Krinides to Thassos (Greece)

Today we woke up to a misty morning. Wisps of clouds shrouded the mountains as we started cycling, yet it was so early in the ride that we didn’t want to stop for photos. Yet, our first coffee stop was only 20 km (12 miles) away; and, we actually spent a long time there enjoying our drinks and treats. It was the first time that I’d found loose leaf tea on this trip. Enjoyed a piece of cold, fried honey dough, too. 

Overlooking Kavala and the Aegean Sea

Our day was so relaxing because we were only cycling 40 km (25 miles) over to Kavala to catch the ferry. After our leisurely coffee stop, we cycled the remaining 20 km through the hills for a view of Kavala and the Aegean Sea melting into the sky. We did stop for photos of this gorgeous view. Then, we glided downhill into Kavala and enjoyed an equally leisurely lunch. The shakshuka that I ordered was the best meal that I’ve eaten so far on this trip. Everyone else’s food looked delicious, too. Would highly recommend Tsalapeteinos Urban Farm if you’re ever in Kavala.

Shakshuka for lunch

We moseyed down to the ferry port after lunch and waited near the van. There were a couple of fisherman holding large reels of line with a large, colorful, two-hook lures. They’d swing the lured end of the line a bit and then whip it far out from the dock, then, walk back and forth along the dock edge trailing the line. All of a sudden, one fishermen jerked his line up and sent an octopus flying up on the dock! Some of our cyclists got photos and video of the octopus. Then the fisherman efficiently killed it and stuffed it a plastic bag. Some restaurant was serving fresh octopus today.

Gull soaring next to me on the ferry top deck

While waiting on the dock, I’d taken various photos of ferries waiting but not of the one we ended up boarding. By that time, many people, including a large group of school kids, had already bordered. There were very few cars. We walked our bikes aboard. Eventually, I walked up to the top deck next to the captain’s cabin. It was a great viewing spot. Gulls soared and swooped at eye level, following us out of the port, eventually leaving us as we moved further into the sea. I’d hope to see dolphins while crossing, but, we didn’t see any. As we got closer to Thassos, we saw a couple of sailboats. There were also floating boxy objects that were anchored near Thassos.

Thassos Island

After the 1.5 hour crossing, we had to get back on our bikes. My legs weren’t really in the mood, even though we hadn’t cycled much yet today. It was only another 20 km (12 miles) to the hotel, which we completed in good time. We passed olive trees along the way; and, in front of our hotel are olive trees dropping olives on the sidewalk. This is the first hotel where we’ve been able to take our bikes up to our rooms. They fit on the room balconies.

Olive tree outside our hotel

Bansko (Bulgaria) to Krinides (Greece)

Today's road profile

Today was another chilly start in the low 40s F (5 C). Every evening our tour leader sends us a climb, wind, and temperature profile. We were all bundled up for our start downhill out of Bansko in the predicted headwind. We didn't even consider the distance or what climbs we'd have because the downhill made it all seem easily possible.

First coffee stop

Pinecone basket at the coffee stop

For the first time, nine of us left town together and hung on as a line of cyclists. We were flying downhill, my Garmin hitting 31 mph (50 km/h). It was intense but I didn't want to lose the train. Eventually, my friend slowed up and let the other cyclists go ahead. Then, three of us were able to enjoy the scenery on the way to the first coffee stop, which was an eclectic place along the highway. Inside, there was a collection of Christmas cacti in plastic pails, as well as baskets made out of pinecones. They even had hot chocolate for me.

Still 1245 meters of climbing today

All the strong cyclists headed off before us. Then, we enjoyed our own more leisurely pace to the border crossing between Bulgaria and Greece. Since both are part of the EU, we didn't have to all congregate with the van before we could cross. However, at the crossing, all the cars were supposed to drive through a sprinkler system to wash off their cars. It was the only way through but I didn't want to get wet! When we tried to go around, the border control officer came over and told us that he needed our bike wheels to roll through the puddle of water accumulating from the sprinklers. Some type of disinfectant?

Baklava and ??

Tiny gas station on the street by the town square

After passing the border, we took off layers of clothing before starting the downhill to the next coffee stop. It was in the cute town square of Kato Navrokopi. There were coffee shops, a bakery, and a tiny gas station. Best coffee stop of the trip so far! I bought some baklava and another unknown sweet treat. Soon, the sweep was texting us that we needed to get a move on for the next 40 km (25 miles) to lunch. All the other riders had already left, some as we had arrived. 

Mountain top above the clouds

Today was starting to feel like a race from point to point along the busy highway. We did stop to take a photo of a mountain summit above the clouds along a rare shoulder on the highway. We are still tourists, after all. When we finally arrived at the lunch stop, all the other cyclists cheered for us. Otherwise, we would have missed it. Perhaps, too, the strong ones were happy that they could now continue onto the hotel. They and the luggage van left soon after we arrived. It was great to see a bike share dock even in this town of Drama. (We spent a lot of today heading toward Drama!)

Bike share in Drama

It was 4 pm; and, I was starving, shoveling food into my mouth. We were also pressed for time, so, only ordered a couple of appetizers, which we quickly ate and then got back on our bikes. The tour leader rode with us the final 22 km (14 miles). We passed the archaeological site of Philippi on the left side of the road but no extra energy (or daylight) to climb that hill to the ruins.

View of the sunflower field from our hotel balcony

Our hotel is in the middle of nowhere. The hotel restaurant wasn't open, so, the tour leader arranged for taxis to take others into Krinides to a restaurant. Very happy that I had extra sardines, bread and fruit so that I could stay back in the quiet of the hotel. Our balcony overlooks a drying sunflower field. 

Blagoevgrad to Bansko (Bulgaria)

Raring to go in Blagoevgrad 

Somehow this morning we all managed to get out of bed, ever after yesterday's long day and losing an hour crossing the border. Our hotel water smelled like sulphur, which our tour leader said was due to many places siphoning hot water off the hot springs, although she said usually places would put something in the water to mask the smell. I ate as much as I could at breakfast; and, then we were off!

Food stand at coffee stop

We all stayed together to get through town, then split up once we hit the rough country road. When the road improved, I enjoyed cycling the flat terrain. Eventually, though, there's always a climb. We climbed partway up to a little coffee shop. Alongside, there was a little outdoor stand selling beautiful looking fruit and vegetables, as well as a variety of preserves. The vendor would respond to our questions in English by speaking Bulgarian into Google translate on his phone, which would translate into English and then he'd play the audio for us. We learned that the jar of creamy white substance was milk thistle honey. There was also a jar of honey with hazelnuts and walnuts. Dried chilis hung from the ceiling rafters.

We enjoyed our break so much that we were the last to leave the coffee stop. Maybe we were subconsciously dreading the rest of the climb: 600 meters (~2000 ft) over 12 km (~7.5 miles). I wouldn't let myself stop, just kept cycling while watching the kilometers count down on my Garmin. It was wonderful to reach the summit and see the van waiting for us! There were snowcapped peaks off in the distance.

The road, though, was busy, with no shoulders. It's the only road to Bansko. After the summit, I tried to go as fast as possible on the descent just to get off the road sooner! We did stop near the bottom at a pullout for a photo of the mountains.

The special tool to bend the hangar back in place

Once in town, I went in search of the bike shop that our tour leader had mentioned. She'd already dropped off two cyclists there today during the ride, due to their bike issues. Bike Center was a great shop! The mechanic put my bike up on the stand and used the special tool to bend the rear derailleur hangar back into shape and re-index the shifters. Now all the gears on my bike are usable. Watch out climbs!

Veles (North Macedonia) to Blagoevgrad (Bulgaria) - 160 km!

This morning, three of us started cycling before breakfast. The plan for the day was 160 km (almost 100 miles) with 2000 meters (about 6500 ft) of climbing. Since it's been getting dark around 6 pm, I was worried that we couldn't possibly finish it in time. Plus, at the peak of the climbing, we had a border crossing at 132 km (82 miles), which required all twelve cyclists to cross together with the van transporting our luggage. We have some very strong cyclists on this tour, which is why three of us wanted a super early head start. Diane, Claudia and I left at 7:15 am.

The first section of the ride was a long flat section. Perfect for those of us in Minnesota (Diane) and Canada that struggle to find any hills. We settled into a groove against the headwind; and, I was even able to help a little by being in front for a small portion of the time. However, Claudia despised the flats. She'd start with us and then fall behind, catching up again on any climbs or descents. The terrain in this area reminded me of southwest Minnesota. We saw the first grain silos of the entire trip and fields of dry cornstalks. Wind towers sprouted from the horizon. For awhile, there was even a shoulder on the road!

Climbing to our final refueling stop

While it was mostly flat, we were gradually going up. We kept our stops to a minimum, stopping quickly for snacks for facilities, not taking time for photos. The first cyclists to catch up with us caught up at 96 km (60 miles) into the ride when we'd stopped at a coffee shop for quick refreshments. Seeing them zoom by, we quickly finished up and started cycling after them. The plan was all to meet at kilometer 121 (75 miles) at a gas station / deli / market to fuel up and then start the 11 km (7 mile) climb to the border crossing. The best thing at the market was a Mexican tuna bean bowl with its own little spoon. There were also lots of fruit juice pouches, which have been wonderful cycling treats! Today, I've drunk peach, blueberry and pear.

The climb to the top was an interminable 560 meters (1840 ft) over 10 km (6.2 miles). My legs struggled to even pedal after the refuel stop. When they did start working, my butt really did not want to sit on the bike seat any more. Yet, I wouldn't let myself stop; or, I knew that I wouldn't get back on the bike. Other cyclists started passing us with what appeared to be the greatest of ease. As we got closer to the top and yet another cyclist pulled up next to me, somehow my legs started rotating faster to keep in pace with him. Then, he pointed out the flag for the border crossing; and, my legs had newfound energy to spin energetically the rest of the way to the top.

Snowcapped peaks in the distance on the descent

All twelve cyclists had to clear the borders together with the luggage van. The quickest ones had the longest wait in "no man's land" between the North Macedonia and Bulgarian borders until the last cyclist arrived. It was quite chilly at the top in the shade between the crossings. We were pulling more layers out of the luggage van to warm up and prepare for the descent. When the last cyclist crossed from North Macedonia, we could all move onto the Bulgarian border, which took even longer, as many of us had to be photographed or fingerprinted as we reentered the EU. By this time, we were even colder. As soon as a cyclist would clear, they'd quickly start cycling the 28 km descent to our hotel. It wasn't long before we were noticing a significant difference in the cars on the Bulgaria side: much more modern and expensive. We'd gotten used to Yugos, Ladas, VW rabbits, and many older Mercedes. Now there were recent models of Volkswagens and BMWs, even a Maserati on the road. The views of the mountains on the descent were also spectacular! At least Diane stopped and took a photo.

Bitola to Veles (Macedonia)

After a restless night of sleep due to the wedding reception below (the last time that I woke up to music to check the time was 1:15 am), it was time to hurry up, get packed, and breakfast. A 126 km (78 mile) day today. The small dog that had greeted us yesterday walked with us to the back of the hotel to get our bikes. It was shivering in fear of the big dogs back there but led us bravely there and back. The nearby supermarket was so well stocked that we thought we’d grab some more snacks this morning. However, as it’s Sunday, all the supermarkets were closed.

It was a sunny but chilly start. We’d taken off layers waiting in the sun for the morning briefing. But as soon as we were out of town, we put on extra gloves. Along the way, two road cyclists passed us! We saw them a bit later when we stopped at a gas station. They came over to ask where we were from. They were from Bitola and doing a 60 km today. It’s so surprising to see other road cyclists after having not seen any for so long! Around this area, we also saw a car with lots of road bikes on top. We had many more friendly drivers wave and friendly honk at us around here.

Today was mostly flat. Woohoo! For once I could help pull a little bit. While we were in the flats, the mountains still surrounded us. In the valley, the fields were now full of corn. We were so intent on pounding out the distance that we didn’t even stop for a photo this morning! 

Lunch salad and strawberry juice

Coffee stop was at a small shop in Prilep. They did have hot milk. The new sweep went and got us snacks from the supermarket. Then, we were climbing the hill for the day. Only 700 meters of climbing, but, my legs still complained. At least the downhill on the way to lunch was gradual. The lunch stop was off the main road; and, they had a pig with piglets outside in a large enclosure. It was so nice to see pigs have so much room to roam! Pork was one of the items on the menu; however, I ordered a delicious salad instead. The menu was entirely in Macedonian; and, we pored over it using the Google Translate photo feature. The other cyclists before us had ordered each of the three salads, so, I could pick which one looked the best.

Leaving the lunch restaurant

After lunch, it was back to flat terrain almost the entire way into Veles. We ground it out and made it to the hotel by 4:30 pm, before the tour leader started searching for us. Since all the supermarkets were close today, was forced to eat in the hotel restaurant. Several of us will try to start early tomorrow, as it’s 132 km (82 miles) to the border crossing; and, we all have to cross together with the van carrying our luggage. There’s also 2000 meters (6500 ft) of climbing to get to the border crossing, then another 28 km (17 miles) downhill from there to the hotel. I’m dreading tomorrow.

Ohrid to Bitola (North Macedonia)

Starting from the boardwalk along Lake Ohrid

After a day’s rest, it didn’t feel so bad to get back on the bicycle. My legs felt fresh zipping out of Ohrid along Lake Ohrid, part of the way on a very nice bike lane. We had a stop for snacks about 18 km out, at a tiny one room market/bar/kaffe. Then we cycled to our turn off into Galicia National Park around 21 km, as our 900 meter climb was beginning. Unfortunately, that’s when my shifter cable snapped in two.  My rear derailleur was stuck in the hardest gear and wouldn’t shift. I immediately called the tour leader, who came down to pick up me and the bike and take me to the top of the climb, where the other cyclists were stopping for photos. I had WhatsApped the entire group, too; and, the very nice cyclist who had gotten me rideable gears with the bent hangar contacted me immediately. Steve was nice enough to wait at the top of the hill at 1600 meters on this chilly day to turn my bike into a fixie at an easier gear, as the tour leader said that she didn’t carry any shifter cables. While Steve was digging through the tool box to adjust my rear derailleur, he came across a shifter cable. Then, we got the bike stand from the tour leader; and, Steve threaded that new cable through the internal housing, without more than a screwdriver and a hex wrench. He is a very skilled mechanic! 

The repair took quite a bit of time; and, we all had on all of our coats by the end. Then, we had to descend down the other side mountain in the chilly temperatures. I even had my winter gloves on and was shivering the entire way. Reminding myself that the faster I got down the mountain, the faster I’d warm up on the flats was the only thing that kept me from stopping. At the bottom, I stripped off my gloves and stuffed them in my raincoat pockets, even though stuff has fallen out of them before. The new sweep road side by side with me most of the way to Resen for lunch. We were passing through gorgeous apple orchards! The harvest was in full swing with tractors towing boxes full of red apples. By the time that I arrived in Resen, I’d lost one of the winter gloves. The rest of the trip will need to be warmer!

Turshija

My friend and I had another delicious Macedonia meal. We tried another bean dish; and, I also ate turshija, which was a salad of pickled vegetables. We sat outside in the sun to warm up. It lulled us into relaxation, making us the last to leave town. The way out was uphill on a busy highway. With dust, fumes and cars honking at us, it was quite unpleasant. Eventually we were able to turn off on a quieter country road. By now, our shadows were growing long on the pavement. We picked up the pace as the road descended toward Bitola, finally arriving as the tour leader was in the van heading out to look for us. The days are too short now.

The hotel is on the outskirts of town. Music was blaring when we arrived. There is a wedding reception being held here tonight. We headed next door to the supermarket to pick up some food for supper and came back to even louder music. While I jokingly asked the receptionist if it would end by 2 am, she only smiled noncommittally. The floor of our room is now vibrating from the volume.

Wandering around Ohrid (North Macedonia)

After six days in a row of cycling, we finally got to rest on the seventh day! We got to the hotel restaurant for breakfast just after it opened at seven thirty. It was so wonderful to go back for seconds and thirds and not worry about the time. The fried mushrooms were especially delicious. Then, we gathered up our dirty laundry and walked a mile to the Ecowash, passing some other cyclists on their way back from dropping their laundry. Our legs were pretty tired, making it more of a saunter.

Mosaic outside Church Dormition

From there, we headed toward old town Ohrid. The main attraction is the fortress on the top of the hill. However, we found other interesting places on our way up and around. First there was the Church Dormition of the Holy Mother of God, a relatively young church built in 1832, with beautiful views over the city and its own kiwi plant. It had beautiful golden mosaics. Then we hiked higher to see the clock tower, which wasn’t as tall as it appeared from below.

Holy Mary of Perybleptos

Continuing on, we came across an imposing Byzantine church from 1295. This was the church of Holy Mary of Perybleptos (in my guidebook listed as Church of Sveta Bogorodica Perivlepta). We didn’t enter this church, simply admired the architecture from outside. 

Greek amphitheater 

Following the cobblestone streets, we came to the amphitheater built around 200 BCE. Per my guidebook, the Romans later removed 10 rows of seats for gladiators and Christian executions. While we were there, a large school group was sitting on the amphitheater bleachers. There is a modernized stage in front. It would definitely be a spectacular venue for a show or for watching the lake and mountains behind.

Samuel's Fortress

Interestingly, my guidebook didn’t even mention the fortress on the top of the hill. From a sign outside of it, it said that restorations had started in the year 2000. The original fortress was mentioned back in 200 BCE, although the placard also mentioned Phillip II of Macedonia, which is earlier than that, However, today it’s know as Samuel’s fortress after a leader from around the year 1000 AD. We sat on a bench outside the entrance to give our legs a break.

St John of Kaneo

Next, we headed down to look for St. John’s church. This involved walking past the ruins of an old church as well as the construction of a brand new basilica that is projected to be completed in 2028. While we were stopped trying to determine how to get to St. John’s, an old Yugo drove past us! We did finally make it down to St. John of Kaneo on the tip of the peninsula. It was a beautiful location overlooking Lake Ohrid.

Tavce Gravce and Turli Tava for lunch

By now we were getting hungry for lunch. We started heading back through the old town toward our hotel. As everywhere, there are stray dogs and cats. In this touristy area, there were also lots of shops, including several selling pearls. We stopped at a restaurant with a menu that looked good. It didn’t appear that anyone was smoking inside. This was my first meal of Macedonia food. We ate the Tavce Gravce (a bowl of beans in a mild tomato sauce) and the Turli Tava (a stew of mixed vegetables including eggplant, potato and okra). It was delicious!

Wake & Bake raspberry custard croissant

While lunching, we received a WhatsApp message that our laundry was ready for pickup. Wonderful same day service! I volunteered to pick up our laundry, stopping to get some sardines for supper and then for a croissant for afternoon tea. The raspberry custard croissant was an unexpected treat. Hopefully we’ve all eaten enough to start on our next six consecutive days of cycling tomorrow.

Along the boardwalk near our hotel