Day 36, Chita

Slept well and despite the sun beginning to hide from us again, it is a nice day outside. Chita is not very big, but it has a pleasant feel to it. The scale of the buildings and the general pace is a bit more human, more like we (I) know it.
… and about 1 person in a 100 actually smiles! My god, there might be hope for russia after all. Of course there is a lenin square and a lenin statue – yawn – but the streets actually have trees growing in front of the slightly (but at least not prefab) run down fassades. This place at least has potential and with a bit of initiative, privatisation and 2 or 3 smiles more, this could be turned into a pleasantly relaxed town.

Actually the above photo doesn’t really feature those fassades – well, just imagine them and it’s one more reason for you to come here yourself and discover the hidden gems 😉

As a little teaser, check this out – woman are actually very good looking in russia, although the majority tends to overdo the dresscode a bit – especially the high heels do often remind me of darker alleys in europe featuring the oldest trade in history. But then I only red about that …

Can’t seem to find a petrol can for the upcoming route with petrol stations thinning out a lot. Let’s see how things go – but don’t really want to be stuck on this stretch of road. It’s the wilderness and if you believe the russians (ask anyone anywhere in russia) this stretch is teeming with bears and bandits. Unfortunately A not very helpfull with this, so will try to find a solution later.

We also tried to get info on a re-entry visa for russia, so we could spend our extra days in china maybe. The chineese visa seems to be less of a problem then the russian part. Let’s see what happens – contacted our russian friend Luba in berlin. Maybe she can help in the matter – maybe via her old employer in Vladivostok who operates a travel agencies if I understood correctly.

Now for a thick hot chocolate (not as warm as in western europe outside).

Hours later and still full from the chocolate … Maybe I overdid it a litte. Took another stroll through the city centre

Found a jerry can and mounted it (hopefully) safely on the extra large rack in the back.

Day 35, Ulan-Ude – Chita

Day 689km
Trip 12.754km
Bike 17.779km

Right, slept really well in cushy double and after OK Omelette breakie I am now waiting for Andreas to come and meet me at my hotel. There is sun amongst the clouds so I am hoping for a maybe dry ride today. Please …

We will be heading towards Chita today – let’s see how far we get. It is just over 600km and after yesterdays 800 with all the rain and dirt road, we must just take it as it comes – or I will at least.

Hope Paul, Natalia and Olli made irkutsk yesterday and were able to catch their train to Ulan Bator from where they will be heading to Beijing and then off to Australia (Paul) and back to Frankfurt. Hope to meet you guys all in Berlin over xmas and hopefully we can make the bike tour happen in australia paul – wld love to see the cape up north. Maybe you can also teach me to fly your chopper – you said 8h for me to be able to hover ? 😉

… bored waiting for A ..

Right, A showed up while I decided to put some petrol into katie and off we went. Glorious sunshine – what a contrast to yesterday, but I guess the rain will catch up with us still. Or so my app says 😉

We travelled along mountains and rivers – the latter still being the most destinct, typically russian for me. The rivers in this country are unlike any U have seen – and not even the cities can destroy that special quality of calm, eternal peace they project.

At some petrol station we met an argentinian couple – and their dog. They have been travelling for 11 years, 280.000km – on 1 bike, this one:

Yes people, it’s an Africa Twin – perhaps sonne and ollo can share this with the AT stammtisch. All that went wrong in those years: fuelpump and regulator- that’s it! Engine never opened. While we were talking in the shade of the fuel pumps, the dog dissapeared. We all tried to find it, but it was hiding with a nice labrador from the house next door. ‘Ah’ I said, ‘off with a new friend ey?’ ‘No’ mrs biker says ‘ off shagging’! Well, imagine being under that jacket all day – has been for 9 years!

Eventually we decided to go on since the weather held true and despite the roads being the worst yet – A almost came off his bike when he drove into a big hole in the street. As it became dalk, we entered Chita and found a nice hotel, 2 rooms for the price of 1 and hey – even internet. Hotel Arcadia I believe it’ s called.

We are running ahead of time with our schedule and might well do some excursions from Vladivostok. Or go to Japan a week earlier …

Ah, before I forget – we crossed another time zone, so 8h ahead of germany now. This is getting rediculous.

Day 34, Olkhon – Ulan-Ude

Day 812km (11.5h)
Trip 12.065km
Bike 17.090km

The day started with brilliant sunshine and I could already see, that the mud roads had dried up quite a bit. So packing and putting the stuff on the bike happened quickly and with a developing routine.

Managed to leave at 9:30 and was able to do 80-110km/h when standing up. Katie seemed to be screaming ‘faster, faster pussy cat’ – definately her element and she must be a russ meyer fan …

Got the ferry just in time so everything looked perfect. Loads of cows and horses on the street, so in addition to the ever present wild dogs a lot of obstacles to look out for.

All in all I had to travel 70km of dirtroad, so together with the ferry time I only managed to average 50km/h – not a lot since today’s trip would not be short and I also had to get through Irkutsk city. Cutting through a city in russia is a real pain in the ass – jammed, dirty, smelly and dangerous. And it takes forever.
So I was happy when the GPS suggested a ‘Western Bypass’, which I decided to take. Of course I should have mistrusted that thing – I ended up in deep suburbia, on the worst dirtroads of the entire trip. Anyway, eventually Irkutsk disappeared gladly in the rearview mirror and off we are again.
Until it started raining. More like pissing it down in buckets. Eventually I was in the rain for 4.5h, my jacket leaking, getting cold and the falling raindrops big enough to hurt my hands. Through the gloves! Which are – by the way – not waterproof despite being new, german (reusch) and fitted with a goretex membrane.

So, after a total of 11.5h on the road, I finally arrive in Ulan-Ude, find a hotel (Ayan I believe), have a meal and 1 beer. Which is starting to knock me out?!

Meeting here with Andreas tomorrow morning at 10:00 – and should be on our way east towards Chita. Let’s see …

Day 33, Olkhon Island (still …)

Yes, still on island since yesterday’s rain turned the road into a mud bath – and there is +40km of it, featuring up to knee deep tracks. The following is in town, side street with not much traffic so relatively OK – but with my tires …

So first breakfast, still can’t get enough of it, beats all (expensive) hotel options so far. Will try to catch up with Andreas in Ulan-Ude or bit east of that.

After breakfast I joined Nathalia, Olli and Paul for a short walk by the coast – just behind the Hostel, complete with spiritual hot spot for the local (indigenous – thanks Electra) people. Spectacular and beautiful while very calming place.

OK, back at the ranch we had some lunch and will prepare for dinner. Maybe squeeze in a beer inbetween – up on the little hill behind the hostel, overlooking the scenery from above. And maybe Paul and Nathalia will show us some more of this (Nathalia leading by points Paul …)

Some last ‘impressions’ of the day …

Day 32 Olkhon Island (yes, still …)

Most people left with the 10:00 bus to Irkutsk today, so the hostel has become even more quiet. I decided to ‘upgrade’ on my food, paying an extra 200 rubels (5€) for the day’s 3 meals and checked out breakfast. What a nice move! Breakfast buffet included omelette made with whatever you chose to be in it, joghurt, dried fruit, milk, pancakes etc. …
Can’t wait for lunch and dinner. 😉

So I decided to have a lazy day and start updating the blog, upload photos on the back up server, check mails etc. By the time I will be done with that, lunch should be ready 😉
In the meantime I am sitting on the 1st floor of the main building and can enjoy the few over the town and the not too distant hills. Maybe I should go there still. But maybe I should just relax before heading off tomorrow again. Let’s see what happens …

Well the upgrade on the food part was definately worth it – warm dishes to choose from and always salad buffet! 😉
The weather however is not looking that great. It has been raining and might continue to do so tomorrow. The prospect of riding 45km in the mud and another 400 or so to get to where I want to get, isn’t all that appealing 😦
So if the worst comes to it, I might stay another day and hope for the best after that.

Day 31 Olkhon Island

Day 80km
Trip 11.253km
Bike 16.278km

Lazy start today, that is what hostel life does to you 😉
After getting breakfast I handed in some washing and decided to stay another night – so leaving monday and probably meeting up with Andreas somewhere near Ulan-Ude or the eastern shore of lake baikal.

Although I am staying nextdoor to Nikita, the deal included 3meals, shower and sauna on Nikita’s premisses. At 900 rubels/day (22€) not a bad deal compared to all other places we stayed at before. And a chance to meet travellers rather than ‘tourists’.

I took a small stroll through town and managed to find the petral station – not as easy as it sounds, the handpump is hidden in someones back garden. So I decided to get the bike ready, put in some petrol and explore the island.

I managed to get a detailed map in Nikita’s Souvenir shop and with the aid of my newly accuired russian topo maps, I set off. This island is really a stunning place. Surrounded by the lake which looks more like an ocean, it features forrests, sand dunes, beaches and these amazing rolling hills with their calming quality. I did about 100km zigzaging across the island, enjoying some offroad in unspoiled nature.

Actually it was quite demanding in places and I ended up spending a few quiet hours on an uninhabitat peninsular reading and dozing off 😉

Heading back to the hostel, I met 2 russian bikers – sergey, a photographer from Nadym far in the north, a young city of 50.000 people built by Gasprom and Max who lives near Samara. Sergey had just sold his 990 KTM last year and now drives a Ducati Multistrada. He loves the Ducati for onroad trips but says it’s useless for even light offroad. I think I saw a small tear in his eyes when he was looking at katie. 😉
Now they were travelling on Honda 250’s and were covering 5000km on them this trip. Actually Sergey went through africa on one of those last year – never a problem. Funny coinsidence, because I always thought this would be the best choice for a trip like that.
As we stood in the middle of nowhere, a 3rd biker on his Kawa 650 showed up, he was on his way back up north.

Sergey, Max and me carried on south towards our town and they invited me to a good meal in one of the restaurants. Unfortunately I cant remember the name of the main course (starter was borsch soup), some boiled dumplings eith a hole on top- from where you first drank the broth before eating the dumpling itself 😉

Ok, back in the hostel I will try to upload some of this and enjoy some good beers and conversations with the backpackers and hikers. Guess what nation dominates but does not really mingle with the others? 😉
Wir sind das Volk ….

Day 30 Listvyanka – Olkhon Island (Baikal)

Day 379km
Trip 11.173km
Bike 16.198km

Since Listvyanka did not have much to offer in the sense of quiet/nature (well unless you use it as a base to go hiking around the lake) or even entertainment, the decision to leave today was made easy – especially since it did not rain anymore.
After a somewhat big breakfast (rice and meat), I set off towards Irkutsk again and tried to find my way north to the island of Olkhon.

Unfortunately it took me a while to get around Irkutsk since my GPS, or rather the maps i am using on it (OSM) kept inventing roads and I kept on hitting the worst dirt tracks.

But eventually all went well and soon I was travelling on the correct road to the north.

The road turned into a gravel/sand mix and as I was speeding up a rise enjoying some light ‘offroad’, I saw 3 bikes gunning towards me from the opposite direction. One blue, one orange and one white – all with the very distinct sillouhette of my KTM! So we all hit the breakes fairly simultanously and got to a stop next to each other. And what can I say – Milan and his 2 other swiss friends!! Can you believe it, in the middle of Siberia 😉
They had just come up from mongolia and some other countries (3months of mainly offroad) and were heading back to Irkutsk where they would all board the Trans Siberian to Moscow. From there they will ride the bikes home again.
Well, what can I say – we had some good stories to tell and promised to meet again in Germany (they are all keen on Grimme Ollo!). After about an hour we each went our way I had a ferry to catch and they were keen on visiting a friend in Irkutsk – who invited them to his Dacha where a sauna was waiting too. Hard life travelling …

I just arrived in time to see the ferry leave – but luckily there would be another one in an hours time which gave me a chance to have some tea with a nice russian couple selling souvenirs at the harbour – natasha and sasha 😉

The ferry was small and quick, time passed quickly chatting to the other passengers (actually ‘chatting’ is somewhat misleading, sign language would describe it better.

Reaching Olkhon Island I still had to do approx. 30km of gravel road, but I eventually made Kuzir before nightfall. On the way I was rewarded with spectacular views – what an amazing place. According to the Lonely Planet, this is one of the 5 global poles of shamanic energy by the Buryat people. Well, it definately has very good vibes about it.

I tried to book into Nikitas Hostel, a nice collection of wooden huts, but they were full and I ended up next door in a place they also do business with. I got a nice small upstairs room and can take all meals at Nikita’s – also use their Internet 😉

–

Day 29 Tulun – Listvyanka (Baikal)

Day 529km
Trip 10.794km
Bike 15.819km

The morning sky over Tulun reminded me of Soweto again. Low hanging smoke from wood stoves and some industry mingled with early morning mist.

But the sun was showing also so after Andreas’s morning routine lamentation about no or lousy russian breakfast being served, we were off on our final lap to Irkustsk 😉

Unfortunatley it soon started raining and at some petrol stop I decided to give Irkutsk a miss for now and head straight for Lake Baikal. Andreas decided to check out Irkutsk Nightlife and so we seperated for a couple of days, probably meeting in or after Ulan-Ude next week.
Good choice it seemed when I passed through the city – another one of those bleak, ugly, blown out of human proportion city dying in its pollution and traffic jams. As you can guess from my words, I am fast tiring of places I normally wouldn’t be seen dead in.
By the time I got to Listvyanka, I had been driving in the heavy rain for a good 5 hours so I was in desperate need of a hot shower. This place is located right by the shore of the lake and it is – well quite disapointing too. One row of houses all geared for tourism (but there are none with this weather) but again only on the surface. Hotels expensive, no internet, no english speaking staff and only the boring monotonous side of russian food. Let’s see what tomorrow brings, this – in my mind at least – was supposed to be a highlight of the trip …

Day 28 Krasnojarsk – Tulun

Day 705km
Trip 10.265km
Bike 15.290km

The countryside from Krasnojarsk to Tulun was again extremely fertile, loads of (harvested) wheat fields and forrest whereever you looked. The soil is almost black – haven’t seen anything like it before.

The towns are getting a lot smaller and more basic too, the villages made up from delapitated wooden houses and only the sat dish shows there is electricity – often reminded of places like Soweto with all the tin sheds inbetween.

The roads are still flanked by the many memorials (actual graves by the look of them) to the drivers who perished on these roads. Although some accidents will surely be due to the bad road conditions, the majority of roadkills would be due to what must be one of the worlds worst driver: the russian. Absolutely no respect for other people travelling on the road, paired with obvious little skill and a too fast or old car make for a dangerous mix.

We did something like 700km today, so we wld get a good deal closer to Irkutsk and the nearby Baikal lake. Unfortunately the roads deteriorated quite a bit – actually it disappeared in parts due to frequent construction work.

At the late end of the day we ended up in a hotel/brothel/disco/restaurant in Tulun. Since the restaurant was also the disco (incl. permanent laser show), it was kind of hard to see your food. But the prostitutes hanging out here seemed quite fun and relaxed about it 😉

Day 27 Kemerovo – Krasnojarsk

Day 532km
Trip 9560km
Bike 14.585km

The night was not comfortable.
We ended up sharing a pull out couch and each had a luxurious 1.60m to ourself. More like sleeping in a drawer to say the least 😦
Breakfast was a small improvement – I was able to order blinis (pancakes), but they never have jam or even honey, only comes with condensed milk. Well, what can I say. The weather added to the somewhat tired mood – drizzle and cool at a mere 14′.

On the parking lot, as we were packing the bikes, we met a russian guy travelling with his 2 daughters (by car) and going the opposite direction. He actually advised us to turn back since it wld be getting colder and wetter still. Lake Baikal too cold to swim in an a chilly 0′ at night …
Well, no turning back now 😉

Actually the drizzle stopped soon after departure and we could take our rain jackets off again.

The roads were fine – the usual run down tarmac, but we are getting used to it 😉
Somewhere along the road we met a nice italian couple who were going the opposite way. They had been to Mongolia and Iran, planning on shipping the Transalp from Novosibirsk to Moscow by train and then continue from there down to italy via St. Petersburg and the baltic States.
As we stood and talked the usual biking stuff, another bike stopped – paul from australia on his way to england on a small Suzuki streetbike 😉

We soon carried on, hoping the italians (planning on passing through Berlin) wld see us there. They are running a cake shop in milan, which they have closed for 3 months.

The meals along the road stay meagre, but we try to top up with fruit from the supermarkets.

We made it to Krasnojarsk at about 17:00, only now its 18:00 since we crossed another dateline. We are camping at the hotel Severs, basic socialist but hey- hot showers 😉

But now for some Pasta …

Day 26 Novosibirsk – 20km East of Kemerovo

Day 319km
Trip 9028km
Bike 14.053km

OK, todays start was not too early- the beds in Hotel Avenue were just too good to jump out of …

We were quite anxious to see though whether our tires had indeed arrived at the local KTM dealer – Enduro Group. I had sent them from Berlin with the russian post office – who indeed have a branch in Berlin. Actually it is close to your place Axel, so should you ever plan on coming this way … 😉

Right, we arrived at the dealer shortly after 10 am and were a little disheartened by the fact that our friend from the last visit was not there. But his colleague (of course 0 english, but hey, google tranlator …) was just as friendly and indeed- there were the tires. Just as I had packed them all these weeks ago!
The mechanic showed up an hour or so later also and off we went together – the actual workshop was at the far end of this huge industrial complex.

Dima was the mechanic who helped me work on my bike – nice guy and we managed to change oil, tires and while waiting for the new tires to go on, I quickly cleaned the pre- airfilter I had installed to save me from changing the actual airfilter too often. As a matter of fact, i only cleaned it in Istanbul before so I guess next time Berlin 😉

It was a bit of a waste to change tires already – the old ones were not done yet, but we have another 8-9.000km to go and that they wouldn’t have covered.
For future reference, the milage I had done on them:
Front: 12.700km
Rear: 9.000km

I believe with this type of trip, you can count on doing:
Front: 16.000km
Rear: 12.000km

Anyway, after putting it all together again, we started the bike to check the oil level – and saw that the precious liquid was indeed dripping on the floor! So off with the bash plate again and the source was quickly located – the lower oilfilter. Apparantly we forgot to put the O-ring into the cover :-()
OK, that was quickly sorted.
Some more tech data since always an issue with this bike: If you do an oilchange including all 3(!!) filters, put in 2.5l, start bike and let idle till it reaches operating temperature, turn off and check oil level. You will find, that it needs another 0.5l to reach the middle mark on your dip stick. Now, you could leave it there or (that’s what I do) top it up a little more, until it reaches approx.3mm ABOVE the Max mark. The engine can handle it and I have NOT needed to top up over the last 7000km! By then the oil level was still above Min level – not bad at all for this kind of bike.

We managed to leave Novosibirsk at 16:00 and were still able to do a bit over 300km until we got past Kemerovo – where another truckstop was waiting for us. And russian food in the evening and in the morning.

Actually they do serve overdone spagetthi with cold vienna sausage (kind of) straight out of a tin for breakfast !!!! :-()

Day 25 Novosibirsk

Managing to chill out quite well- to the point of getting bored already. Novosibirsk hasn’t got all that much to offer really and I hope we will get our tires and oilchange done tomorrow. Maybe we can even squeeze in some hours of driving towards Irkutsk where there seems to be a lot of activity around lake Baikal and the nearby mountains.

Today was spent wandering around the city center a bit more- becoming rather familiar with the park, restaurants and coffee shops 😉

Day 24 Novosibirsk

Nice – slept till 11 today, don’t know if it was the beds or just general fatigue – but what bliss. Hotel very comfortable, small and quiet in a residential neighbourhood just off city. centre – Hotel Avenue if you are ever in the city 😉

Tried to get into the Opera after breakfast, but unfortunately it was closed. Looks fantastic- grand and impressive. Also well maintained.

Spent the day reading in the parks, trying some of the local coffee places and restaurants, witnessed another (20 or so) weddings and ended up windowshopping for Belstaff leatherjackets. Gonna get one of those- but not in russisa @ 2500€ a piece :-()

Day 23 Tatarsk – Novosibirsk

Day 432km
Trip 8709km
Bike 13.734km

Stayed in some basic truckers inn- matrasses wafer thin, but we didn’t care – so tired. Food was the usual healthy sausages and spagetti, same for breakfast.

We met 2 young american guys from New York, the were participants of the Mongolian Rallye- same as the italians we met on the ferry from trabzon to sochi, but their car’s engine blew up in kazachstan. So the bought 2 scooters there and they try to still make it to the final party in mongolia on the 24th i believe they said.

The sky is becoming endless- one believes to see the earth’s curve. Never saw such an amazing sky – not even in africa.

Since we made good on some km yesterday, we got to Novosibirsk early in the afternoon.
We went straight to the bike dealer we had forwarded new tires for the bikes to

http://www.moto-bg.com/Snow-eng.html

They are also the local KTM dealers. Very friendly and helpfull. Unfortunately the guy we had talked to before – Ramon – was out of town hunting boar with his bike, and he was the only one who knows about the tires. But yvgeny who was in the shop was eager to help and finally the tires seem to have surfaced at the post office. Well, we will find out on Monday when we go back to the shop to have tires and oil changed – all ready to tackle the next 7000km before japan.

So, we will be here till Monday, maybe even Tuesday. Went for some good (italian) food tonight – we deserved it after all the spagetthi and sausage on the road.

We are staying in a nice hotel the Avenue. Small and relaxing, incl. Sauna and jacuzzi 😉
Friendly atmosphere and owners, so not hard at all to stay a day or two longer.

Day 22 Omutinskiy – Tatarsk

Day 727km
Trip 8231km
Bike 13.256km

Left Miami early in the morning, landscape fairly flat and temperature slightly cool. Tried to make some km today so we would get closer to Novosibirsk and finally Siberia.

Day 21, Ekaterinburg – Omutinskoje

Day 613km
Trip 7504km
Bike 12529km

Leaving Ekaterinburg was easy – although the most urban and ‘up to date’ city in russia so far – spending more than 2 days here becomes a little bit of a drag. Especially since we still have a bit of road waiting ahead for us 😉

Since I always loved the Ural motorcycles (actually having owned one years ago – here is a pic)

… we made a slight detour to Irbit, one of the 2 places where they are still being build (the other being or having been Kiev). Its a small town of approx. 50.000 inhabitants and apparently all they make is Ural bikes and some special glas. Don’t know about the Ural employees, down from 10.000 to 200.

Still, finding the factory wasn’t easy- a bit hard to spot since it really doesn’t look like a factory and it’s totally run down. We met lutz and anatolie standing in front of it- anatolie working here and lutz being a canadian trying to install some CNC machines for them. He also sells Ural bikes in Halifax, Canada
Ural Canada

Here are some pics, so you will understand what I mean:

We desperately wanted inside the factory of course – and these 2 were game – but a phone call made it clear: Marina was in charge (whoever she is), and she made us wait and wait …
After travelling for 7000km, we eventually gave up (hope a side car will fall on your head next time you march through the factory Marina), and decided to have a look at the small museum around the corner (which is run by some very friendly people).

Some true gems to be seen, including my old M-72 with two wheel drive AND diff lock (which I had bought from a friend, who before had bought it from the polish army). They mainly featured Urals of course, but also Zündapps, BMW etc. In a closed off section of the museum (we were granted access when they saw we were enthusiasts also- but NO photos there), the had Norton, Ducati, Guzzi etc.
They made 3 Million of these Ural Boxers – see the bike further down.

Anyway, we tried to get into the factory again- but still no sign of Marina. Well, maybe she was under the sidecar already …
So, we decided to look what was cooking in the Ural kitchen – and that was a nice experience too. Friendly russian mamas cooking for the hard working class:

After this meal, we decided to say goodbye to the Urals and head for Tyumen.

The landscape was glorious, sometimes it looked like a golf course, then again forrest or a sea of yellow wheat with islands of trees floating in it.

The driving was excellent, maybe the best so far. We were able to take smaller country roads, no traffic and no trucks! Subsequently the roads were in much better shape too.
We passed Tyumen on its outskirts and it looked like a real nogo. Hundreds of ugly highrise appartmentblocks, thick traffic etc. We went on for another 150km approx. and made camp in yet another truck stop. Actually this one is rather ‘posh’.

Aaah, miami by night.

Day 20 Ekaterinburg

Our Trip so far:

Luxury breakie (by comparison) and off to town now. First stop at http://www.partizangps.gu, where I got a nice set of russias topo maps- all of them onto my garmin. Should I hit the wild, I should be prepared. Of course it’s in cyrillic so a bit demanding.

Spent day wandering through thos city and it definately is the cleanest, most cosmopolitan and vibrant of all russian cities so far. Went to see the new church where the latest Zar and his family is worshipped. In the biblical sense- him and his family are always portraied as gods, saints- with a halo. Weired and scary.

I then tried to visit the war museum- they even have a piece of the shot down U2 – but it was closed already. But the court yard was still open

Tried some new snacks before ending up having sushi. They do sell small (and have seen bigger too) fish packed in plastic bags – like chips, according to the pic on the bag you should enjoy it with a beer (which I did). Actually a nice little aperitive.

Strolling back to the hotel now – trying to find Irbit tomorrow – the town where they build Ural bikes. Well, it’s difficult even to find on the GPS. Let’s see.
Some more shots of the city …

Day 19 Ufa – Ekaterinburg

Day 503km
Trip 6891km
Bike 11916km

Actually I had a fairly good nights sleep in my suite

… but it was a bit strange to
a. have no water
b. find the place totally deserted- guests, owners, prostitute and even the dog was gone. Maybe there was a razzia and I slept through it (always have my earplugs in) ….

I was greeted by a light drizzly (stopped soon after) and a fresh 17-24′. Good riding in a landscape that was becoming more diverse by the hour. Hills turned into bigger hills, grass into trees and when I turned up north, the lake district began. But first I had to go through a lot of fog, with cars and trucks seeming to pop out towards me every few seconds. An endless supply of them too- guess the further east I travel, the less traffic and definately more trucks and less cars. My guess anyway …

Lots of crosses and cemetaries along all these roads too- some of the crosses turned to proper memorials by people, including seats, roof etc.

Also the cow density along the roads is increasing- in all the places you wouldn’t expect them

The roads were varying in quality- a lot, but the scenery never disappointed.

Went through some heavy industrie district located in a forrest, except that the forrest had disappeared in its close proximitry. The roads – or what’s left of them – gave a hint of what (maybe) to expect further east.

After giving the bike a close inspection – here is to you ollo –

… I thought it deserved a wash and I decided to sleep a little more upmarket. Met Andreas at the Novotel Hotel, 4 or 5 stars.

Haven’t decided if I will stay another night tomorrow, might go on to Irbit- where they makes the famous Ural motorbikes (start reading from the 4th articel)

Day 18 Samara – Ufa

Day 627km
Trip 6388km
Bike 11413km

It being Sunday, Samara was rather dead when we left- perhaps everybody was recovering from last nights drinking in the pedestrian zone- or getting ready for church?

The day took us through rolling hills and later the first bits of forrest. Driving on the M5 sometimes seems a little like a racetrack- russian drivers seem to like (and do) take risks.

Towards the end of the day andreas and me got seperated and since he decided to travel on a different route- we didn’t catch up again.

I passed Ufa since still fit (and the place is a dump) and stayed in some truckers inn. Not much comfort to say the least, but interesting owners.

2 brothers from georgia who in addition to run the hotel, build blockhouses, dealt a little in prostitution and were thinking of turning the whole place into a resort of some sort 😉

Day 17, Saratov – Samara

Day 432km
Trip 5761km
Bike 10786km

Difficult start today- both tired, me from wandering around with jeff and Si, Andreas from ending up in some Hamam …. 😉
Roads are getting worse, sometimes the asphalt looks like a bomb shelled and then shock frozen MX track (couldn’t take a photo- the one below shows the boulevard part of the road 😉 ). The going was good though- perfect weather conditions, overcast but dry and a friendly 24′

Samarov appears similar to Sakarov, maybe larger. It also looks a bit more run down- but still shows some hidden archtiectural gems. Pitty I only have the phones camera.

We straight booked into our Hotel

and went out to search some food- bit famined today. And what luck- we came across an italian restaurant that actually prepares GOOD italian food. Well appreciated after more than 2 weeks, no matter how well the local food tastes.

The pedestrian zone has the usual, relaxed volga river feel to it. Lots of young people sitting around drinking and smoking, their numbers increasing as the night sets in.

And if you keep your eyes peeled, you will finally find out what has happened to all those stars from your youth.

Day 16, Volgograd – Saratov

Day 391km
Trip 5329km
Bike 10354km

Right, today was a good day for driving! Overcast but no rain (but it is raining now that I sit comfortably in the hotel lobby) and a perfect 25′. The first day I did not feels the sweat run down my back or my legs. Felt so much more alive, even did a bit of ‘offroad’ by traveling next to the road on the sandy part for a while 😉

We got out of Volvograd fairly easily (thats before the GPS decided to quit on me for a while- although OSM isnt all that detailed anyway) and simply followed the Volga river from then on.
The landscape was flat dotted with hills and ravines, perhaps a little greener- maybe because they did not plant wheat everywhere. We got another good dose of the sheer dimension of this country and hey, we still enjoy it. Might be different in a few thousand km from here 😉

We had some close calls too, one in form of a car suddenly turning off right in front of us and then a bit later, when a truck tire blew up just as andreas wanted to overtake it.
We got to our hotel fairly early since we got up at 7:00 today. The Wolga Hotel is or used to be an Art Deco Gem- but it has aged a little and has not received all the neccessary care and attention over the last decades. But it still has some charme.

Saratov at first glance seems to differ only little from Volvograd- not much left of the times when it used to be the capitol of the Wolga Germans, invited here to settle by Katharina I believe. Hundreds of prefab masshousing dating from the 60ies and no apparent townplanning efforts. Quite run down too. But they managed to maintain a pedestrian zone (where our hotel is located) which adds a lot of character to this part of the city. It is (thankfully) not grand, but has a nice vibe to it- especially now at night.

I met a very nice american couple from Washington DC – Jeff and Si – travelling on their GS800 all the way to india- and funds permitting, on to south america via australia.
We will stay in contact and surely meet again in Berlin or the US.

We took a nice walk to the Wolga river- it being as wide and mellow as ever time obviously irrelevant to its existance.

The river also seems the local hotspot for weddings, we came across 8 on the way down 😉

I am feeling a lot better – thank you umpalumpa and my backside is also on the way of recovery. After a nice dinner I will now retire to our balltoom size suite- and prey for no rain tomorrow.

Day 15, Volgograd

Today we spent walking to the Stalingrad memorial (well actually we took the bus) and to the War museum afterwards.

The memorial is VERY impressive, it can be seen from almost anywhere in the city. It reminds me of the russian war memorial in berlin and it shows mother russia – more than 70m high! Very beautiful and impressive even though the style is very socialist too. Just before you walk up to the statue, you pass through an underground memorial hall – beautiful space and colours.

Next was the War museum, not far from our hotel. It turned out to be surrounded by major construction works- landscaping the outside area, but also renovating the fassade which in some parts looked in really bad shape. It is located next to the ruins of a huge bakery (the red face brick building) which ceased opperating sometime in 1942.
As soon as we entered, a friendly elderly employee got hold of us and linked us up with an english boyscout group 😉 So we got a tour in english …
A very impressive building on the inside again, filled with the usual war memerobilia, but good archtectural spaces.

Volgograd itself is rather dull, mesmorised in socialist architecture and townplanning. But lacking any trace of grandour, or even remotely good/grand/modern buildings or spaces. The city has no real beginning and somehow no centre either. The Volga is immense and impressive, just sitting there- more a lake than a river.
Even at the foot of the War memorial (which is located on a hill in the city centre) you have heavy and really dirty/smelly industry which seems like a remnant from the great patriotic war.

Apparently Volgograd is one of the cities to host the soccer worldcup in 2018(?). Will be interesting to see the neccessary changes being implemented. But people are friendly though seem inhibited towards foreigners – obviously the main reasons being the language (NO one speaks any english – more likely to find some german words) and the fact that there are no tourists here 😉

I am still suffering from a cold and walking around with temperatures climbing up to 42′ might not have helped, but cant leave tomorrow without having seen anything of the city. But feeling a bit better, thanks to Umpalumpa …

Day 14, Rostov na Donu – Volgograd

br />;
<;

Day 478km
Trip 4938km
Bike 9963km

Today was probably the toughest day so far. 40' and tarmac roads filled with loads of traffic and trucks. Trucks smelly and slow, giving off more fumes than the average coal mine in western europe. The tracks cut into the asphalt by the trucks are more than ankle deep and add to the whole picture since they the bike wobbly when crossing them- and cross them you must (approx. 10.000 times a day) when overtaking the smelly beasts 😉

The landscape didn't really do much to make the day more interesting- streches of several hundred km of wheat or sunflower or simply nothing. All relatively flat and the only thought that did cross my mind was "why would anybody in his right frame of mind try to conquer this vast. nothingness"? But then neither napoleon nor hitler were known as being very sane.

Overall I think I got to my personal limit (or very close anyway) today- mentally and physically. Having stomach cramps the whole day and something that feels like a cold (was actually shivering when arriving at the hotel), doesn’t help when driving for almost 8h in these condotions.
Ah yes, my bum is getting sore too- another day and I will start bleeding I guess. Any suggestions?

One of the funny moments today was the small stop next to the road, when a whole russian family took the chance to pose and have pictures taken in front of the bikes 😉

Ok, will try to relax and find a soup to eat something. Staying at the Bank Hotel- 7th floor, on top of a bank 😉

Day 13 Sochi – Rostov

Day 590
Trip 4460
Bike 9485

Looong ride, traffic jam most of the way since one of the life lines of this part in russia. Hot as well but finally we made it just past Rostov. Slept in truckers den and even had life entertainment. Off to Volgagrad today, want to spend a day in former Stalingrad.

Day 12, Sochi

Had a good nights sleep after interresting stroll last night. A lot of construction sites due to upcoming winter olympics 2014- and between that the expected russian disco scene ;-).
People are friendly and helpfull, hardly any english or german though- what to expect the further east we travel.
Sochi definately has a mediteranian touch to it- mixed with a definate ostblock element. A city rapidly changing and full of people from all over the former soviet union.

We got our bike insurances today- no big deal (45€ for 3 months), thanks to google translator running on the PC

The city feels warm and fairly humid and it does rain once or twice a day. Judging by the torrential downpour yesterday, we might be in for some wet riding over the days to come. We are planning to leave tomorrow towards Krasnodar- we will decide on the exact route as we go. Depends mainly on the traffic and the condition of the roads- ah yes, and dont forget the weather!

Day 11, Sochi

The night was short, extremely hot and stuffy. Slept on and off for maybe 4 hours- didnt help.
We arrived in front of the harbour in trabzon at 8 in the morning- and dropped anchor!?

But the best happened just before we got to Sochi- Dolphins jumping around the ship, beautiful!

After that though, things got hot and slower yet. We were anchoring in front of the harbour for 4h and then had to wait another 2h on the boat before being aload to approach customs. That took another 1.5h but everybody was very nice- actually the friendliest border so far. Sochi feels different to turkey, more european maybe. A lot of constructions going on- Sochi will be host to the upcoming 2014 winter olympics. Sochi is framed by the very impressive caucasian mountains- which we still have to cross the day after tomorrow.

We checked straight into the hotel (cant read name yet ;-), showered and went to eat in a nice cafe in a nearby park).
Now torrential rain …

Day 10 Trabzon – Sochi (Russia)

OK, the day started well- slept till 9 and bought the tickets for the ferry. That was no problem since we ‘reserved’ from istanbul and included in the 340€ is cabin No. 1. Definately not cheap, but the only way to get to russia since it is not possible to go across Georgia.

First we decided to give the bike a good (and first) washing- hoping a clean looking bike will somehow speed things up at customs 😉

We are supposed to be at the boat/customs at 15:00, ETD 18-19:00. Keep fingers crossed …
16:00 arrived at ferry- except for the waiting, everything went smoothly

We got a minute cabin and although we were glad we got it at all, it turned out extremly hot and stuffy- actually I wld wake up totally drenched in sweat and claustrophobic. But the atmosphere on the boat was great- warm and lively. There was dancing and a lot of talking- but no drinking (rammadan i guess, but everybody sticking to it was a first).

It was an amazing experience, unlike a greek ferry, more like something you wld expect in south america, africa. But more quiet and peacefull. We met 2 young italians, members of the anual mongolia ralley- starting in london always. As far as i understood, the car needs to be older than 10 years 😉

Day 9 Sinop – Trabzon

Day
Trip
Bike

Today wasn’t very eventfull – actually a bit boring since we had to do quite some miles. It was hot and the scenery was a bit monotonous, but maybe we just were not up to it.
One of the ‘highlights’ was the speed trap, where they clocked us doing 106 in a (apparently, but no sign) 80s zone. The cop started with 25% discount on the 156 turkish lira (25€) but that seemed too much still. So in the end his boss suggested the full amount- payable when we will receive the invoice posted to us in germany. We went for that option- lets see if anything will arrive.

<a

Trabzon itself is very lively- almost more real and buzzing than most parts of istanbul. Not as big of course, but the biggest we have seen on the black seas coast.
We booked into a fairly nice hotel- not a dump but we were too knackered to look any further once we crossed the city at rush hour.
Tomorrow cleaning the bikes (trying to make a good impression on the russians on sunday) and then organize the ferry to Sotchi at 21:00.

OK, now for my evening meal

Day 8, Amasra – Sinop (Black Sea, Turkey)

Day 342km
Trip 3328km
Bike 8353km

Today we had a rather late start at 10:00, but we recconed it would be a short drive with 300 odd km. But of course we were proven wrong 😉
The day was hot and the road turned out to be veeery narrow and winding through millions of hills. The landscape is very lush, green and hills, cliffs and of course the blue sea. Extremely void of tourists and very laid back, somehow still set in the 1960s.

Driving was good fun but also tyring, quite a physical experience. At some point I dropped the bike in a 330′ uphill hairpin bend- was going too slow and right in the the engine said ‘klonc’ and stopped. Well nothing much happened, well padded, but enginebars and panier box scratched/torn.

At some point when we decided to stop for some water again, we met a nice german/argentinian couple, leo and nathalie- enroute to india on their Africa Twin. Leo had worked as a tourguide in russia for some australian bike company and therefore was able to provide us with some helpfull advice. For this trip, Leo has now gotten rid of all possesions- except for his bike and his girlfriend 😉

For the first time we met quite a few german turks. All very friendly and eager to share in some talk about merkel and the rest of the world …
Finally we arrived in Sinop after travelling for close to 7h and booked into the first (nice) hotel.
And here we are, sharing the honeymoon suite/bed overlooking the city 😉

All places we have been to so far a totally dead before sunset- rammadan of course. Once the sun disappears into the oacean though, every person able to walk is flogging to the city’s square. Interstingly enough the shoot up a really loud rocket to inform everyone about the fact that the sun has set. Today that rocket went off about 50m in front of our 6th floor window- as I was looking out. Cost me at least 5 years of my life 😉

And finally a small video about driving along this cosstal road- a bit washed out since I had to stick my iphone to my windscreen using ductape 😉

Day 7 Istanbul – Amasra (Black Sea) via Düzce, Bolu and Karabük

href=”https://offweare.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/20120801-164515.jpg”&gt;

Not an early start of course 😉
Both a bit tired and worn from heat an humidity. Drizzle now, but cant decide whether thats worse than the heat. But now andreas is looking for his keys …

It was a good ride today- andreas found his keys and the road was much more picturesque and less travelled. Heading east from Istanbul towards Ankara, the countryside was mainly dominated by green hills and winding roads. We did have some rain, but not too bad and it was still fairly warm at 25′

Crossing the last mountain range, we had finally arrived at the black sea

<a