Day 68

24/10/2011 – Day 68

Isaccea to Tulcea – 38km

We opted to have breakfast at 7am this morning with the two Germans. It was just getting light at this time and the weather looked really bad. The Germans were setting off straight away but we didn’t leave until 8:30. The weather had changed for the better where we were and the sun had actually come out although it was still quite cold. On the horizon a large black cloud lurked promising rain or something (there was the smell of snow in the air).

The wind direction had not changed but the strength had dropped quite a bit from yesterday, also the first part of today it was blowing slightly from the North West, which meant the wind was behind us. This made the hills easier but not by much.

The last 38km of the route were not really very inspiring, there were no villages, no gypsy wagons, just a few big trucks and a flock of sheep. When a flock of sheep is crossing the road the drivers slow down and lean on the horn. They make no effort to stop but just carry on through, if they hit a sheep they don’t worry, just keep going. Having seen the state of their cars and the number of dead animals at the side of the road, the death toll here is high.

As we came down the last hill we met another pair of cyclists heading the other way, we found out later that they were a husband and wife from Germany who were apparently just starting the route going back to Germany!

The first view of Tulcea is of a large chemical works, smoke billowing into the sky. They main road takes you past the plant before bringing you into the town itself. It is a busy town centre but no different to the others we have been to, there is no square with bars or anything to say you have come to somewhere special, a bit of a let-down really.