Milan – Vaduz itinerary: in Liechtenstein without entering the motorway

There are many things that you want to do in the motorcycle world, without ever succeeding for one reason or another. Desires that remain dormant in the drawer of our mind, labeled "sooner or later". Some of these challenging and grandiose, others less so, but still tempting, postponed, perhaps at the last minute for one reason or another.

We, who are satisfied with little, have been planning for a while, "among other things", to take a few Alpine passes by motorbike, in the winter season, and perhaps combine them with a route that discovers some places "little traveled" by tourists on two routes and a "fun" and non-homogeneous journey, without a motorway in between.

Shall we go to Liechtenstein?

What? Where? Okay, come on, it's not very far, in 3 and a half hours you'll be there, we'll do it in a day, then there's the Kuntsmuseum, modern art, quite a few castles... No no, you don't understand, we're going without the motorway, all state and internal, and we break into Switzerland twigs Maloja or from Spluga, and we travel through the Swiss valleys up to the old customs house with Liechtenstein. Well, this little trip has been tickling us for a while, beautiful roads, great landscapes, from lakes to Alpine peaks, to Swiss nature up to Reindeer between Austria and Liechtenstein, with the thrill of tackling the passes in the middle of winter, hoping to find them open.

The opportunity was also excellent for testing a motorbike on the way, a test that we do not do with the standards of conventional "road tests", but by using the motorbike for travelling, we are in a position to be able to evaluate a specific model in the context of "motorcycle touring". ” and highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the “prolonged” use of the vehicle. Two Suzuki V-Strom 1000XT ready, we just have to wait for the weather to decide to loosen its cold and wet grip for a maximum of 36 hours and leave.

So perennial forecasts in hand, hoping that they will change from one moment to the next, the departure arrives, wake up at 7, breakfast at the bar, checklist to make sure you haven't forgotten anything, last look at the map and off you go.
In the direction of Lecco, we take Viale Fulvio Testi, from Milan a few tens of minutes on the SS36 and we arrive at the lake, from here we continue towards Barzio on the provincial road 62, a black river between two mountain chains, it's sunny, 12 degrees and it's very well, having arrived in Taceno the road paints a series of curves through the woods and signs the work with an exit from above onto Bellano and the lake, with a splendid view up to the Alps. We skirt the lake passing through the Pian di nature reserve Spain, and from here we head towards Chiavenna, the temperature begins to drop slightly, but the day is with us and the sun watches us proud of the gift given between a snowfall and the rains expected the following evening.

We traveled about 140 km of provincial roads, arrow to the right and stop, coffee and photos of the landscape and the motorbikes.
The V-Strom 1000 XT is the version with spoked rims, the adventure tourer from Hamamatsu, a motorbike that is positioned halfway between the medium 7/800cc and the maxi 1.200-plus of today, a cubic capacity that has recently started to clearly interest other motorcycle manufacturers as well (read Africa Twin for Honda), due to lower management costs and the possibility of still having a nice engine between your legs. The risk, however, is that of not being able to compete with the maxis, which today have more and more horsepower and electronics to manage them. Suzuki certainly doesn't play on the number of horsepower, giving a hundred to its road enduro, but it fills the gap with a torque of 100 Nm at just 4000 rpm, and it is here that the bike gives its best, with a low-end pull "from boxer”, which takes you up towards the Maloja pass in fourth gear at 70 per hour and, if you want to speed up, the bike, like a tractor, with that typical sound of the V at 90 degrees, pulls up to 120 in an instant without hesitations, becoming "bad" if you use it between 4 and 7.000 rpm, with the ability to not make you realize that you are going at really "challenging" speeds in tight mixed conditions.

The tires were there to remind us that it is winter and we are climbing to 2.000 metres, the mountains of snow on the sides of the road are melting and the road is suddenly covered in water, forcing us to "let go" of the throttle and concentrate on driving to do not risk slipping on bends.

The thermometer drops sharply, we are at 0 degrees, the view is breathtaking, everything is white, the trees, the mountains, the meadows, once we reach the Julier Pass, the landscape becomes alien, the black strip of asphalt surrounded by the ice of the summit, where the white of the ridge merges with the silver clouds of the sky so blue that it seems fake, forcing us to stop to take some photos, even though our hands are freezing once you take your gloves off and you're hit by a wind that cuts your face, being here on a motorbike at this time of year gives you a unique sensation, and it's absolutely worth trying, of standing alone in that white land with the sky resting on your snow, without skis on the roof of the car, with your motorbike and the sun creating reflections on its frame, constantly hoping that everything doesn't change at any moment, because here, if it rains, it snows, and if it snows they close the steps, we know the beautiful moments are short-lived, ephemeral, so let's not waste time and get back in the saddle quickly towards the Swiss "plain", at 2300 meters on a winter motorbike, even 1.000 seems like a plain, at least psychologically.

We skirt the Silsersee and Silvaplanersee lakes, completely frozen, and descend towards Salux, passing beside Lake Marmorera, the dam is almost invisible covered in snow, and we continue to descend, while the temperature rises, the curves continue and the landscape returns to colors. Julierstrasse 3 takes us into the Swiss greenery, between one curve and another, in a succession of villages with pointed roofs and farmhouses used as restaurants, up to Chur and the last town before the border, Bad Ragaz, with that name we expected Hard Rock Cafés and Harleys at all corners, we were welcomed by typical "Bavarian" houses, luxurious hotels and pointed bell towers, a visit here is worth making, right before saying goodbye to Switzerland and entering the state of Liechtenstein.

The customs presents itself with a "wall" to close the valley that runs along the provincial road, behind the fortification, you pass through the military base of the principality, immersed in the greenery on the sides of the mountains, continuing through the old walls inside it, and under the last stone door you enter the 25 km of German language that lies between Austria and Switzerland.

A few bends from the customs, on the side of the road, on the sides of Balzers, theancient customs stone flanked by the Swiss flag, it has marked the territory for centuries, while the horizon opens up and the Rhine cuts through the surface of the Principality of Liechtenstein with its course, until it reaches the last wooden bridge left in Europe to cross the River, right at the entrance of its capital Vaduz.

The Castle, still inhabited by the royal family, dominates the city, where a stop at the Kunstmuseum "museum of modern art" is a must, you cannot fail to recognize it, a cube of shiny black stone in the center of the city, which among galleries of modern art and ancient castles to visit, the Gutenberg Castle among the first, offers the typical landscapes of the Alsace regions, with the added bonus for us motorcyclists, the possibility of returning to Italy, either through Spluga and Switzerland or to extend from opposite side, in Austria and go down towards Livigno, but only in summer however, now the passes are all closed, if you don't want to take the motorway either.

The Suzuki V-Strom 1000 XT, a tireless travel companion, proved to be very comfortable with its driving position, absent of vibrations, planted on the front axle, and with an average consumption of around 20 km per litre, taking into account the roads of mountain travelled, excellent. The only flaw is the capacity of the bags, enough for a weekend, but not for a longer holiday for two. The engine convinced us on all fronts, with unexpected torque and verve, which allow you to travel seamlessly in any situation, even "pulling" without ever giving you the sensation of pushing the bike, keeping it revved to the limit to have to go out of the corner and extend to the next hairpin. We have to return now, by the same road, the only pass available is this one in winter, without having to prolong the return too much, and tonight they give water, the sky is grey, and the Julier Pass awaits us, if it rains there, in winter it snows , but we have already said this.

If you want the details of the route, this is the link that you can use.