Week 10 – (490km – 304 mile)

Yesterday’s ride left us with a short 17 mile ride into capital city number 6, Budapest. As with all the previous capital cities we had traversed, I expected us to get a little lost. So we estimated a couple of hours from setting off in the morning to reaching the campsite.

There were bike paths along most of the roads, but their condition was questionable, so we gladly chose the road most travelled. Before we knew it 2 lanes turned into 4, 4 lanes turned into 6, 6 into 8 and we were left playing a game of cat and mouse with the traffic, dashing from red light to red light whilst being careful not to fall victim to the tram lines (bike tyres slot perfectly into them).

We arrived at the campsite about an hour later than planned. It looked overbooked, we feared the worst. But apparently there was room for us amongst the sea of tents and lack of grass. A few bent tent pegs later and we were up and running. 1 and a half days rest beckoned.

Back on the bike, and leaving Budapest was easier than it was getting in. The River Danube shall now follow us all the way to Belgrade, albeit in a slightly lazier, more relaxing manner.

Today was the hottest day of the trip so far at 38C and longed to be back in the chilly Arctic, if only for 5 minutes. The heat and the headwind combined to make slightly unpleasant cycling. If anyone reading along would like a similar experience, here’s what you do. Get hold of a hair-dryer, turn the power on full, place directly in front of your face and remain like that for 8 hours, while occasionally taking a Fanta break.

After a stop in a cool little town in Hungary watching the Olympics, we headed for Serbia enjoying our first tailwind since Lithuania, which believe me seems a long time ago. At the Serbian border we had to show our passport for the first time, we also got a nice little stamp in them. With dusk approaching we pulled of the side of the road and pitched our tents in a quiet cornfield under a clear sky and a full moon.

We got a stupidly early start, but it seems the Serbian police like their early starts too, after a mere 3 kilometres we get pulled over by them. There is nobody else in sight, so while the rest of Serbia sleeps we are told to exit the motorway at the next turn off and use the “old road”. So we did, but it turned out we took the old, old road, which was nothing but a dirt track after 5 kilometres of gruelling pedalling we came to a junction with 2 dirt tracks going in different directions, no signs or buildings were around to guide us and our map was inadequate. After a few minutes of head scratching, we headed back the way we came, back through the sand, going back over the bike tracks we had left only minutes before.

We eventually got back on the tarmac, our bikes now covered in sand. The old road was better but far from perfect, dodging potholes and clinging on to our bike’s as trucks barreled alongside us wasn’t fun, so we headed back for the motorway to enjoy the smooth roads and wide shoulders.

Before we knew it we had passed through Belgrade and pulled into a campground which was essentially a patch of grass at the back of a motel. I wasn’t complaing.

Dinner that night went astonishingly wrong and we decided to feed it to the stray dog’s that occuppied the “campsite”. One of the dog’s turned his nose up at the food on offer and like us he to went to bed hungry.

 

Week 9 – (610km – 378 mile)

I noticed a crack on the sidewall of my front tyre, so rather than tempt fate I decided to replace it in Krakow. That now brings the number of tyre’s I have used on this tour to a grand total of 6.

Our last day in Poland as we proceeded towards the mountains of Slovakia was in the pouring rain. We stayed in a motel just before the border to dry out and even managed to catch the opening day at the Olympics.

We entered Slovakia on a fine day weather wise, which is perfect when in mountainous regions. Slovakia is my second favourite country, after Norway of course. Everything is green, the towns are all neat and tidy and they have mountains to rival those of Norway.

We found a campsite and surprisingly the people that ran it were nothing like the Slovakiansfrom the film Hostel. So we settled in and immediately went on a beer run. We also found some internet which seemed like the local hangout for kid’s, upon which they all decided to practice their English on us. It seemed they hadn’t learned anything other than “what is your name?” at school.

Our second day in Slovakia saw us leave the mountains behind, but only after a tough, tough climb that was gave views that were worth every drop of sweat. Instead of looking up at the mountains, we were now looking down into them. Awesome. Cue 20km’s of un-interrupted downhill, reaching a top speed of 64kmh.

Next stop Hungary, where I changed €15 at the border and got 3200 Hungarian back. Great. After a lot of rolling hills and Fanta breaks we neared Budapest, which was our target but with dusk approaching we decided to pull in at a campsite a stone’s throw away from the River Danube.

There were 3 main landmarks I wanted to see on this trip. 1. The Arctic Circle (although you can’t really see it) 2. The River Danube 3. The view of Asia from Istanbul. Finally got to number 2 as the sun was going down, I had to touch it to make sure it was real. I couldn’t believe how far I had come all under my own steam.

Showered for the first time in a week, dirt poured off of me.