Munderfing and Mattighofen

Where? What’s to see at Munderfing? We get off the train at Munderfing Dampsaege and start to wonder the same thing. But it’s a nice enough little town, and we wander the few hundred metres down the main road to Gasthaus Weiss.

Nice to get out of the cities and into the little villages. The smells are decidedly rural - a combination of silage and what seems to be a pig sty. But no - it’s just the equivalent of pig sty effluent being sprayed on the fields as fertiliser. Very fruity.

With an afternoon to kill we figure a hike into the adjacent forest might be in order. It's warm too - the first time my legs have seen daylight since Shanghai.  We set off down WaldStrasse and past little farming hamlets until we get into the canopy. There are signs we have difficulty translating - but one of them says “This also applies to cyclists”.

Staying on the road would mean an 8km loop getting us back after dark, so we take a 4WD track heading more directly up the hill closer to town.

This is perfect adventure biking country - a bit muddy and rutted in places, but I can’t see any knobbly tyre tracks, not even for mountain bikes. I’m starting to think two-wheeled vehicles are verboten here.

It gets increasingly steep and by now the DRZ would be struggling with traction, but there’s something blue tucked up near the top of the hill that’s worthy of investigation. Pauline looks a bit dubious but I hike on up to take a look. Ah - blue plastic barrels filled with corn meal, and a feeding trough. Up to the left on poles is a hide, while to the right a detector beam shines across a path between two trees.

Now it’s clear - set up a feeding station for the deer, understand their movements from the detector, then knock them off from the hide at your convenience.

Seems to be a bit one-sided in the hunter’s favour to me. Whatever happened to stalking? I take a flash photo of the detector and it gives a satisfying click in return. I wonder if I’ve shifted the odds in the deer's favour a little? And now I understand why bikes aren’t allowed. Wouldn’t want to scare the deer would we? Even wonder if hikers are meant to be here - couldn’t read the signs…

Makes me realise how lucky we are to have Woodhill, Riverhead and other forests open by arrangement to two-wheeled activity. Despite progressive Maori ownership, it looks like we’ll continue to have access to both the Sandpit and the mountain bike park, even if it costs a dollar or so more.

Thursday morning 13 November. Apart from our airport arrival and departure dates, our European trip is revolving around this fixed date. We hop on the train to Mattighofen.

In was back in the 30s when Hans Trunkenpolz started up his Kraftfahrzeug business in Mattighofen. In the early 50s he started building motorbikes, and Ernst Kronreif came on board as a significant investor. KTM (Kronreif Trunkenpolz Mattighofen) was officially born. In receivership in the 90s, the motorcycle division was purchased and reborn by CEO Stefan Pierer, who remains in charge today of a growing company producing over 100,000 motorbikes a year. With a pair of KTM Freerides in the garage at home, how could we not see the place of their birth? And it follows a travelling tradition - when we were last in Europe we stopped off at the Ducati factory in Bologna.

We arrive at KTM HQ a bit before 10am for the English language tour.

The date was initially set for us by email long ago, then it was advertised for others as well. And popular it is too, with 40-odd people showing up, including a large contingent from the Indian dealer network.

Very similar to the Ducati factory inside, but on a smaller scale. We see a 690 Enduro R being assembled, from the initial “marriage” of engine to frame, then the addition of all the bits to make a finished bike, which is then tested on rollers in an enclosed room with exhaust extractors before being packed for shipment.

Good seeing KTM’s attention to detail, their focus on quality, and their pride in building many of the parts themselves, including the wheels. Interesting too hearing how one of the more time-consuming aspects is applying the country-specific modifications and engine maps. Our 690 R was being detuned for the American market - poor buggers.

As opposed to Bologna, there are no merchandise opportunities. KTM realise what a great PR and sales opportunity factory tours are, and are busy planning a museum and shop which will be ready in a couple of years. Meanwhile, all available space is going on increasing their production capability.

But it’s interesting. As opposed to Germany and Italy where there are bikes everywhere, there are relatively few in Austria, even KTMs. Perhaps the biking culture hasn’t hit Austria yet, and even of the bikes I did see, no great loyalty to KTM either.

Another afternoon to kill - there’s not a lot else to see at Mattighofen. We get off a stop early on our return and wander the stream path and and back roads back to our hotel.

There’s a bit in the news about Armistice Day celebrations, and it’s poignant to see flowers on the equivalent of our Anzac memorials as well.

Time to catch up on emails and blogs, and just chill out with a bit of R&R. Travelling carries a degree of stress when you’re on the road all the time, and sometimes it’s nice just to do not much at all.

But we can’t rest up for too long - Munich calls, and a catch-up with my mate Robert. What to do in Munich for a day? Art?  Monuments?  Churches?  Well, it’s the home of BMW, and there’s a KTM shop not too far from BMW Welt…