Start of the big journey. Did it already start? I dont know anymore. I have been waiting this for years and it almost seems like desire has gone? Hard to tell. But the journey is about to start. And its December. And its cold.
Spare parts (2 tires, 2 chains, cassette) and about 2.5 kg
Am I mad? It seems that way but once you get to Africa, and not in the middle of nowere but in the big city in Morocco you realize how bad the ofer of anything is here.
And it was not my idea but got this from other travellers. Of course there is another idea of sending parts along the route from Europe (by posting) as you cycle, but this is expensive so I opted for a diferent method.
Slovenia is already well known to me, as I have been crossing this part many times, so now I am just waiting to cross cold Slovenia to get to warmer Italy. And cold it was.
This is somewhere near Novo Mesto, which is where the first day of cycling has ended.
I was lucky to find a shelter the night before by accident (I wasnt expecting shelters there, in fact I havent even looked for them in Komoot either, I just stumbled upon one) because the next day I woke up I was surprised by snow! And the forecast was not showing snow.
And it fell quite a bit (5-10 cm) and it all looked quite frozen and icy so I was left speechless in the morning not knowing will I even be able to continue further now.
But I was reluctant to stay in the shelter over night becuase I dont like wild camping in Slovenia (we are too close of a neighboours) and Slovenian police does not like that!
So despite shelter I was still looking for potentially setting a tent in the woods (after dinner) but decided to just stay inside. It would be quite a ugly surprise waking up under all this snow.
Luckily alle night was calm, no passers by and in the morning after I cycled a bit away I saw I was in the quite area actaully, no residentual buildings close, only a few houses.
Thanks to shelter my gear and I am completely dry now.
The morning still started ugly withg rain falling for 2 hours, and I was nothing but freezing. Luckily it stopped afterwards and it only remained being cold, the road have mostly dried out.
The roads here are actuallr rather nice, following the river Krka closely with nice landscapes.
Of course nobody was cycling today except me.
Near Grosuplje. I dont remembed cycing this part before.
I was lucky to find a host for the night in the place of Vrhnika. Bojan was an awesome guy to hang out with, he replied my late message quickly and it allowed me to spend the night at his house instead of freezing in the open.
If there wasnt for snow, I probably woudlnt even ask for hosting and would just continue down the road.
He often hosts travellers heading this way (and this is a popular route in the season, not just for cyclists) but now in December his house empty and he was delighted to meet me.
This was also my first host in Slovenia.
Next morning the sun was out and I continued to climb over mountains to Italy. It was cold but the sun made all the difference.
And after whole morning of climbing I got over the hill and was delighted to see view towards Italy. It was immediatelly warmer here, had to take some of my clothes in the afternoon.
But the joy was shortly lived. It may have been warm in the afternoon as I descended into Italy but once the evening starts, the temperature drops rapidly and it all feels like winter again!
First night sleeping in Italy, found some under motorway place to sleep. Not the nicest looking but with winter temperatures, there is nobody outside. I wouldnt be here is summer.
Next morning, continuing through Italy without sun, only fog.
Quite a difference from yesterday's sun.
Cycling some pathway next to Venice canals. There was nobody here and later I round out why.
When I got to the end, the pathway was closed (there were some workers there) first telling me I cannot pass (and I just cycled 20 km on this road!) but then let me go through (there wasnt any important work going on anyway).
Right next to this pathway there is a road leading in same direction, on which I ended up some years ago by accident, trying to avoid this same pathway which was gravel. And this road was horrible, narrow with constant cars passing and nowhere to turn for 20 km. I still remember this well, watching other cyclists on this pathway when I was stuck to this road.
One night I managed to find a host in Italy which had an awesome little caravan for his guests. It was such a warm and cozy place to spend the night.
Unfortunately the host didnt speak English so we hadnt spend the evening together but it was still a nice guesture from him to accept me in these cold and foggy days I had first few days in Italy.
Cozy caravan inside, heater, heated shower, kitchen, toilet, everything you need!
Next morning packing up and into the fog again!
It was a real misery these few days in Italy, with temperatures raging from 0-5 during the day and night and nothing but fog in sight, which made my glasses fog constantly.
Luckily I have seen this part of Italy many times before so I know how beautiful it is.
This was the view I had for 3 straight days in Italy.
Yes, I know its cold.
Charming Italy's arhitecture
Christmas is coming
Finally after 3 days of nothing but fog I got blessed with one day of sunshine when I arrived in a beautiful city of Cremona.
This is the city in the north I still havent visited (and is as beautiful as Verona, Vicenza, Padova) in my book.
After little stroll around the town center, I was invited to be a guest in one of the communites in the outskirts of town, where I spent the night.
This was a community for migrant minors (children under 18 without parents who were living here under supervision of elderly). The staff was super friendly (I felt like a king there:) , only bad thing was they had different schedules during the day so the staff I met in the evening was not present anymore in the morning.
They also accept other travellers and had a big room specially for guests, also with bathroom and everthing needed. This place was super comfortable and I had an opportunity to stay longer if I wanted. But since this was a beginning fo my journey, I decided to only make a single night stay (which I regretted the next day).
Pre dinner plate
Super delicious lasagna for dinner.
Ready to leave next morning, but I should have stayed because the rain predicted that day was more than I could handle (as it will be apparent later).
Searching for shelter in some church I found on the way. Unfortunately this was not possible here.
Day was so cold I had to stop cycling in the afternoon and store myself in the sleeping bag in the tent. It was simply too cold to be outside.
So I ended up behind some other quiet church on the outskirts of small town. I was super cold that night, thats when I regretted not staying another day in the community.
Also after all these cold, wet and foogy days, I noticed my drivetrain was so rusted like it was never before. Not just chain and cassette has some rust (as usual after some rain) but also there was rust on the cleast and on the front derailleur.
I struggled to think how to remove this because it didnt look nice and I certianly didnt want this to spread. In the end I applied some chain oil serveral times and tried scraping it a bit which did remove most of it later. Its not easy to leave these parts soaked in vinegar when you are on the road.
Found a beautiful rose on the side of the parking lot next to the graveyard so I put it on my bike, where it stayed until I had to put drybag on my fork one day.
Sunny days continued as I moved from the countrside towards the coast. I decided to go towards Genoa where I have never been before.
I cycled over the mountian pass called Passo della Bocchetta (its not high) but this day was fun. Once I moved from cities into the countryside and started climbing towards the pass, the nature around me was silent and ther roads were quiet.
I enjoyed climbing into the dark (although it was cold!) but its the adventure that drives me.
The wind also started to pick up towards the top, and I had one hope in a from of a shelter on the top whcih Komoot was showing me. I didnt know what was there and if anything was there at all, but I continued to push.
I was pleasantly surprised when the shelter actually turned out to be a little paved house with chimney on the top of the pass, and it was perfect for my needs, keeping me warmer over night and away from the wind.
Night views towards the sea.
Better than morning views :)
Not much of a height but it was a nice climb yesterday evening.
XXL chair at the top
I descended into Genoa.
Its one of those dirty Italian cities which I dont like, but this was my way now with no turning back.
The only reason why I decided to come to the coast because my navigation Komoot deperately tried to guide me over the alps next to Torino, and I was there actually 2 months ago, and didnt want to go again. Plus I have never been to this part of the coast before so I dicided to give it ago. The other reason is escaping from the cold weather on the inside of the country.
Later it will turn out not to be the something I would do ever again, I really didnt have much fun passing through these rich man towns on the coast of France.
Descended to the coast finally, its quite hot in the middle of the day.
Nobody is swimming in the sea though.
Here started what is so far the worst (sleepless) night on the whole trip. It was all dead and quiet around 18:00 when I passed here through some small street. Maybe 150m meters later I found some closed hotel or someting (since it winter) and next to it some parking lot under ramp,where it looked like I could pu tmy tent. Not the perfect location but it would work. It war right next to the coastal street, but since it was all town area, this was the best I could find in this time of the day and was tired enough to go further.
It was all fine and I went to bed around 22:00, only to be woken up by loud sounds after 23:00.
First I was noi sure where it was coming from and decided to ignore it but it was getting louder and louder.
Soon I realized this was some kind of night clib and it was exactly in this dead street I passes in the evening right next to the beach. I was even looking at this beach as possible sleeping space but gave up on that.
The loud music continued up in the night and I pretty much couldnt sleep at all.
Even more so the cars (with people coming to the club) keept coming and they were just piling closer and closer to mine location.
At one point there were a lot of people shouting on the street right on the opposite side of the bushed fence I was sleeping.
I had to get up and check what was going on. It turned out the police came and started checking people leving the club for alchocol I guess.
This made me happy because I didnt like the idea of drunken people gathering very closely next to the place I was sleeping at.
Several times somebody came inside the parking lot where my tent was and was surpised to see this.
Even the police at one point came in (to check something I guess) and I remember them speaking in Italian and laughing when one police officer told others there is a tent there and somebody is sleeping inside.
all in all I maybe got few hours of very interrupted sleep that night.
There was no way I would move my tent in the middle of the night because first there is nowhere to go (I am still in the city) and its very hard for me to pack tent and everything else just to move around.
Next morning I continued riding on the coast.
Clementines grow here on the street. But are also sold in the stores.
Not sure if people buy them really since you can pick them for free. I did try some and they werent so good though. I guess you need to know when they are ripe.
some dedicated cycling path through some of these cities, but honestly, I was nothing but bored with cycling this coast and these towns. Just wanted to get out of here. I would 100% rather be in the countryside.
Met Italian cyclists coming from Spain in other direction.
He was one of the first cyclists I met on my way, no wonder since it was winter, but also in direction from Slovenia where I came from, not a lot of cyclist travels in winter. Usually they can be found on Eurovelo 8 which moves mostly in warmer direction down the Adriatic coast.
Menton. Small French town on the coast jusrt before Monte Carlo, nice looking with sea raging.
Some French charm which I like here.
Then came Monte Carlo of which not sure what to think about.
They say its where rich people come to enjoy. I would not know nothing about it. I just wanted to pass it and go to Nice where my host was waiting for me.
Btw, even here when the night falls, the temperature drops significally.
I had to climb (even push) my bike through the streets high above the city so I was awarded with some views.
My host Francis from Warmshowers kindly offered me accomodation one night somewhere in Nice. It was dark when I already arrived. City traffic looked wild at the time. Saw some of the city next morning when I was leaving but didnt plan to stay anyway.
Some pictures from Nice
There is a cycle path leading all around the city on the coast so you can easily avoid the town centre.
Fix one of my tubes which was leaking here in the sea. Nice view of the Nice :)
Cannes.
Cant wait to get out of here. I dint like it here on the French riviera now in December and I dont evdn want to think how this looks like in summer (bljuv).
Should I have avoided the coast all together and just listen to Komoot navigating me through the alps?
Probably. But I also should have brought warmer sleeping bag from the start.
Noew the route will turn inwards and I can escape the coast finally.
Btew, I am still on summer sleeping bag here.
Very nice road through the canyons here.
It doesnt climb here but I stell enjoyed it. It was hot of course.
Carces , a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Some random small French charming town.
A freezing night (-5C) a low record for me on this part of the journey. And I was still in my summer sleeping bag!
Suprisingly I slept 7-8 hours that day because I was so tired in the evening, went early to bed and woke up around 5am with my feet pretty frozen. I still got good night sleep, but there was nothing to do for me now, outside was dark almost to 8 and all I could do is lie in my sleeping bad trying to warm my extremities.
The Saint-Sixte Chapel is a 12th century Romanesque chapel , located on a rocky mound approximately 2 km from the village of Eygalières.
Tarascon Castle built on the banks of the Rhone
Following the Rhone
Sète is a major port city in the southeast French region of Occitanie.
War memorials
Sleeping next to the river
Here is the first time I saw Pyrenees, which means Spain is getting close
Last night before crossing into Spain
Before the border with Spain, I went to check Bellegarde Fort , a 17th-century bastion fortification located above the town of Le Perthus.
It took a bit of steep climbing with a bike, but it was well worth the effort.
Crossed into Spain afterwards
Here I found myself on Eurovelo 8 just for a bit, in some nice forest.
Quite a cold nights here as well.
Joined a coastline afterwards.
Not a lot of people here, now in December / January.
Here I even dunked my feet in the sea and it felt good. I almost wanted to swim, but nobody around looked like doing that so I didnt want to be a weirdo.
Here some people are having the time of their lives.
Its quite a desolate beach long way down from the road, not sure how you even get there.
Its the middle of the day and the temperatures are in god 20-ies.
In Spain it gets quite hot in the middle of the day in January, but temperatures still drop quite cold overnight.
Badalona, a town before the Barcelona
Riding through Barcelona in sunset. This time I wasnt meant to stay because my host canceled and I wasnt prepared to pay for expensive hotel so I decided to ride through.
Evenings spend in the tent to keep myself warm.
Some of these town have a certain "Mexican" feeling
Nice evening next to some abandoded house.
Meeting some German travellers on the way. They were going to Morocco.
Some funky arhitecture
Christmas dinner in a small French village made my day.
Its hard to plan or even make schedules where are you going to be on the road during the holidays.
Few photos from Valencia, a beautiful city with a lot of charm.
On my way to the host who lives in the remote mountains. Getting there was an adventure and it took me 2 days to reach him from Valencia. I had to stock up with food well. First day wild camping in the mountains. The area was very remote with little or no villages around.
Firrt night camping spot in the mountains
Wild roads on the way there
Small city Cortes de Pallás on the way
Viewpoint from the end of the climb
Here road descends towards the valley where my host was located.
Some unexpected rain started just as I reached the valley so I actually came all wet to my host, but he quickly showed me my headquaters (container) which was rather cosy and warm, because outside was chilly, its mountains after all.
Yellow kiwis my host offered me, I dont remember eating this before.
And a nice dinner!
Next morning I was ready to continue my journey. Didnt stay longer because my host had some problems with wifi and I since I couldnt work I decided to leave. But this area is very quiet and perfect for relaxing
Morning shots of the valley
Super boring roads though Spain somewhere around Albacete area.
Remind myself to never go there again.
I need a vacation.
Ayuntamiento de Alcaraz, small town near Albacete
This part of Spain was boring but something poped out every once in a while.
Ended up in some national park in the evening where everything was fenced. Finally found opened door and place to put my tent.
Next morning big surprise complete fog for a while. Havent had this since Italy.
Endless fields of olives and I mean endless. I was moving through this area called Andalusia almost 100 km a day for days and there was nothing but olives like on the picture. Wild camping wasnt the easiest here because you dont want to sleep in the olives and there is no much else.
Me after big climb.
Its clear what people do here for a living.
View towards the town of Jaen.
This was really nice area with some hils around and here for the first time I got a wish to do some hiking. But I wal lacking food and somehow ended up giving on this idea.
More olives with super steep climbs. I had to push my bike here.
Again hard to find wild camping spots, everything seems to be private. Ended up in some park but right next to the road.
Castillo de Locubín, Village in Spain
This picture shows how ugly this arhitecture looks, at least in my eyes.
Here. Iwent over some mountian pass, close to Alfarnatejo, which is Malaga area. This was super nice climb in the evening but again, nowhere to place your tent. Either fenced or clearly private lands and any gravel road leading somehere is usually under chain.
This place looks exactly like the town of Stinica in Croatia!
San Pedro Alcántara, I am on the coast now. Lots of touristy towns looking like nothing. Just a big collection of enless restaurants, hotels and ugly bling.
Komoot lead me through this coastal path, which is cyclist allowed but not fun since its shared with pedestrains. Now there wasnt many people since its January, but I dont want to hink how this looks in the summer.
Last night on Spain teritory. I can see Africa from here!
And with this ends Europe part of the journey.
All in all, Spain wasnt muy cup of tha. Yes Barcelona and Valencia were beautiful. Had some nice countryside although mostly hard for wild camping because of all private lands.
Spanish towns are not my favorite arhitecture, this belongs to Italy and France.
Took me long time to cross this part of Europe and winter took a tall on me. Initially I thouhtg only Slovenia will be cold and once I end up on Mediterian coast of Italy, France, Spain, it will be warm.
And warm it weas, but only in the middle of the day. Night were still cold, often close to zero and sometimes below!
With my summer shoes and average gloves, when I came to Morocco I realized I had numb toes on both feet and hands. Though something was wrong with my bike setup but no, I have been riding this bike all over Europe and was always comfortable. All this was because I was spending whole days riding through winter temperatures with average clothing.
It took me well over a month after thart for this numbness to dissapear completely.
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