Albania
13 Oct 2021 - 15:08
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Rest Day
We're having a day off the bikes at a campsite in Shkoder to do some bike maintenance after the big hills of the past couple of weeks. We also have a pile of dirty washing to sort out, and legs that need some rest.
Lunch & Tent Drying
We went to bed very tired last night but happy the forecast was sun for 10 days. We woke up to heavy rain though so got off to a bit of a slow start.
Byreke
We stopped for our morning Byreke and a random man in the road insisted on buying them for us. We have experienced so many gifts such as this in Albania and Montenegro, the people here are so welcoming and kind.
Gravel Tracks
Today involved a lot of gravel and unpaved tracks, which made for slow progress but we weren't in a hurry and it was nice passing through more rural areas.
Campsite
This evening we are back on the coast, about 15km South of Durres.
Flamingos and a Plunge
We decided to leave the EV8 route today and do some exploring in Divjaka-Karavasta national park. An afternoon of woodlands and wetlands. We saw a couple of flamingos and I went for an accidental dip! (S)
Wild-Camp
Another Muddy Start
A muddy start to the day but no mud baths this morning! We were rewarded with coffee that was bought for us by a couple of guys at a cafe.
3000km
3000km pedalled since we left home on 18th August.
Lunch Stop
We met some other bike travelers having lunch in a field so we joined them... This turned into a 3hr break. We continued on with them in the afternoon and camped in the garden of a hotel where the owner gifted us wine and firewood for the evening.
Camping Tirana
I realised I had left something behind at the campsite in Shkoder a few days ago 🙄. We are hoping a campervan will be heading from there to here within the next few days and will be able to deliver it for us. Not a bad place for an unexpected rest day though! (S)
Bus Trip
We're on the bus today back to Shkoder! (not tracked on here). I left my violin bow at the campsite there. It's a 2hr bus trip for a journey that took us 2 days on our bikes. Normal service will be resumed tomorrow. (S)
22 Oct 2021 - 07:55
Yesterday we were back on paved roads mostly as we made our way to and through the city of Vlore.
Hills & Headwinds
The climb this morning was steep and we had a strong headwind. We are setting up camp in a restaurant garden and will finish the hill tomorrow. We are keeping an eye on rain and lightning headed this way over the next few days.
Top of the Mountain
A day of beautiful views and very heavy rain!
Drying Out
Porto Palermo Castle
Arch
Stormy night but dry morning. We spent a few hrs drying clothes & replacing brake pads after yesterday's hills. Humid and hilly today, along with a dog chase (these haunt the nightmares of most cycle tourists), has left us a little tired. More rain is on the way so we booked into a guesthouse.
Change of Plan
Our plan was to catch the ferry from Sarande to Corfu but we've arrived and found that the sea border with Greece is still closed (Greek medical strike) so we're going to stop here for a day then carry on to Greece by land.