May 18, 2023
18 May, Cres
https://www.strava.com/activities/9093754867
Whilst I was doing nothing in Jurasi I actually spent a bit time looking at routes, ferry routes, places to stop and dates for getting to Dubrovnik where I am meeting Laura on 30 May. I already had a route mapped out but I was realising that the web information was somewhat flexible. For example, Laura and I were planning to take the ferry from Milna back to Dubrovnik. I had checked in on line and with the ticket agency and both confirmed that bikes were acceptable on the ferry. So we booked and paid for tickets. Subsequently I did a bit more investigation and found out that the ferry company had changed policy and bikes were no longer welcome on board. No word from the ticket agency though! This left us stranded on Brac (near Split) 2 days before Laura was due to fly to Edinburgh. I eventually got a refund and found another and more expensive ferry company which took bikes.
So I looked ore closely at the https://www.croatiaferries.com/ website and discovered that the policies in relation to cars, footpassengers, pets a d bikes was buried in various paragraphs on the page dealing with each route. A quick surf and read revealed that 2 of the ferries I planned on using toget to Split did not take bikes. On a side note I also discovered that the original ferrywe booked to get from Milna to Dubrovnik did take bikes but at the discretion of the captain. It was like being in Vietnam again!!🤣🤣
The result of this was I had to reroute from Cres to Split where, I had decided, I was going to take the ferry to Dubrovnik on 29 May. This would give me time to dump my bike and luggage, get my clothes washed properly and visit a barber to sort my out of control beard, eyebrows and ear hair. I hate getting old😁, before meeting Laura off the plane.
So after a reroute I realised I had a few days spare before needing to get to split. So I decided another day in Cres could be good. It is a beautiful island and the town,although small, has a certain charm enticing me to explore more. So I booked another night.
I took my time surfacing the next morning and even made my own breakfast with the last of the porridge sachets I had bought in Dunbar.
Then I went to explore and had a lovely cycle around the Cres Town area. This was my first cycle in almost 6 weeks without panniers and other luggage. It felt great to be released from that millstone.
I set out to find an inland lake which was supposed to be beautiful but I soond found out that the island was incredibly hilly. I cycled 7km uphill and once at the top had a look at the route. I was about to cycle downhill and then uphill and then a long downhill to near the lake. Coming back would have involved a horrible climb so I opted out and enjoyed a 7km freeride to Cres. 😁 After that I explored around the coast south and north of Cres and other than stumbling into a Naturist area there wasn't much to report. The "Uber" sized naked Germans on the beach didn't merit a stop so it was head down and keep going 🤣🤣.
Then it was some housekeeping washing out some cycling gear and then out for a beer. At this point in typing I am sitting in a harbour sidebar having drunk 2 beers knowing that my wallet is sitting in my accommodation 10 mins walk away. I just hope that Google Pay on my new phone works otherwise it could be awkward.
Today's ride: 47 km (29 miles)
Total: 3,154 km (1,959 miles)
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