September 20, 2003
Saturday Sep 20: Karlobag to Senj: Strength to spare
After a nice meal yesterday and a good night's sleep (of course, a few more pages of Ludlum beforehand) I was rolling again at 6:30. A week or so ago it was sunny out by that time, but today, because of the later time of the year, plus the very high mountains directly to the east, it was not actually sunny until 8 am. Bright, but no sun.
However, what this did afford was an amazing view of the mountains across the channel as the slowly rising sun left very deep and jagged shadows in the crags.
Even to get out of town, the road was uphill, and a long climb at that. But hardly any traffic. Usually, it seems, European tourists (and locals) are up and on the road very early. Perhaps because I was kind of far from any large centre, it took a while for the cars to arrive. Anyway, I climbed all by myself. And climbed. And climbed. But the views just got better. And the screaming descents when I finally got to the top of these mini-passes were quite the rush.
I had only had my bananas and grapes for breakfast, and just when I was starting to need more energy (ie food), there was a service station in the middle of nowhere. A mirage, perhaps? Not at all. They had a good supply of carbs and fluids, so after taking a little rest and filling up, I was good to go again.
I came upon a castle on a mountain which looked similar to the Tower of London, and when I came around the hill, I had arrived here in Senj, just like that, with energy to spare. What a great feeling. Of course, it felt like child's play after the distance yesterday.
Today's lunch was the mixed fish: calamari, hake, tuna, octopus (?) and little fishies that looked like breaded and fried minnows - and were amazing. Kind of becoming a pattern isn't it? Get up early. Eat. Bike a few hours. Eat. Bike a few more hours. Eat. Clean up. Sleep. Eat. Go to bed.
I expect I will be in Rijeka tomorrow to pick up my first package and send back my old maps and books. If the Pošta is not open then I'll hang around til Monday before heading north towards Slovenija.
Today's ride: 65 km (40 miles)
Total: 1,321 km (820 miles)
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