# TRANSALP RIDERS - the way to see Europe!



## Hockeygod (Nov 11, 2004)

After reading a few other threads on the site, I thought I would write about our experiences in the hopes it might help answer some questions for others.

My wife and I have travelled extensively thoroughout the world; mountain biking all over Canada, the USA and New Zealand (and travelling to a few other countries where we didn't get to ride.) This trip beat them all!

We rode across parts of Germany, Autria, Switzerland and Italy in June of 2005 and we are planning on going back again. We rode parts of the Trans-Alps race course for 10-11 days and did some sightseeing for 5. Taking our own bikes were no problem. We used trains - no cars - and stayed in B&B's for the most part.

We flew from Calgary AB Canada to Frankfurt, transferred to Munich, took a train down to Fussen where we started our ride, and ended up in Trento Italy. Then we took the train back to Munich after a sidestop in northern Italy for a couple of days and wandered around Munich for the last few days of our trip. (FYI Airfares go up for the tourist season AFTER June 15th and return to regular fares after Sept 15th.)

We took our own bikes in big plastic bags the airline provided for us (funny, we didn't fly Air Canada, but that is where we sourced the bags - we heard they had them, so we went to the airport a few days early to pick them up) and we had absolutely ZERO problems with damage. (We just took off the discs, turned the handlebars sideways and padded parts of the frame. Take extra duct tape and bags for the return trip!) We were told the baggage handlers :madman: are apt to be more gentle if they can see that it is a bike. We had thought about hard shells, but the storage concerns (space availability, money) and then to disassemble / re-assemble the bikes (time) led us to our decision. I am sure there are pros and cons to each method!

Upon arrival in Munich, we were met by Christoph Gnieser (Ph.D.) - he is the owner of TransAlp Riders. He met us at the airport and away we went! He put together a superb trip and also led us. He booked all the meals and lodging and acted as our personal guide / intrepreter. (It was just my wife and I on that particular trip so we felt pretty spoiled and fortunate!) 

Check out his website here:

http://www.transalpriders.com/

We followed his packing instructions and were absolutely amazed at how few clothes, etc. we could get by on for that length of time! I pack way less now for trips...! We each took a small carry-on bag (empty - just a book or two for the flights) so that if we bought souveniers at the end of our trip (stored in Munich) we had a place to carry them home.

Christoph advertises "epic or easy" routes and they are just that! From some long, steep climbs on doubletrack (a few hours) to screaming descents on cobblestones; to easy, paved bike trails like one would find here in North America - these are the two extremes. We did the Roman Trails tour; slightly modified due to ice and snow still at higher elevations, and to help fit in with our dates of travel.

As for fitness, one should be in reasonable aerobic shape to help allow one recover quickly and ride comfortably for several days in a row, (especially if you want to tackle successive days in "epic' fashion!)

As the butt tends to get a little sore :madmax: (Christoph provides Assos creme which really works!!) Make sure you spend plenty of time in the saddle before the trip as that will pay dividends. A couple of hours at a time, for several days in a row will help prepare you for what you are facing! Although you can always get off the seat, stretch and rest as it isn't a race...

Don't think you have to do "epic" every day - predetermine where the best views would be and then based on your fitness and what your body says, try to do those days and rest up with "easy" days. If there are enough people in the group, they will ask every morning for people's preferences and with two guides, they can do either "epic" or "easy!"

When we do it again with Christoph (the Human Lung with Legs!), we will ensure we are very fit so we can do as many "epic" days as possible because the views from tops of mountains are the best! :eekster: The Trans-Dolomiti and / or Trans-Switzerland tours look like our next two options of choice...

In closing, I can't say enough good things about Christoph: both the trip organization (communication before, during and after - he even came through Calgary and we went for a beer this past March!) and his company! His educational background, extensive travel experiences world-wide, passion for the outdoors, charming personality, sense of humour, knowledge of the political, historical, geological aspects, etc. combined for an excellent learning experience too! He was sensitive to our desires and took AMAZING care of us! In my books, it is the person / guide who makes the trip and he is the absolute best! We heartily recommend him for anybody who wants to do a tour such as this. :thumbsup: We feel we received outstanding value for our money.

Anyways, I hope this helps anybody else looking for some advice on travelling to and throughout Europe! I have tons of pictures and I will post a few of them in the future. Christoph also has some excellent shots on his website.

Please feel free to email me if you would like any futher advice!

Happy trails!


----------



## notaknob (Apr 6, 2004)

*Transalp epic*

While I do like riding in the mountains, every transalp tour I've seen is normally a 20-60-10 mix of paved, fireroad, singletrack mix. I'm sure the trip is epic, but I don't relish riding on fire roads for four days.

But I don't go to Europe just to ride singletrack, so it's a win-win situation.


----------



## Hockeygod (Nov 11, 2004)

*Regarding the type of trans-alps terrain...*

I think that Christoph can customize the ride to your liking. Obviously, you will have to use some fireroads (closed to the public and no traffic except the odd farm vehicle!) and pavement (paved bike trails, a little bit of actual road riding) to connect the entire trans-alp route or any long multi-day ride, but we did have some singletrack. Most of our riding was on what appeared to be old farmer's cattle trails and forestry doubletrack - primarily dirt with some gravel.

Like you said, we went to Europe to 'see' lots of towns off the beaten tourist path which require passing through or by them - we were not not looking for strict singletrack riding. It was a great way to immerse ourselves in the local flavour and culture of Europe!

We can hardly wait to do it again!


----------

