Imminent Balkan Adventure (& Happy Birthday to Me!)

So, today’s my birthday.  Another year older, but any the wiser?  Certainly the last year has been an absolutely fascinating experience.  A summary of the year will follow at some point…



Happy birthday to me! A biscuit-like cake, made by my girls :-) 10 out of 10 for effort, 2 out of 10 for height!

My dearest Sarah, seeing me getting stressed and frustrated at work, a million miles away from these experiences, my dearest, has booked me a flight to Dubrovnik for my birthday.

The plan is to ditch my disposable cardboard bike box, at Dubrovnik airport, ride into Montenegro, around Kotor bay to Tivat, stay the night in a swanky (but cheap) four star hotel, then ride to Žabljak, deep within in Montenegro’s mountainous Durmitor National Park.  Another night’s stay in a luxurious (but cheap – see the theme?) four star hotel, then off to Mostar, in Bosnia, negotiating the tricky border crossings - there are very few for international travellers, far more for smugglers over gravel roads, so I’m told!

After a day of rest and visiting Mostar’s iconic medieval architecture (tips please!), I’ll be returning to Croatia to ride to Knin where I’ll meet my good friend Dario, from where we’ll ride together over Velebit to Senj, and finally to Zadar, along the coastal road, from where I’ll fly back to the UK.



The iconic medieval bridge of Mostar, destroyed during but restored after the war

I’m really looking forward to:

·         The adventure of new roads (hopefully all smooth and puncture-free), beautiful scenery (expect photos of mountains, sea, rivers and lakes), new countries and things to see

·         Meeting-up with friends along the route - I'm planning to use Garmin LiveTrack for people to be able to see in real time where I am

·         The weather: 25(ish) degrees Celsius and sunny (did you know that Mr Celsius, a Swede, originally had 0 degrees as boiling and 100 degrees as freezing?) 

·         Not working - anyone else want to join me in this sentiment??



Good Croatian friends

Wonderful country, wonderful people



Knin Castle - a great day out for the family

Velebit - beautiful mountains with a view of the blue Adriatic sea

I’m not looking forward to:

·         The Bike-Separation Anxiety, when the box disappears into the depths of an airport's gaping maw

·         Packs of wild dogs - pepper spray isn't legal in the UK, so I'll try to source some abroad...

·         Missing my family

·         Returning to the contrasting UK’s sucky weather and darkening days, with all the consequences of needing to train on the turbo, spiked tyres for ice, multiple layers to stave off the cold (and getting that "Michelin Man" look).

Time to pull out your best sprint - just hope it's not uphill

Believe it or not, the UK's roads really suck bad

 

 

 

 

As seems usual, nowadays, I’m also feeling somewhat apprehensive over the sheer amount of climbing needed over the first few days.  Feeling anxious seems weird when I think about this year’s distances and amount of climbing…

Thanks to everyone for all the well wishes, birthday greetings and cards!