It's almost time to go!

August 27th 2020

Had all sorts of plans for 2020..... and then this COVID-19 thing happened. Lockdown was particularly frustrating as the weather in the UK was exceptional and what with me being 'in-between gainful employment', it was the perfect time to jump on the bike and roam far and wide...... but we were in lockdown. Once the restrictions eased, I took a few nice day trips, but the only hope I had was that things would get back to some sort of normality by August and I could at least squeeze-in one decent bike trip that had been in the making (not necessarily detailed planning) for a couple of years. It was also our only opportunity to squeeze-in a family holiday (of sorts).

Where to?

Over the last 2 years I've been talking the 'brothers-in-law' into sorting-out their motorbikes and going on a 'blokes' motorbike trip around Poland (to keep things as easy for them as possible as this is where they live). Being truthful, whilst Poland is a beautiful country and there is much to see, it's not the best 'biking' destinations. The nice roads are small, but small means full of pot-holes with sand on all the corners. The main routes are like UK B roads and usually busy. Motorways are motorways and boring as hell. An adventure bike would be best suited to these roads, but I've sold my one and have something a little more sporty and less suitable these days.....

So we're all meeting-up and heading-out from Kashubia in Northern Poland for a lap of the Eastern-side of the country. Not expecting to see a load of interesting stuff, but it's the side of Poland that I have explored the least, so it seemed like a good idea to explore it via the roads less travelled. At least we should have 1 good day of proper riding when we hit the Bieszczady mountains in the far South-East of the country!

Which bike?

I have a Kawasaki Z1000SX these days which is a pretty good sports-touring tool. To be honest I've not actually used it much since buying it a year ago. I would say that it's a lot less comfy than my old Fazer 1000 and the suspension / seat are rock-hard and it has limited space for my luggage.... I'm also not 'bike fit' as I've not exactly been riding much..... but let's see how it goes. At worst I will need surgery when I get home.

Am I going solo again?

Yes and no. Initially I am riding all the way to Poland (and back) on my own. I will almost certainly camp somewhere in Eastern Germany as I don't think I have an 1100 mile non-stop ride left in me (and certainly not on this bike). My wife and son are flying over and we'll spend the best part of a week together before I leave them behind and spend 7 nights away on the bike trip. Originally we had a reasonable group of people going, but for various reasons people have been forced to drop-out (or are suggesting they might not be able to go). Similarly at one point there was even talk about 'women' tagging along and lots of sight-seeing...... It's back to blokes, bikes, beer and talking bollox now. As things are still a bit fluid, there should be between 4 and 6 of us going (inshallah).

What's the plan?

Well I finish my work contract on Friday 31st July, so at 3am on Saturday 1st August I hit the road. Got just over 2 weeks to play with before I start my new job so it's now or never. I hope to make it to Magdeburg (~700 miles) on the first day where I plan to camp before getting to Poland on Sunday for some lazy time. On Friday 7th August we set-out into Mazuria. We then follow Poland's Eastern border past the Białowieża national park and on further South to the Bieszczady before heading North West through Sandomierz, Kazimierz Dolny, Ciechocinek and back to base. Camping all the way, but no cooking this time around. Should be around 3800 miles in total including transit legs. Misadventure is inevitable.....