24 May, Sibenik to Split

May 24, 2023

https://www.strava.com/activities/9131902776

https://www.strava.com/activities/9131905721

IT technical issues resulted in the ride being recorded in two routes. Not sure what happened.

Today's ride started out really well. Breakfast was south of Sibenik with a lovely view then it was a mix of busy road and coastal path. When preparing the route I had the inland choice of N1 (Croatian national cycle route) or the EV8 which was part coastal and partially inland. I opted for the EV8 to some extent because it has one very big climb rather than loads of ups and downs.

The hill was fairly significant. I think the first portion took me almost 2 hours with a couple of photo stops and, near the top, a banana, some crisps and a chat with Laura. The great thing about the climb was I found it quite doable. There was no slowing down, no stopping other than for photos and the views were stunning. I kept a steady pace and felt really good. Clearly my fitness is doing well and standing me in good stead.

The lovely aspect of the ride could continued all the way to Trogir, a place which Laura said I shouldn't miss. I had previewed it on Google Maps and knew that the cafes and restaurants within the walled area would be pricey so I stopped before then for a coffee, coke, sandwich and the loo.

Then I faced the wonderful mayhem which is Trogir, an ancient town set on a tiny little island between the mainland and Took Çiovo. Trogir has spilled over onto the mainland where supermarkets and shops are. The old town, like many others, is stunningly pretty, consisting of external walls and a maze of intricate streets, lanes and alleyways. I just walked and looked agog. This town had a different feel compared to their old places. I can't quite put my finger on it but its charm is unique. Then it was time for an ice cream, and as usual stolen from FB.

Today's offering is served with some trepidation.

After yesterday's "excitement" of proving to myself that Lavender ice cream is not all that bad. In fact it was delicious I have decided to tempt fate and here we have, again, Lavender 🤣.

I was in Trogir. An old town set on a sort of island. Massively popular I can only describe the area around the access bridge as chaotic. Cars and vans and scooters everywhere. For a cyclist this is hell as you have to have a swivel neck and eyes in the back of your head 😭.

I eventually parked up the bike and ventured into the narrow streets. A stunning little walled town drew me in and around and around. It's too small to get lost but big enough to spend a whole afternoon exploring.

Despite a random set of turns I ended back at my entry point where I remembered seeing an Ice Cream shop. So I had a look. Sitting slap bang in the middle was a purple mountain proudly displayed as Lavender. At a very reasonable 2€ a scoop I couldn't resist (did I mention seven euros previously?).

The colour did make me suspicious but my mind has been opened. I went for it......lick, pause, slam, my mind immediately closed again. It was a bit like a limpet suddenly gripping onto a rock for dear life when touched.

Artificial, no subtlety, poke in the eye, cheeks sucked in and so on.

What a shame BUT what a confirmation on last night's wonderful offering.

Lavender (again), wrong and properly wrong, 1/10.

With the climbing all but done I expected a flat but steady pace from Trogir into Split. It was very busy leaving Trogir but as I approached Split airport the traffic dropped off and as I passed the last of the airport the traffic all but stopped. Then I stopped also. Across the road was a barrier, no sign, no words, just a barrier. Beyond it there seemed to be highway construction works. The barrier did have an arrow pointing right so I went right….. into the carpark for the return of hire cars. It was a dead end.

I ventured past the barrier and into the construction works. A few hundred metres later I was dancing with two small road rollers and the blacktop was steaming beautifully from the water the rollers were spraying onto their drums to stop the blacktop sticking. A guy on a small motorbike passed me. He got another hundred metres and then turned giving up as the two road rollers turned to four rollers and a couple of excavators on the unfinished pavements.

Worried for my tyres, I got off the blacktop and, under the shelter of a tree, looked up Google Maps. With the runway behind me extending into both directions there wasn't a diversion for miles. I'd probably have to double back 15km before I could find a road or track to take me around the otherside of the airport.

Just then a couple of Germans on eMTB arrived. They too were looking perplexed and worried however he ventured on with his partner following. I tucked in behind them and followed them through a maze of construction plant and roasting hot blacktop. At one point we were pushing along the unfinished pavements with our wheels running along the kerb stones sticking proudly up. Further on we passed the large machine which receives delivery of blacktop and then evenly spreads it across the carriageway leaving it high for the rollers then to compact it to level. We needed the pavement then as the machine was full width.

After than progress was a bit easier as there wasn't any rollers going forwards and backward. Bizarrely, at on point the lorries delivering the blacktop stopped to allow us through. The excavator operators were waving at us and smiling. If this had been in the UK we wouldn't have been able to access the site and if we tried they would have called the police. It reminded me of our trip to LA Rosiere in France when we cycled up and over into Italy. They had purposely not cleared the high level snow to stop anyone accessing the road construction work on the Italian side. Of course we clambered over the snow and suddenly found ourselves riding far too quickly between excavators. These operators were also smiling and waving and stopping so they didn't kill us!

The upside, I had to find an upside, was that there was virtually no traffic on my side of the road for many kilometres.

After this excitement the remainder of the ride was fairly mundane and eventually I found myself in the old town (there is a theme here) of Split.