EUROVELO 13 – Ep 7 – DOSPAT TO ZLATOGRAD (Bulgaria)

THIS EPISODE, Dospat to Zlatograd via Smolyan ski resort 1700m and Madan. DIFFICULT.

Dospat – See previous video

Smolyan – Sekvoia Hotel via Booking.com approx €15. Warm, ski style chalet hotel. Minimal wifi, quiet, big views over the valley. Did the job. 6/10

Zlatograd – 1st night, again booking.com approx €15, very nice room excellent cable tv (with all football!) above a little shop. 9/10. 5 min walk from best restaurant we found in Bulgaria, up river 2 minutes, cross the bridge, next to Alexandrov House and the Ethnographic Area Complex.
2nd night – due to the 1st place being full, we took a €25 house on booking.com.

WARNING. Booking.com WITHIN Turkey will not allow you to book accommodation. Start planning and if you can, booking Turkish accommodation now,

A tale of two halves here as we tackle our highest mountain pass right up into ski territory, then have a huge downhill albeit with one last mountain pass to Zlatograd. Watch for more detail! Some of the most stunning scenery on the trip so far, and definitely the toughest riding.

DETAILS

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We’re cycling from London to Istanbul via the Eurovelo 15, 6 and 13 from July until November 2018. Feel free to subscribe for updates on new videos! I hope you enjoy watching them, I certainly love making them! Even better, we would love our videos to inspire others to cycle tour. If you have cycle, route or tech questions, please leave us a message and I’ll be happy to answer!

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Monte is Harriet’s Dawes Karakum, and Komodo is Mat’s Fuji Touring. Full kit and tech gear list in blog.

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Sigur Ros

Good morning day 8585 great numbers when I was born big day today again so we basically are extremely tired legs are broken I haven’t had enough sleep we’re doing another all day uphill day today we’re down hills and we haven’t got anywhere booked because we

Don’t know how far we can go so it’s basically three towns we’re gonna aim for we’re gonna try and get to the last one but yes today we mean for 42 kilometers yesterday but it’s really beautiful so it doesn’t sort of break up sports too much but we are naked the

Legs are just so so we get straight back on I’m like oh we’re going out to ski resorts again today so that’s how high it is and we were reading a blog about a couple that did this last October and they have snow there which makes us a

Little bit apprehensive but we’ll be right when we haz we always are yeah So we just left – Pat and we’re just passing through these incredible pine forest it’s just the most amazing morning riding yeah it’s absolutely freezing as well you can see over here is frost on the ground still over there Bitterly calm so we just entered the Barrino state forest and there’s bears apparently also little puppies say what hoping that as like this we’re faster than a bear can run but up the hills we’re definitely not so I guess if we see a bear and we’re going uphill before

We just turn around and go downhill then do it again Denise your app is really but oh what’s happening it’s so freaking cold they’ve just hibernated or something by now we’ll see goings good so far we’ve done 20k and we’re just going to stop for a bit of pastry and some coffee

Basically go right down to the bottom of the valley and then pie look straight straight back up again [Laughter] laughably cold isn’t it oh my god house we should check on your phone a minute see I actually how cold it is but I think it must be about one or two degrees literally can’t feel my fingers at all and our legs as well just completely

Frozen but we carry on which is a huge descent which is concerning considering we need to go up to 1,700 meters today but at least it will keep us warm if we keep going uphill alright I want to go up hills too we’re gonna decide if we’re

Gonna stop somewhere at bang-on 12 for lunch somewhere hot and a restaurant but really middle of nowhere so see what happens absolutely amazing stunning Gorge also called let’s go keep going you keep going it will stay warm can’t even imagine this place in the middle of winter if it’s this cold in early

October Jesus morning and I think we’re mad just for a bear farm would do a message to yourself when we’re nice and warm watching us back in our home right now Matan has when you’re watching this remember this day when you can’t feel your fingers can’t feel your legs

We’ve got message to your future self has and if you’re not having a nice hot cup of tea right now made from a kettle just go and do it just go and have a little walk go and go down to the kitchen ten meters away never hot cup of

Tea just some toast on our Mis toast cannot explain how cold it is right now if this snow came over right now I would not be surprised Yeah right we’re back down to 800 meters we go get 1712 but at least they’ll make us warm 42

Case to go to Somalia we think we can make it all the way that was the furthest base we wanted to try to get to its own definitely doable This ride is not a [Applause] Well that sign say do not We know we’re getting high now when you see signs like this We did it as has broken this the highest point we’re gonna reach on the whole trip from London to Istanbul we’re about what 17 17 hundred meters something and that’s higher than Ben Davis higher than Morsy we’re in skiing we’re above the ski resorts unbelievable see there on the sign we were

Potentially gonna stop at Stoke ETA if we couldn’t make any further or we powered through and now we’ve got a 9% gradient downhill we’re at the top that was that was a big hill yeah we’re gonna get to Somalia now and find somewhere to stay an apartment with a kitchenette so we

Can have a kettle drink all the tea and relax it warm and tomorrow going downhill pretty much all the way to slaughter grant where it’s Friday chocolate day and Saturday day off absolute dream so proud of ourselves so small but big problem today my seat clamp has broken we can’t be riding like

This just keeps on moving and dropping and you know it’s okay for the hell because we’re gonna do is we’re gonna suck downhill into the main town and there’s lots of little mechanic places we saw and like car shops and stuff so we’re gonna ask around and see if you

Know knows we’ll see also I can’t pay because North is useless so we’re just gonna leave the money on the table in the room we don’t get charged by booking.com or something there is very frustrating bog area just come on by cup of it gonna chocolate and watch

England game later and we will be okay but which need to fix this bloody seats just one thing after another at the moment talking receipts that’s cool like a ski seat right we’re gonna go down the hill sit we find so we went down the road I’m rolling downhill it’s not too

Bad actually just subtle moves like that and also I’m riding it like that a low rider and we went into two different shops I had bikes out front but they’re just sort of toy bikes and kids bikes and they um they so ovens and stuff inside no idea

But oh well oh maybe got something here found this place like a car place but he’s trying to budget fix it absolute legend didn’t want any payment Eva but we gave them to any level Spartina basically what you’ve done if somehow managed to unload my broken screw from

Inside it and then put a bolt and a and you nut on it say when it seems to have held don’t know how long it hold for but you know we’ve done the mountain now anyway say oh such a relief absolute legend just fixing cars and then fixing

Commode oh yeah ha I’m absolutely elated the kindness of the locals and stuff it’s unbelievable Bulgaria so went into little still no white chocolate Snickers but this is the next best thing it’s nearly gone already ridiculous so day 86 and we’re finally leaving Somalia and it’s nearly midday fixed my bikes

That all fixed my chocolate craving and we’re off hopefully downhill all the way hopefully get there by about five ish to flatter grad and then relax [Applause] Just going off great timing and the mosque is calling to prayer as well just adds to this atmosphere it’s very different than the rest of Bulgaria it really does feel like the Turkish influence is strong here especially with that little church over there that mosque is huge the biggest one we’ve

Seen so far and yeah just makes us so excited to get to Istanbul hello I have a game going for a shower nothing we are also about ok from latter grads and Friday afternoon I’ve had my chocolate I’ve just seen and we were so excited to get and rest our legs up and

Just do some life in and out tomorrow we’re going to plan the rest of our time here in Bulgaria Greece and then Turkey we just worked out after driving cycling we’ve got nine days of cycling left days it’s bloody hell I just realized where has this just

Walked off to I didn’t know where she was going she has gone over there and got some sweet corn oh I thought if he heard that be said I’ve had my white chocolate just weak mmm Oh beautiful I’ve been seen these stools everywhere I really just quick

Update we left my damn maybe an hour ago and we’ve been going steadily up the whole time and we’re looking forward to a last 7 K or so her balances at least we’ll see I think he was harder and you didn’t really expect them I thought we mostly downhill today first

Half of the day was so fast downhill and now he’s up hills of it I are man we got about 20k to go but I just want to get there now we’ve done so many more kilometer than that before but sometimes short distance before you reach your

Final final destination before a day off as well you can feel like the longest just pedal just pedal just pay the mighty we just reached our last summit of well maybe the trip did not expect to do a mountain pass today has er as I

Said has to be fat and downhill all day don’t know we both lost a guidebook and this is what we’ve got to look at now we’re gonna go down there And we reached out to grad that was an epic 15 kilometers downhill yeah just here on the Left I think this is us winning good restaurant for tonight as well finally have some food with some good service before it has bloody outside we are here at the CTA hy year butter

Kbw a YUM we just found some birthday shoes for Murphy they’re not what they are they’re like magnets or something look at them so cute five thousand can’t believe we’ve achieved that we’ve got about well three or four hundred more yeah so I’m not gonna get to six thousand but

Yeah that’s amazing five thousand kilometers and that bike we got so that’s good now we’ve been here for three hours trying to get into this house but hello it’s Matt’s got misko again are your in front of the hotel we are we see a yellow house

We we can see the yellow house come to the main road so we finally got into our house and it’s absolutely amazing it’s not where we thought it was the map was wrong but this is basically an old traditional Bulgarian house it’s got well in the middle here and that’s as I

Said well well well she says it every time that’s just funny and this year’s oh yeah got a twin we’ve got a whole house this place basically is about there’s actually three rooms in here but with the only one staying here tonight this October no one comes to slaughter

Great enough sorry bro lots of space all all the weirdest thing we’ve seen