Day 24 - Ponte di Legno

Sunday 16th July 2017

We bid farewell to Rudi and set off at 09:30. The sun is up and it is already getting rather warm. Our route today is only around 70 miles long and will take us up and over Passo Tonale and through some of the busy tourist towns in the Dolomites.
Back on the road

  And of course today is a Sunday. Every sunday is Mad Sunday on the alpine roads in Italy. All the nutters are out in force and there are no nutters quite like the archetypal Italian Sunday motorcyclist.

 They have scant regard for other road users, and no regard at all for their own safety. Why would you wear armoured textiles or leather when you can wear a really stylish denim jacket and ultra trendy sneakers.

 British plates and BMW tourers are like a red rag to these young italian bulls. I'm usually up for a skills challenge but not on sundays in Italy. So we plod along and hope not to meet a Ducati rider doing 150 mph on the wrong side of the road on a blind bend.

With a certain relief we arrive at the summit of the Passo Tonale still in one piece. There are some great corners on the eastern approach but we are definitely playing cautiously today.

 Near the monument we stop for coffee at a cafe we have used before. Mick picks up another sticker for his new panniers.
Then it is a short run down the valley to Ponte di Legno. This charming little town and ski resort lies at the southern foot of the mighty Gavia mountain, one of my favourite rides, but that's to come tomorrow.
Today we continue on over the Oglio river bridge to the little village of Temu where we turn south to find our planned overnight stopover.
Approaching Camping Presanella
Camping Presanella is the neatest site we have visited so far on this tour. The camping meadow is just below the main building and densely shaded by huge fir trees. The grass is lush and soft, water taps are nearby and the ablution facilities are new and pristine.
The camp shop has pretty much everything you could ever want, i.e. beer, wine, bread, cheese and biscuits. Perfection.
Pitch at Camping Presanella
We soon have the tents up and sit at a handy table to check out the quality of the booze. Pretty good I would say.

Just to our right is a huge spreading fir tree that provides so much shade that it is dark under its sweeping branches. And beautifully cool on a hot day. I hide under there for a while to cool off after the exertions of tent building.
Weissbier connoisseur hard at work

 The friendly folk in the office have pointed us towards a nearby pizza restaurant. After a shower and change of clothes we follow their instructions and head off through the recently mown hay fields towards the village.
The hills are alive....
We find the restaurant after a 15 minute walk and enjoy a very good pizza. It's a good life here in the Italian Alps.
Mmmm... pizza

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