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July 21 - Start of the Road-trip

The very next day - on July 21 - we headed south from Leipzig, headed initially for the mountains of Western Austria. Along the way, we got to know our cars as the wonderfully-built, taut, responsive performance vehicles that they are. We were carefully following the Preuninger break-in method, and we also installed protective grilles in the front air intakes. We were ready for adventure!
Primo parking
Protective Grilles
Through Pleasant Fields
We headed in a generally southerly direction, passing by Nuremburg and Salzburg. By dinnertime we were crossing the border into Austria and at dusk we had arrived at our lodging for the night - a quiet valley hotel called the Landcafe in the town of Stadl.
To the Mountains of Austria
Landcafe in Stadl
July 23 - The First Great Road

The following morning - after a bit of reorganization and a quick clean of the cars (Porsche sportscars need to look their best when being photographed on mountain roads), we headed off to the first "real twisty" of our grand roadtrip - a traverse of the Nockalmstrasse scenic byway. The byway is a toll road mostly used for sightseeing drives and unfortunately we chosen to drive on a summer weekend day. Not great for letting our GTSes stretch their legs, but we still managed to start to get a feel for their superb handling characteristics. Our picnic stop partway along the route - at a beautiful alpine pullout - was in itself worth the drive.
Antenna Routing
Morning Cleanup
The Nockalmstrasse
Beautiful Nock Mountains
From the Nockalmstrasse we headed west, passing through the Porsche-birthplace town of Gmünd, and then on to cross the frontier between Austria and Italy. We were headed to the mighty Dolomites, studded with pale white crags and towers ... and also draped with all manner of excellent curvy roads. We made our way up to a little Italian rifugio for the night, nestled away in a quiet corner of the Dolomites known as the Carnic Alps.
To Gmund
On into Italy
Excellent Mountain Meal
July 24-25 - Two Days in the Dolomites

The following day we had high hopes for some twisty-road sampling of some of the Dolomite's great routes, but unfortunately, the weather had other ideas. We soon encountered rain - and quite a lot of it, as we crossed over some great routes, including a favorite of mine, the Passo Giau.
Garnering Interest
Rain-swept Alpine
Rifugio Valparola
We had a bit of trouble locating suitable accommodation for the night, but managed to snag a room at the sturdy structure of the Rifugio Valparola, situated under the castle-like ramparts of the 10,000 foot-high Cima Conturines. We parked our Cayman and Boxster GTSes right at the edge of the elevated parking area, giving us a spectacular spot to capture the beauty of our two sportcars against the dramatic and moody beauty of the Dolomites during inclement weather.
Amazing Wallpaper Shots
The following day's weather was much more amenable to sporty driving and the photographic and video capture thereof. We returned to the Passo Giau, where we had a great time sampling and re-sampling a truly great bit of road known as "The Serpentines". Our 718 GTSes remained unflappable and obedient companions throughout. We finished off the day at a quiet rifugio in the south of the range, situating us well for the next major destination of our roadtrip.
Setting up for side filming
The Serpentines
Always in sight
Onwards GTS 4.0 Twins!
July 26 - Venice, the Lowlands, and Imola

On the 26th of July, we drove south and out of the craggy Dolomites. We made a stopover in Venice, doing a crewmember swap (if you remember from the previous page, we had gathered a set of friends to help us out as crewmembers, helping with photographing, video, and driving, so that we could best capture the experience of two cars driving together). After a most pleasant lunch in a quiet Venetian piazza, we returned to our cars and continued directly south, across the wide plains of the valley of the Po River - Italy's largest expanse of flat terrain. We ended the day at the storied city of Imola, home to excellent food, historic architecture, and a famous racetrack.
Post-Dolomites Wash
Crewmember Switch
Venetian Stopover
Crossing the Plain of the Po
Imola - city of Motorsport
July 27 - For Ayrton; Up into the Apennines; Camping with Porsches

The following day we spent a sunny morning at the Imola Formula-One circuit. In particular we wanted to pay homage to a racing hero of ours - Ayrton Senna - who died here on that horrible morning on May 1st of 1994. We visited both the official and the unofficial memorial spots. Beautiful and simultaneously sad. We spent a bit more time touring the curves of the famous track, and then wrapped things up at noon.

We then started the next major leg of our road-trip - the drive along the spine of the Apennine Mountains. These are lower and less rugged than the mountains of the Alps, but full of character and history - and also full of very fun roads. We ended our day doing a very unusual thing for a couple of Porsche sportscar drivers: we camped! at a free public campground near the mountain town of Firenzuola.
Monument to Ayrton
A rest at the Acque Minerali Curve
Along Scenic Ridgecrests
Umbrellaed Main Street
Camping with Porsches?
July 28 - Castle Quest

We spent the next day - another beautiful, lazy, summer day - on the curving roads of the grassy and hilly Apennines. The area was much quieter than the tourist-clogged roads of the higher mountains, and we were appreciative of that. We ended up on this day (after a bit of getting disoriented) at a fantastic lodging spot - a beautifully-renovated 15th-century castle owned by a semi-retired local couple, Valentino and Clara, who showed an incredible amount of hospitality - even to the point of lending us out their little Fiat Panda 4x4, to allow us to reach an out-of-the-way nighttime pizza eatery.
Planning Shots
Carmine against Stone
GTS Chronicles at the Castello
Valentino and The Chronicles
July 29 - To a Foggy Rifugio

The next day was another northwest-ward push through the Apennines, along many quiet and curvy backways. We booked a mountaintop rifugio for the end of our day, and as we arrived, we discovered a summit shrouded in cloud. Day turned to night, as we entered a gloomy world where one cannot see farther than twenty metres! But we made it safely, and enjoyed a comfy bed and a warm meal (Rifugio Pratorondo).
Backroad Nirvana
Spooky summit fog
July 30 - Some Great Twisties and Some Rocky Reaches

July 30th was our final full day in Italy. We spent the first part of it descending down to the coastline of the Italian Riviera... and then back up into the Ligurian Alps to sample one of the tastiest bit of twisty roads so far on our trip - the SP248 over the Colle del Quazzo. We ended the day in a manner that was a little more spicy than we had intended, when we had to do a little bit of impromptu mid-engine sportscar rock-crawling, in order to get us up to our night-time mountain lodgings - the Rifugio Pian dell'Arma.
Cruising the Riviera
Here and There and Everywhere
Starting the "esses" of the SP213
Descending to Garassio
Can you rock-crawl a 718?
Rifugio Pian dell'Arma
July 31 - To an amazing French Chapel-Farm

On the 31st we had challenges of a slightly different sort, having chosen a very remote backcountry pass to explore - the Passo Teglia. Although remote and exceedingly beautiful, the road up to and over it was narrow and a bit overgrown in places. The solitude, however, was superb. Once over this pass, we made our way west and over the border into France, where we happened upon the quaintest of French bed and breakfasts at the Chapelle Saint Gervais near the town of Sospel. The proprietor, Pascale, welcomed us with open arms, let us park the two GTSes in a very special spot, and even did our laundry. Amazing!
Backcountry fountain
Lunch at S. Bernardo Picnic Area
Passo Teglia
Across an unspoiled landscape
Into France
At the Chapelle
French breakfast goodness
August 1-3 - Three Days in the French Alps

On the morning of August 2nd, We reluctantly left Pascale's amazing La Chapelle Saint Gervais Bed and Breakfast. But, we had something exciting to look forward to: exploration of the high Alps of Eastern France. We first explored some lower-altitude terrain, travelling on twisty but quiet backways through lower, somewhat arid terrain. We then hit a couple of the more famous high-altitude passes: the Col des Fourches and the Col de la Bonette. Both were amazing roads with excellent high-altitude scenery, but they were also plagued with summer tourist traffic. We thought back to our multiple failed attempts to even discuss a slightly alternative start date for our European Delivery dates. These thoughts frustrated us, as even a few weeks before or later could have made all the difference with respect to this congestion.
French Twisties
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