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Switzerland: Moto Trip Switzerland: Day 6 - Susten Pass, Oberalp Pass, Igl Lai and Julier Pass

Yearly vacation started and with Nada we decided to have a motorbike trip, exploring Switzerland. In the morning we left our private camp and since our camp had no running water we stopped in Innertkirchen, where we did the dishes and all other morning things. Soon we were ready to attack our first pass, Susten Pass. We descended to Wassen and soon we had another pass on the menu, Oberalp Pass. Riding can make you tired, so we stopped at Igl Lai (Heidsee), where we regained our strength for the final pass, Julier Pass. We ended our riding day in a campsite in Silvaplana.

Previous days of our motorbike trip to Switzerland: Day 5, Day 4, Day3, Day 2 and Day 1.

Leaving our "HALT" campsite

Communication

 

Starting from Innertkirchen, the Passo del Susten ascent is 27.7 km long.

Waterfall over the tunnel

Blue horse with the waterfall on the way to Susten Pass

Steinsee with Stein Glacier below Sustenhorn, 3502 m

Thunder and Nada

Maybe she would like to be named Snow White

At the top of the Susten Pass we still found plenty of snow

Susten Pass has an elevation of 2260 m. The pass road, built from 1938-1945, connects the canton of Bern and the canton of Uri. A 300 metre long tunnel crosses the pass at 2224 metres.

 

Exploring the area around the pass

Saw many options for new adventures

In the photography mode

Flowers in the Alps

 

Surrounded by glaciers

Romantic at heart

End of the hike on the canton border

Cleaned the pass for the traffic

First guys passing the clean pass

Since the 17th century a mule-train trading route over the Susten Pass existed. Later it had some strategic importance for Napoleon's troops, before 1811 the development for a proper alpine pass began. 1818 the first stretch was opened and only 100 years later the entire pass was complete. In 1938 the Susten Pass was modernised to improve public transport, but also for reasons of national defence during WWII. Only on 7th September 1946 the road was opened for private cars and the public. Since then the pass serves mainly tourism and made Switzerland a spectacular attraction richer.

Waterfalls on the South side of the valley

Following the valley of Meienreuss,  a 14.3 km long left tributary of the Reuss.

View above Andermatt

 

Oberalpsee, where you can do fishing at 2027 metres above sea level.

At the top we met Simona and Igor from Slovenia

 

Oberalp Pass, 2044 m, connects the cantons of Graubünden and Uri between Disentis and Andermatt.

Tujetsch, a municipality in the Canton of Grisons, the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland.

The Catholic Church of St. Luzi dates back to the 8th century and served first as the burial place of the bishops of Chur.

Chur is the capital and largest town of the Swiss canton of Grisons.

Midday break for all 4 of us

The Heidsee lake is embedded in the midst of the high valley in an idyllic, park-like landscape on 1484 m above sea level.

Awesome place to refresh the body after the whole day in the motorbike clothes

This duck was lucky, that we didn't come here for dinner

My ride to the small island

Posing for the Virtual Cache

On my way back from the mini island I used another type of transportation

Walk around the lake

On the east side of the lake lies Lenzerhorn, 2906 m.

Blooming flowers

The area around the lake is called Lenzerheide and it is popular ski resort in the winter. The lake itself also freezes.

Sculptures in the middle of the lake

Our tour around the lake ended and we had to move on.

The last pass today was Julier Pass. At its summit, the pass crosses the watershed / drainage divide between the basins of the Rivers Rhine and Danube.

The road constructed in the 1820s to replace the old Septimer Pass was well built and is still easily passable after moderate widening for normal cars and trucks.

Lake Lej da las Culuonnas on the Julier Pass, 2284 m, behind it the Piz da las Coluonnas, 2802 m, and on the left the Piz Polaschin, 3013 m

.We moved on to Engadin, the valley of the Inn people.

Lake Silvaplana and Lej da Champfèr looked good for a nice camping spot. 

We found a great place on the shore of Lake Silvaplana.

 

Dinner time

Day 6: Susten Pass, Oberalp Pass, Igl Lai, Julier Pass and Silvaplana - 220 km

GeoCaches found (all received a visit by trackable items "Siebasiach's Figure Eight Geocoin", TB735HE, "Gallotia Mystery", TB7372G and "Kljuc do casa in prostora / A key to time and space", TB2RCC3):
- Schwamm, GC6AKXN
- Niveau-Ausgleich, GC65D3H
- Lenzerheide: Heidsee-Runde, Multi, GC313HJ
- Inseli Lenzerheide - Virtual Reward 2.0, Virtual, GC88ZT1
- Julierpass (2,284m) [GSG18], GC7XEFZ