Day

Date

From

To

Dist.
(km)

Route

Stayed in

Comments

1

28th Jul

London Big Ben

Tunbridge Wells

68

Westminster, Biggin Hill, Brasted, Tunbridge Wells.

Campsite north of Tunbridge.

Fine, sunny and hot day. Quite hilly.

2

29th Jul

Tunbridge Wells

Canterbury

70

Tunbridge Wells, Paddock Wood, Headcorn, Charing, Canturbury.

Matts house.

Hot, 30 degrees! Flat but slow going.

3

30th Jul

Canterbury

Brugge

60

Canterbury, Dover via Sustrans route 16, Oostende via Seacat, Brugge.

Memling campsite in Brugge.

Left at midday for 15:00hrs Super Seacat. Very hot and sunny. Followed Sustrans route 16 to Dover (21miles). Nice roads but quite hilly. Pannier weight making climbing hard.

4

31st Jul

Brugge

Mechelen

110

Brugge, Ghent, Dendermonde, Mechelen.

Campsite 5km SE of Mechelen.

Cooler with tail wind. Small difficulty finding campsite at end. Ghent looked very gothic!

5

1st Aug

Mechelen

Aachen

140

Mechelen, Aarschot, Diest, Hasselt, Maastricht, Aachen.

Hotel in central Aachen.

Slight headwind. Mostly flat and all on cycle paths and canal paths (Albert Kanal). Felt tired at the end. Weight of banners is slowing us down on the hills...

6

2nd Aug

Aachen

Aachen

0

Hotel in central Aachen.

Rest day

7

3rd Aug

Aachen

Aachen

0

Hotel in central Aachen.

Rest day

8

4th Aug

Aachen

Trier

158

Aachen, Eupen, Prüm, Bitburg, Trier.

Trier Youth Hostel.

Long day, 10.5hrs! climbed to 694m, and all day was lumpy.

9

5th Aug

Trier

Neustadt-a-d-W

166

Trier, Thalfang, Idar-Oberstein, Kaiserslautern, Neustadt-a-d-W.

Neustadt Youth Hostel.

Another long day, 715m highest point and very lumpy. Estimated 1500m vertical climbing. 11hrs in saddle! Showery and cooler.

10

6th Aug

Neustadt-a-d-W

Ludwigsburg

125

Neustadt-a-d-W, Germersheim, Ober-derdingen, Bietigheim, Ludwigsburg.

Ludwigsburg Youth Hostel.

Easier and shorter day. Cycled through some beautiful countryside. Germany is nice! fairly flat with 4km of climbing in middle.

11

7th Aug

Ludwigsburg

Günzburg

153

Ludwigsburg, Stuttgart, Esslingen, Kirchheim, Blaubeuren, Ulm, Günzburg.

Günzburg Youth Hostel.

12hrs in the saddle due to hard-to-find Stuttgart cycle paths. Climbed to 840m with 1100m of climbing. Felt quite good.

12

8th Aug

Günzburg

Westerham

176

Günzburg, Thannhausen, Schwabmünchen, Gauting, Westerham.

Friends in Westerham (Munich)

Longest day so far. Lumpy out of Günzburg but flatter towards Munich. Felt tired but fast.

13

9th Aug

Westerham

Westerham

0

-

Friends in Westerham (Munich).

Rest day

14

10th Aug

Westerham

Westerham

0

-

Friends in Westerham (Munich).

Rest day

15

11th Aug

Westerham

Westerham

0

-

Friends in Westerham (Munich).

Rest day

16

12th Aug

Westerham

Westerham

0

-

Friends in Westerham (Munich).

Rest day

17

13th Aug

Westerham

Westerham

0

-

Friends in Westerham (Munich).

Rest day

18

14th Aug

Westerham

Braunau a. Inn

132

Westerham, Rosenheim, Chiemsee, Burghausen, Braunau a. Inn.

Camping Braunau.

Strong headwind all day. Flat with a few lumps. Felt quite lethargic. Had a bit of sunstroke today, but was ok after the evening meal. German border town we crossed was beautiful.

19

15th Aug

Braunau a. Inn

Linz

122

Braunau a. Inn, Ried i. I., Grieskirchen, Wels, Linz.

Campsite on the Donauredweg 3km E of Linz.

Medium headwind, but mostly fast going and flat (couple of small climbs). Still very hot (in the mid 30's).

20

16th Aug

Linz

Krems

140

Donauredweg (River Danube cycle path) - Linz, Grein, Melk, Krems.

Campsite in Krems.

Flat easy day with slight tailwind. Very hot, especially in the afternoon. Followed the Donauradweg all day.

21

17th Aug

Krems

Wien (Vienna)

85

Donauredweg (River Danube cycle path) - Krems, Tulln, Wien.

Youth Hostel in Central Wien.

Arrived in early afternoon and had a beer with the British Ambassador to Austria, Anthony Ford. Great Day.

22

18th Aug

Wien (Vienna)

Wien (Vienna)

0

-

Youth Hostel in Central Wien.

Rest day

23

19th Aug

Wien (Vienna)

Bratislava

80

Donauredweg (River Danube cycle path) - Wien, Hainburg a.d. D., Bratislava.

Student Dorm's near centre of city.

Headwind but flat. First time for needing our passports as we entered Eastern Europe. Cycled for miles through naked sun bathers on the Donau!

24

20th Aug

Bratislava

Komárom

111

E575 - Bratislava, Dunajska Streda, Komárom.

Campsite in town.

Followed the E575 all day. Flat with headwind and a thunderstorm in the afternoon!

25

21st Aug

Komárom

Budapest

121

Road 10 & 11 - Komárom, Esztergom, the Danube bend, Budapest.

Youth Hostel in Pest Centre.

Cycled along the Danube so flat. Slight tailwind and nice scenery at the Danube bend.

26

22nd Aug

Budapest

Budapest

0

-

Youth Hostel in Pest Centre.

Rest day

27

23rd Aug

Budapest

Budapest

0

-

Youth Hostel in Pest Centre.

Rest Day

28

24th Aug

Budapest

Kiskunmajsa

160

Road 51 & 53 - Budapest, Solt, Kiskõrös, Kiskunmajsa.

Campsite 2km NE of Kiskunmajsa.

Fast! Average speed of 25kph, flat with tailwind. Warm but not too hot or sunny. Broke 2 spokes today!

29

25th Aug

Kiskunmajsa

Makó

78

Kiskunmajsa, Szeged, Makó.

Campsite 2km West of Makó.

Flat easy day. Discovered new border crossing to Cenad, reducing the distance to Timisoara.

30

26th Aug

Makó

Timisoara

78

Makó, Kiszombor, Cenad, Sinnicolau Mare, Timisoara.

Hotel in Central Timisoara.

Crossed a brand new border crossing into Romania - the roads were not fully built yet! Romania is noticeably less developed than Hungary (Dirt track roads in towns).

31

27th Aug

Timisoara

Caransebes

102

Road 6 / E70 - Timisoara, Lugoj, Caransebes.

Hotel in Town.

Flat with slight tailwind. Uneventful day.

32

28th Aug

Caransebes

Drobeta Turnu Severin

120

Road 6 / E70 - Caransebes, Drobeta Turnu Severin.

Hotel in Town.

First climb for ages! Climbed to 515m with slight tailwind. Rain heavily for 1 hour. Nice views of the mountains.

33

29th Aug

Drobeta Turnu Severin

Vidin

114

Drobeta Turnu Severin, Cujmir, Calafat, Vidin.

Campsite Nora 2km West of centre.

Crossed the border into Bulgaria on a ferry over the Danube. 2hr wait at customs though! Vidin has many crumbling high rise blocks.

34

30th Aug

Vidin

Berkovitsa

115

Vidin, Brusarci, Montana, Berkovitsa.

Hotel in town centre.

Fine day with cooling cross/tailwind. Left the Danube for the last time. Lumpy all day. Berkovitsa is at 430m.

35

31th Aug

Berkovitsa

Sofia

90

Berkovitsa, Petrohan Pass, Kostinbrod, Sofia.

Stayed with Tony & Sabina Williams from the British Embassy.

Left early to get over the Petrohan pass (1445m, 25km long) before it got too hot. Felt surprisingly easy. The road from there was undulating. We met up with people from the British Embassy and went to a BBQ with them!

36

1st Sep

Sofia

Sofia

0

-

Stayed with Tony & Sabina Williams from the British Embassy.

Rest day

37

2nd Sep

Sofia

Sofia

0

-

Stayed with Tony & Sabina Williams from the British Embassy.

Rest day

38

3rd Sep

Sofia

Sofia

0

-

Stayed with Tony & Sabina Williams from the British Embassy.

Rest day

39

4th Sep

Sofia

Sofia

0

-

Stayed with Tony & Sabina Williams from the British Embassy.

Rest day

40

5th Sep

Sofia

Velingrad

136

Road 8 - Sofia, Ihtiman, Septemvri, Velingrad.

Friend Nadia's family.

Left at midday after an interview with the Bulgarian News Agency. Down hill for 65km! But then uphill for 25km to get to Velingrad.

41

6th Sep

Velingrad

Velingrad

0

-

Friend Nadia's family.

Rest day, Adrian and Andy not feeling well.

42

7th Sep

Velingrad

Plovdiv

81

Velingrad, Septemvri, Pazardzik, Plovdiv.

Campsite 4km West of city.

Very easy day - strong gusting tailwind, only 3hrs!

43

8th Sep

Plovdiv

Haskovo

85

E80 - Plovdiv, Haskovo.

Small family run hotel in town.

All still not feeling too well, so it was good we got a nice tail wind! mostly flat.

44

9th Sep

Haskovo

Edirne

101

E80 - Haskovo, Svilengrad, Edirne.

Hotel near centre.

Relatively easy border crossing. Hot, 33 degrees.

45

10th Sep

Edirne

Çorlu

127

D-100 - Edirne, Çurlu.

Hotel in centre.

Slow undulating road with strong cross/head wind. Hot and sunny. We are near the sea again!

46

11th Sep

Çorlu

Florya (İstanbul)

99

D-100 - Çurlu, Florya (İstanbul).

Campsite underneath Istanbul airport runway!

VERY busy and dangerous road approaching İstanbul from Çurlu. Sunny, hot with strong cross wind. Stopped by the coast and had fresh fish for lunch!

47

12th Sep

Florya (İstanbul)

İstanbul centre

25

Florya (İstanbul), Sultanahmet (İstanbul centre).

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Typical big city cycling.

48

13th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

49

14th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

50

15th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

51

16th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

52

17th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

53

18th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

54

19th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

55

20th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

56

21th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

57

22th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

58

23th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

59

24th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

60

25th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

61

26th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

62

27th Sep

İstanbul

İstanbul

0

-

Hostel in Sultanahmet.

Rest day - waiting on visas.

63

28th Sep

İstanbul

Near Sinekçi

53

Took fast ferry to Bandirma, then followed the coast road D-200.

Free camped.

Left İstanbul at mid day and crossed the Sea of Marmara on a fast ferry. Easy undulating road on other side. Getting colder during the day and much colder at night.

64

29th Sep

Near Sinekçi

Çanakkale

113

Road D-200 - Biga, Çanakkale.

Hostel in town centre.

Undulating all day but not strenuous. Quite hot.

65

30th Sep

Çanakkale

Çanakkale

47

Gallipoli Peninsula and the WWI Anzac Battlefields.

Hostel in town centre.

Spent the day touring the WWI Anzac Battlefields and memorials. Many trenches are still there and it was well worth the visit.

66

1st Oct

Çanakkale

Assos

94

Çanakkale, Troy, Ezine, Ayvacik, Assos.

Free camped.

Hilly all day but it was good to see the ruins of troy. Very hot.

67

2nd Oct

Assos

Near Gömeç

108

Assos, Küçûkkuyu, Edremit, Gömeç.

Free camped.

Visited ruins of Assos in the morning then headed off in the heat on a flatish road in the afternoon.

68

3rd Oct

Near Gömeç

Near Zeytindag

80

Gömeç, Kozak, Bergama (Pergamum), near Zeytindag.

Free camped.

Took the very hilly yet beautiful road to Bergama from Gömeç. Visited Pergamum acropolis in the afternoon. Very hot day.

69

4th Oct

Near Zeytindag

Nesikköy

137

Zeytindag, Aliaga, Menemen, Izmir, Nesikköy.

Free camped.

A fast day with tailwind. Had trouble getting out of Izmir - we had a police escort to the right road! Camped 20km south of Izmir.

70

5th Oct

Nesikköy

Selçuk

54

Nesikköy, Torbali, Selçuk.

Hostel in town.

Short yet difficult day - the last 12km lasted forever in the headwind.

71

6th Oct

Selçuk

Selçuk

0

-

Hostel in town.

Rest day

72

7th Oct

Selçuk

Selçuk

0

-

Hostel in town.

Rest day

73

8th Oct

Selçuk

Selçuk

0

-

Hostel in town.

Rest day

74

9th Oct

Selçuk

Sarayköy

154

Selçuk, Aydin, Kuyucak, Sarayköy.

Hotel in town.

A fast day, uneventful day.

75

10th Oct

Sarayköy

Dazkiri

118

Sarayköy, Pamukkale, Denizli, Çardak, Dazkiri.

Free camped.

Visited the large calcium deposits formed over a cliff at Pamukkale - worth a visit. Somehow we have managed to cycle to 1000m altitude, we could quite believe it - the day seemed quite flat.

76

11th Oct

Dazkiri

Eğirdir

120

Dazkiri, Dinar, Isparta, Eğirdir.

Free camped.

Head wind for part of the day. Slightly hilly.

77

12th Oct

E irdir

Near Hüyük

125

Eğidir, Gelendost, Şarkikaraağaç, Near Hüyük.

Free camped.

Strong head wind and hilly all day - nasty! Great views over Lake Eğidir.

78

13th Oct

Near Hüyük

Konya

117

Near Hüyük, Beyşehir, Konya.

Hotel in city centre.

Slight head wind. Crossed a 1530m and 1460m pass to enter konya (1016m). Great views all day - especially the last 20km.

79

14th Oct

Konya

Konya

0

-

Hotel in city centre.

Rest day

80

15th Oct

Konya

Near Aksaray

139

Konya, Sultanhani, Near Aksaray.

Free camped.

A very straight and exposed bit of road with small hills inbetween.

81

16th Oct

Near Aksaray

Göreme

104

Aksaray, Acigöl, Nevşehir, Göreme.

Hostel.

Hilly all day with slight head wind. Visited an underground city at Acigöl on the way - it was great!

82

17th Oct

Göreme

Göreme

0

-

Hostel.

Rest day

83

18th Oct

Göreme

Göreme

0

-

Hostel.

Rest day

84

19th Oct

Göreme

Göreme

0

-

Hostel.

Rest day

85

20th Oct

Göreme

Göreme

0

-

Hostel.

Rest day

86

21st Oct

Göreme

Kayseri

77

Göreme, Ürgüp, Incesu, Kayseri.

Hotel in city centre.

A great days cycling with great views over Cappadocia from the top of a very steep 4km climb on the Incesu road from Ürgüp.

87

22nd Oct

Kayseri

Şarkişla

121

Kayseri, Gemerek, Şarkişla.

Hotel.

Uneventful day on the Sivas road. Slight tailwind.

88

23rd Oct

Şarkişla

Sivas

84

Şarkişla, Sivas.

Hotel in city centre.

Short hilly day. Great scenery approaching Sivas.

89

24th Oct

Sivas

Sivas

0

-

Hotel in city centre.

Rest day - Andy not well.

90

25th Oct

Sivas

Imranli

107

E88 - Sivas, Imranli.

Our cheapest hotel yet.

Hard with strong head wind. climbed to 1630m at Imranli. Met up with 3 French who are also cycling to Iran and China in the Evening.

91

26th Oct

Imranli

Refahiye

74

E88, E80 - Imranli, Refahiye.

Another cheap hotel.

Crossed Kizildağ Geçidi (2190m). Very cold and very windy. Refahiye is at 1610m.

92

27th Oct

Refahiye

Erzincan

77

E80 - Refahiye, Erzincan.

Hotel in centre.

Passed Sakaltutan Geçidi (2160m). Warmer than yesterday. Great decent into Refahiye is at 1610m. Cycled with the French all day.

93

28th Oct

Erzincan

Tercan

99

E80 - Erzincan, Tercan.

Hotel.

Rained all day and was cold. Mostly flat. Not nice!

94

29th Oct

Tercan

Erzurum

94

E80 - Tercan, Erzurum.

Hotel in city centre.

Started off okay but rained heavily in the afternoon. Crossed a 2100m pass 8km before Aşkale with heavy snow fall!

95

30th Oct

Erzurum

Erzurum

0

Hotel in city centre.

Rest day

96

31st Oct

Erzurum

Erzurum

0

Hotel in city centre.

Rest day

97

1st Nov

Erzurum

Erzurum

0

Hotel in city centre.

Rest day

98

2nd Nov

Erzurum

Erzurum

0

Hotel in city centre.

Rest day

99

3rd Nov

Erzurum

Horasan

86

E80 - Erzurum, Horasan.

cheap hotel.

Very easy day with fine weather. Slightly downhill all day with slight tail wind.

100

4th Nov

Horasan

Ağrı

99

E80 - Horasan, Ağrı.

cheap hotel.

Passed Sacdaği Geçidi (2290m) with a gentle desent on the other side through some dramatic mountain scenery. Seemed quite easy for some reason. Met Kakayama Yoshitaro who is running along the Silk Road from China to İstanbul.

101

5th Nov

Ağrı

Doğubayazıt

95

E80 - Ağrı, Doğubayazıt.

Hotel in town centre.

Passed İpek Geçidi (2010m) which was very easy and only 100m of climbing. An easy day of cycling. Doğubayazıt looks like quite a funky place!

102

6th Nov

Doğubayazıt

Doğubayazıt

0

-

Hotel in town centre.

Rest day

103

7th Nov

Doğubayazıt

Doğubayazıt

0

-

Hotel in town centre.

Rest day

104

8th Nov

Doğubayazıt

Maku

65

E80 - Doğubayazıt, Iranian Border - 32E - Bazargan, Maku.

Hotel.

Crossed over into Iran but before we visited a deep meteor crater in nomansland. Border crossing was fine.

105

9th Nov

Maku

35km from Marand

139

32E - Maku, Eddin, Marand road.

Free camped.

Very quick day - average 25.2km/h. Flat and very smooth road. Iran looks good.

106

10th Nov

35km from Marand

Tabriz

113

32E - Marand, Tabriz.

Cheap hotel.

Crossed an easy 1800m pass between Marand and Tabriz. Another quick day with the Swiss.

107

11th Nov

Tabriz

Tabriz

0

-

Cheap hotel.

Rest day

108

12th Nov

Tabriz

Tabriz

0

-

Cheap hotel.

Rest day