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We were back in the van and on our way to Austria, aiming for Salzburg where Karen and Brad were hoping to get some well needed washing done. The scenery was pretty spectacular, even along the motorways, which got us to Salzburg around 2pm. Leaving them to wash their clothes, we went off to explore the ¨Sound of Music¨ city, with a few renditions from the famous movie along the way (how can you help it???). With just over an hour to spare, we raced into the centre, made our lunch in the main square and then wandered around it´s neat & tidy streets before heading back to the van.
We were all keen to drive over the ¨Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse¨ mountain pass, revered as the most scenic in the world! After learning that we would need to rush it that evening, as it closes at dusk, we decided to wait until the following day so we could take our time, especially as the weather forecast was a fine day ahead! Our plan was to drive to a town near the start of the pass and find accommodation for us. Unfortunately accommodation was rather expensive in the mountains and Karen & Brad kindly offered for us to squish in the van that night, with one of us sharing the bed and the other on the floor. Thinking it could be quite fun, and keen to save a little money, we agreed.
By this stage however, it was quite dark, so finding a good ¨free¨ camp site at that time was difficult. But we found a space next to a pub and a park and set up camp. After K&B cooked us a delicious curry, with a beer and a glass of wine to wash it down, we settled in for the night, and slept at intervals as traffic thundered over the nearby ricketty bridge and rain began to fall....how´s the serenity....!
The morning brought with it more rain, low cloud and grey skies....not looking good for the mountain pass. We gave it some time as we sipped our freshly brewed coffee however, and sure enough, in time, the fog began to lift and the blue skies started to break.
So up the mountain passage we go. The van chugging a little at the steep slopes but happy enough to keep turning over. Soon after hitting the snow line we find ourselves in deep snow cover, the road is cleared everyday but the roadside is blanketed. The Aussies immediately jump out of the van and set to making a snow man. In short time we have constructed the coolest little Aussie in the Austrian Alps. Complete with thongs, Katherine Gorge hat and Dolmio grin. After a series of snow fights and photo moments we climb back aboard for the ascent to the scenic peak, Edelweiss.
Talk about stunning. Mark has his face pressed against the window with his desire to find someway of skiing down these immense mountains sides of fresh snow. Despite the best snow he has ever seen, no-one seems interested in snow sport at this time of year... Spoilt locals.
We stop for a bit of van cooked breakfast at the top of the mountain, BLATs and more... The weather passes a few low clouds over and regularly clears for stunning snow covered views. Naturally we took hundreds of photos.
After a time, we headed back down the mountain side on route to the Train station. The descent was very steep, wet and winding. After a good 30 minutes of driving we started to smell burning brakes. Thinking it was the trucks we passed, we continued until the next little town. Where Brad noticed the brakes were getting soft and we stopped to let them cool. 20 minutes later we started off again, stopping suddenly when Brad found no brake pressure and yanked on the hand break... Shit. Half way down a mountain pass with no breaks. We thought the 3.5 tonne van would struggle on the upside... So we idle 30kms back down to town in low gears and one hand on the park break. Hopefully no major damage for Brad and Karen.
We get dropped at the Train station and head to Slovenia. Unfortunately the connections are not possible for that day, so we stay in Villach for the night. Talk about a town that is not on the backpacker circuit. The cheapest accom is 76 euros and we can´t find any wifi. At least breakfast was big enough to stretch to lunch provisions and we did sleep better than on the floor of the van...
The next day we see the sights of Villach, nothing much, and catch the train to Slovenia. The sun is out and the weather is a toasty 22 degrees.
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