Overland to Bosnia Herzegovina 2014 (Hopefully)

[ssicarman]

Dachau.......unsettling, disturbing and so much more.

Some nice shots in post 8. Post 9 incredible shots. Liking this trip a lot, especially now that there is some sun.

[XCovlov70]

Dachau.......unsettling, disturbing and so much more.

Some nice shots in post 8. Post 9 incredible shots. Liking this trip a lot, especially now that there is some sun.

Don't hold your breath, while I am not quite up to date with the Stages, the 'Overhead Watering Can' was turned on again last night and it was fairly persistent all night, but keeping our fingers crossed for today!

[XCovlov70]

Stage 8 “Danica Bohinj to Krk”

Leaving the campsite at Danica Bohinj this morning before 08:30hrs it was a bit difficult to leave the Shower/Toilet/Mains Hook Up keys behind as Reception doesn’t open until 18:30hrs, but we found a helpful lady in the adjacent restaurant who took them, then it was out through the town heading initially for a town called Tolmin that involved some very twisty winding road as well as considerable ‘Mountain Climbing’ with gradients of 15%+ which I think ‘Flamenco Red’ and myself enjoyed the ‘challenge’, I’m just glad we didn’t need the SNOW CHAINS!.….

Directly behind the metal pole up through the middle of this next picture is an ‘Open Barrel’ on a machine that removes all the bark from the logs of felled trees….



After which is was the start of the ‘twisty winding roads’ some of which were quite narrow….













One of the Ski Area ‘Chair Lifts’ we passed as we went over a couple of the mountains…..



While the now redundant ‘Piste Bully’ and mechanical digger sat waiting for some work…..



Short break with Mt Triglav in the background….





Off we go down the other side…..









With some head scratching from the Grab Operator we just about made it around the bend…..





This was a bit steep, so I was glad the rear disc pads had been recently replaced….









Sorry we don’t know who that statue in the middle of the field is or what he did….



While this next bit was ‘ROUGH’!.....









WHOA! It took the driver 3 ‘manoeuvres’ with his trailer to negotiate the hairpin bend….



Then it got a bit better but narrower….



OK if he can get through, then so can I, just make sure you stay in the middle!...



Our next R/Hand turn on the route was ‘Closed’ due to roadworks, so we ended up on a 17 Mile Detour which in places was ‘Hairy & Challenging’ to say the least, but ‘BRILLIANT’ just the same, as we set off a bit further down the road up and over the next mountain…..













Some surprised looks greeted us in this village from the locals whom I think have maybe never seen a ‘Tin Tent’ coming down the road before….















Strange church spire….





Wood mill, halfway up a mountain….



While this roof repair took place with NO LADDERS and there were 2 men working out of that ‘Bucket’ on the roof…..



Property ripe for offers to refurbish……



As we enter the town of…..with the world famous Underground Caves that you take a small train to go into…..





Postojnas ‘Old Faithfull’ still working……



Out of the town and back into the countryside again….





As we then get to the place where we were going to spend tonight, but it turned out that it was closed and only catered for ‘Trucks with Beds’ also known as ‘Campers/RV’s’ so after a quick lunch we carried on….







You could soon tell you were approaching Croatia with all the Money Exchange offices offering to take your other currency for the Croatian Kuna, but as the Bank ATM’s offer a much better exchange rate, then we didn’t bother stopping…





Next stop was getting out of Slovenia, which strangely we had our passports checked!...



Then as we got to the Croatian (Hrvatska) Border, they were checked again and the ‘Border Agent’ then asked for Flamenco Red’s ‘Papers’ which I gave him and that left him ‘puzzled’ as he was expecting me to give him a ‘Green Card’ which I would have needed if Croatia had not been a member of the EU, but as they are now I don’t and this confused him!....



Next stop was the Motorway ‘Toll Booth’ which hopefully for our trip down to Bosnia will be the only one…..



Then we get onto for us a new road as it was ‘Under construction’ the last time we were here, but now it saves the long haul through the centre of Rijeka, and then down past the industrial area near the port….











Then we exit onto the road that takes us directly to the bridge for the island of Krk, and after paying the toll to get over we are on our way again….





While we meet this ‘Machine’ that looks like it was a trial item for the War of the Worlds film but is actually used for bridge maintenance as there are cradles hanging down from each side…..



With the small sign for the Airport(Otok) of Krk



Then a little bit further we meet this ‘Roadworks Robot’ waving the Red Flag which is good for slowing drivers down as they approach the roadworks….



A couple of miles further and we arrive at our next campsite called ‘Nijivce’ were we intend to spend the next 7 nights, so the pictures will be input tomorrow……

[giorgio]

Have a nice trip !
Very nice places and very nice beaches .

[XCovlov70]

Have a nice trip !
Very nice places and very nice beaches .

Hi Giorgio!

Thanks we are as the weather has improved and we have that BIG Golden Ball in the sky that is warming the place up!

[XCovlov70]

Stage 8A “A morning in the city of Krk”

After finding out that the nearest bicycle shop was in the city of Krk as the rear brake cable had seized up on my good lady’s bike, we decided to go and see if we could get a replacement cable but also to use the time for a look around the city as we had planned to go later in the week….

Having found a parking place and then found that the Parking Meters had been covered up, so not payment required we found the cycle shop, got the cable and off we then went for a stroll around the city which to be truthful is not that big….







Sun dial on the harbour front which was quite accurate with the time but the temperature at 30C (86F) was a bit ‘iffy’ as we made it around 20C (68F)







As we walked along the harbour front we noticed these Caterpillars hanging by their thread from the branches, while the thread was anything up to 30ft long!
It was surprising to see the number of people who felt them as they brushed passed but didn’t have a clue what it was or where it came from!



Even as I was eating this rather nice ‘Banana Split’ I noticed one of the Caterpillars drop straight down the back of a man in a seat on another table opposite!....



Off again and down some of the very narrow streets which reminded us of the Kasbahs in Morocco….







Wrong colour for me, as a Liverpudlian it should have been Yellow, but that would more than likely have scared off the fish that you saw in the section below the water line….







While the building under the light coloured roof is the back of the Bishop’s Residence!.....





























The Front Door of the Bishop’s Residence….



Then as we go down another narrow alleyway we go under another archway which seem to have been built to stop the house walls from falling into each other…..



At that point we decided to head back to the campsite, repair the rear brake on the bike and set off for a ride from the campsite along the coastal path towards Malinska….

From the campsite it was a short ride to the small harbour in Njivice….





While it looked like this rather nice small power boat was having a bit of engine trouble with the cover open and cooling water coming out of the outlet on the port side, but strangely no noise from the engine?



Not very far along and we hit the ‘New Road’ which was signposted but is just being built…..



Then as we get onto the correct narrow track there are some very brightly coloured Thistles growing along the side while this one had a ‘Lodger’ in the middle…..





Just then the ‘Overhead Watering Can’ kicked in which was totally unexpected, so as we also had laundry out drying we turned around and headed back to the campsite and on the way spotted this colourful BIG fly on another Thistle….



With a couple of pictures of our current campsite…..





That’s it for today, we just hope the weather improves tomorrow!

[XCovlov70]

Stage 8B “A morning cycle ride across country to the town of Malinska”

After a cross country cycle ride over roads, new roads & ‘forest paths’ we eventually got to the outskirts of Malinska which was really nice, very quiet and quite picturesque until the ‘Tolling Bells’ commenced while we were stood next to them on the quayside, and my ears are still ringing!!…..













Heading along the waterfront and pass this statue of a Mother & Child…..





With a fresh water stream flowing directly into the sea ….



Then as we look back across to the town as we have a picnic lunch….



We set off back to the campsite trying the ‘Coastal Route’ which didn’t work, so we once again head back on the route we came on….



Looking at some of the fauna, flora & wildlife as we go along the ‘cycle path’….



‘Piggyback’ Boy this must be good!



“I say Old Chap the Pollen in here is really good what?”



“Sorry, I prefer to keep this one to myself thanks”



As we eventually pass this Mechanical Digger that is making a new Cycle/Walking pathway……



The as we get around the headland we see two ladies on what appear to be ‘Paddle Boards’ going across the bay, as the sea water is rather cold at the moment we hope they don’t fall in!…..





The as we get back into Njivice and visit the local Super Market for some supplies we spot this old house alongside…..



Today has been a totally different day to what was forecast weather wise but that is nothing new! We just hope it continues tomorrow and stays Sunny!

P.s. The ladies on the ‘Paddle Boards’ made it back to dry land without falling off!

[XCovlov70]

Stage 8C “A trip to Vrbnic”

After breakfast we decided to take a trip over to the town of Vrbnik for a look around as it is in one of the wine producing areas of the island of Krk!!…..



Harbour at the bottom of town, while the majority of the houses were up above…



While as you start the climb up the roads to the top you find that they get narrower…..











Moving all your house possessions to here could be a bit challenging getting it along the roads and in through the front door…..



As we then start to see some information about different buildings…..











Mainland across the sea, while the harbour is off to the left…..





Old grape press outside one of the wine shops which was closed……



While just a bit further along was this small café with tables at the rear offering a lovely view across the sea to the mainland but it to was closed…..











You can see the reference to ‘Cholera’ (Kolere) in this plaque that was above the door into the church….



Inside the small church…..



This picture was fitted up against the ceiling…..



While this window was above the entrance door…..









While we saw these fish swimming around in the harbour as the water was lovely and clear…..





Making our way back to the campsite we came to this site near the village of Gabonjin with some standing stones that we understand depict examples of an old Croatian language called ‘Glagolitic’ that was used in the 11th & 12th Centuries….

Googled ‘Old Croatian Language’ and got this……

‘Glagolitic’ (from Old Church Slavonic glagol meaning "word"), that was used side-by-side to Cyrillic in the early history of writing in Eastern Europe.







While each of the stones had symbols inscribed on them the best example seen was on the following picture, where you can see what the numbers from 1 to 100 were….



While after that it was time for some grocery shopping, and some lunch as we made our way back to the campsite…..

[XCovlov70]

Stage 8D “A lazy Saturday in the bay”

Seeing another nice blue sky again this morning and it being our last day here in Njivice we decided to spend the morning out on the water with the Kayak which was really nice, the hardest part was carrying the Kayak to and from the water’s edge as by the time we had finished the Sun was very hot!…..





You certainly get a different perspective of the size of boats when you are on the water…..



As we got back to the ‘Tin Tent’ and got everything cleaned down and put away we heard this scream from a girl walking past and then my eyes spotted this large Grasshopper/Cricket in the road, it was at least 2 inches long…..



Now all packed up and ready for the next stage tomorrow…..



Autocamp Skver here we come!

[XCovlov70]

Stage 9 “Krk to Senj”

After departing from the campsite at Njivice it wasn’t long before we were heading back across the bridge that connects Krk to the mainland….







With the oil storage tanks in the distance just outside Rijeka……





Coming down to the ‘Toll Booth’…..



We notice a Green Arrow on the right hand side while a sign to the left proudly announces ‘FREE PASSAGE’ in several languages as you don’t pay to get off the island you only pay to get on to it…..



Then a short distance after and we are on the Coast Road which was being worked on to make improvements as it was in the habit of falling apart on our last trip…..



Impressions as we travelled along it were that the ‘road and mountain face works’ that have been carried out have made a vast improvement to the quality of the road and also the safety but you still get idiot drivers who scream past you in no overtaking sections, and then slam on their brakes as they come to the bend just in front of you…..













This was a section of the road that was being worked on and there is wire mesh coming down the rock face to stop and falling rock from hitting you as well as a complete re-surfacing of the road surface….















Signpost for the city of Senj….





As a bit further we go over the 45th Parallel for about the 6th or 7th time…..



Then it’s into ‘AutoKamp Skver’ and get set up as we were lucky to get an Sea Front pitch!....



As there were so many concerned people who wandered past last time who did not know where we came from with much head scratching we have hung the ‘Home Flag’ in the rear window to help with their Geography!...



Then off we went for a walk into town…..



Spotted this rather old BMW single cylinder motorcycle which looked like it had a certain ‘weapon and mounting’ missing from the passenger chair!









After a bit of shopping it was back to the campsite for lunch which consisted of Burek Spinach Rolls which is a filo pastry filled with Spinach and they were quite nice….



While later on as the wind and sea got up, with the dark clouds also rolling in it looks like we might be in for another ‘Overhead Watering Can’ session!