Day 98: 26 June 2012, Tuesday
From my place of accommodation last night it was an instant upward road. Again it was super hot but today I did not dare remove my jacket as I got a bit of a burn on my arms yesterday so I do not want it to get more burnt. The first three miles were the toughest so far, very steep and no respite. I got to a natural spring which was sign posted by the road so I went and threw cold water over my face and cooled down a bit.
Then it was the next four miles of the same steep climb to reach the border with Turkey.
Turkey at Last
I knew the border would be a quiet one due to the fact I had seen so little traffic coming or going to the border, and I was proved correct. I went into the administration building where visas were obtained and used my New Zealand passport (I have used my Irish one for the rest of the trip but I had found out the NZ passport gets a free visa and the Irish have to pay) and I was accepted into the land of Turkey. The guy at the desk asked me why I was so sweaty, he asked with concern, he did not know I was on a bike as it was outside locked up so I told him and he gave me the usual stare of “you idiot” and I continued on my not so merry way.
The road on the Turkish side of the border was a new looking dual carriage way with a generous hard shoulder, good for me on my bike. The first three miles were great, meaning downhill but that ended and it was back to hill climbing in the sun. being a wide road there was absolutely no shade on offer and soon I was wilting under the heat. It was another tough section but eventually I passed the turn off for Derekoy eight miles from the border.
The Hills Near Derekoy
I continued to struggle up hills and fly down the other side and passed the next village, Korukoy which meant it was thirteen miles to go until I reached the town of Kirklareli, my goal for the day and what I hope will be the end of this range of hills, the Yildiz Daglari.
The final thirteen miles were much like the previous miles of the day big hills, trudge up and free wheel down. I even achieved a new top speed record, 47.2Mph (75.5Kph), which beats the speed I got on the 24th of April near Dresden, in Germany! With about ten miles to go just as I was reaching yet another summit of a hill I noticed a few spots of rain, at first I thought it was sweat falling from my brow but it started to hit in places which couldn’t be from my brow. I looked behind and behold an approaching storm.
The Chasing Storm, Ten Miles From Kirklarei
I descended from the hill and outran the rain, not that I would have minded to be honest, I was hot enough to enjoy a shower of rain. Behind I could hear the thunder rolling across the sky and occasionally glance a flash of lightning. I do like a good electrical storm. I never felt another drop of rain in the next ten miles and arrived to Kirklareli dry and knackered.
As I rode into the town I saw ahead of me two fully loaded bicycles. I caught up to them and then saw the third member of there group. It was the town centre and I had a brief chat to them. They were German, coming from south Germany to Istanbul, following a similar route to me, the Danube. I needed to get some money as I had no local currency, the Lira, so I said I may see them later (it was not a huge town) and got some dough.
Then I got some water at a little shop and asked where I could find a hotel, and following the directions quickly found the hotel and the three Germans! This proved to be a good thing too, one of the guys from Germany was born in Turkey so spoke Turkish. He sorted me out a room, and the price was quite a bit less than the price posted above the check in desk! Result. Talking to the one guy who spoke English of the three I found out that they too had stayed in Malko Tarnovo last night, different hotel though I only saw one in the town. I was surprised I had not seen them at some point of the day, they had left earlier than I had so were always ahead until Kirklareli so I thought I should ave seen them ahead on the long straight section before the town, but no.
I went to my room and had a wash then a rest, it was a hard day, then I went out for some dinner. Ahhhh, a true kebab at last. Served on a plate with bread, not in the bread. The shop owner asked where I was from and as has happened on previous visits to Turkey he had no idea where New Zealand was. I must put my atlas into my day bag from now on! I then went to a pub and had a beer, Turkey of course is not a big drinking country so the price reflected this so I only had two beers and retired to my room. Good night.
31.37M 3:48T 8.2Av 47.2Ma Tot2742
vincentsbikeride 