This years trip is to the Balkans. I dont normally post as i go, but i happened to have some free time, plus EU mobile roaming doesnt cost extra.
Plan is to crossover to cross over from Hull to Rotterdam, then dash across the Netherlands, Germany and Austria into Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Serbia and then back into Croatia and Slovenia and back. Three weeks in total. The route is primarily based on Vibraction road book 31.
https://www.vibraction.org/road-books/les-balkans/
I had originally planned to tag on Albania but then decided against it as i would really be pushing it. Anyway, its always good to leave something for next time.
Plan was for single vehicle with travel companions, but as things happened, they dropped out and i decided to go solo. As such i reconfigured the back to be able to sleep in vehicle apart from having the roof tent.
So last Friday, car serviced, loaded with camping, recovery gear and enough provisions for an army I headed to Hull to catch the night ferry to Rotterdam. As i approached Hull the gods decided i should be sent off in style as a gull swooped down and dumped across my windscreen!
The crossing was uneventful and by 10am on Saturday I was on the road. The weekend traffic was pretty hectic with lots of cars towing caravans. I parked up for the night at around 9pm in a services just short of the Austrian border and the city of Salzburg. Not too many photos, but heres one arriving in Rotterdam
This morning i headed south into Austria with the intension of crossing into Slovenia. I was driving along the A10 autobahn when the dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree. The gps showed a rest stop a kilometer or two ahead and i pulled in there, safely off the motorway which didnt have hard shoulder.
The dash lights for battery, oil, oil filter, at temp, brake and even the timing belt came were lit. Since its unlikely that all those systems would suddenly fail, my thoughts went to something electronic, a cpu maybe. The dreaded electronics in a 100 series.
I pulled my phone out to see who i could contact. Paul's name, previous owner, came up and he suggested it was proably the alternator. Thanks Paul. I also called Jon, and he said the same. Thanks Jon.
Now in the UK my breakdown service is the AA and my cover doesnt extend to Europe. As things turned out, the gods were smiling on me - thank you seagull in Hull. I had seen Chris's thread about ADAC and last minute on Friday before i left, I subscrbed over the phone. Thanks Chris. Little was i to know that I'd be using them within 48 hours! I gave them a call and within the hour a truck showed up. The alternator, called generator in german, was confirmed kaput. I followed the breakdown truck to a local indy garage just off the motorway, with a toyota dealer just round the corner. I now need to wait till tomorrow to get the replacement alternator ordered and fitted. Hopefully wont take too long. Im camping in the garage yard at the moment.
There was nothing else for me to do so i decided to walk to the village so 3km away - in 30C heat. On the corner next to the garage I came across a strip club. Brilliant I thought to myself, that could come in handy for later....
.... whoa what are you all thinking!!!! If I walk to the village and get lost, Ill ask a taxi driver to take me to the garage by the strip club. Honestly you lot. Now i know it didnt happen if there are no photos, so here you go ...
There, day 2 of my holiday and Im stuck with a vehicle breakdown, but my spirits and humour are still high ... just wait till i get the bill!
In truth, it looks like the alternator was on its way out and would have failed anyway. Its just bad timing. Now Im just praying to the seagull from Hull that I havent fried the batteries.
Plan is to crossover to cross over from Hull to Rotterdam, then dash across the Netherlands, Germany and Austria into Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Serbia and then back into Croatia and Slovenia and back. Three weeks in total. The route is primarily based on Vibraction road book 31.
https://www.vibraction.org/road-books/les-balkans/
I had originally planned to tag on Albania but then decided against it as i would really be pushing it. Anyway, its always good to leave something for next time.
Plan was for single vehicle with travel companions, but as things happened, they dropped out and i decided to go solo. As such i reconfigured the back to be able to sleep in vehicle apart from having the roof tent.
So last Friday, car serviced, loaded with camping, recovery gear and enough provisions for an army I headed to Hull to catch the night ferry to Rotterdam. As i approached Hull the gods decided i should be sent off in style as a gull swooped down and dumped across my windscreen!
The crossing was uneventful and by 10am on Saturday I was on the road. The weekend traffic was pretty hectic with lots of cars towing caravans. I parked up for the night at around 9pm in a services just short of the Austrian border and the city of Salzburg. Not too many photos, but heres one arriving in Rotterdam
This morning i headed south into Austria with the intension of crossing into Slovenia. I was driving along the A10 autobahn when the dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree. The gps showed a rest stop a kilometer or two ahead and i pulled in there, safely off the motorway which didnt have hard shoulder.
The dash lights for battery, oil, oil filter, at temp, brake and even the timing belt came were lit. Since its unlikely that all those systems would suddenly fail, my thoughts went to something electronic, a cpu maybe. The dreaded electronics in a 100 series.
I pulled my phone out to see who i could contact. Paul's name, previous owner, came up and he suggested it was proably the alternator. Thanks Paul. I also called Jon, and he said the same. Thanks Jon.
Now in the UK my breakdown service is the AA and my cover doesnt extend to Europe. As things turned out, the gods were smiling on me - thank you seagull in Hull. I had seen Chris's thread about ADAC and last minute on Friday before i left, I subscrbed over the phone. Thanks Chris. Little was i to know that I'd be using them within 48 hours! I gave them a call and within the hour a truck showed up. The alternator, called generator in german, was confirmed kaput. I followed the breakdown truck to a local indy garage just off the motorway, with a toyota dealer just round the corner. I now need to wait till tomorrow to get the replacement alternator ordered and fitted. Hopefully wont take too long. Im camping in the garage yard at the moment.
There was nothing else for me to do so i decided to walk to the village so 3km away - in 30C heat. On the corner next to the garage I came across a strip club. Brilliant I thought to myself, that could come in handy for later....
.... whoa what are you all thinking!!!! If I walk to the village and get lost, Ill ask a taxi driver to take me to the garage by the strip club. Honestly you lot. Now i know it didnt happen if there are no photos, so here you go ...
There, day 2 of my holiday and Im stuck with a vehicle breakdown, but my spirits and humour are still high ... just wait till i get the bill!
In truth, it looks like the alternator was on its way out and would have failed anyway. Its just bad timing. Now Im just praying to the seagull from Hull that I havent fried the batteries.