September 13th Stage 42 Kolacso to Mohacs

September 13^th  Stage 42  Kolacso to Mohacs  83 kms

I was sorry to leave Kalocsa, and indeed we didn’t leave as early as we had intended because of a lot of WATU business that needed seeing to, especially as we had internet connection in the local coffee shop where we took breakfast.

The weather was not at all promising. But at least there was the 22kph north westerly tailwind! In fact, turning out of Kalocsa in completely the wrong direction I was wondering how I could still be riding into a southerly wind. Surely that would have been warm and this morning it was decidedly cold.

So, having rectified my error, I made excellent time to Fajsz where I spent a few minutes, in the company of a solemn old man, admiring the interior of the church. The guide book makes no mention of it, but the brightly painted, orange interior with what appeared to be delightful paintings in a naïf style was lovely. Fajsz was also the first commune I had come across during the whole trip with its own Euro6 signposting. This signposting led me up onto the dyke which until it passed under the new M8 motorway had been like riding on cinders. After that, though, and for a full 12 kilometres to the national park centre, and even beyond that to Baja, it was an incredibly smooth ride on brand new tarmac. This area, though, which passes through the beautiful Donau-Drava Nezmeti national park,is very lonely, and even more so after Baja and Szeremie where in an hour’s riding I came across nobody at all. I must admit that once or twice I wondered if what I was doing was wise. I finished the last few kilometres to the ferry at Ujmohacs, which I suddenly began to think might stop at 6pm, at a tremendous lick, along a bone jarringly rutted track made of smashed tarmac. I was very pleased that I had made the decision back in Fajsz to change to the VTT tyres.

The ferry crossing, especially in the serious cold rain which had set in since early afternoon, was not at all romantic. The so- called blue Danube was a muddy brown and the small town of Mohacs on the other side, where we had decided to stay the night, looked uninspiring.

But I had made good progress. The Croatian border is only ten kilometres away but the forecast is for bad weather and accommodation might be difficult to find. Certainly, and even if campsites were available, which they aren’t, it looks as if camping will be out of the question for the next few days.

83 kms  Total from Schaffhausen 1563 kms. Total from Galway  3473 kms