was to be an easy day for all but the most hardy. Richard Nash, Kevin Davis and Ron Luke decided to ride into Mayrhofen (Austria) and take the cable car to the top of the mountain for lunch. John Parker and Roy Becken spent some time in the local village of Inzell while the rest of us took a leisurely ride to Obersalzberg and Kehlstein (Eagles Nest), the culmination of Martin Bormann’s dream to build a mountain top house for Hitler’s 50th Birthday, and onto Rossfeld Strasse (a private toll road) for lunch. Obersalzberg has changed out of all recognition since I was last there.
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