The route was a straight line to Belgrade along a main road from Zagreb. I ended up leaving late after clipping one pannier on a post and completely breaking the clip. It wasn’t even a hard hit. After talking with Ortlieb they also said it shouldn’t have broken in the way it did. But I took a couple of hours looking for a bike shop which could sell the component. Unfortunately there was none available and I will need to order it in (always problematic when travelling).
A chance campsite
Setting off after fixing the pannier with a strap on top and decided to look for a delivery of the part. I was planning on doing 80-100km on the first day and came across a campsite, which advertised itself as a place to reconnect with the old history of the region. A campsite with a theme, perfect. I turn up, it was only 100 kuna (£11.50) for the night and offered to cook a meal as well. Vladimir, the owner, also welcomes me with two shots of homemade schnapps. I turn up to the restaurant and he has prepared a three course meal, invited some other guests over to talk and a carafe of local wine! This will possibly be a late night.
This was all unexpected and he only charged me 100 kuna again. It was exceptionally good value and the conversation was brilliant. We discussed his travels, building the business and his meeting the president. All the while he was getting dressed up as the chef or a character looking like Worzle Gummidge. I’m still not sure what to make of this encounter but it was an enjoyable one. I left the next day with a smile and a reason for cycle touring.
Videos and the lack of wild camping
I vowed to start videoing again but I soon realised that I don’t really have the patience for videoing. I just like to ride! So I vow to keep the equipment until Turkey and make a decision on whether to keep it. The same goes for the DSLR which I am lugging round!
The road I’m following seems to be one village after another with no space in between. As opposed to build on roads away from the main road everyone built their house on the main road. Amusing as this was, it made finding wild camping spots difficult or impossible. The road itself is rather dull as well! I met a couple of other cycle tourists who also wished for it to be over!
Pushing myself too hard
After a rather dangerous section of road where I was pushed off by drivers I decided to head towards the EV6 route. This would add approximately 40km to my journey and I had already booked my accommodation in Belgrade. I would need to pull a couple of long days or one very long day. Crossing the border I realised I had a lot of light remaining in the day and there was a cheap hostel in Nova Sad, Serbia. It was 40km away and I was already 140km into the day (it was a flat road day). Deciding to give it a go and made the decision that if by 9pm I was at half way, then I would go all the way.
I made it to the hostel thinking I would get a good night’s sleep before my final day into Belgrade. I was wrong. One of the dorm residents was ill and spent most of the night vomiting, there was no AC and it was 30C at night. Oh well, best laid plans and all!
On reflection I should’ve just called the hostel in Belgrade and asked them to push my reservation back one day. Why am I still pushing myself so hard? It’s a question I keep asking myself with no answer. Maybe I feel the pressure of running out of finance? A pressure I have felt before and it can drive me to do stupid things.
The final day into Belgrade was a hot one, reaching 40C again, but it gives me another lesson. I stopped in a village for food and after ordering and eating realised I didn’t have any cash. Their card machine stopped working due to a power cut. I had some Croatian Kuna and no internet, so unable to use Google Translate to explain I needed to get it changed. This ended up with my signing that I will find somewhere to get money exchanged and come back! I guess the lady understood because the police never arrived! Lesson learnt, always change money ASAP.
In Belgrade I was staying in Sun Hostel, across town and I would need to navigate Belgrade. This was the first time I really came across a city not adapted to cyclists and there were a few close calls and many wrong turns! I would recommend a stay in Sun Hostel, it has a good mixture of short and long term travellers and a really good place to explore the city from. More on that in the next post.