Route change

The last blog title was possibly a touch prophetic.

Ever since we crossed into Mongolia back in June the roads , and sometimes the lack of them, have punished the bikes far more than we envisaged. Now with further issues, fortunately with us once more being in the right place at the right time to find a man to fix it, we feel we may have run our luck to the limit.

For the first 30 kilometres the road out of Kazakhstan from Uralsk to the Russian border was in prime condition but the remaining 100 kilometres was still under reconstruction. This meant that for large sections it was a temporary surface with deep ruts and potholes. The sections not under reconstruction had not been maintained for years and in places it was more hole than road with a sandy track at the side being used by cars. The 300 kilometres on the Russian side was asphalt but so rough it was like washboard all the way to Saratov.

This time it was our pannier frames that suffered.

We were getting our swimming gear out for a dip in the Volga when Jean spotted her pannier was a touch lower than it should be. On closer inspection we could see one of the main components, a bracket, had split.

In a sour mood we stripped the pannier off and went on a welder hunt.

We found Gregory, the local welder, just around the corner from our hotel and explained, with the aid of photos how the bracket connects to the bike. He welded it up for us, free of charge.

In a much better mood we refitted the pannier.

As a precaution we checked the rest of the brackets. One of mine had a crack 75% of the way through. We dismantled another pannier and I went to smile nicely at Gregory again. Once more he refused payment, but warned me the parts were now weak and should not be abused, that we should buy new ones as soon as possible.

It was now too late in the day for the long trek to the city beach, at the mid point of the bridge, so we visited the Yuri Gagarin museum. Saratov was where he attended technical college and they have dedicated a room to his part in the exploration of space.

As we walked we discussed our plans and routes. There were bound to be more poor roads between Saratov and Georgia. Then maybe more further on in Turkey and beyond.

Would we be near a welder if the brackets went again?

What would break next? So far we have had to replace a radiator, add sealant to my radiator, change a complete dashboard and many bolts (my frame bolt being a major item) as well as many other "minor" bodges.

It feels as if a new item is breaking every few days. At the end of every day we need to check the bikes over, tightening bolts and checking fluids. Our confidence that the bikes are capable of this trip has been eroded. My bike although young in years has already covered over 70,000 miles and now four continents. They have managed the main objective, Mongolia, where we  rode our luck with the first  radiator issue. Would it be worth pushing them to breaking point and not getting one or both home ?

It also occurred to us that due to the route changes already made (shorter time in Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan due to radiator issues, and dropping Uzbekistan) we were a month ahead of our rough schedule. The temperature in the Russian Caucasus​, Georgia and Turkey would still be in the mid to high 30s, possibly into the 40s.

Hence we decided to continue west, towards Ukraine and Poland. This will cut the distance by more than 2500 kilometres. 

Once back in Europe we will regain the safety net of European Recovery. And there are some mountains that could be visited, hopefully on smoother surfaces.

At some point in the future we will take another trip towards the Black Sea region, following the Adriatic, to taste the wine and cheese of Georgia.

On a positive note leaving Kazakhstan was a doddle. We pulled up behind a queue of cars, and they all waved us to the front. At the barrier the guard confirmed we were tourists then let us through. At the passport booth again we were ushered to the front. Finally at the Russian side we were guided to the tourist vehicle queue, us and one car, before another speedy barrier lift.