Turkey to Germany - Heading Home

[Commuter]

Background
After 5 months of blasting around the Turkish countryside and due to some mistakes made by my business, my bike has to be removed from Turkey as the Vistor visa that it came in on is about to expire. Rather than ship the bike home, I decided to ride it to my wife's family home in Germany. So I arrange a extra long weekend off work with Thursday departure and Sunday arrival for a Monday travel back to Turkey.

Thursday, 11th September 2008.
I am up early and on the road by 06.00am. I have a lot of mileage to cover today to get to the Turkish border. I have no real destination in mind, but in my mind I would prefer not to be in Turkey when I wake up tomorrow. So I need to cover 800miles today.
Bye Bye Antalya

The weather is sunny, but it is very cool after some hot summer months. It is 25oC and I have the venting half open on my suit, something that will continue for 2 days.

The roads in Turkey are not so good for mile munching, not direct and bad condition. Once out of the mountains around Antalya and I on a huge valley floor, the bike ticks along nicely and I have covered 300kms by 10am. Very good start.

I stop for a quick coffee. Turkey offers a 3 in 1 coffee, milk powder and sugar option, which I decide to stock up on so I don't have to stop at a vendor for drink. I take my flask and drink when I want to.

I push on, unfortunately the roads are getting worse and smaller, offering lots of hazards....it keeps me perky at least!

I stop for my first fill up and a family come out with Tea and cookies for this spaceman that has arrived in their small village...I take their picture much to my amusement.

By late afternoon I am pushing towards the border and run along the coastline getting closer to the ferry crossing that I need to make by 1800.

I stop for another coffee break and a snack that I am carrying, I don't have time to stop for a sit down meal.

I am soon on the ferrydock side and the ferry is just arriving

I share the dock with this fine looking tug

Soon we are in the Mamara sea for a 20 minute crossing

Looking good feeling fine!

As I get closer to the port side I have confirmed I am 2 to 3 hours away from the border plus I need to get across the border, so it is likely to be dark when I get into Bulgaria. I am not too concerned as there are 2 largish towns needs the border. I admire the coastline.

Soon I am back on the road and pushing towards Edrine, the border crossing:

I get to the border after an interesting detour through the centre of town thanks to the GPS, the border is not as I imagined it, tiny and noboday apart from me and a belguim plated X5 and german plated merc.

After 10 minutes, my bike is released from the Turkish vistors computer and I am free to cross the border......BYE BYE Turkey

I drive through no mans land, watched by lots of soliders on the road.....and I arrive in GREECE! What ! I should be in Bulgaria but I am in a small Greek village.
I get onto the main road and stop. Lost in Greece

At least the sunset is nice!

I soon realise that I have taken the lower (wrong crossing) into Greece and not the higher (right crossing) into Bulgaria. I push on for 10 minutes and cross into Bulgaria very easily as the border crossing guard is walking his dog

I push for a small town called Hamanli. I stop at a police check point and ask for a hotel in the international lanuage of sign (Head against hands and pretend to snore) It works and I am soon in a "high class" establishment. I have no local currency and negiotiate in US dollars which I have. It costs me a huge 20USD for the night and the bike can stay outside the main door. Deal

It is 21.00 I have covered 1100 kms (680 miles) and I am tired. I skip dinner and head for the land of nod, I have another big day tomorrow where I hope to cover 4 more countries.

 

[Aidan1150]

Come on, we're waiting.

 

[Commuter]

Next Day

Friday, 12th September 2008.

Next day dawns and I have slept well, but am up before sunrise and ready for another long day. I am down loading the bike before 0630 and take a few snaps. The hotel is very "cold" and the town I am in, is clearly not the most affluent.

The Bike is still where I left it though

The locals have some interesting cars and housing!

As there is no breakfast offered at my hotel, I do with a Nescafe and cereal snack bar, pack the rest of my gear, get suited up and go into town for some cash - I need Leva for some fuel and food.
I hit the road and enjoy the "newly constructed road sponsored by the European Union" Amen

After around 3 hours of single road, I hit some dual carriway which is the main Motorway to Sophia.

The road rises and falls and is well paved, I cut through several tunnels

I get to the outskirts of Sophia and divert around on a single carriageway. I cut through the traffic at this traffic jam and find one police man directing several lines of traffic as the lights are out.....he is braver than me.

I am not pushing too hard and enjoy the countryside around me, Bulgaria is quiet and the landscape not indifferent to Turkey, the roads however are 1000 times better I make good progress.

I drop into a steep canyon

And I soon arrive at the Serbian Border.

I wait in line for my turn in the line. I am not really sure what to expect as I have heard different stories of the border crossing here..........I keep the sunglasses on and keep thinking - Be cool. Don't get robbed by the border guard.

(More to follow.....need some pictures I didn't unload for the next bit.)

 

[Commuter]

continued

I snap the Bulgaria border as I wait for crossing

I get through the Serbian border with some fuss. I am asked for my Green Card and papers and get a nice stamp in my passport. That's it. I am through the border crossing.......I think. Then I am stopped at "customs" They speak no word of English / German / French.....we cannot communicate so I open the panniers and then they get bored. I am waved through. I make a quick exit. Bye Bye Bulgaria.

The road runs along side a train track and then stops at a big cross roads near a train depot. I stop for a snack and a shot.

Next section of road looked nice on the map before I got here and it doesn't disappoint. Nice carved roads into the hillside.

I notice in my travels on these roads, that the Serbian People are very poor, the cars are very old and the houses poorly maintained. There are a lot of damaged houses littering the landscape. I get a second wind and push hard for Belgrade from here, I still have Croatia to get through today so I a focused for 3 hours until I hit the outskirts of Belgrade. I take some snaps on the way through, it is hot, dirty and traffic is a nightmare with buses everywhere trying to kill me.

If I had enough time on this trip, this is where I would of slowed down, but I didn't so I get on the main road according to the GPS and find around 400kms of this ahead of me. At least it was smooth.

It is only interupted by a fuel stop and border crossing which takes less than a minute to cross. No traffic jam, no problem. Stamped passport and away.
Welcome to Croatia

Croatia has clearly benefitted from European Union money and is booming. They seem to have modern everything, including a great toll road system which I enjoy as I head for the Slovenia border.

I slog on as I want to get to Slovenia for a good night sleep and rewarding Alpine roads the following day. Soon I am through Zagreb and into the Slovenia border

The border is no problem, but the 17.50 Euro for the motorbike 6 month Vingette is a real pain in the arse. I buy it and move on into theatening skys and the next 2hours of pouring rain and the usual problems of northern europe, the inability to find a room on a Friday night in any major city. The hotel I had earmarked but couldn't confirm on the internet the night before was full. So I am sent to a small hotel closer to the mountains.
I am not dissappointed as I have a room with internet and the restaurant serves a fantastic Speck Risotto and Cheese platter. I have a local beer and it blows my head off, I go to bed and sleep like a child.
A great day, if not a bit rushed.

 

[Dave56]

Hi Commuter, really enjoying this, looking forward to the next installment, keep it coming

 

[Tricky]

Really enjoying this. Keep it coming.

 

[Commuter]

Right where were we

Saturday, 13th September

I wake up to a sound that I haven't heard for a long time.......rain against my hotel window! It is early at 06.30 and I get up and go for breakfast. My thoughts of the last 2/3 weeks of pushing for 2 days to get a day in the mountains is falling apart as the weather is frankly.......terrible. Anyway, breakfast was good!
View from window

Bike has remained dry over night.....but it is cold outside! 14 /15oC is not normal for me after the heat of Turkey for 6 months. I suit up with my clothes on under my dry suit.

I have covered nearly 2500km in 2 days so I plan to have some fun today whatever the weather first destination is Bled, Slovenia....a place I have heard a lot about and want to take in. On the road, grey skies but dry at the moment:

Everything is much "greener" than I remember after the burnt grounds of Turkey, it feels good to be Northern Europe again

I travel the 37kms to Bled quickly and go straight up to the castle

It is dead and I realise that I have gained an hour overnight so it is infact 8am in the morning and I got up at 05.30am!
Anyway, I go down to the Lake side and take some snaps

Castle Again (It is nicer from the front!)

The bike waits patiently for me....in the rain.

Church on Island - Sorry for poor quality

I know that this place must be beautiful in the sunshine or snow and I know I will come back with the family in the future.

I have a coffee, enjoying the shelter from the band stand in this park

I push on for the first part of my Alpine road day which has been supplied by Fanum's thread and Mr I Fan's recommended track on that thread. However there is a problem. I have loaded it onto the Zumo but it is the wrong way around, so when I try to find the start which I have waypointed also, I don't have the rest of the track as it is pushing me to find the start. For the life of me I cannot reverse the route on the Zumo so there is no other choice. Find shelter on the road and........get the Laptop out!

It takes 10 minutes to unpack, switch on, connect GPS, change just this track around, load onto the GPS, switch off, pack and get ready to go again. In this time, a group of Harley rides pass (around 20) I am sure they where wondering what the hell I was doing.

Anyway. I am back on the road.......wet it is but I am looking forward to the next few hours of fun.

The weather does little to impress.....

First stop and first pass:

Somewhere along this route I pass a very beautiful castle / Garrison that is the border crossing into Austria.....I don't stop to flood my camera as the rain is now sideways.
The views on occasion are very nice!

I am in 2nd and 3rd all the way down the first mountain, I am enjoying my first switch backs for over a year. I like this shot.

The roads are well maintained, dry and fast in the valleys with very nice surroundings

I take in some more switchbacks up and down plus rain before being spat out into Italy.....

When in Italy.........PIZZA!

I have just filled the bike up before stopping and she is not happy being so full like my belly after the fantastic Pizza.....so she cries all over the floor, which can be smelt clearly in the restaurant.....2 or 3 locals go to check their cars are not leaking.....I finish my Pizza, pay and leave.

More to come.....very soon.

 

[Commuter]

continued

Okay, so now that I feel that it cannot get any wetter, of course I am wrong as I start my journey up Grossglocker, I stop to change my gloves to my Hein Gericke Lobster claws, which remain on my hands for the remainder of the day

I go up to Grossglocker, pass the toll booth, pay and get told that the weather is Nicht so gut! Yea really I say! I get a voucher for another visit in the future as the weather is bad.......thank you very much.
Picture at the top of Grossglocker..........Very Very Wet.

I head down the other side and stop to dry my helmet out as I have water in out and upside down.....did I mention it was wet! I stop in one of my favourite drying out points all over the globe......A telephone booth.

At this point I decide that it is time to start looking for somewhere to stay. The weather is still not clearing and my idea to get to Munich is scrapped and I look for a place in Austria for the night and have some food items on my mind that could be satisfied here. I find a very nice Alpine lodge in Kustein for the night at 1800 my time and I unload. I shower for a long time and get some dry kit on....all my kit is complete soaked and sent to the "drying room" It returns 3 hours later bone dry!
I sleep very well after my Schnitzel and Beer. Today has been rewarding, my first proper Alpine day.
Nice place have details if people want it.

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

I'm enjoying reading this, thanks for taking the trouble

I recognise a lot of the earlier (E Europe) pictures and could swear that those are the same lorries at the Bulgarian border that were patiently queeing there 2 years ago And, as for the (ring) road around Sofia - that's a bit of fun isn't it

Andres

 

[Deleted account W]

Keep it coming Nick

 

[Steptoe]

[Thursday, 11th September 2008.
I am up early and on the road by 06.00am. I have a lot of mileage to cover today to get to the Turkish border. I have no real destination in mind, but in my mind I would prefer not to be in Turkey when I wake up tomorrow. So I need to cover 800miles today.
s.

I'd swear thats a Mike O opening paragraph. Plus the food/candy shots

Keep it coming big boy.