Pakostane to Sibenik

May 30, 2023

I went along the shoreline to the actual little town of Pakostane. I was kind of trying to find the "easy way out" as I didn't want to climb the hill (that wasn't all that bad) from the campground. Let's just say I think the hill I ended up climbing was a little worse. I made my way over to the EuroVelo 8 route and started out on nice little lanes. I was on the west side of Vrana Lake and could see views in the distance. Apparently, the signs were a little confusing because before I knew it, I realized I was off route as I wound my way through a little village. Headed back to the highway a bit disappointed as the route closer to the lake was nice. Thankfully, my highway route wasn't that busy and I enjoyed it as well.

Views of the lake with a number of either olive trees or vineyards punctuating the views

What? Am I in Africa again? Saw tons of warning signs, but never a single wild boar (thankfully)

I rolled into the town of Vodice and took a nice long break on a park bench. Definitely needed it and by the time I left, I felt refreshed again. I was in the high 70's, low 80's, but the humidity is a killer. I headed off and before I knew it I was climbing and climbing on a gentle climb. I though I had messed up the route again, but no, this was correct. Super pretty with tons of flowers to admire as I continued up into the hills in the now blazing sun. A bit later I took another short break at a bus shelter, then the real fun began.

My setting was off on my camera, but this was supposed to include a flower that basically looked like a pastel yellow dandelion. They were so pretty!

See that giant dandelion thing? Do I get a supersized wish if I can blow it out in one breath?

The only thing not to love is the gentle uphill climb

This type of scenery makes me very happy!

The Eurovelo route had me turn off onto a gravel road. Gravel roads here so far haven't been that great. Sometimes, it feels like a bit of mountain biking because the rocks are not all one size making for a bumpy ride. I had seen these stone walls/mounds all morning, but weren't sure what they were. It was actually kind of scenic and I was laughing to myself thinking, "I can't get out of here if I want to because I'm stuck between these walls." Of course there were flowers too and even though it was a little challenging, I enjoyed it.

The last couple days have called for thunderstorms. I could see threatening clouds forming in the distance and felt like I was racing against them. Certainly didn't want to be stuck back in here if a storm blew through. Was glad to get back to the pavement only to return to more gravel roads a short bit later. My "RideWithGPS" app was telling me to make a turn, but there was a sign indicating it would dead end. I pulled out my map and saw that I really needed to go that way to connect with the highway I needed to be on.

It's pretty and yes, the "road" conditions got worse

The grass in the median was so tall and the shrubs along the edges were overgrown. I could barely cycle through it. I even saw some thorns on some of the plants, but at this point was worried about a thunderstorm so just powered through. I came to a building as described in the route and was able to exit. I breathed a sigh of relief.

I am not amused. The wees in the middle were really tall and trust me, it got much worse!

Took another break at a magnificent viewpoint just before the bridge I had to cross. The guy working a food stand told me that the buoys I saw down below were for catching mussels on one side and oysters on the other.

I rode across the bridge and had a nice downhill before a gentle climb. I saw another cyclist catching up to me. We rode a little bit together as we came into the approach to Sibenek. I was distracted of course and just saw another long climb in front of us. I actually did really well, but had I stopped and checked Euroveolo directions, I would have seen I could have cut across and stayed along the FLAT waterfront area. Ooops!

I found the hostel I wanted, but stairs were blocking my access until finally a person told me how to go around and find a road. (Other locals, told me I had my choice of two long staircases.) I was so relieved to get to the front door until they told me my bike had to stay locked outside all night in front of the hostel. Being located by the bus station made that even less appealing even though the buses were on the complete opposite side. They told me a hostel that had a courtyard so I said I'd go check out some other options. Let's just say in both pushing my bike through "old town" Sibenik, and then reverting to the "car route" I was stopped by stairs both times. I then went to the hostel they recommended, but no one answered.

Extremely hot and exhausted at this point, I went back to the first hostel and hoped my bike would be safe. I misunderstood what reception was telling me about bathrooms and seeing more stairs and a few tears fell because I was just that tired. I was embarrassed, but she offered me a nice glass of water with ice cubes and I really needed that. I got my bags to my room and just cooled down for a bit before showering. I then realized that except for some potato chips, I hadn't eaten since 10:00 this morning and it was now 4:30. Even though I arrived at a decent time at the hostel, I probably lost a couple of hours before I actually got settled in.

I did go out and find some food from the grocery store, and ice cream. I was, however, way too exhausted to bother to go back to the old town section even though it was really cute and had a couple of UNESCO sites.

I was in bed by 7:00 and my fingers and legs were cramping. I suffered through one set of excruciating quad muscles cramps before falling asleep. I think my subconscious knew not to move or I would likely cramp again. Didn't set an alarm for tomorrow as I know it's a hilly day and feel like I probably need a rest day to recover, but hey, at least I finally got a day in with more than 24 miles!

Today's ride: 34 miles (55 km)
Total: 409 miles (658 km)

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