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It looks like as we are here in the Dolomite Alps!
So we follow the narrow road steadily
uphill through narrow little winding streets, often ending up in the middle of the village life, free running cattle, children that pull carts with oversized milk cans, people standing in groups on the
market place talking abou the daily news and craftsmen on a little two stroke motorbike, so called mopeds with a lumbering tool bag slung over their shoulder, leaving a two stroke smell in the air. –
That’s for sure, tourism certainly has not yet reached that area of Switzerland. That’s Swiss in its pure taste. We enjoy it to our best.
We already thought that the road has
reached its end in Saint Antoenien and the end of the world is reached in Partnun, but Willi rides on. The still well paved road is now to some extend covered with Alpine Pizza (by a number of cow shit
smashes) and water cross-drains that lead water across the road. Around us, pastures, cows, some lost barns and quaint farmhouses scattered around in the countryside. At the end of this road we then
finally believe that we have reached the Dolomite Alps. This type of rock actually cannot be found here, on this side of the Alps. We are on the west side of the mountain Sulzfluh, by the way an old
smuggling area. But have a look and decide by yourselves.
The picture below is a panoramic image
that was created with the PIXMAKER software and can be downloaded by clicking on it as a Pixmaker - EXE file (402kb). Just store it on your PC and run it. It is a rolling 210 ° degree panoramic view of
the area. You then may enlarge the panorama window and by clicking on the question mark you will receive an explanation how you can maneuver through the picture with zooming in and out etc.. So you may
virtually dive into the area and have a first impression without actually being there in reality.
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Actually is was our plan at this Tuesday to visit the colleague of Willi the host, the host of the mountain guesthouse up here in
Partnun, who has a well known and highly recommended kitchen. That was for sure the main reason why we have made the detour up
here in that area at the end of the world. Willi still raves about this kitchen and the menus. We only stay for a very short time – why?
This, only Willi and his colleague who runs that places, do know in details. I had promised to keep this as a secret, but I can’t. On
Tuesdays also that mountain inn is closed and since this is the end of the workd up here, we must return and again enjoy the wonderful view, this time from a different perspective.
Back at the bottom of the valley, we turn left into the Kantonalstrasse 28 and follow up to the Wolfgang Pass towards Davos. The road
up there carries quite a lot of traffic, since it is the main route up from the Rhine Valley through the Praettigau region up to Davos and
to train tunnel car transportation Vereina. The Vereina tunnel connects with an excellent fast connection the north side of the Alps and
the Inn Valley, where you then may travel across the Ofen Pass or the Reschen pass south to South Tyrol. We take a longer break at
the Wolfgang Pass and enjoy the lunch which is interrupted from time to time by the whistle of the Rhaetian Railway, which passes
directly behind the inn. Although the Wolfgang Pass is located at an altitude of just 1.637m, the sun burns down at this day tremendously.
 Why Willi's motorbike has a heart attack!
And then we ride on with a filled stomach to Davos where we
turn to the left after the lake and ride across railway track of the Rhaetian Railway up to the Fluela pass.
Thus, shortly after noon, the traffic is very limited and we
reach the pass where we are surprised by the first snow on this little round trip. Its not too much but the quantity is sufficient for a first snowball fight.
And then there was the story of Willi’s Suzuki Bandit1200,
where he was so upset and was just in the mood to run it over next cliff. Actually the Bandit should not have a power reduction. But as Sabine passed him by with her BMW
GS650 up the Fluela pass, Willi believes that only a defective spark plug socket or that the engine only runs on three cylinders, could be the cause.
A look at the papers of the bike after we had reached the pass summit explains the power loss immediately - Willi is actually on the
road with only 34PS. After he had received that information, he performed a rain dance on the Fluela pass which attracted the attention other bikers. We grinned and watched the great performance.
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