Coming into Chita today, or rather on the way out of Chita I saw my first tank. Rather disappointingly it wasn’t for sale and I couldn’t have a go. Still, it was worth a photo so I pulled over. I think Chip and Ken just wanted to get out of the city, as it was getting late and we were looking to wild camp again.

About an hour before, Chip had dropped his bike. No big deal as it was low speed, it could have been any of us. Ken’s GPS took us down a closed road that was all dug up. As we went back onto the main road there was a difficult hump of gravel to negotiate whilst joining the fast moving traffic. Down it went.

No damage, but it does spoil your day somewhat. Poor Ken copped it for going the ‘wrong’ way, luckily I’m not a good enough friend or it would be my fault as well! I know what it’s like though, so no harm done. We stopped at a fairly large shop and stocked up of supplies. There was an ATM as well so we cashed up.

There was quite a crowd building outside, mostly young lads interested in our trip. One of them introduced himself as the local gangster! But like all encounters so far it was good natured, one guy Yuri insisted on giving me his LED light keyring.

It was a good enough break to restore the mood before we headed off to find a camp spot.

Cameras never do it justice of course, but the road opened out and there was a lot to see. We tacked across the swampland on a raised road, which was mostly empty save for the odd lorry. The raised platform made for good viewing of the surrounding hills, all covered with lush green forest.

Now and then the forest broke into plains, giving a scene straight from Jurassic Park. All that was missing to complete the look was the odd brachiosaurus and circling pterodactyl! The weather made the riding easy, with temperatures in the low to mid 20s neither cooking or freezing us.

The road itself was fast and smooth, with the odd section severely warped by the extremes of temperature. Almost like a moto cross track, little “whoop-de-doos” everywhere. You’d better be on your feet when you hit one – or the 10″ of suspension travel will bottom out and airborne you go!

I can see why people pay money for moto cross, it’s good fun. (But probably more so without full luggage and on a lighter bike).

At the guestinitza last night we landed on our feet. It was a good price with secure parking for the bikes, a restaurant with good food and nothing else for miles around. A couple of bikes pulled in for fuel, so we went over to talk to the riders. One of them had British plates, which made the conversion a lot easier!

It turns out that Dom is on a trip to Japan for charity, having been on the road for just over 3 months. He’s been doing a load of videos on YouTube and they’re really good. You can see his channel – it’s called littledoms. He’s been through khazakstan, Mongolia and the Ukraine and we talked at length about the roads, cultures and people.

We went over his Mongolia map, which he kindly donated in return for my Russia map. It seems like he’s done the hard miles already, the rest of his trip will be a breeze. Conversely, we’re on the easy leg right now – so we need to “man up” for Mongolia. A lot!

We saw footage of his crash which was quite sobering, but it was really good to meet him. Good luck for the rest of your trip Dom, I hope to see you in England sometime! Here we are planning our next moves.

The good news for me is that I have a date I need to arrive in St.Petersburg for, as the girls are coming out to see me! It’ll be tight, but I’ll be there at any cost 🙂

At Blagavations we ran into a couple of friendly local bikers. Mikhail spoke good English and before we left his friend ducked off to fetch us gifts. A commemorative coin and a bag full of tea and sweets. Thanks very much guys!

In the evening we stayed in our first guestinitza in Svbodniy. The bikes caused quite a commotion parked outside, quickly attracting a lot of attention. The usual questions were answered, people looking surprised all round. A nice lady called Natasha asked us in English if we needed help.

We were fine apart from wanting to eat, so I asked if she knew a good restaurant. We ended up having dinner with Natasha, her friend (also Natasha) and husband Artyu. I’d put the cryllic spellings but it takes ages to do! A great Chinese meal in a place we’d never have found otherwise. Thanks for being so welcoming guys.

Natasha explained that Своьодный means Free, which I knew from my Russian studies. What I didn’t know was that the place used to be called Alexander, after the Tzar prince Alexander. After the revolution they renamed it Free. Her we are at the restaurant.

As we travel the miles the scenery gradually changes. Usually every hundred miles or so things look different, especially going north or south. Trees get shorter or longer, vegetation changes colour as the temperature varies. Mountains rise and fall, giving way to flood plains and desserts.

Russia so far has been a little different. Mile after mile of very similar scenery, probably because we’re hugging the same parallel. (The 45th I think). Eventually though we came through the swamp into very flat farmland, then on to large expanses of wetlands.

Mosquitoes love the wetlands (and me!). I counted 60 bites this morning, but it’s worth the inconvenience for experience. Or so I keep telling myself!

All roads lead home when you’re lost, or so my dad says. I suppose he’s right, as if you end up at home then you must have been on the right road. Logic eh? You’ve got to love it!

We passed a big sign and monument announcing that the road goes from Vladivostok to Moscow, which means we’re on the right road. Not too difficult as there’s only the one main road. We took a detour to Ьлаговещенск to have a quick look at China. The river separates the two countries, with many Russians going to Keihe on the ferry for a days shopping.

Unfortunately we couldn’t do that due to visa restrictions, but I can’t say I’m really bothered about missing a shopping mall in China. When you think about it, most of the stuff we buy is made there anyway!

The roads themselves are entertaining to ride, as long as you’re in the mood. The surfaces range from smooth to trash the bike and lose your fillings! It’s not uncommon for oncoming traffic to veer onto the wrong side of the road and head straight for you. It’s a bit concerning at first, until you realise it’s just other drivers avoiding a cow sized pothole. You get used to it.

Overtaking can be done at any time, anywhere and at any speed. (Though generally the faster the better). All cars tend to be driven at the same speed, which is as fast as they will go! As long as you have your wits about you, can look in all directions at the same time and have one hand on the clutch/brake, it’s not too bad.

If you’re in the mood that is….

Sasha invited us in while the storm passed by. He talked a lot and I understood a little, but it became apparent that we needed vodka to stay. The nearest shop was 15km away and we had directions, however we couldn’t all go. One of us had to take Sasha, so I dumped my gear and off we went.

Breaking all the rules of adventure motorcycling, I set off into the dark down a dirt road with a stranger riding pillion. It soon started to rain as we headed into the storm, brilliant flashes of orange, purple and white lightning ahead of us in the inky blackness. The rain was making the track slippery, adding to the ‘fun’.

The shop was a small cafe. Everyone stopped taking and stared when I asked for a bottle of vodka. The lady said they didn’t have any and I believed her. I told Sasha who was waiting outside. When I produced him from the darkness, eyes rolled all round. The lady shook her head and gave me a bottle from under the counter. All good!

Back at Sasha’s place we all had a drink and we talked while the rain passed. After that it was hammocks up and dinner for the boys. (I couldn’t face cooking, chocolate and tea for me!). Sasha did a lot of talking and I sensed he was a lonely old man who didn’t get many visitors.

In fact he’s only 53. With no running water or power it must be a hard life, especially in winter with the freezing temperatures. I didn’t catch everything he said, but I know he lost his only brother in some war. He makes honey to survive but it’s a poor living, he made bicycles in the past in Khabarovsk. He grows his own vegetables, which he loaded me up with before I left.

He seemed an amiable fellow, I was sorry I couldn’t talk more. Good bye and good luck, Sasha.

Sophie
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It was hard to leave Khabarovsk and our good friends, but we had some miles to do. We said our thank yous and goodbyes and were on or way. Mother Russia pulled a marvellous day out of the hat for us. 30° and sunny, but with a very high cirrus layer to stop us burning.

The roads were pretty good, which made 400kms easy to do. Just the odd section of gravel for roadworks, which I’m getting used to and even starting to enjoy! Around 8 pm we started to look for wild camping spots. A few places looked promising but already had occupants. It was getting late and a storm was brewing.

At the end of a likely looking track we found a dwelling, where an old man came out to greet us. I thought it was worth saying hello and asking if we could camp there. Sasha turned out to be quite friendly and before we knew it we were all drinking tea in his alfresco kitchen. At this point we weren’t sure whether it would be OK to stay.

It got a bit more interesting when he went to fetch his shotgun to show us, but he explained that he’d seen some Siberian tigers yesterday. (Albeit small ones). Chip and Ken seemed a bit concerned about them, but I’ll be amazed if we see one.

I pressed the point on whether we could camp there, and said we could pay. He wasn’t interested in money, but did we have any vodka? Unfortunately we didn’t, which is where it got a bit more interesting!

In the evening we planned to go camping. Phil had been told of a good spot and we were game. It took us over an impressive 2 km long bridge across the river Амур. Not the longest but the widest river in Russia, quite a sight.

We were late getting there so all the good spots were taken. We did some serious off roading before we gave it up and went back to Phil’s place. It was awesome! Phil got cracking in the kitchen cooking up some Plov, while we unloaded and spoke with his daughters.

дарья and Александра (Dasha and Sasha) both speak very good English, they’re learning at school. Dasha was especially helpful and we looked at a huge world map together, talking about the places we’d all been. Dinner was served for 10 people!

We were joined for dinner by Phil’s wife галина, лена, family friends василий and ольга. Olga is an English teacher and we had a very good conversation ranging many topics. (In English, in case you’re wondering!).

Dinner was great, Plov is tasty but there were plenty of other things to try, like a fern that’s only eaten in eastern Russia. Dasha and her friend Евгения told me the name of their favourite snack, even wrote it down for me. (But I lost the paper. Oops!).

After dinner Phil cracked the guitar out and belted out some Russian folk songs. He’s very good! Olga translated the lyrics. I knew I should have bought my banjo! Before I knew it, time for bed. Where does the time go?

In the picture, our gracious hosts Phil, Galina, Sasha, Dasha and Lena. In case you’re wondering why Phil doesn’t have a Russian name, it’s a nickname. (Technically it’s ‘Feel’). No-one I know calls him Nikolai.

I couldn’t thank them enough when I left, so if you’re reading this guys – thanks again!