Tag Archives: Danube

05 & 06 October 2015 – last days on the Danube; Donauworth and Ulm

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These were my last two days pedalling alongside the Danube river, which has been a great experience, and a bit of a bonus after completing my two main tour objectives of Nordkapp to Tarifa, then on to Istanbul. I’d thoroughly recommend the Danube cycle route; the scenery, people, food and culture are all brill. Here are my routes and stats for the last two days; you’ll notice I went a bit wrong on 05 October:

–> 05 October – to Donauworth (170km)
So, yep, 170km pedalled today. I’d love to tell you they were all intentional, however that would be a bit of a fabrication on my part. My main learning was that if you reach a fork in a river, make sure you take the correct fork. To be fair I hardly noticed the river branching, and found the cycle route signs very confusing, and it was foggy, however really it was my own fault for not concentrating more. I added on about 30km to an already long day, and ended up having to go over several large hills, meaning over 1,000m in climbing, resulting in jelly like legs by the time I reached my hostel for the evening.

Thankfully I left Regensburg early, so had enough time to get back on track after my unintentional detour. It was a damp and chilly morning, with thick fog for the first few hours as I made my way up the Danube cycle path. The river meandered somewhat as I made my way to Kelheim, which is where I think I went wrong, heading North West instead of South West up a river that flows into the Danube; the Main Donau Kanal.

I pedalled for miles up my ‘alternative’ route, blissfully unaware of my error as the sun came out, revealing beautiful countryside and lovely small villages and towns. This part of Bavaria, and perhaps Bavaria in general, is simply delightful. I pedalled along saying hello to several other cyclists, passing lots of churches with their bells ringing. I think I was following the Baroque Cycle Tour route, however there are others signposted.

I reached the town of Beilngries and finally got a bit suspicious that perhaps I wasn’t going the right way, and decided to check the map on my phone in a bit more detail. There followed a ‘small’ amount of cursing as I realised I was miles off course, followed by a big and somewhat ride South, fuelled by haribo, on busy roads and over some big hills, to get back to the Danube.

The corrective ride itself was quite pleasant, despite the climbs, as it passed through lots of cool forest; I spotted lots of interesting bird life, and got laughed at by Green Woodpeckers several times, which seemed fitting. It also proved what I’d thought was the case; the terrain is a lot more hilly away from the river! I made it to Eichstätt, then cycled down to Neuburg on der Donau and rejoined the right cycle route. By this point I was feeling quite tired, and still had 40km left to pedal, with several more hills that frankly just hurt.

Needless to say I was pleased to finally make it to Donauworth, after 170km, and glad to have a bed for the night in the Youth Hostel, rather than having to pitch my tent; hostel staff also really friendly, helpful, and sympathetic! I walked down to the nearby supermarket to get some food, and ended up buying far too much as I was famished, however I’m sure it’ll all get eaten eventually.

After eating and a bit of planning I couldn’t keep my eyes open, so retired for the night; my blog might get a bit behind over the next week or so, but I’ll catch up eventually. Planning a short ride tomorrow, to Ulm, with hopefully no further route confusion. I’m also hoping Smaug doesn’t break; my chain is just starting to slip occasionally, the back tyre tread is getting a little sparse, and my brakes need adjusting – fingers crossed he’ll make it back to the UK without having to do much maintenance.

–> 06 October – to Ulm (89km)
As planned (phew) it was a relatively short day’s riding today, and my last alongside the Danube, at least for this tour; I’d quite happily come back. I’ve decided not to follow the river all the way to its source in Donaueschingen, which would mean another day or two of riding, but instead to turn North West tomorrow and head for Strasbourg and France, on my way back home; feels weird thinking that home is only about 700 hundred miles away now.

The hostel breakfast was an excellent affair, with warm bread, cheese, cold meats, butter and jam, fruit and hot chocolate; all hearty fayre for a cycle tourer with lots of miles to cover. After eating my fill I set out, a bit later than usual, and a bit slower, intending on a recovery ride after yesterday’s epic if somewhat unanticipated lengthy ride.

The route didn’t always follow the Danube; for the first section I was next to the main road, on a cycle path, before joining quiet country roads.

I passed through several picturesque towns, then stopped for a picnic with about 20km to go to Ulm.

I made it to Ulm in good time, mostly thanks to no erroneous detours, and found the Brickstone Hostel I’d booked for the night after a quick look around the town; it started to rain so I didn’t linger long.

Instead of heading straight out for a further explore I had a snooze, as the cold I’m suffering from is making me feel a tired, even if it’s not directly impacting my cycling. I’d arrived just in time, and a snooze turned out not to be a bad idea, as the light rain turned into storms for the next couple of hours.

Post snooze I chatted to the hostel hostess Anja for a bit, who offered me a few route tips, and some pears from a neighbour’s garden which were very nice, then I headed into Ulm to find some dinner, and to have another look around now the rain had stopped. It was getting on for dusk as I walked around the old town streets, which has some lovely old buildings sitting next to river channels.

For dinner I headed to Barfuber, a traditional Bavarian Pub type place, and had one of the best meals I’ve had in a while; Roast Pork shank with potato salad and dumpling. I think I could get used to Bavarian food, it’s delicious, especially when accompanied by a cold beer. Germany also appears cheap to me, compared with France away; meal was very good value.

I know some people don’t like eating out alone, but I’m used to it now, especially as I do so quite a bit when I’m away for work. I just enjoyed watching what was going on around me, and read my book for a bit. The waiter also supplied me with extra beer gravy, which went very well with the dumpling, and earned him his tip.

Feeling replete I headed back to the Brickstone Hostel and relaxed for a bit before bed. Despite all this fine dining, I noticed my belt needs another hole in it to prevent my trousers falling down; still losing weight, which I guess isn’t too much of a calamity on the health front, but will mean some clothes shopping is needed when I get home.

On towards the Black Forest tomorrow, the land of cuckoo clocks, fairy tales, werewolves and gateau; not sure about the latter. The weather is starting to look a bit dodgy but should be in France in a couple of days.

02, 03, 04 October 2015 – the Danube; Austria and into Germany

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I’m a little behind on my blog due to some long cycling days, and lack of decent wifi; it’s a bit odd how the wifi in Western Europe seems to be worse than further East and down South. I’ve made good progress along the Danube, and am currently contemplating how I get through the rest of Germany and into France. It looks like a bit of a convoluted route, with a few mountains in the way, however I’m sure it’ll work out.

Here are my routes and stats for the last few days:

–> 02 October – to Au an der Donau (150km)
It was a cold start to the day in Vienna, or just West of Vienna anyway, and my tent was soaked in condensation; I hate packing up a wet tent but no choice.

I had various thoughts on my route today, including heading North over the hills to join the Danube cycle path, however in the end I stayed on the roads and pedalled West, joining the official route later on.

After riding down some fairly quiet roads, through some nice farmland, and the occasional town, all with a central church, I made it to Melk and the Danube after 70km. Oh, and I also passed Weiner Wald, which amused me greatly.

I crossed over to the North side, then continued on the cycle path that runs right next to the river, enjoying the flat pedalling and nice scenery.

The rest of the ride to Au an der Donau was easy-going, with a tailwind to help speed me along, and a few random phone calls to people at home to help pass the time; my mobile data was on anyway and calls are free once I’ve paid the Vodafone Euro-traveller rate for the day. I passed several cycle tourers going the other way, all struggling a bit with the headwind, but didn’t catch up with any going my way. The cycle path was busy for some stretches, with a lot of casual cyclists out and about, and really quiet for other bits.

I realised I’ve been slowly but steadily climbing since I joined the Danube cycle route, from just over 100m in Bulgaria, to over 200m in elevation now. It will be interesting to see how high I get before I leave the Danube, wherever that may be. Needless to say I’ve climbed up and down a lot more than that; the path isn’t always flat!

After a quiet last stretch, aside from a few ducks and herons, I made it to my campsite in Au an der Donau, where I met up with several other cycle tourers staying the night. Patricia and David were from Canada, on their way to Budapest, along with Malachi from Ireland, and George also from Canada who was heading up to Poland then Berlin. It was great to meet up and chat with other cycle tourers again; we headed to a restaurant (Gasthof) in the village for a couple of beers and some food. A very pleasant evening of swapping stories, route tips and eating was had; I ate a lot, consuming two dinners to try to replace the calories I’d used pedalling 150km.

Patricia and David mentioned the concentration camp (Mauthausen) they’d visited just the up the road, which I could go and see tomorrow, however I think I’m more likely to press on towards Germany and Passau. It’s probably important that I visit such a place at some point, however after the House of Terror in Budapest I think I’ll keep things light for a bit!

–> 03 October – to Passau, Germany (140km)
I was up early, ready to ride back to country number 6 of my tour, Germany again. I said goodbye to my fellow tourers, who were heading North or South East respectively, then set off into a cold but dry morning; much less condensation on my tent so easier to pack up!

The ride was fairly standard until Linz, at about the 30km mark, then things started to get interesting with the cycle route entering a valley, or I guess you’d call it a gorge, through which the Danube flows.

The scenery was beautiful, much more exciting than yesterday’s, with lots of other cyclists using the well signposted routes, on both sides of the river, and several tourers to say hello to.

I remained on the North side of the river for a long time, spurning several opportunities to cross to the other side by ferry or bridge. There were several large barges cruising up or down the Danube, transporting various goods (not sure what, maybe coal again); looks like the river is still used as a major haulage route as well as for tourism. The cycling was pretty effortless and very enjoyable, however I knew it was too good to last. Close to St. Martin, where there’s a castle on a hill, the path ran out at a bend in the river, at some cliffs where people were climbing; looked awesome fun. A footpath carried on however it wasn’t passable by bike, even if I was to carry it and my gear (I checked). I had to backtrack a hundred metres or so to find a track heading up the hill, which looked like it might take me where I wanted to go.

The narrow trail was very steep, and initially covered in brambles and stinging nettles which didn’t do my legs any good. One of my pedals also slammed into my right calf, whilst I was pushing, causing a fair amount of bleeding even if it was only a shallow scrape. Eventually the path widened, passing through pleasant woodland that was very peaceful, even if I was sweating profusely, stinging, and still bleeding slightly. I made it to the top, where thankfully the path joined a road at the castle, and then sped down the other side to rejoin the cycle route. I reckon it was a good mini adventure, or side-quest, and I don’t doubt many other cyclists have experienced the same thing; if they spotted the side path that is, it’s a bit obscure but prevented me having to backtrack several kilometres to find a crossing.

I’m not sure what was causing it however I heard a loud siren, like an air raid warning, a few times near my mini-adventure site. I wondered if it was perhaps a flood warning being testing, or a faulty siren being triggered by the large barges and tourist boats on the river. I was just hoping there wasn’t really a flood in progress, which could have provided a more dramatic type of adventure.

I took the ferry to the other side of the river near Kirchberg ob der Donau, not wanting to repeat my side-quest, and followed the signs on to Passau. Again the riding was really good fun, and I’d recommend the route to anyone. It’s obviously very popular with cyclists as I passed a lot of people out for a day’s ride; lots of e-bikes too, which confused me a little when quite elderly people started to overtake me.

I crossed back over to the North side of the river, by a bridge this time, near Niederranna, still in Austria I think, although it as hard to tell with no border crossings visible. Somewhere along the line I crossed into Germany, as I noticed I received a text from Vodafone welcoming me, and suddenly there were a lot more cars with German number plates. It was a long ride up to Passau, through lots of small towns, and passing yet more cyclists. I paused in Passau, which is definitely in Germany, and is also known as the city of three rivers (Dreiflüssestadt); the Danube is joined by the Inn from the South and the Liz from the North. It’s another ancient city, with a large University, and an interesting history (look it up).

I couldn’t find any open shops, which was slightly annoying as I needed supplies, but eventually found a garage where I could buy some chocolate and fizzy pop. Then it was on the Dreiflusse camping, just West of Passau, where I was given a friendly welcome and a place to pitch my tent for just €12. I was feeling pretty tired, so was glad they have their own restaurant; the Gypsy schnitzel was very good, as was the beer, and the Hungarian goulash soup.

Unfortunately the wifi wasn’t working, so I couldn’t update my blog (one of the reasons I’m a bit behind), however as I was tired, and full of good food, it was nice just to relax in my tent and get an early night. Aiming for Regensburg tomorrow; Germany is going to take a while to cross, but that’s okay, it’s a great country.

–> 04 October – to Regensburg (140km)
140km kilometre days seem to be becoming the norm, and my legs aren’t complaining in the morning so all good. I wouldn’t have been able to keep this up a few months ago, so I must be a lot fitter than when I started. It probably also helps that I’ve lost at least 10kg!

My tent was a bit damp again in the morning, only on the outside, but it takes ages to dry now it’s colder so I had to pack it up wet. As well as it being colder I’ve developed a cold, which is more irritating than anything else, although it does seem to be getting a bit worse so I’ll have to feed it lots, and perhaps try to cure it with wine, or schnapps.

I was on the road again by 08:00, pedalling off into a quiet Sunday morning, with only river and birds for company for the first hour. It was lovely cycling in the peace and quiet, as a pair of herons flew over, and with ducks dabbling on the over. I spotted loads of birds today, including the aforementioned, but also buzzards, various tits, a Green Woodpecker, Grebes and I think Cormorants; lots of crows still too, which again seem to follow me sometimes.

The scenery wasn’t as exciting as yesterday, however it was still pleasant riding, despite a bit of a headwind getting up in the afternoon. I rode up to Deggandorf, then lost the cycle route signs somehow, and ended up crossing over to the South side and following roads to Straubing. The roads actually made a nice change, with some different things to look at; various small towns, farmland and German Sunday life going on.

I stopped in Straubing for a lunch break, and had a wander around the Sunday market that was in full swing. After a cheeky Mcdonalds, just because it was convenient and I hadn’t had one in a while, I bumped into Charles from France, on his way down the Danube on his touring bike complete with large trailer. We both stopped for a bit to exchange advice on the route; was good to speak some French again.

After Straubing I crossed the river again, then passed through more countryside on my way to Regensburg. Unfortunately the day got duller as it progressed, with cloud cover moving in, and rain starting as I entered the city. I had intended on having a look around Regensburg, as there are loads of Roman remains to visit, however I was feeling pretty tired, and wet, so headed pretty much straight for the campsite.

I later learnt there’s a famous sausage restaurant in Regensburg; missed out there but enjoyed some traditional Bavarian fayre at the campsite restaurant. My tent was under siege from rabbits when I got back to it, however they didn’t prevent me from falling asleep very quickly. On to Donauworth tomorrow.

23 & 24 September 2015 – to Serbia (Negotin) and the Iron Gates Gorge

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Serbia is country number 21 on the tour, if I’ve counted correctly. It’s entirely possible I haven’t counted correctly, as I’m slightly tired after several long days cycling, however I’m still feeling fit and am enjoying the riding. I’m kind of pushing it at the moment to see how quickly I can make it back across Europe to the UK, with a view to possibly trying the Transcontinental Race next year, however I think I’m still a bit off the pace for that. Saying that the bike wouldn’t be as heavy, and the route more direct, for such an endeavour, so who knows.

Here are my routes and stats for the 23rd and 24th:

–> 23 September – to Negotin, Serbia (100km)
After a very pleasant night at the hotel Transimpex in Lom, I set my sights on Serbia, country number 21 of the tour! Slight calamity first thing; my honey bottle had leaked, causing a bit of a mess in my panniers, however once I’d cleared that up and finished my yoghurt and honey breakfast I set off, saying goodbye to the cycle tourer I met briefly last night, who is going the other way.

The road alongside the Danube towards Vidin is a tad on the bumpy side, causing a few occurrences of swearing when I hit bumps or potholes I hadn’t noticed, and you don’t really see the river for a lot of it. I did pass 4 cycle tourers going the other way, two from France and two on a tandem, all heading towards Turkey.

There were also a lot of heavy trucks on the road, however once past Vidin I made it to the border without incident. The crossing was very quiet, and I was soon through the Bulgarian checkpoint, saying hello to the bored looking guards and pedalling towards the Serbian side. On the way through ‘no mans land’ I stopped to help push a broken down taxi; it failed to bump-start, however we got it to the other side okay, then I had to walk back to get my bike.

The Eurovelo 6 route in Serbia is pretty well sign-posted, and I intend to follow most of it, just cutting out the odd meander where there’s a more direct route and I don’t miss anything interesting. It was only a short ride to get to Negotin, where I stopped or the night at Hostel Olimpik; another very friendly and comfortable hostel, that also provided dinner and breakfast, all for the inclusive price of about £12, bargain! I’d arrived in good time, especially since I’d gained an hour, so after a rest I went for a wander around town in search of ice cream and a few supplies.

I need to remember that it’ll get dark earlier now, especially since I’ve gained an hour, so I’ll need to start earlier to avoid having to cycle in the dark.

Another cycle tourer turned up a bit later, which provided some good company for the evening. Edi is Bulgarian, but has lived in Paris for the last 10 years, and is currently on his way to Sofia to meet his girlfriend before continuing to cycle around the world. You can follow his progress via his blog here: http://les-rayons-au-vent.blogspot.fr

Cycling around the world is quite an attractive prospect, and one that I’ve considered a number of times, however I think I’m going to stick with ‘shorter’ trips for the time being. Edi is going via Iran and then the Stans, which means having to get hold of several Visas, and remembering you can’t withdraw cash using VISA or MasterCard in Iran. He should be able to get an Iranian visa fairly easily, however it’s apparently difficult at the moment if you’re British or American.

It was good to relax and chat, and I’m excited about tomorrow when I head to the National Park alongside the Danube and the Iron Gates gorge.

–> 24 September – the Iron Gates Gorge (156km)
The mosquitos decided to attack overnight, which proved very irritating; both Edi and I broke out the repellent however I still got bitten several times. I still slept well, and breakfast set me up  well for a long ride; omelette, bread and jam.

I bid Edi goodbye and good luck on his ride South, and thanked Olivera the hostel hostess, before I pedalled off towards Kladova and the National Park. I set off at 08.30, however it felt later due to the clocks changing. After few hills I made it to Kladova, where the road swung North again, with Drobeta Turna Severin just across the river on the Romanian side. After a few more kilometres I made it the Iron Gates gorge and National Park. The gorge is the longest in Europe, at well over 100km, and has some Roman history with the Emperor Trajan having constructed a famous bridge over the Danube. The ride through the National Park and gorge was through some of the nicest scenery I’ve experienced in while, and made me realise how monotonous some of the roads have become recently lately.

Pedalling through inspiring countryside again did a lot motivate me, and provided a welcome distraction from thinking about the route ahead. The road was also fairly quiet, with little in the way of heavy traffic; just goats, cows, sheep, and frequent circling buzzards.

My ride was accompanied by the sound of cawing crows for a while; I was a little suspicious they were following me. I am always impressed by the intelligence of the Corvidae family, and it was interesting to see them dropping nuts on the road to crack their shells. I think they were attempting to get into Walnuts, there being a lot of Walnut trees in this part of the world.

It was relaxed riding today, with a lot of singing going on, leaving me in good spirits as I covered nearly 160km, with only about 3 significant climbs. I passed 11 other cycle tourers going the other way, with the usual waves and hellos, but none going my way; I think most people pedal South then either fly or catch a train back. I lost count of the number of tunnels I passed through, maybe 17, however they were all short and as such not suitable lairs for goblins or trolls, so Lobster stood down on guard duty. The tunnels were good fun from an echo point of view, enhancing my fine vocal talents no end.

I arrived at the campsite at about 17.00, which was deserted however the shower/toilet block was open, and the power on, so I thought maybe someone would be along later. As it turned out no humans appeared, however I was joined by a cat, and a bit later on by a dog; I think the latter was a stray however he was friendly enough, and slept next to my tent. I seem to be developing a tendency to attract stray dogs.

After a shower and some food, the sun quickly set, and I retreated to my tent to read and get an early night. Aside from the meowing cat, and latterly the snuffling dog, the campsite was very tranquil, however I did get woken up at about 23.00 as a few heavy squalls came through. The wind really shook my tent, and the rain was quite hard for a bit; thankfully no leaks!

Tomorrow I’ll push join to Belgrade for the night, before heading towards Hungary. I need to check the route and decide how close to the Croatia/Serbia border I go; might take a straighter route to Budapest, if it makes sense and doesn’t miss anything worth seeing.

21 & 22 September 2015 – to Sofia and Lom (Danube)

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Still making good progress, and great to have arrived at the Danube River, which I can effectively cycle alongside all the way to Germany. I’ll follow Eurovelo 6, but with a few detours thrown in for good measure. To be honest I’m not entirely decided on my exact route, but it’ll be fun pedalling North West and seeing what presents itself.

Routes and for the last 2 days below:

–> 21 September 2015 – to Sofia
Despite a few beverages with fellow hostel guests the previous evening, I felt fine in the morning; must be all the cycling. I was up and had breakfast whilst most people were still sleeping, consuming yet more yoghurt, which has become a bit of a staple. I need to replace burnt calories effectively and healthily, and yoghurt is a good way to do it, or milk, as it also contains protein which helps repair my tired muscles.

After packing up and saying goodbye to Fabien, and the Japanese cycle tourer whose name I didn’t catch, I pedalled off towards Sofia, deciding against a rest day in favour of making more progress towards the Danube and home, especially whilst the weather is good. I’m really going to try to think only a few days ahead, even though I’m excited at the prospect of heading back to the UK; thinking about the whole route gets a little overwhelming, despite having covered over 8,000 miles already, and the distance back to Norwich only being about 1,900 miles.

On the outskirts of Pazardjik, the first big town after Plovdiv, I bumped into a Bulgarian cyclist on the way back from his allotment. We got chatting as we cycled along, with Boris explaining he had worked in the UK, but was back in Bulgaria for the time being. I also learnt that it’s law to wear a high vis vest whilst cycling outside cities in Bulgaria, but not in cities themselves, which is a bit odd and akin to the helmet law in Spain; I reckon I’m safe as my yellow cycling top is pretty bright anyway.

Boris - great to meet another friendly face on the road

Boris – great to meet another friendly face on the road

Boris guided me in to Pazardjik, showing me the best way through the city and back on to route 8. He also bought me lunch in the form of some fine meat products from a local cafe (Tiger Cafe); kebab like products which were very tasty when I stopped to eat them a bit later on. Boris insisted I take a couple of huge apples from his allotment to ensure a balanced diet, which proved very tasty, and all organic. Great to meet you Boris and thanks for the route tips and food, very kind of you.

The rest the ride to Sofia was quite lengthy, and involved a large climb, which thankfully was pretty gradual; bigger climb coming tomorrow so didn’t want to exhaust legs today. I was helped by the weather, with the sun staying behind clouds for a lot of the time, and even a bit of light rain keeping things fresh.

The route passes through some nice forest and small towns, alongside the motorway at times. Route 8 got very bumpy and potholed for one section, as it’s not used by cars much anymore, because they all use the motorway; passed quite a few horse and carts though. Boris had told me earlier that these are mostly the ‘gypsy’ folk, who are nice people but a distinct community; they all tended to give me a wave and say hello, especially the kids. I don’t know if it’s politically correct to label them as gypsies or not.

I had a few encounters with dogs today, but nothing too alarming. At one point 3 shepherd dogs spotted me from across a field, and sprinted about 300 metres to the road, barking maniacally. I was a little concerned when they showed no sign of slowing down, and at the speed they covered the distance towards me, however the lead dog proceeded to wipe out on the road verge, tumbling into the long grass, which caused them all to stop. This allowed me to escape un-molested, whilst they attempted to wander off and salvage some dignity; it was all a bit embarrassing for them.

After following route 8 for miles it ran out, and I had no option but to join the motorway for the few kilometres to reach the city. This wasn’t really an issue as the hard shoulder is wide, and the few police cars that passed me didn’t object. I pedalled into the busy city, past a lot of monuments and statues, then found Hostel Mostel near Makedonia Square. Several people at Hiker’s Hostel had recently stayed at Hostel Mostel, and recommended it. It’s a lot bigger and busier than some hostels I’ve stayed at, but did a great basic dinner, as well as breakfast, and all for about £8 (including a bed in the dorm) so you can’t really go wrong. It’s a great place to meet people too, or just to chill out after a long day in the saddle as was the case with me.

Having arrived a bit later than I usually like to stop, I relaxed for the evening, doing some planning and blog updates; good to catch up! I also did a bit of bike maintenance to fix squeaky pedals, which had begun to annoy me. Smaug seems to be bearing up well, however I’ll need to keep an eye on the tyres still.

Tomorrow I head for Lom and the Danube river, assuming I make it that far; there are some big mountains in the way.

–> 22 September – to Lom and the Danube
Going to experiment with a slightly different style on this blog post, and see if it works; writing in a different tense, which might suit converting into a book more – let me know if it works, or not as the case may be.

I had a good night’s sleep in the Hostel Mostel dormitory, in Sofia, with about 20 other people in the same room; after a long ride little keeps me awake. The hostel breakfast is excellent, including scrambled and hard-boiled eggs, fruit, bread and jam, all of which makes great cycling fuel. I have a feeling I’m going to need a lot of fuel today, with a long ride to the Danube ahead of me.

Avoiding the playful kittens I push my bike out on to the streets of Sofia, under overcast skies. It’s nice not to have to bother with suncream for a change, and to be riding in cooler temperatures. It doesn’t take long to pedal out of the city, and find route 81 heading North. The first part of the ride is fairly boring, through farmland and the occasional village, then the road starts to rise up into the mountains. I climb for several hours, with a few down sections providing a rest for my legs, however I know that means I’ll just need to go back up again, until I reach the top of the pass. My motto for the tour is turning into ‘there’s always another hill’.

I pass through a few small towns and villages, where people are selling honey or vegetables by the roadside, leading to a lot of friendly waves or hellos.  There are a few bothersome dogs, however in general the canines in Bulgaria don’t seem as aggressive compared with Turkey or Greece; often it seems like they just can’t be bothered. The road continues to meander through fields, before rising up into pine forest, then beech and silver birch. The beech forest is particularly beautiful, especially near the top where wisps of low cloud permeate the canopy. I start to hear music from somewhere as I near the top; it must be from the nearby village, however it was slightly confusing as the sound bounces off hills; quite bizarre in the otherwise peaceful setting.

The clouds draw in at the top of the climb, and it gets quite cold, a novel sensation after being so hot for a long time. I stop to catch my breath, next to a cloud smothered reservoir, before starting my descent. There’s a small cafe at the top with a few people sitting outside having drinks; I content myself with a banana and some Haribo.

After reaching 1,350m in height, the descent down the other side is going to be exciting. I pass through more beech forest, which proves more beautiful than the Southern side, especially once I emerge from the low cloud. I get the shivers for a few minutes, in the cold and damp conditions, the chill air seeming even colder when you’re travelling at speed. I whizz past a road cyclist going the other way, exchanging waves, then pause for moment to take in the beauty and tranquility of the area.

Thankfully the traffic has quieted down, so there is little to interrupt my fast descent, and reduced danger from cars or lorries in the low visibility. I spot a few people filling up water bottles from roadside springs; this seems very common in Bulgaria, with a lot villages having their own springs, which are apparently good to drink from.

After really enjoying the mountainous section, even if it was tiring, there follows a long and slightly monotonous ride to Lom and the Danube, across gently rolling farmland, and past the city of Montana. Montana was a possible overnight stop, however I decide to carry on, and am glad I did as it feels very good to reach the Danube, getting rd of some of the anxious and slightly sad feelings I’d been experiencing. As I enter Lom I spot a sign for the Eurovelo 6 route, which brings a smile to my face; this route should take me all the way to Germany!

I find the Hotel Transimpex right on the banks of the Danube, and it’s only 30 Leve for the night; about £11.20. This is still a bit more expensive than the last few previous stays, however I have Leve I need to use up, and figure it’s worth it to celebrate reaching the Danube. There’s a nice restaurant attached to the hotel where I have dinner, after a walk around town and a stop at a market to get supplies; important not to run out of Haribo.

I briefly meet another cycle tourer who turns up later in the evening, on her way down towards Romania, working on organic farms (WWOOF – look it up, sounds interesting). I expect to meet a few more cycle tourers now I’m on Eurovelo 6, so we’ll see what tomorrow brings as I head to Serbia, country number 21 of the tour.