Back On The Road

It's good to be back on the road and today was a real pleasure; the very biker-conscious Croatian drivers (like France) are quite sedate as a rule but that could be because the Police here are zero-tolerant, I'm told. Also, it was really great to see so many fellow-touring motorcyclists today, more in one day than I have seen this whole trip and all of us acknowledging each other with that biker aplomb.
Back to the road and its rubber-friendly tarmac that made easy work of the coast-road's sweeps and bends, and because they were not too testing, I soon got into cruising mode or armchair-riding as I call it. Armchair because the riding position of the R1200GS is upright and comfortable but also, because of her low-down torque and formidable engine braking you can basically stay in top gear and throttle your way through everything while taking in the surroundings.
A couple of rain showers did nothing to lessen the beauty of Croatia's mountains that create its rugged coastline, enhanced by many hooked peninsulas and islands of all shapes and sizes that freckle Croatia's long face. Fishing villages, walled fortresses and hillside villas have that classic Mediterranean feel; the landscape generally oozes Tuscan tones as personified by the army of upright, pencil-thin Cypress trees, the signature of Tuscany. Although there is obvious investment in sea-view villas and apartments, it doesn't feel spoilt (yet) and I do wonder if Croatia is the new Italy.

So, by midday, I've knocked up over 200 kms and during the 2nd quite heavy rain shower, I stopped for a coffee only to realise my sleeping bag sleeve isn't very waterproof and my nights bed might just as well be a bath. So a quick map consultation had me heading inland over the mountains to a lake destination.

About 100 kms north of Split, a beautiful old narrow-laned, lakeside village called Skradin, had me sold on entry and as I tethered up my ride to take a closer look, an elderly lady with one of those faces that tells a thousand stories, says from her first floor balcony, "you want room, zimmer?". I have happened to coincidently pulled up outside a 'konoba'. Although it sounds like it should be a 'knocking-shop', it is in fact a Croatian B&B, like the Agri-Tourismo's in Italy, wonderfully welcoming, family run and all for 28 Euros a night. Perfect answer to my soggy problem.

Once settled, I strolled the stone lanes a short distance to the lake only to find to my astonishment a number of multi-million pound yachts backed-up to the paved shore. All a bit strange really, given that the very rural road to get here had me passing vintage farm machinery, donkeys and at one point, inching my way through a flock of sheep. After conversation, it becomes obvious that this freshwater lake connects to the sea and is one of the fancied moorings for the 'plimsoled'.
I love lakes and this is another beauty; I will stay for a couple of days and absorb.

Oh, actually went into Bosnia Herzegovina today; thought I'd taken a wrong turn when I saw Customs. If you look closely at the Croatian map, Bosnia actually has about 20 kms of coastline which must be a port access thing given the signs I saw, but did have me resetting the GPS and double-checking the origami map. In fact, the southern strip of Croatian land is so thin at times, you could reach the border by doing the Spilt's (pun intended and no I didn't even attempt the gymnastics as I'd already knocked over two Bosnians with my nose when I looked right at a T-junction).

OK, a chapeau-de-nuit is on its way, then I shall sleep soundly, so laku noć x



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