April 30, 2023
Budva to Bay of Kotor
We always knew today would have some tough climbs, which was good or we might have felt a bit demoralised when we only managed to cover 3.5km in the first hour. Getting out of the house went really smoothly for once. We're getting more in sync with where everything goes in the panniers, Tobias was content playing with his matchbox cars and sweeping the house, and we'd all slept in until 6am. Getting down the stairs was a bit of a mission. I stood at the bottom and watched while James carried the 2 bikes, 8 panniers, 2 dry bags, and trailer down.
The first climb started almost immediately as we climbed from sea level to 200m over about 3km. It was relentlessly steep, without any bits that flattened off. James stopped for pastry on the way up and we had our first picnic at the side of the road at the top.
From the top we lost every meter of elevation as we descended to the highway, rode along it for 20m across a bridge, then started climbing again. This one was even steeper and more relentless than the first - 300m over another 3km. It took us an hour from our first picnic until we reached the top of this one. I needed to push a few times to get around steep bends. Luckily the road was very quiet and we could use the entire road to weave our way up. At one point someone in a car stopped and asked us if we knew where the road went and told us it was very hard. At times we definitely questioned our life choices and if it was worth taking this road and not the mostly flat highway down below. Then we'd hear a truck horn blasting from below and be glad we were up there, despite the gradient. I laughed because when we were in Thailand facing similar gradients I would dream of doing lightweight tours on a road bike and not being so weighed down and here I am with an even heavier bike than last time. Tobias was mostly great, except right at the end where he'd had enough and was pushing in my knees which is just annoying when you are trying to focus on keeping them moving. There was a little church at the top with a big paved area and an amazing view out in front, so we could enjoy our lunch and Tobias could ride his bike and we could try to get our breath back for the last climb.
We swapped details with the cycle tourists we met in Budva and late last night got a message from them that the route they'd taken (which was the same as we had planned) had a big slip and was completely impassable. They shared their detour which we were very grateful for. The backtracking would have been demoralising and the new route added an extra 100m climbing onto the ride which was definitely nice to know in advance. The descent was nice, quiet, and very scenic. We again reached the busy highway, rode 20m, then turned off towards Kotor and another 200m climb. The gradient was a little more gentle, though the last 500m was about 15%. The road was a bit busier too so we had to hold our line rather than zig-zaging.
The descent was glorious though, and the views down into Kotor were stunning. The road was smooth asphalt and had nice big switchbacks so the gradient was perfect. We didn't need to pedal or brake, could just look out at the views. We stopped for a coffee at the bottom and to get Tobias up, mostly relieved that we had only 4m left to climb, according to James' cycle computer.
I wasn't sure what to expect in the bay of Kotor. I'd read that it was very busy and some people recommend skipping it altogether. I'm glad we didn't though, it was a beautiful 10km ride around the bay to camping Mimoza where we are staying tonight. There wasn't much traffic and quite a few people on bikes, though I guess it's still low season and it might get a bit more chaotic later on.
We have a beautiful wee pitch here. I didn't have high expectations when we turned in and the front of the reception was jammed with campers like sardines, but the host showed us up to the terraces behind where the long term campers are parked. None of them are here so we could select a site on the 3rd terrace with a table and a view out over the bay.
After getting the tent set up we went down for a swim off the jetty just in front of the campsite before dinner. The other guests are very friendly. There is one other person in a tent - a motorcyclist from Maryland, USA travelling around the world on his bike. Tobias is in heaven. Besides diggers and trucks, motorbikes are his new biggest obsession. He was allowed to sit on the bike and all we've heard since then is "man's motorbike". An Austrian couple in a camper van influenced us to buy an €8 bottle of wine which we are enjoying under the moonlight.
We have a very easy day tomorrow. Less than 20km to Herceg Novi. We wanted to get a bit closer to the Bosnia and Herzegovinian border, but ran out of accommodation options after that. While there are more than likely places to wild camp, not knowing if we could find a place at the end of the day is a bit stressful with Tobias. Anyway, we're going to have rain for a few days so we'd rather stay indoors.
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Today's ride: 35 km (22 miles)
Total: 518 km (322 miles)
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