I left Ankara with a clear target – to cycle approximately 450km to Samsun (where I always intended on passing) by Saturday, five days away. Then I could get the bus back to Ankara on Sunday, try for the second time to get my Uzbekistan visa on Monday and return the same day or Tuesday. … More Turkey part 3: Ankara to Samsun (02/06/15-09/06/15)
Well rested and with a much less hair than when I arrived, I crossed the Bosphorus and began my adventure into Asia. Istanbul had been a great city for a break, but the size and busyness of it had been a shock to the system. The city’s traffic is crazy and it was a horrible … More Turkey part 2: Istanbul to Ankara (22/05/15-01/06/15)
If the border change from Bulgaria to Greece was dramatic, the crossing into Turkey was something else. Finally I was out of the easy EU borders. This crossing had a long no-man’s land, rusty barbed-wire fencing and large ‘no camera’ signs against military personnel stencils. There were soldiers around the buildings and for the first time … More Turkey Part 1: From the Greek border to Istanbul (08/05/15-22/05/15)
With my brakes working again, we crossed the Macedonian border back into Bulgaria again. Just passed the border we found a what looked like a perfect picnic spot by on old bridge over a river. But the picnic didn’t last very long – a shepherd arrived out of nowhere shouting at us to move so that … More Bulgaria & Greece: Mountain climbing (27/04/15-08/05/15)
It felt like spring had come and gone within a week. It was nearly 30 degrees when we crossed the border from Serbia into Bulgaria and I was struggling in the heat. We still had ages to go until our first stop near Vidin, and light would be running out soon so celebrations for ‘100 … More Bulgaria & Macedonia: 3 months and 15 countries (16/04/15-27/04/15)
Szeged (in the south of Hungary) was a cute town. I enjoyed having a day off there, but mostly because I was so happy to be having a break after a busy week cycling. The town had a natural charm and I spent a nice afternoon exploring the centre and buying some ‘essentials’. The cycle ride … More Romania & Serbia: Following the Danube (07/04/15-15/05/15)
Was another gorgeous day as I left Berlin. Warm enough to cycle in just a fleece and the sun was out. Felt a little groggy from the weekend, but nothing a good ride wouldn’t cure. After a couple of hours cycling I came across a block of flats nestled in the forest, clearly deserted and … More Berlin to Prague: Bike problems (09/03/15-15/03/15)
I was only planning on staying in Denmark for about a week, but instead I ended up staying for over two. I did a lot of doing nothing, but I still squeezed in a bike ride to my grandparent’s summer house in North Zealand and sorted out many of the last bits and bobs for … More Copenhagen to Berlin: Into the forests (10/02/15-08/03/15)
Just over the Dutch/German border I spotted the first (and last) other long-distance cyclist. We were passing in opposite directions, but exchanged a brief smile and nod, as if to say ‘at least I’m not the only one crazy enough to be cycling in this weather’. I took comfort in the sight of his load … More Germany to Denmark: Embracing the cold (30/01/15-09/02/15)
One month ago I’d never cycled further than about 15km in one session. I’m typing this sat in Copenhagen, having pedalled over 1,500km to get here. My crash course ‘warm up’ in cycle touring has taken me from my Dad’s house in SW London over to France, up Belgium, Holland and Germany, all the way … More London to Holland: A crash course in cycle touring (16/01/15-30/01/15)
JKB's Bike Ride 