Father Mark and Vadim

 We finally set off to find a truck to take the Dizzy to Irkutsk to a mechanic. Well again no luck the drivers are just not having any of it, so once again we must tow Dizzy the now last 100km to the city. Uuuggghhh I hate this part but we have no choice. So poor Joan and Ihlena do yet another great things for me and finally get me to Irkutsk. There they call the local bike club and one of the members come out to meet us on the city outskirts and show us where the local mechanic is.

They take one look at Dizzy listen to all the details of his death and shake their heads. Then grin and say no problem stupid English woman (well they’re speaking Russian so I’m guessing here) we’ll do our best and take care of your bike. They say they will open Dizzy up and give a proper diagnosis then but at the moment from the description think it’s a cracked cylinder but know that I need to travel another10000km or more over the next 4 months and decide to put their heart and soul into getting me back on the road.

In the mean time Ihlena has contacted another biker who we will be staying with. In the translation I thought she meant a pastor (church man) but soon found out she actually meant a Russian Orthodox church priest black beard and all. Father Mark arrives wearing a black leather jacket and riding a Harley. He unfortunately he does not speak English but is with his closest friend Vadim who speaks very good English and is a real character. Vadim is an actor in the traditional Russian theatre and we just get along like a house on fire. He explains to me that Father Mark got special permission to have his bike and do bike pilgrimages around the city of Irkutsk so they have this whole Russian Orthodox bike club as well as a normal bike club. They showed me photos of one of the pilgrimages and it’s amazing seeing this Russian priest in his church gear riding a bike with a passenger carrying a large gold cross…surreal

No of course we don’t drink alcohol here this is a church, we only drink yoghurt 🙂

Father Mark is great and said (translating through Vadim) I am very welcome to stay at the church annex for as long as I need and make myself at home. The ladies who are in and out of the church annex some working there make me feel very welcome and keep feeding me 🙂

Ihlena and Joan sadly left today to continue their journey but we will keep in contact and I genuinely hope to see them again one day, my Russian angels.

I am very worried about Dizzy being fixed and at the moment feel like a grounded bird sounds crazy and silly but seriously I feel like a bird with its wings cut off.

Ihlena, Joan (John) and Father Mark

Joans cousins live on lake Baikal in a very small village and in a very traditional Russian house. I fall in love with them instantly they are fantastic. We arrive with no prior warning as Joan does not have their telephone number, at 10:30pm

Kolya and Valaria are overjoyed to see him and welcome us in with open arms, even though it is obvious they were just heading to bed PJs and all, Russian hospitality at its best. Within half an hour Valeria has potatoes peeled and on the boil, salad made and chicken out the fridge. We sit down to a very normal everyday meal…. Sorry Ihlena did you just say everyday Russian meal? This was a feast and the Russians take their meals seriously eating slowly eating a lot and enjoying themselves and their company. Kolya and Valaria grow their own food, have a cow and many chickens, pigs and dogs on their small holding. So everything we ate came out of their own garden.

Then the vodka came out with the question, Laura (what all Russians call me, I kind a like and may just change my name) would you have  a little bit of alcohol tonight, beer, wine, vodka? Damn I should have said no sorry I don’t drink. But instead said sorry I don’t drink beer or wine but will have one very small half vodka shot. Hmmmmm Russians do not do small shots…ok I think I can survive a real Russian vodka shot. When the second one is almost poured I quickly protest niet vodka niet vodka spasiba (Thank you) oh no Laura this is Russian tardyon you must drink 3 vodkas you cannot only have one. Well ok I guess I can survive 3…8 shots later and I am on my ear everyone was for a special reason one shot before you go and have a Russian Sauna, one shot after the Sauna, one shot before bed …. Mid way through the evening Joan brings out an accordion and then the singing starts but it was great, obviously I could not join in as it was all Russian but just great entertainment, what an experience.

…Oh no we’ve decided not to go to bed yet so another shot to celebrate women oh Laura you must drink that one since you are a woman, ah the bottle is almost empty ok one last shot before bed an dot finish the bottle. OMG I think the last time I drank that much was when I was a student, and I must quickly explain that although I was a rather naughty student I stopped drinking years ago and now drink very very little in fact I have become quite  a lightweight drinker, and the first vodka went straight to my head so image what the 8th did… FORTUNALTYE since I was in someone’s house as a guest I managed to behave but had a great time and slept like the dead. Which I might add was 4 am

So a quick word on the house and the Russian sauna. These old houses don’t have toilets or bathrooms but out houses and saunas. The sauna is not as hot as those we know about and in the Sauna are two large barrels one of very hot water and the other cold water and you are given a huge ladle and you go ahead and wash in the sauna and they are great….oh yes I was allowed the privilege of being able to sauna alone 🙂

The next day Kolya showed us his barrel, he has made a HUGE barrel and is trying to get permission to sail it on lake Baikal from top to bottom 600km. He is just a crazy and fantastic Russian.

It’s fun riding with another bike again and we stop at lake Baikal for a swim and park the bikes right on the pebble stone beach  (DAMN it’s freezing so I wussed out and just got my feet wet)

Hope back on the bikes and about 15km later Dizzy just stops. Game over we push him we do everything and he is completely dead. Joan has a good look and says this is not good it looks like there is anti-freeze in the cylinder (I am not sure about this as it’s kind of mimed Russian and Ihrena trying to translate)  So I am now royally stuck. Joan pulls out a rope and says ok he’ll tow the bike to the next town and we’ll try finding a trucker to take us to Irkutsk. Well there isn’t a trucker who is willing to do this so decide to carry on and tow the bike all 146km to Joans cousins’ place where we will stay the night.

Now I have to say being towed in a car for 146km would be no fun but try it on a bike. JEEEZ exhausting you need to concentrate so hard and keep the rope taut but not drag behind the other bike so need to be very careful on the breaks. Uphill’s are bad on the first bike but downhill’s are  a nightmare for me. And let’s not even mention corners or hair pin bends (I came off on one as the bike swung around on the rope and I lost control) Since we were travelling along lake Baikal we are talking about very windy roads and some pretty steep hills and descents, my nerves were shot. I really hope I never to have to be towed on a bike again (famous last words more posts to on this come later)

Also my bike although light at 146km has me 60km plus my travelling crap 45kg. The GSX has 2 people on it and a month’s worth of luggage. This was tough and every km I just prayed that the GSX would hold out.  We finally rock up at Joans cousins place and WOW what a night 🙂

Dizzy and I head off and I feel great again, I just love riding this and am once again happy and content but beginning to feel like I am in Groundhog Day and cannot get of Russia as the Km crawl slowly by.

I do about 650 or so km and start to get really tired and see a sign for Ulan Ude. We stopped there before on the way to the BAM road so I decide I’ll do the same and try persuading the hotel we were in to take me in.  3 km along the turnoff to Ulan Ude and I hear the most unbelievable bad noise. This grinding scrapping screech. YIKES I immediately stop get off my bike and have a look at it . I cannot see anything falling off so think ok let’s try and slowly and try assess where this noise it. I immediately hear it again and know it’s the back axel and now the wheel is starting to feel strange too. I have a look and can see bits of steel poking out and the rubber seal totally disintegrated. DAMN well I think at least I am close to town so can try grab a lift and find a mechanic.

Just then a Russian couple pull up on a bike, Joan (John) and Ihlena (who speaks some English) and are on their way back after travelling across Russia to Vladivostok for a bike festival. Just then a local biker pulls up and Joan asks him to show us the way to the mechanic. This guy does so but says the mechanic and most of the bikers are away for the weekend at another festival. Joan is a mechanic and offers to see what we can do once we get to where the mechanic workshop is. Surreal.. It’s an old abandoned building that the local bike club have taken over and turned into a workshop but sadly that is locked. Anyway we camp outside and Joan takes the wheel apart. It is so depressing there we sat with pliers pulling bits of steel out of the axel tube from the shredded whatever where the ball bearings sit and there is one ball bearing left. Joan takes the tube to some worksite on the road and gets them to rebore the middle. The next day he goes into town and finds a new part with bearings and voila my wheel is back in shape. DAMN how lucky am I. He also gets some stuff to put in the radiator to plug the hole. They are an awesome couple and we had a great evening so decide to travel together for 2 days as we are going in the right direction. We pack up and head off in great spirits.

So much has happened since my last blog I do not even know where to start so I will go back to the hotel that reluctantly let me stay. Since I was so panicked about my visa situation and the hotel not wanting me to stay I could hardly sleep that night. I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom slipped flat on my backside and hit my head on the wall HARD. I saw starts but did not pass out or throw up. I sat there for a minute and then put my hand to the back of my head and it was wet. FRACK I’ve split my head open I turn the light on grab a towel and there is seems to be a whole hell of a lot of blood pouring out the back of my head. My heart just stops, this hotel already don’t want me there and I do not want to draw attention to myself, what to do….I wet the towel and hold it to my head and it seems like ages but the bleeding eventually stopped. I decide I am not concussed and need to “man up” and reassess the situation. SO I go to sleep and the world seems brighter in the morning. I have a huge lump on the back of my head and can feel a small cut and scab where it slit but am now absolute sure it will be fine…wussy girl. Time to leave the hotel and head back out on Dizzy. I am in Chita and am going to try get as close to Irkutsk as possible so want to cover about 750km today.

This leads (I have no idea how but it does) to my eating habits while on the road. My last 3 dinners have consisted of 1) a tin of sardines and a packet of strawberry biscuits 2) a cup of jasmine tea and an apple 3) a bag of almonds and a chocolate. I have no idea how this happened but I just don’t seem to get to a town where I can get food and am usually shatter so just crawl into the guest house and hide in my room. I’ve managed to have the odd omelette or hamburger patty with mash potato for lunch at the dinners, however just occasionally. It seems that while riding on my own eating has not been a priority and it just doesn’t happen as I am just not conscientious enough. However now that the cash flow is an issue I am worried about feeding myself. I have no idea how I get myself into this mess as I never seem to carry enough cash, or when I do it’s in dollars. Ah well let’s see what tomorrow holds, time for bed…

So up early and I hit the cash machine, VOILA MONEY WOOHOO you cannot even image what a relief this is so it wasn’t my card but the ATMs for the last 500kms have been off line, not that there are many of them in Siberia. Now the problem is the machine spits out a single 5000 rouble note. In Russia the shops, including the hardware shop that runs the guesthouse, only open at 10am. The night watchman opened the gate to let me take my bike out and I did not see another soul and he mimed I need to wait until the hardware shop opens if I want to see the lady owner. Hmmm it’s now 7:45 I cannot get change for the 5000 note and I cannot wait until 10am I need to leave I have 758km to ride if I want to get to Chita. SO guilt ridden and doing a runner I hop on the Dizzy and head out of this one goat town.

I actually met the goat she kept me company while I packed up my bike and then ate all my almonds. She then stood on her hind legs putting her front legs on my stomach looked me in the eye and said “are you sure those are all your almonds lady” OK I haven’t quite lost it she didn’t talk but I can tell you that was the exact expression on her face. I polity told her I had no almonds and before she got angry rode away.

On the road I bumped into a German couple doing a 2 month trip from Germany to Vladivostok. It’s incredible how much seeing another biker on an adventure lifts ones spirits. 758km I arrive in Chita and decide I need a nice hotel for the night, what a mistake. After they checked me in and took my CC payment and sent me to my room they called me back to discuss my passport. All hotels photocopy your Russian visa and I really had a hard time trying to persuade them that yes although my visa had expired it was not my fault as my bike broke down. I literally had to beg almost on my knees. The lady was quite nice (maybe she wasn’t Russian) and EVENTUALLY said OK as long as I am out by 8am PHEW

I am now panicked that I must avoid big cities and hotels until I get to the border. So either it’s camping or flea bitten beds in one goat towns… well I made my bed I guess I have to sleep in it now

One goat town

beautiful Siberia

one goat

There are a few things that kept me interested and wake on the M59 besides truck drivers, the scenery and bumping into the reindeer herders, the chipmunks. These little guys run across the road often stopping half way, turn around and run back. I love seeing them as they are quite cute and more of them seem to have come out after the rain. I could however not really figure out what they were up to i.e. why did the chipmunk cross the road? Soon I began to figure it out… chipmunk Russian roulette that is the only explanation, I’m not joking what else could it be. They could be suicidal chipmunks but there are too many for that and I find it hard to believe that life in beautiful Siberia would lead so many chipmunks to try top themselves. I think that if I looked hard enough in the bushes every time I missed one of the little buggers running across the road I’d see a whole bunch of them with mini chipmunk roubles betting on the outcome. Well I’m glad to say I never squished one 🙂

The one thing I am really finding is that Russia is a whole lot more expensive than expected. The minute you walk into a guest house the price triples. Now I know that this happens everywhere, but although a small increase in price for tourists is expected in Russia it states to take on the ridiculous. After leaving Yakutsk with 6000 roubles (about 150 USD)   I thought I’d be fine until the next big town, I could however not find a working ATM in Tynda so not too worried as I also had dollar son me I head off again to Chita roughly just over 1000km away. The first part of the road about 250km is the usual M56 bad dirt road with friendly people who assure m I am on the right road (the GPS isn’t working and the map got soaked so is almost illegible and of course the FEW road signs are in Russian, so navigating is not easy, hence the reason ). Well eventually the M56 turns into the M58 and it’s a beautiful smooth (yup no potholes this is like the Ritz of roads) tarmac highway. I am in heaven and just let the Dizzy go and WOW the sun starts shining this is going to be a glorious day.

Well the interesting thing about this road is that the odd (very few) dinners have very few people in them and the owners are not friendly and the road does not go through any towns you must turn off about 2 to 3 km to get to a town and the people are not very friendly either. I found this so strange. I also could not find a working ATM I am convinced this is not my card as I have 3 and none of them are working and I know I have money in them. I fill up use my second last 500roubles to do so and my lat 500rooubles to get a room in yet another flea bitten place. I have managed to persuade the not so nice of an owner that I will get to the ATM tomorrow and get her the rest of her money as she won’t take dollars. What is interesting is that the room was originally 500roubles, but once I actually pulled out the money the price went to 700 but I’m desperate, and 200 short.

I know the tiny bank won’t exchange dollars or give me money out of my visa as I already tried but fortunately they closed just as I was walking out so the guest house owner has no clue I was there already. I just hope I can get money out tomorrow or I am seriously up shits creek. The owner is the least of my problem what worries me is getting gas to get me to a big enough town with a decent bank.

chipmunk (pic stolen off the net)

As I sit here (on my bed bug infested bed in a dive of a guesthouse) writing this post the stench from my bike boots is almost unbearable (you’d think I’d be used to it by now) I’ve put them in the window but it’s not helping. I’ve also noted that my feet are almost rotting (ok this is an exaggeration but they are NOT in a good state) DAMN I need to get out of this wet country and back to warm and dry Kazakhstan. Also because the stress of being caught by the police is starting to get to me.

Every time I see a cop or a guest house owner asks for my passport I panic as my visa ran out about 3 weeks ago. Well the thing is it was a choice of riding quickly from Mongolia through Russia (on my transit visa) to Kazakhstan or doing the BAM….erm not a choice the BAM was calling like a drug and like an addict I totally ignored my better judgment and the law and stayed in Russia.

So now I am basically just trying to get out of Russia as quickly as possible but that is easier said than done. The M56 is long and tedious and bad and I hate it more than one could possibly hate a road. I am also getting used to riding with heavy panniers again and alone. Every time I look ahead or in the mirrors I expect to see the other bikes as then get a really sad feeling when they are not there. Ah well I wanted to do this on my own ‘so buck girl and get on with it’

The good thing about riding alone is that it’s just you and your bike and you ride according to your own timetable. The other good thing is that you get to meet the locals and experience more. Each time I stopped on the side of the road at least one truck driver would either stop or ask if I was ok, or slow down put a hand out in an ”are you alright” gesture. I’d give them the thumbs up they’d give me one back and voila you are not really alone.

Over my 2.5 day ride from Yakutsk to Tynda I kept bumping into the same truck driver, Serge (spl?) He was really friendly and at one point gave a lift to an English speaking Russian woman. We all happened to stop at the same diner for a snack and had a few minute chat. The woman explained that her car had died and Serge was giving her a lift back to her town about 3 towns before his trucking trip ended. Serge did not speak a word of English but asked me to meet him for coffee later on the road. I said thanks but no thanks, time to move on deadline what not etc… well after 10 min of this miming act with him giving me explicit instructions of which dinner to meet at I just said No problem mate whatever you say da da (yes yes)

Now I must say (before you all panic) these diners are on the road and full of people and Serge was just genuinely concerned for my safety riding alone on the road (or so the English speaking Russian woman explained) It was all very nice but I seriously had no clue where he wanted to meet me and really didn’t have time or much interest in having another miming conversation (they get SERIOUSLY tiring after awhile and we’ve all had many of them while on the trip) so needless to say I stood poor Serge up and high tailed it to Tynda not stopping in the hope that he would not catch up with me again. It was actually a hell of a last day I did 450km in 12 hours about 10 actually riding. It rained and I mean torrential downpour with almost –ve visibility. I was cold and wet and just desperate to get off the road but had to make it to Tynda and guess I was doing no more than 40km an hour max uugghhh what a day I hope I don’t have any more of them

The M56 yes it’s a highway

Since I had gotten so confused about my days it seems like my planned day to get things for the bike and go to the post office was a Sunday. This meant I had to do these things on Monday before I left. So quickly after the post office I went to the area where all the mechanic and trucker shops were to try find a spanner (I had lost my wheel spanner, a damn important tool) the bolts to fit my pannier (they had vibrated off on the BAM) A couple of shop owners just said no, others very carefully measured the bolt and then said no. I was panicking a bit and went to the same shop where I had got some cable ties. They guy studied the bolt mimed wait a minute and went to the back for ages. I could hear him scrabbling around what sounded like a huge box of steel bits. He came back and presented me with 2 bolts and a frown indicating that they might fit but he was not sure. I took them outside and voila perfect, I had my bolt and a spare. I asked him ‘skolka’ how much and he just smiled and said nieto. He was also the guy who had just given me a bunch of cable ties a couple of days before. Yet another example of how nice and helpful the Siberian Russians are. If only he knew just how important it was too have those bolts and how grateful I was.

Needless to say all this plus changing my tire and fixing my panniers and packing my bike took me until 2:45pm DAMN and I wanted to leave at 12. I decided that I still needed to push on as the hotel I was in was expensive and I am now on a TIGHT budget. I rode down to the ferry and had to wait 45 min for it and it takes an hour so I only got to the other side at 5pm. I happened to meet another 2 friendly Russians on the ferry and they told me that there is no way I’d get to Tommot before it was dark and suggested a town I could stay in as they ‘thought’ it had a hotel.

So off I set on the M56. Oh yes on the map the M56 is a highway well we had quite a laugh at that because this has got to be one of the worst dirt road ’highways’ ever mapped. Anyway I get to the town Natasha suggested and WOW talk about a one horse dive, but I am getting used to these little ugly towns with no redeeming features except the people. I stop at the shop and ask for a guesthouse and get told there isn’t one. It’s now 7:30 and ultimate deadline (I aim to stop at 5:30 when on my own) for stopping so panic that I will have to continue till quite late to get away from the towns and to a secluded campsite.

little flat offered to me by a Russina local so nice

Zurich to Yakutsk 17000kms in 64 days

One of the problems with being on the road is you totally lose track of time and days. So besides waking my friend Paul up at 4am when calling him because I lost track of the time zones. I have now had a big argument with the hotel because they called me to say I was supposed to leave today and I said no that’s tomorrow I’ve already paid. Anyway we sat down and worked out the dates OUCH how embarrassing but I’ve just lost a day somewhere. Oh dear but that’s life on the road so I paid for another night and will head off early tomorrow and get back on the road 🙂

Yakutsk has been good to me a nice rest and some very friendly helpful people who welded the pannier on my bike and gave me cable ties for nothing THANKS