August 10: Italy to Switzerland: What a Ride!
From vineyards to vineyards, lake to lake, today’s ride from the shores of Lake Iseo, Italy to the banks of Lake Geneva, Switzerland was chock full of beautiful splashes of color, panoramic vistas, and unexpected excitement. When Adventure Baby and I followed my navigation to a train platform at the base of the alps, I thought for sure I was lost.
After arriving in Iseo yesterday I meandered along the cobblestone streets, sat on a lakeside bench gazing at the silvery blue glassy water, peered down narrow streets lined with colorful brick and stucco medieval buildings, and walked past fishing boats tied up at the dock.
This morning, I lingered on the shore at the Ambra Hotel’s outside dining area while sipping tea, feasting on fresh scrambled eggs and perfectly cooked bacon, and watching the tranquil waters in front of me gently undulate.
Heading west towards Switzerland, I motored leisurely through dozens of vineyards, swooping gently over rolling hills and around village roundabouts while admiring the neatly lined rows of dark green vines climbing on their trellises under vivid blue skies and the bright warm sun.
As I continued west and north, I passed one magnificent body of water after another, hugging the banks of Lake Maggiore and the Toce River as I drew closer to the Italian and Swiss Alps, the light blue waters below contrasting beautifully with the grey, black, and dark brown limestone peaks above.
Following my navigation, Adventure Baby and I took a right turn at the village of Iselle, followed by another right that led me right up to the Selle di Trasquera Railway Station platform. Wondering what I was doing at an Italian train station, I thought for sure I was lost. Trains aren’t for motorcycles are they?
To my surprise, I was informed by several helpful bystanders that there was an automobile train leaving in half an hour that would pass through the Simplon Tunnel to Brig, Switzerland. Apparently, the cars drive up onto the train’s steel beds and park there for the twenty-minute duration of the trip.
Wondering how on earth I would keep the bike upright on an open-air train lumbering along at speeds over 60 miles per hour, I was relieved to find out that there was a special compartment for me to park my bike.
Disembarking in Brig, I found myself winding my way through one jaw-dropping vista after another of beautifully manicured grape vines, evenly spaced in intricate patterns on the foothills of the alps surrounding me. Yellow fields in the foreground gave way to layers of green vines rising up the base of the mountains with majestic, jagged peaks towering above.
Just when I thought it couldn’t get any more breathtaking, I found myself on the eastern shores of Lake Geneva, its brilliant sapphire colored water stretching out for miles to my left. Boats made their way through the thick velvety water and villages clustered on the shoreline.
Turning into Morges Switzerland where I will spend several days hiking and visiting my grandmother, I was filled with joy thinking of the adventures of the day as well as the ones to come.
