Stelvio or Bust

So... What we didn't mention yesterday, was that the car had developed an ever increasing vibration as we drove. We could have lived with it and hoped for the best, but it felt suspiciously like the car was slowly shaking itself to pieces. But - where to find a Triumph specialist in the middle of Europe - when it's a U.K. car not sold since 1978?

In Switzerland, about 10 minutes off the route, as it turns out! Garage Messmer was a fabulous place - knowledgeable, efficient, friendly... We sat and had coffees, admiring the showroom of restored Triumphs, MGs and even a GT40. The car was whisked up on a lift (see extra), and loose bits replaced on the prop shaft and exhaust system. By 11:30am we were back on the road - so much smoother!

We were 4.5 hours behind schedule at that point, so we tweaked the route to miss out a couple of Alpine passes and rejoin later. The three cars in our little gang met up again in the afternoon, and we all enjoyed the sun beating down on the Julier, Livignio and Stelvio passes. The Blip shows the view down from the Stelvio pass with the light already fading - the road you can see snaking down in the distance to the left we drove in twilight then darkness...

We've done 6 of the 10 Countries so far in the run. More mountain passes tomorrow.

A quick, but lovely, pizza for dinner, then on to the hotel.