Trans Euro Trail, Croatia and Bosnia 2018-09

[motorang]

Hi there,
and a happy new year.

Have been on the trail for a week in September with two friends of mine,
one with an Enfield 350 and one XT500 (83 or so).
Long version, full German text, starts here: http://www.motorang.com/motorrad/2018_TET_HR-BIH.htm

Started near Zadar where we left off last time:

This is the bit we had ahead of us, credits to http://www.transeurotrail.org/ for putting this together, with a 90% gravel content :D



Especially Bosnia still has a LOT of mines, so this was some concern, too:





Uwes trusty Enfield:

short first gear, modified clutch

Toms XT:

Rebuilt engine, glass fiber tank, 12V system

My Tenere:

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2401&p=31274
15-48 for this tour

Day one and two we just travelled down to the Croatian coast. Perfect weather conditions, a week of vacation ahead of us:



With plenty good grub:



Forgot burner cap of petrol stove, had to improvise:



Coffee was on the agenda so Uwe brought some sugar cubes and bits:



Chain maintenance:



And off we went:



Me (left) and Uwe:



Track started out nice and easy:



Soon got more rough:



This was a bit more than what we aimed for, but there was no way back now. Rock picking, line clearing:



Finally we made that bit, and got on the main road again:



Which was really nice. Some European western movies were shot here in the 60ies:





Lunch:



We found a nice safe spot near a village where we were allowed to camp.



Report to be continued soon ...

Andy

[Patrick]

That looks like a proper adventure. Keen to see the next stage!

[Mezo]

Thanks for sharing.

Mezo.

[BMurr]

Looks like a great adventure, did ye guys know each other from before or specially arranged to get together for this trip. I can see your oil tank cover mod clearly too, looks very practical.

[motorang]

Hi
we knew each other, being part of a loosish motorcycle "club" mainly connected via our internet forum.
I did a lot of riding with Uwe, but Tom was a new guy for us, and we only knew him from some of our gatherings and local ride-outs.

The next day started glorious, with nice weather, coffee and gifts. We did get 6 eggs from a local farmer yesterday, plus some bacon from a guy riding his TOMOS moped to work. Plus some coffee.

Each to his own ... tent:



Brekkie preps:



Bacon man:



Just before the eggs went in ...



We filled our water bottles from the mill pond:



The we rode some small roads to Knin, the region capital, to stock up on food and fuel. Had another coffee and soft drinks, got real meat from a butchers shop and finally, after doing some chores due to internet access (check weather, check mails, send messages to family) we left for the Bosnian border.



Border check was quick and correct, we had to show passports and insurance (green insurance voucher) then continued on. Changed some money at a post office, then headed for gravel again. This was quite nice road actually, leading to our destination for the day, the seemingly idyllic Sator lake (Satorsko Jezero). We only had made 120 km that day (80 US miles?) but opted for an early camp as the camping situation after that was quite unclear to us.



Richard, one other member of our motorcycle club, was on his way home coming up from Greece and keen to meet. So we sent him a text and left a note at the turnoff:





Made it!



Just half an hour later Richard arrived when we were out collecting firewood. In a potentially mined are you should not head for the woods to find firewood, so we rode along the access road and grabbed whatever we could reach from there.



There was a partly renovated hut with a water tap in working order - nice! Other buildings were in various states of devastation ... We were alone up there, aside from a hiker couple from Slovenia.



We had a nice campfire that evening, keeping the bugs away and scaring bears and wolves hopefully which are said to live in the area. We stored our food and other smelly stuff away from the tents and hoped for a quiet and uneventful night.



Well, it wasn't, as the wind picked up around 3 o'clock and made all kinds of noises, blew pots and pans from our table, as if some animal was rummaging through our stuff. Thank god for flashlights. The night was quite cold, and my sleeping bag was hitting its comfort limit at near zero ° Celsius.

To be continued ...

[motorang]

Next day: nice weather again. Nobody was eaten, nobody froze to death. Splendid. The morning sun warms everything up quickly, so we can pack dry tents.





And on we go, through the woods, with rare views down to the plains:





After saying goodbye to Richard who continues riding North, we are continuing South with the Enfield starting to fade. It had done very well over the past few years riding serious trails, but seemingly the dampers now give up, all at once.

Uwe is NOT happy.





On loose rough ground, even gravel roads, the bike starts to shimmy and is hard to control. And rain ist not making things better;



Beautiful views nevertheless ...



We decide to call it a trip and stop ruining the Enfield more than needed, so it at least can handle normal roads on the way back, which is another 1000 km or so. With some luck we manage to find a beautiful freecamping spot at a lake near Kupres:



Our plan is to go to the coast from there, and ride back North.

Field kitchen:



The next day: we have not showered for 4 days, and there is that lake ...



It was a nice swim, actually.



We have breakfast ...





This is what the sugar cubes look like after a four day ride:



Tarp for sun protection during breakfast:



And on we ride ...



The front fork or frame is a bit misaligned ...



But on smooth gravel or sealed roads the Enfield handles OK so we can take in the landscape:





We are getting closer to the border and to normal roads:



Dusty bits



We arrive at a nice campsite that evening, in a small town named Krvavica on the Croatian coast. Beer on site, and good food only a walk away. As my sleeping pad has a puncture I resort to my hammock for the night.





To be continued ...

[philb]

Looking forward to the next part of the trip.....

Great pictures!

[motorang]

OK,
last bit:

We have a nice morning at the campsite, checking the motorcycles for wear and tear:



Chain lube helps the transmission to get me home, hopefully ...



The very picturesque coastal mountain range:



We decide to leave our tents put, and go for a day trip from there, to Biokovo National Park. This is where the highest peak of the Dinarean Mountain Range is - Sveti Jure (1762 m) with a road right up to the top. A very nice road ...



We made it to the top by noon:





We then do some shopping and stuff in Makarska:



Back at the campsite, checking for alignment:



Local food again, on order this time. With a day advance they made an traditional Peka, a one-pot meal cooked slowly in the embers in a special pan with an earthenware lid, check > https://triciaannemitchell.com/2013/04/ ... od-travel/

Another hammock night:




SATURDAY
A week after we left Austria we are going back to Seline, a ~ 250 km ride which can take a whole day if you avoid the main roads.

Coffee on the road:



Riding to Split as close as possible to a theoretical "as the bird flies" route:



Minor repairs, clutch cable:



Nearly done:





Food hauling for lunch:



A swim ...



And a picnic:





Small roads, bendy



That evening we finished our local round trip, back at the campsite in Seline where we started 1300 km ago:



SUNDAY (day 9)

After a mosquito-infested night Tom swaps the saddle for a seat, continuing on by car, while Uwe an I ride on:





Not many pictures were taken that day, we basically go along the coast the same way as we came, finishing late in Slowenia, again:



MONDAY (day 10)

It is a good thing we did not stop earlier, as a storm cell passes us during the night and would have hit us full force had we stayed further South:



But at our campsite, all the storm and rain is over when we leave for the final 300 km to Austria:



Again on B-roads we manage to avoid the leftover rain patches and make our way to the border without digging for our rain suites, at a leisurly 70-90 km/h pace:





We wear nearly all our clothes at once when crossing the Seebergsattel to Austria. Temperatures are down to 10 °C, something we were not used to in the past week.



We are home by seven, killing the engine after a total 2250 km in 10 days. In my workshop I find the burner cap I had forgotten to pack ...
but the replacement held up well!



So that was it for this trip. We plan to continue that TET route next year from where we left, but with different bikes.
Uwe is going fast forward to an outrageously modern Suzuki SP370 (1983) and I go retro, reviving my trusty 1983 XT500 for the trip.

Let's see how THAT will work out, in September 2019.

Andy

[BMurr]

A big thanks for going to the trouble of posting all of that it a bit like taking us on for the ride. One of the best ride reports I've seen for a long time.

[motorang]

Thanks,
I am happy you liked it!

Andy