Today I had planned a bigger one, 130KM to Baja in the south. It's about time I got out of Hungary and although it has not been the most inspiring of places, I have really enjoyed it. The people I met were friendly even if they are supposed to have a reputation of being racist, homophobic and right wing.
The scenery has been a bit dull, the views of the Danube fleeting and the roads not great. But they have not been all THAT bad either and often times there is even a cycle path that runs alongside some of them, although differencing greatly in quality so that sometimes, it is just easier to use the main road.
Waking up completely alone in the campsite was wonderful. The owner last night had showed me how to let myself out and once again, it was like wild camping with all the additional benefits of a shower block and electricity to charge up my tech. Plus my tent was perfectly dry, which makes it a doddle to pack up.
I would have loved a coffee first thing as I woke up and listened to the whole of nature getting ready too, but otherwise it was perfect.
I opted to take the more scenic EV6 route that followed the curve of the Ráckeve tributary rather than the main route 51 with its better surface and was rewarded for it.
It was lined on one side with what looked like holiday homes for locals, each with their own private little jetties into the river.
Super peaceful in the sun dappled road and everyone I saw smiled and said hello. It was enjoyable to shout out hello and good morning in English. There was a very nice looking, but freshly dead cat in the middle of the road and I suspect there will be a sad owner somewhere out there today.
I eventually arrived the confluence with the Kiskunsági-főcsatorna canal and decided to head up towards the main route 51 rather than cross it and continue onwards following the river along what looked very much to be a sandy path.
It wasn't too busy although there were still huge trucks but I find that I am now at ease with them - how different from those first few days when it really was a white knuckle ride.
As I trundled on, a guy with the same pannier set up as me waved at me from across the road and he swooped over. His name was Herman, a photographer from the Netherlands and we chatted a bit. It's true, you don't see too many cyclists (none?) now I have left Budapest, but there are still EV6 signs around the place so its quite easy to follow the route.
He had been cycling around Europe on and off for many years and even within the course of a 10 minute conversation, it is amazing to find out how in tune you are with somebody, as we discussed disused factories and old ports which he liked to photograph. I told him all about the aluminium factory at Almásfüzitő and he told me about knackered in old ports around Bulgaria. Buoyed up by this recent connection, I cracked on through Solt where I stopped for a bit of lunch.
After that point, the roads and dykes started to get superb, super smooth all the way and I flew along. The sun was in the sky but not hot, perfect conditions. To my left, the great Hungarian plain and to my right, the riparian forest. On and on and on and on it went with little to break the monotony apart from the odd random herd of cows, a house with a tree growing through it, some cool looking structure with a silver ball attached, other cyclists,
and a huge transmission tower, the highest along the length of the Danube, or something like that. I cranked on some tunes, listened to my new favourite podcast Ladies who London and some UK radio to make me feel at home, once again thankful for my portable wireless speaker.
Before I knew it, I was getting into Baja where I had found a decent room at Napsugár Szállóon that had the basics and dropped off my stuff, took a quick shower and then out to check out the delights of the city.
I fancied something substantial to eat after a long day cycle and one of the local dishes people raved about was the fish soup. When it came, the baddest, ugliest rubbery motherfucker of a carp was on a side dish which you then added to the soup.
It wasn't horrible, but it was all bones and I was in no mood for mucking around with watery soup, so ordered another massive pasta and pork dish washed down with a couple of pints of lager. Job done.
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