Euro E2E - The Route
Wednesday, 20 August 2008
Tuesday, 19 August 2008
19 August 2008
Tuesday 19 August 2008
After a horrible non event of a breakfast, we hit the road earlier than usual at 08:45. Despite the hotel being quite nice, the service and food didn't live up to expectations....
Our daily plan has us biking the 70 miles or so from Orizari, Macedonia to Negotoni also Macedonia. After the hilly nature of yesterday's ride, we're hoping for a bit of respite today.
Weather conditions performed as per usual; clear blue skies and the promise of significant heat build up as the day unfolds. Today, we also have a nice cooling breeze which may help keep temps. within reason.
Started our journey with a 1:10 descent into the valley from our hotel. Despite the heat, this was quite chilly early in the morning.
After 20 minutes, we chanced across a service station and stopped for a 'proper' cyclists breakfast; choccy and juice!
The ride continued in lovely rolling countryside with fantastic quiet roads Small hills helped to ease the bum and we were happy with our lot.
Some of the cars (and tractors) had trailers loaded with baby farm animals and we shortly came across the market where they were being sold.
We continued along the M5 to the town of Stip. This M5 being totally different from our own as a) it was a pleasure to ride on and b) what little traffic there was, actually moved!
At Stip, we continued along the M5 to Veles stopping en route for a much deserved ice lolly, choccy and juice treble. Those that are not yet comatose, may have noticed a severe deficiency of CAKE in our diet. This situation is SERIOUS and we hope to make it good once the vendors start behaving themselves again.
More fantastic scenery en route to Veles and we started to see vineyards, pepper crops and a general aridness creeping into the landscape. The hillsides and grasslands are mostly brown now and the only greenery is that being artificially irrigated.
The only real minor issue of the day was Miles being stung yet again by a nasty wasp. This little bugger got caught in his helmet (oooh matron...) strap, and got it's revenge by a sting on the cheek. This is the fourth time so far; finger, thigh, hip and now cheek. 4-0 to Miles. Captaining a tandem is not supposed to be a dangerous pursuit.
At Veles, we'd intended to take a cheeky motorway/dual carriageway route (E75-M1) for a few miles. When we got there, we found it was a true motorway and tandems (specifically!) were not allowed.
This helped us, as there was an 'old road' alternative that ran alongside the new motorway and was once again, devoid of traffic.
More enjoyable rolling along followed and we reached the outskirts of Negotino at around 15:30.
Good fortune was on our side and we spotted both the hotel on the hillside and the arrows marking the way to it as we entered the town. This saved a goodly portion of dicking around trying to find it whilst tired.
We followed our usual routine on arrival; checked in and chilled out. A rather lonely early dinner followed and for the record, was delicious.
Today a thoroughly pleasant 73 miles and a reasonable 460m of ascent. Total trip 3303 miles.
More Southerly ramblings to follow.
Back soon. Miles & Tracey.
Monday, 18 August 2008
18 August 2008
Monday 18 August 2008
Away from our surprisingly nice hotel in Blagoevgrad at 09:00 to a repeat of clear blue skies and the promise of significant heat later.
The plan today has us cycling the 50 or so miles from Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria to Kocani, Macedonian. En route, we'll be ticking our 11th country off by crossing the Bulgarian/Macedonian border.
We initially followed directions provided by the hotel staff out of Blagoevgrad. Fortunately, we were stopped after half a mile or so by a good Samaritan who provided more comprehensible and above all, direct instructions. This probably saved us an hour or so of going around in circles.
Under revised instruction, we back
tracked a mile or so north up the E79-1 and picked up the unsignposted route 27 that would eventually lead into Macedonia.
Within a mile or so of the turn, the road started to rise and for the next 18 miles we climbed and climbed. In fact, this initial climb only finished as we approached the border.
Fantastic scenery, good road surfaces and very little traffic made for a spectacular days cycling. One of the best of the trip.
For a change, the border control was for a 'proper' country rather than a member of the Euro theme park the EU region seems to have become.
We were correctly asked the 'why are you here/where are you going/anything to declare' questions by the Macedonian authorities before our passports were stamped and we were allowed on our way.
Yippeee....country 11 and our penultimate country of the trip!
After we crossed into Macedonian, the road went steeply downwards for about 7 miles when we rolled into the small town of Delcevo.
A quick bank and café stop later, we were once again ready to knock out some more mileage.
The day grew hotter and hotter and there was lots of evidence around us of how this affected the landscape. From arid, dried out vegetation to indications of recent brush fires. It was clear we were entering the drier southern regions.
We continued on route 27 and dispatched another long bitch of a 1:7 hill followed by a decent descent and a few more rollers. This took us over a fantastic mountain pass and then down into a steep sided gorge.
During the descent, we hit a massive unseen pothole that managed to simultaneously unship both rear panniers and scatter them in the road.
Fortunately, the bus that was immediately behind us, was driven by a good egg and not one of the usual plonkers we've been 'blessed' with thus far.
He did the decent thing and pulled up in front of our kit to stop any other road users from running over it. We were very pleased he also resisted the temptation to mangle the gear himself.
Tracey did her jumping and galloping routine and legged it up the road to reclaim our possessions. No damage done, we refitted the panniers and got back on our way.
We followed the river all the way down the gorge and eventually, Kocani hove into view in the near distance. As we took this in, our eyes swivelled to a nice looking spa hotel that seemed to appear, as if by magic, at the roadside.
We did the decent thing and chose the hotel that looked OK and was next to us rather than chance what may have been in Kocani. A bird in the hand and all that....
Apart from the place being deserted, our choice was soon validated and we settled in for a comfortable night.
Today a more troublesome and hilly 53 miles and a quad burning 1100m of ascent. Total trip 3231 miles.
More Southerly ramblings to follow.
Back soon. Miles & Tracey.
Sunday, 17 August 2008
15/16/17 August 2008
Friday 15 August 2008
Rest day in Sofija, Bulgaria - yay!
Tracey dealt with some laundry/housekeeping tasks in the morning and we then went for a bit of a walk around the town.
Found ourselves in the ubiquitous Irish bar for a combined lunch/dinner and then returned to the hotel for more laying around.
We've decided to have another day off tomorrow as we're not yet ready to do further battle on the tandem.
Saturday 16 August 2008
Another rest day in Sofija, Bulgaria.
Miles surfaced early to apply a bit of TLC to Disharmony II outside the front of the Sheraton. Attracted a few quizzical glances though thankfully, not the wrath of the hotel management.
Did very little today apart from concentrate on serious 'recovery'. Eventually left the hotel for dinner at a nice Greek restaurant after doing a short circuit of a few bars etc to validate our choice of venue.
Back in the saddle tomorrow,
Sunday 17 August 2008
Back to the fray today. Feeling much fresher, fully energised and ready to deal with whatever comes over the next couple of weeks before we reach the finish line.
The plan today is to cycle the 60 or so miles from Sofija, Bulgaria to Blagoevgrad also Bulgaria. Our destination is just a few miles short of the Macedonian border so we'll be crossing into our 11th country early tomorrow.
Had a lonely breakfast in the hotel restaurant. Being Sunday, seems everyone else was still snoozing in their beds.
On the road just after 09:00, more blue skies and the promise of serious heat later.
Luckily we'd already sussed our route out of the city as we didn't want any repetition of the 'difficult' route finding during our way in.
The first 10 miles followed the E79-1, uphill and for the initial 5 miles, on Pave. Pave? Cobbles to you and us.
We initially felt a bit sluggish after being inactive for 2 days but this was just due to the upwards incline and rough road surface. Normal service would be resumed as the road levelled and the cobbles gave way to Euromac (AKA tarmac).
Continued along the E79-1 accompanied by good scenery and pleasant rolling hills. These beauties were the deluxe versions, i.e. the ones with the fantastic, 40mph descents following reasonably sensible climbs.
Made our usual pit stops at just over the hour and 2 hour marks in roadside services. The second, seemed to be in a valley completely occupied by used car garages. We passed these for mile upon mile and there seemed to be no apparent reason for their location.
As the clock passed midday and entered early afternoon, the temps. Continued to rise. We were expecting up to mid 30's Celsius today.
Presently we arrived at the outskirts of Blagoevgrad and made a bee line for an hotel Miles discovered on the Interweb yesterday. Happily, it both existed and was very nice and we were very shortly in our room enjoying the aircon.
A decent return to battle with no injuries, accidents or complaints to report from the troops.
Today an utterly sensible though blooming hot 61 miles and a respectable 770m of ascent. Total trip 3177 miles.
More Southerly ramblings to follow.
Back soon. Miles & Tracey.
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