In reflection, there are a few minor themes across our trip which probably did not come thru in our blog posts. I’ve made an effort to document these while comparing our experiences across different countries. Some of these are bike specific, while others are general in nature. Without further ado…
Water refill stations
As mentioned in previous post(s), water refill stations are a critical component to any longer ride (2+ hrs). In this regard, we experienced a wide range of water spigot availability throughout our trip from every 5-10 miles (Switzerland) to “are we riding in Croatia or the Saharan desert?”. As you might’ve guessed, the water spouts in Switzerland were incredibly abundant to the point where we did not go on a single ride where we either ran out of water or needed to buy a big bottle from a store/restaurant. The only thing to note on Switzerland is that like most European countries, restaurants do not immediately have “tap” water on offer (thus degrading their water offering a half point). However, we did find that upon request it was pretty much always available and “glacier fresh”. I would rate Italy in the same but slightly lower echelon vs. Switzerland. Perhaps there is a correlation with how happy the cows look in each country – Swiss cows always were smiling and offering encouragement up the climbs, while Italian cows were sometimes mangy and generally a bit grumpier – but Italian water spigot availability from roadside water spigots (i.e. not restaurants at tops of climbs) was slightly lower in availability. Croatia, however, was a whole other story. In Senj (on the mainland), we rode in Velebit Nacional Parc for the whole climb and half of the ride while coming across no spigots whatsoever. Exiting the Parc with near-empty bottles, we were bailed out as we exited by some teenage boys throwing an unsupervised pool party and doing beer bongs (they filled our bottles did not offer a go at the funnel, sadly enough). Next, while riding on the islands of Hvar and Brac, we encountered no public water stations and even restaurants we went to for water often advised us that the tap water was unsuitable for drinking (thus we were forced to buy bottles for $3-5). Quickly destined for a low score, the town of Gornji Humac saved a point or two from Croatia’s score with an absolutely life-saving water source complete with marble figurine.
Scores:
Switzerland: 9.5
Italy: 8.5
Croatia: 5
Meat, Cheese, and Cracker plates post ride
Carnal post-ride cravings come naturally to most and given the amount of riding we did over the past three weeks, we rarely ended on full stomachs with dinner time just out of reach. Bridging this gap often (75% of the time) was a meat, cheese, and cracker plate of some sort. Switzerland offered fantastic cheeses, quality meats, and decent crackers. However, it was Italy which truly stood out in this regard. Italian food is *brace for broad generalization* some of the best in the world. The selection of meats in the grocery stores as well as the cheeses had our stomachs happy and appetites momentarily delayed until dinner arrived. We purchased a large package of crackers in Bormio, which lasted all the way through Badia, Senj, Hvar, and even our last stop, Brac. Additionally, the prosciutto melts in your mouth and the range of other hard meats treated the taste buds quite nicely. Croatia offered a strong and very affordable selection of meats, however the cheese often consisted of Edamer or a rather bland brie (Presidente-brand), and for that reason it once again finished third.
Scores:
Italy: 9
Switzerland: 8
Croatia: 6.5
Grocery Store Narrative
A mid-ride pop into a grocery store can be the difference between a forced march of a ride and a pleasant cruise. Unfortunately, we often found ourselves out on the road during the typical “European siesta” which meant that in Italy and Croatia most stores were closed. Switzerland, once again, proved to be a beacon in the night with most COOPs and Migros open through the day, however the closing times did prove difficult. Our rides in Italy featured few grocery store mid-ride stops and we were able to manage around the mid-day closings. Croatia, however, took the mid-day break to a whole other level. On both Hvar and Brac, we found ourselves pining for a cold bottle of water or a light snack only to roll up to the grocery store and see that it closed at 12:30pm and wouldn’t reopen until 5:00pm (!!!). Because of this, we were often left to dip into a restaurant and ask politely for a bottle refill or else buy a fully-priced bottle of water.
Scores:
Switzerland: 9
Italy: 7
Croatia: 6
Transportation and Bike Friendliness
Switzerland, once again, has it completely dialed when it comes to bike friendliness. All of the trains we took in the country (only 2) accepted bikes and had bike-specific cars. Unsurprising that Switzerland has it under control. While we did not use the trains in Italy (besides Mo’s journey to France), we did do a day of lift/tram-assisted mountain biking. The Sella Ronda circumnavigation proved to be a breeze with the Italian lifts fully dialed. Croatia proved to be a different story. We arrived in Split and tried to buy tickets for ourselves and our bikes on the Catamaran fast ferry to Hvar. The Dalmatian ferry monopoly held by Jadrolina throttled us as we were told bikes were not allowed on the catamaran ferry (they are only allowed on the car ferries which take twice as long). Left with few options to get us to Hvar at a reasonable time, we scurried back to the car and loosely packed our bikes into our bike bags. Luckily we did not have to do a full disassemble (i.e. we kept rear derailleurs attached). When we boarded the catamaran ferry, we were shocked at the vast amount of room on board and how easy it would be for them to take bikes. It seems like this is purely a policy decision that Jadrolina would do well to change. Fortunately, once we arrived on Hvar, we found a small ferry operation that would take us from Hvar to Brac without requiring our bikes to be put back into bags. A few speed bumps overall in bike transport while in continent, but overall Europe has bike transportation much more dialed than the States.
Scores
Switzerland: 9
Italy: 9
Croatia: 7
Airbnbs vs. Hotel Options
We stayed in Airbnbs and hotels in all three countries we visited. From a price-neutral perspective, Italy (including the night at Rifugio Nuvolau) had the best overall offerings and quality. Our Airbnb in Bormio was extremely cute and catered very well to bikers. The hotel we stayed at in Badia also catered to bikers and had an unbelievable view of the finish of the Alta Badia GS. Croatian lodging was extremely affordable, but also included a broken shower head at one Airbnb, and an overall paltry kitchen offering in another. Switzerland lodging is world-class but also makes you pay for it through the nose. For comparison our cheapest night in Croatia was ~$45 while in Switzerland it was ~$125. Surely Switzerland lodging was not 3x nicer than Croatia.
Scores:
Italy: 9
Croatia: 8
Switzerland: 7
Swimming Options
The icy, snow-fed creeks and rivers of Italy and Switzerland were truly refreshing. Switzerland’s creeks seemed a bit less murky than those in Italy and there was one particular creek in Bormio that had loads of silt. This silt surely would not fly in Switzerland. Our “swimming” in Switzerland and Italy usually consisted of short dips because of the cold water temps. This is a category where Croatia outshone its competition. Unbelievably clear, warm water greeted us on every ride in Croatia and we embraced it right back. Our big day on Hvar found us indulging in three separate dips as we floated around in isolated, private coves without a sign of civilization. Croatia also presented the only beach time and the rocky makeup did not deter us from soaking up some Dalmatian sun.
Scores:
Croatia: 9
Switzerland: 7
Italy: 6
Amex Compatibility
Switzerland clearly loves Amex. Italy embraces it for the most part. Croatia would do well with a re-familiarization of the credit card.
Scores:
Switzerland: 10
Italy: 9
Croatia: 6
before we reached Sucuraj and munched some Sandos, we found an isolated little beach to take our first dip of the day
eurobike summer 19 