September 17th Stage 46 Sremski Karlovci (Novi
Sad) to Batajnica (Belgrade) 78 kms
The first job of the day was to drive back to Sremska
Komenica to start riding at exactly the point I left off yesterday. The traffic seemed less intimidating this
morning and, even including taking some photos of the two impressive bridges
over the Danube to the sprawling Novi Sad on the far bank I had negotiated Petrovaradin
and was back in Sremski Karlovci within the hour. However, my motivation was at
a low ebb, and was not in the slightest improved by the 6 kilometre climb out
of the town on the fairly busy 22-1 road with fast-moving traffic, in both
directions!!!! (I had to take refuge on the grass verge at least once to avoid
vehicles which were overtaking on the way down). But my spirits improved when I
turned off to Cotanovci; most of the traffic disappeared and the rolling
countryside once again made for excellent riding and some good views. In the
neat village of Beska a charming man, who like our friend from yesterday had
noticed the Swiss number plates, stopped to ask us if we needed help. His aunt,
he told us, lived in Solothurn where he visited frequently. As it turned out
his advice was invaluable and my mood improved still further. In Krcedin I met
two bicycle tourists, young Germans travelling to Istanbul. They were a little
dejected by the recent bad weather (unlike us I suppose they didn’t have the means
to take refuge in a hotel) and by a spate of mysterious punctures in Budapest.
I gave them some moral support and pushed on along a seemingly endless straight
road into a headwind with the farmers taking their orchard produce to a brand
new collecting centre near Novi Slankamen. I made the mistake of following the
guidebook’s advice to descend to the riverside at Stari Slankomen. No doubt in
season this is a busy tourist spot, but today I am afraid it was anything but.
Moribund and a bit odorous it had little to offer. Indeed, a bus arrived and
virtually everyone in the town seemed to be getting on it, eager to escape. I
did the same and pounded south towards Sorduk on a road that was half paved and
half unpaved. I would cycle the smoother paved section and drivers would arrive
unannounced (or with blasting horns) and frighten me out of my wits. I passed a
brave business and sports complex which looked as if it was on the point of
being abandoned (although maybe it was just out of season). The whole impression
was of an area trying to develop but not always succeeding. There were
attractive cafes in all the villages for instance.
I began to tire quickly as we neared the Belgrade
connurbation. I don’t want to flog a dead horse but some of the traffic, especially
the trucks, were passing me far too closely and too quickly for my comfort. In
Batajnica where I met the main road I gave up for the day, and put the bike in
the car for the last few kilometres into the outskirts of Belgrade. Tomorrow,
very early, when the roads are less frenetic and I am fresher, I will
recuperate those last few kilometres.
78 kms Total from
Schaffhausen 1838 Total from Galway 3748
kms
The driving has been great when following the
little village roads, but I can agree with Richard that the main roads are far
from easy. The surface is often far from
ideal, patched, wavy, oddly cambered, even potholed but nobody except me seems
thrown by this. I don’t think I’ve overtaken anything except tractors and carts
but I’m passed continuously and often at incredible speed; has anybody noticed
the 60km. limit, the no overtaking signs? Here’s me doing my best to law abiding
(and taking into consideration the state of the roads) and I seem to be a
positive liability, one of these trundling along sorts who get everybody
annoyed!
One added navigating difficulty now we’re in
Serbia (a sign of ignorance on our part) is that we didn’t realize that a Cyrillic
alphabet is used and although our familiar alphabet is found, some major road signs are not in both,
involving quite a lot of guess work on my part! Katherine
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