Whats the scariest / most exciting journey you have done?

[GMJ]

I have done the Stelvio and Grossglockner in a sports car; and the Bonnette in a normal car but do fancy all of them in the MH. We did plan on doing the Stelvio when coming back from the Italian Lakes a couple of years ago but on the day we went to do it (having stayed in Bormio the night before) the road was shut! The Italian copper in his best Ital-english and my Eng-alin advised me that there was a goat on the road....well, that's what it sounded like!

It necessitated a turn left instead of right towards the Stelvio which was new, unplanned territory. The first hairpin didn't auger well as I had to the the reverse and forward thing, to get around it. Lovely route into Austria after that though..

Graham

 

[barryd]

I have done the Stelvio and Grossglockner in a sports car; and the Bonnette in a normal car but do fancy all of them in the MH. We did plan on doing the Stelvio when coming back from the Italian Lakes a couple of years ago but on the day we went to do it (having stayed in Bormio the night before) the road was shut! The Italian copper in his best Ital-english and my Eng-alin advised me that there was a goat on the road....well, that's what it sounded like!

It necessitated a turn left instead of right towards the Stelvio which was new, unplanned territory. The first hairpin didn't auger well as I had to the the reverse and forward thing, to get around it. Lovely route into Austria after that though..

Graham

A couple of years ago I enquired (for fun) with an Italian company about hiring a Ferrari for the day to do the Stelvio. Cost. £10K!! :frown: Ill give it a go on the Scooter then. Its on the list, just not got round to it yet.

 

[mark61]

Morgan 3 wheeler would be fun.

 

[mark61]

I have done the Stelvio and Grossglockner in a sports car; and the Bonnette in a normal car but do fancy all of them in the MH. We did plan on doing the Stelvio when coming back from the Italian Lakes a couple of years ago but on the day we went to do it (having stayed in Bormio the night before) the road was shut! The Italian copper in his best Ital-english and my Eng-alin advised me that there was a goat on the road....well, that's what it sounded like!

It necessitated a turn left instead of right towards the Stelvio which was new, unplanned territory. The first hairpin didn't auger well as I had to the the reverse and forward thing, to get around it. Lovely route into Austria after that though..

Graham[IMG2=JSON]{"data-align":"none","data-size":"full","src":"http:\/\/emoticons.datahamster.com\/bounce2.gif"}[/IMG2]

The Umbrail Pass? Straight into Switzerland. Good pass too, and far fewer MH's blocking the road.

 

[GMJ]

A couple of years ago I enquired (for fun) with an Italian company about hiring a Ferrari for the day to do the Stelvio. Cost. £10K!! :frown: Ill give it a go on the Scooter then. Its on the list, just not got round to it yet.

It is without doubt the best road I have driven on. I did it from north to south which meant driving up the 48 hairpins and then on down into Italy. The view from the top back down the road is spectacular as you have little sensation when you are driving it, of how the road clings to the mountains.

Graham

 

[barryd]

It is without doubt the best road I have driven on. I did it from north to south which meant driving up the 48 hairpins and then on down into Italy. The view from the top back down the road is spectacular as you have little sensation when you are driving it, of how the road clings to the mountains.

Graham

I would suspect if we do it we would do it from Italy but I want to do it on the bike. The Col de Tourmalet nearly crippled the little bike near the top. it seemed to go on forever. We would probably go up it and back down the same way.

 

[havingfun]

the coast road from france into spain, i wanted to do the coast all the way to the sons in valencia, first trip in the motorhome, i dont do drops ....i cant even shut my eyes, i just sweat, and the s..t my other half loves roads like that ,and kept saying, look at the veiw,look at the veiw, i ,d navigated us there so i couldent even complain.

oh, and the road right to the end of achill island, in ireland, when we were talking about it later that evening, the locals thought we were crazy to do that road in an 8 metre motorhome, and it takes a lot to shock the irish. loads more but it,s what keeps you young, and i,m lucky that the oh is such a good driver,

mags

 

[Delicagirl]

Achill Island is one of the most beautiful places on the west coast of ROI.....

 

[Morphology]

About 2 am driving down through Switzerland to Italy, when I got to the Gothard tunnel it was closed overnight, so I decided to go over the Gothard pass, at 2 in the morning and it was snowing really hard, so pitch black snowing unlit narrow twisty roads, I have never in my life regretted driving so much as I did that night, I think I held my breath most of the way.
it is a journey I must do again on a nice summers day as I should imagine the views are spectacular.

I've done it the other way in thick cloud, which is fairly difficult.

My scariest though was May this year in Iceland in a rented motorhome - winds gusting 25kts or so, came round a corner and was hit broadside by a gust that lifted one of the wheels off the ground. I was only doing 15mph or so, but it fair scared the sh!t out of me.

 

[Robmac]

The scariest by far for me was the Bealach Na Bar.

Now before anybody tells me it's nothing special, try it at about 9 o clock on a January night, with light snow cover and 100mph gales blowing. We were actually on 2 wheels at one point, and another motorhome did actually blow over that night on the campsite at Applecross.

I did make the bar at the Inn though before it closed.

 

[barryd]

The scariest by far for me was the Bealach Na Bar.

Now before anybody tells me it's nothing special, try it at about 9 o clock on a January night, with light snow cover and 100mph gales blowing. We were actually on 2 wheels at one point, and another motorhome did actually blow over that night on the campsite at Applecross.

I did make the bar at the Inn though before it closed.

Ive not done it Rob but I think it backs up the point I made earlier. I think you get people who are a bit wary of tackling the Alps and Pyrenees but probably without good reason as some of the passes and roads in the UK are far more difficult than what you might meet in mainland Europe and often steeper. Much shorter of course and not as high but there are plenty of challenging roads here. Just look when the tour de France came to Yorkshire. Some of the steepest narrowest roads in the UK are up here. If you have toured the UK then chances are your more than prepared for most of what Europe can throw at you.

 

[Wully]

Went a cross the Patterdale pass in the Lake District done it before but not in a wide 9m a class a wee bit hairy meeting coaches coming down but enjoyed the challenge. I go places people won’t go in a vw t5 but I have to see what’s up that wee road or round the next bend it’s a disease.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

No, not walking up the Isle but in a motorhome or out and about travelling on push bikes or scooters etc.

There was a post on another forum earlier where someone posted some videos of some pretty hairy roads and I started looking at so called Balcony Roads in France. Some of them we have done in the van and some on the bike.

http://www.dangerousroads.org/europe...in-france.html

I think the highest one we ever did in the van was the Col de La Bonnette in the French Alps which I think is the highest paved "pass" in Europe. It wasnt that bad really, the last bit was a bit hairy and coming down to the south which seems to go all the way to the Med the rear wheels nearly set on fire but apart from that it was ok.

The worst one ever was a smaller pass in the Pyrenees heading towards the Atlantic coast but I Cant remember the name. Single track with a 2000ft drop and I met a French car that refused to reverse.

I love doing them on the bike or the van really. There is a new member on here though called Nicholsong (Captain Over to his pals) who is even dafter than me though and did the Watendlath road in the Lakes in a 7m motorhome and this one up to the Cirque de Estaube in the Pyrenees in his van. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_9HPUIplRY&t=30s

So whats your favourites? Love them or hate them?

I think the Gorges du Verdon is still my favourite.

I was at Mainsgill Farm a few weeks ago, way too close to you so I veered south sharpish

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Slowly working through dangerous roads list.
Few roads French?Italian border near Tende.

There is no way on this earth that our lass would have let me drive down there, respect.

 

[havingfun]

wully you sound like my oh, he allways says ,if they can get the bin wagon up there we can get there. we have had some funny looks from locals, all over europe, and here, like are you crazy.....but up to now we have always got back down the other side, if i was driving we would still be stuck on our first trip..........

greece over the top via spartugus, we were higher than the eagles, and the atlas mountains in morroco, there had been several landslips, eariler in the month, but they said the road was open, forgot to say they were working with heavy machines on roads thar were only just over single file, and we had to manovere round them,one point ,2 huge wagons coming the other way ,stone wagon, heavy machinery, and us, 2 hours to get everybody past, again if it had been me driving, i,m sorry we would still be there.

mags

ps.if we dont have a little adventure while out, it feels a little too easy

 

[Izwozral]

Blimey Mark, that vid is scary enough, never mind driving that road.

My scary experience was on the Ingleton to Dent road, the one over the tops. Did a controlled slide down, single track, tight bends, drop offs and sheet ice. Slid down for about quarter mile, totally buttock clenching. Never knew I had it in me to do that kind of driving, I guess instinct took over. Although exhausted at the end of it, actually felt pretty chuffed with myself.

Tip: Don't do that road in snow conditions in a 21 footer!

 

[Phillybarbour]

Scariest - very very heavy snow in southern Germany Feb this year. We where on the motorway and couldn’t get up the hill but I was very reluctant to try fitted chains in the first lane where I was stuck, hard shoulder was 2ft deep so a no no. Eventually got up and stopped at the next parking area overnight.

Most exciting - very very heavy snow in Southern Germany Feb .......... etc etc

 

[Aldra]

Overland to Israel

us and three kids

in a dormabile
and it'd didnt make it

so we went on by foot so to speak

arrived ina long queue

me pregnant with twins , and three kids

and we didn’t have the return fare

and we stood in the queue knowing we’d would be turned back

but a guard stepped forward

And waved us through

and we were in

No no questions asked

and that only began our life in Israel

​​​​​​​aldra

 

[Homenaway]

Hi,
we've done part of the Col de Berade near Venosc but decided to chicken out halfway down and did a 20 point turn at a passing place.

Also had our brakes fade coming down from a mountain overlooking Lake Carinthia in Austria many years ago. Luckily there was a layby just before the main road junction.

We've often met a bus or coach by fortune at a convenient passing place even in England!

Steve

 

[Delicagirl]

The scariest by far for me was the Bealach Na Bar.

Now before anybody tells me it's nothing special, try it at about 9 o clock on a January night, with light snow cover and 100mph gales blowing. We were actually on 2 wheels at one point, and another motorhome did actually blow over that night on the campsite at Applecross.

I did make the bar at the Inn though before it closed.

you must have been desperate for a beer Rob !!!