Progress so far:
As you’ll read, the first day out of Казань, Mickey and I somehow got separated and I haven’t seen her since. I expect she is cycling some of these same places but just at a slightly different route and different days. The weather has taken a shift for colder and the last day or two also wetter.
Last night was in a hotel. The bed was harder to sleep in than my sleeping bag (it was too short, I ended up putting my mattress on the floor), but it was nice to look outside this morning as it was raining and think, “I don’t have to pack up that wet tent”. Today the ride was along the main highway into Екатеринбург as the road became progressively busier. The first 45km were reasonable road, after that it was a bit busy until I got into the city itself. This is a big and bustling city. However, I bought a local city map yesterday and this in combination with “Lonely Planet” made for a fairly easy navigation to a hotel. Close to the hotel was the Trial Sport shop. I brought over my bike and they diagnosed some problems I had with the front hub as being one of the ball bearings had disintigrated. Instead of riding on 10 bearings on one side, there were just nine. This was fixed, I had my first shower in 10 days and it is nice to be back in the city again.
It was noisy in the Bolshoi Ural Hotel, but nice to have a bed and a shower. I’ve done a little looking around the city so far. I visited the site where the Romanov Czars were killed, a small memorial here dominated by a large church nearby. There is also a memorial to the Afghan war, with smaller memorials to other revolutions. It is interesting to see some of the same places the US has memorials, but was on the other side, e.g. North Korea, Vietnam, Hungary.
If you have money, there are plenty of electronics and other items to buy here. Sprinkled through middle of the city are some large shopping centers with stores with fancy items. Not quite up to the level of Frys Electronics but starting to get close on what they have available. Otherwise, taking a quiet rest day here as I wander through the city and otherwise take a break before heading eastwards.
74km today, 5179 km across Eurasia
There were many cafes along the way today. I stopped at one at 30km mark. Multiple trucks were parked outside. One could pay for a shower or for a sauna. This was a popular place as the tables were packed. I stopped and placed my order. They gave me a loyalty card good for a 13% discount on lunch. Overall, the “217†café seems like a nice place.
I continued riding across the hills after this. We mostly left the towns to the side with only small side roads and these cafes at the intersections. At 66km was a second chance for one for lunch. At this point, people find both Amsterdam and Vladivostok to be far away places. Another person here wanted a photo on his cell phone of this stranger riding a bicycle.
By afternoon there was an occasional rain drop or two. I wasnâ€
t too excited about spending another afternoon camped in the rain. Just as I came around the corner at 100km, there was a small hotel. This was just too tempting to pass up and much preferred to camping in the rain. To underscore things there was an intermittent shower or two as I was here catching up the journal on the computer. No shower today but sure nice to find a dry place.
100km today, 5105km across Eurasia. [Photo: 723, 724]
At 13km I crested a hill and suddenly saw a village below! I had made it through, but wasnâ€t sure where I had arrived. By 15km I was in the village on a good gravel road and by 18km I was on an asphalt road. This was a fairly big town with several stores. The cars still had license plates with “59†so I was in the Перм oblast. Finally as I was leaving town, I saw the sign Брехово. This had been the original town I was headed to and the road didnâ€t exist. My distance of 25km on the path was close to the 28km of the missing road. I am glad I followed this path rather than “dead reckoning†since I would have otherwise missed it.
I cycled to the main Перм/Екатеринбург highway and had a meal at 26km at the corner. The road had some trucks, but was much much better than the M7 before; both road conditions and traffic.
I followed the new road and at 44km mark crossed the oblast boundary. The road improved even more. The south wind continued and I got some wind as well. The new road went through some gentle ups and downs. At I was coming into Ðчит it started to rain harder. At 69km, I found a café and had a meal to see if the rain subsided. As it didnâ€t I went north out of town. The combination of signs for 10km of road construction, more rain and inviting woods caused me to call it an early afternoon. As the rain comes down, it is nice to be found again.
71km today, 5005km across Eurasia. [Photo: 714, 716, 717, 720]
t exist? The sane thing is probably to go back and try one that does exist. That wasnâ€t the choice I made today.
Last night I had visitors. I had camped a ways from the road but was still visible. As I was getting to sleep, a jeep pulled up with three guards. I explained things and they let me sleep. It was cold this morning as I had frost on the tent and ice in the water bottles. However, the sun was shining once it got over the trees. I followed the road east with some ups and downs. Mostly a good road but 9km of road construction: first 3km were smooth new road, middle 3km were being worked and last 3km were old but still smooth road. Now I know where all those dump trucks were headed yesterday.
At 42km, the road came to a T. There was a café and perfect place for a meal. From here I would go to Тюш and then try a road to cut across via Брехово to the Перм/Екатеринбург highway. I asked a nearby driver and he told me it was all asphalt! So I headed north to Тюш and turned into the town at 50km. At 53km I was at bottom of a hill and my road. It was gravel. The map said 26km to Ðлтынное and 28km after that. I walked a few hills but otherwise the gravel was ok to ride, just a little slower.
A truck driver slowed and asked if I had a map. He told me that it didnâ€t make sense to go to Ðлтынное, but instead turn 7km earlier at Озерки. I asked what that short cut was like and he pointed to a nearby rutted path.
By 72km I was at Озерки and I saw more than one rutted path. Not sure which one was which, I decided to stay on the larger road. At 79km I was in Ðлтынное and a little store. An old ruin of a church was here. Otherwise, it had a bit of an “end of the road†feel to it.
The road out of town didnâ€t exist. Despite being on both my maps, two different locals told me there wasnâ€t a road to Брехово. They suggested I follow local paths roughly north and overland. Now a dilemma. I had invested 26km onto this gravel road to come here and I really didnâ€t want to back track. So I started following a rough path that went in the direction the locals said. It turned and headed further east than they said. However rather than head overland, I decided to follow this path. I walked a total of 12km on this path before stopping for the night. Tomorrow, I will walk some further and hope to find the highway again.
91km today, 4934km across Eurasia. [Photo: 707, 710, 712, 713]
Today was supposed to be a ride to the next bigger city but this turned out to be a bit of a disappointment. The road started out well and at 8km was a turnoff where truck traffic headed north to Перм. From here a mixture of flat with longer hills to climb. It was early and the stores were still closed, until a descent into Куеда and café at the intersection at 56km. I was hungry by then.
The next 10km were a rough road but were followed by new smooth road after that. The hills were big enough that I walked a few. I had seen signs for Чернушка and so hoped to get into the town, a hotel perhaps? Internet? I followed a road into the town but found mostly industrial areas. I went back out a different route, finding a supermarket to refill on food. It was otherwise disappointing as a town. Decided to follow the road east out of town.
This was a tough road to ride. Multiple steep hills and rough asphalt. A steady progression of dump trucks came past. I am now in oil regions as I see both pumps and pipelines. I was glad to finally find a camp site as I was getting intermittent rain.
120km today, 4843km across Eurasia. [Photo: 704, 706]
t on the road when I departed so better than yesterdays finish. Only 8km to ВоткинÑк where I turned to the south and had tailwinds. There were some more hills to climb but after 15km, it stayed mostly flat. Road conditions were variable. After КварÑа at 20km. the road went into and through the woods. At 37km was Ðовый and a café.
Just after this, the road crossed a wide dam and into the Перм oblast and town of ЧайковÑкий with another hour of time change (if you arenâ€t keeping track, Iâ€m now 2 hours east of Moscow). I tried the post office for internet but the only terminal was occupied by a teenager who looked like he was going to stay a while.
Just as I came to intersection out of town, I paused to make sure I would take the proper road. A man in a dark SUV drove up. He came to me and asked if he could photograph the bicycle. He was quite excited to see the Trek 520 bike. He had a Schwinn and asked if this was a good brand. I said yes. Unlike others, he was mostly interested in the bike and not other parts of the trip.
As I was cycling a little further, I came across a second person. He said he designed bicycles and again was interested in the bike. I asked him about road conditions. The SUV guy came up again after this. He had an orange reflective vest he wanted me to put on. I told him this wasnâ€t necessary though it was a good reminder to get out my orange windbreaker (I still had on my heavy blue coat). He also showed me a gun and asked if I needed one. I told him no, I wouldnâ€t need a gun.
The road ahead was variable with steadily increasing hills. There was some truck traffic, but overall traffic was light enough that it worked. The morning cold and clouds were gone. I stopped once at 78km for lunch and then slowly cycled the last kilometers to the end of the day.
108km today, 4723km across Eurasia. [Photo: 697, 698, 701, 702]
Today the weather was variable, though the common theme was a cold north wind. I awoke to frost outside the tent. This makes a range of 40C (70F) in just two days. As I waited for the sun to come out, I saw an entirely overcast sky clear up. Later in the day it would cloud over again. The road stayed in good condition, though progressively busier as I approached ИжевÑк. At 48km I reached the end of the cross road and headed north into the wind, up a hill and to the big city. There were surprisingly few trucks here (I was later to find they were routed around the city. At 50km, I stopped at a store for breakfast.
From here I cycled through the city with surprising ease. I followed the truck signs and major road signs and stopped at a café at 65km on the way out of the city.
The road to ВоткинÑк became progressively busier and worse condition. It was rough with cracks. There were multiple drainages to cross over. The number of trucks increased as a bypass took them around town and onto this road. By 96km I was ready for a break. My map showed an intriguing short cut via Болгуры. I stopped at the shop in town to get dinner items and also rode past a ski area (I must be in the Urals now). However, I couldnâ€t find the short cut. I asked once and was directed on a path that seemed doubtful and ended up at the local swimming hole. Tired and frustrated, I made my way back to the busy road and rode a short distance until I found some trees to get out of the wind.
108km today, 4615km across Eurasia. [Photo: 692, 695]
At 35km I came to a fork in the road. A “short cut†headed east and was the one I guessed Mickey might have taken (or would take). However, to the first town was 13km of gravel and at least another 10km of path/road after that. I decided to stay on the paved road instead. To reward me, another 3km further was a café to revive me with some breakfast.
The road improved after this. As it went through forested areas to СюмÑи. A few hills but my speed also went up. At 58km, I turned, this time onto an official road towards ИжевÑк. This would meet up with the short cut later. Again, I had 40km of mostly good road to Ува. It was a Saturday and several decorated wedding cars passed. The roads through Ува were worse again. I concentrated on riding and was almost through town before realizing I wanted to stop at a café. I found one just on the edge of town but it was closed. So, I rode further with intent to ride at first store/café and then camp. There were a few more hills to climb. A truck came past and then stopped. I had talked with the truck driver on the ferry the day before and he was surprised to see me. He also told me the next café would be in Ðылга. I decided to continue slowly and before I knew it I was in the last hills to Ðылга. Folks at the store were amazed at my trip and laughed at me when I used the word vacation to describe it. Glad to find a campsite nearby after a long but good ride.
137km today, 4507km across Eurasia. [Photo: 686, 688, 689]
t realized that behind the barrier was also in good view of the road to the nearby village. Three young boys were sneaking up on the tent. Once I spotted them, they ran away and hid only to sneak up again. The second time, I walked a little closer to where they were hidden and waited. When they peeked out, I waived. Emboldened, they came over. In my minimal Russian, I could describe the trip and show a map. I also let them know I wanted to sleep. This quieted them for a little bit until they came back with friends and decided to sneak up again until their parents later called them in.
I was on the road early today even after setting my watch ahead an hour. As I came through Янгулово there was a traffic jam of sorts as I had to wait for the cattle to clear from the main street. This was still a good quality road, though it climbed up and over a few hills. At 23km was Малмыж where the local police stopped me to ask about the trip. There was also a hotel/café here and chance for breakfast. From here the road went up and over a few more hills to Гонба where a ferry crossed the Ð’Ñтка. Four of those kilometers were unpaved.
I reached the ferry in time to see the incoming ferry. I found out that the ferry times were 7am, 11am, 2pm and 5pm and hence I would have almost three hours to wait. I walked through the town to find a small store and filled up on water. It was warm outside with many little flies so decided to change to long pants.
When I returned to the ferry dock, I checked my handle bar bag. My wallet was missing! Oh no! I hurried back to the store and fortunately found it in the grass. I waited some more and then was on the ferry. No signs of Mickey, so Iâ€m not sure she is behind me but more likely ahead on the earlier ferry?
On the other side I had been warned about 16km of unpaved road. Worse, I found the road base was soft sand and hence there were few places to ride. I mostly walked with an occasional push of the bike. One car stopped to offer a lift but seemed a bit shady [they were extra eager to help and also wanted to exchange Rubles to German Marks]. Finally I made it to КонÑтантиновка but the promised asphalt didnâ€t appear. Two locals told me it was another 3km and Mr Shady drove by again to tell me it was 10km. I pushed my bike another 4km and finally was on pavement.
The weather had changed during the afternoon to a cold north wind and almost hints of rain. There were some hills to climb, but I was at least riding. I was tired but went a bit further before finding a place to camp. Still no signs of Mickey. Still not clear if she is behind or ahead though the ferry limits the possibilities and I didnâ€t see sand trails.
73 km today, 4370km across Eurasia. [Photo: 673, 678, 679, 681]
ve cycled enough today that Iâ€m not riding on in vague hopes of finding her somewhere.
Weather forecast called for hot (39C, 102F), so we were up early and on the road by 6am. This had an added benefit that the roads were quiet as we cycled through the middle of the city. The roads generally became wider but were still smooth. Most of the traffic was inbound. At 22km we crossed the ring road and the road started to get smaller and less crowded. My GI tract had been unsettled last night, but fortunately some Imodium helped.
The road was flat as it followed a river drainage and railroad. Several small towns along the way. The rest day had helped my cycling. At 70km came ÐÑ€Ñк with a small hill to climb. I was surprised to not find Mickey here. It was open with fields planted along the way. It was warming up and so kept going scanning for Mickey. Finally at 110km I came to an intersection where I filled up with water and a little while later decided to stop for the day, without signs of Mickey.
118 km today, 4297km across Eurasia. [Photo: 671, 672]
