Athens and Back - the Trip Report

kevm · May 31, 2022

Day 4. Patras to Tolo 120 miles.

Phew it's hot here!! Up to 36 deg at one point but a balmy 29 or so now.

Some proper, non-motorway riding at last. I did about half today's miles on the motorway and the rest on a randomly selected route over the hills. It was quite a contrast, some very narrow windy stuff and some nice A roads. It was hard work and I was ready for a drink.

I'm not sure I'll be doing any bike related stuff for the next few days so I probably won't post much. Nobody wants to see my family holiday snaps ...

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ymfb · Jun 2, 2022

Great report, thanks for taking the time

kevm · Jun 2, 2022

I said I wouldn't post my holiday snaps but here are a couple of where I am

The ancient city of Mycenae, the citadel at Nafplio and the beach at Tolo. It's a very nice, chilled area and still quiet because the local school holidays haven't started yet.

Tomorrow I'll be riding again briefly, from here to Athens which is a couple of hours or so. I've changed over to my hot weather gear (mesh jacket and gloves, trainer style boots and flip up helmet). It's still going to be warm at about 33 deg but I'm not complaining.

See you in Athens!

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Deleted account 230523001 · Jun 2, 2022

They could use a few more trees.

kevm · Jun 4, 2022

Day 7. Tolo to Melissia (Athens) 120 miles.

A short ride, with some nice A roads and some very hot, windy motorways. We stopped at Ancient Epidavros, which is a 3rd century BC city with an impressive theatre, and then for lunch at the eponymous modern seaside town.

The bike is now parked up again for a week or more until the next leg of the trip. Speaking of which, it’s been great, no issues at all and no oil used so far. That hasn’t been the case with other bikes I’ve been on tour with.

As I said it’s very hot, with temps reaching 36 deg. Even the mesh jacket is too much but I won’t ride without m/c gear, unlike most of the locals (even helmets seem optional outside Athens). The only others I’ve seen geared up properly were other tourists, from Spain and the Netherlands. Mostly on GSs btw.

I’ll check in again before I leave Athens; in the meantime here are a few pics.

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kevm · Jun 11, 2022

Time to get on the road again. It’s been 8 or 9 days in Athens doing family stuff, which has been great but it’s time to move on.

Athens has quite a lot of motorcycles, mostly small but some bigger stuff. Most popular seem to be adv bikes - older Africa twins, Vstroms, etc. and quite a few GSs too. Not so many sports bikes but I did see one yesterday shod with slicks. About 30% of riders seem to wear helmets in the city and very few wear any bike gear.

As I said before my plans are to spend 8-10 days getting back, taking in some of Bulgaria and Romania. I’m not sure after that; I don’t need to decide now. My first day back on the road will be a long, fast one. I’m planning on getting out of Greece; not because it isn’t a wonderful place - it is - but because my family situation means I’ll be spending more time here with Mrs M and we’ll have plenty of time to explore Greece together. My first stop will be just over the border in Bulgaria at a place called Melnik. Quite a random choice but it looks quite interesting. So it’ll be Greek toll motorways most of the way; they are very good and not too expensive. I’ll slow down a bit after tomorrow and take in more sights/twistier roads. BTW I know petrol has gone up in the UK but it’s about 2.40 Euro/litre in Greece. 112 Euro to fill up a Ford Fiesta the other day!!

My bike hasn’t moved from its space in the yard of my hosts. I took the vario panniers and top box off to save space; they’re now back on and I’m ready to leave at about 9am tomorrow. I reckon 8 hours including stops should get me to where I’m going. It’s actually rained a lot today in Athens but tomorrow looks OK, with a small chance of a shower in northern Greece. I’ll keep the waterproof trousers handy just in case.

See you in Bulgaria !!

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tuftywhite · Jun 11, 2022

Have a great journey home.

Hairnet600 · Jun 11, 2022

bassa

i mean im not jealous or anything

bucket list to do greece overland (always wanted to visit evzones in athens)

did plan fly ljubliana rent a bike then do the down the coast then ferry across but thats been on hold for 5-6 years

enjoy the trip back

kevm · Jun 12, 2022

You mean these guys? We saw the whole performance, very impressive if a little bizarre.

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kevm · Jun 12, 2022

Ready to go! This is where it's been for the past week or so.

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kevm · Jun 12, 2022

Leaving Athens and a service station Greek style.

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kevm · Jun 12, 2022

Day 8. Melissia (Athens) to Melnik (Bulgaria) 396 miles

A nice ride, mostly motorways but quite scenic ones. Lots of hills, tunnels and sea views. The weather was good; it started off about 24 deg and got up to 31 before cooling a bit as I got nearer to today's destination. There were a few spots of rain but barely noticeable and no wet roads. The roads were very, very quiet. Unlike the UK, Greece seems to stop on a Sunday and shops are all closed.

The Bulgarian border was more of a border than I thought; everyone was getting their passports checked and I was asked to park up while mine was taken away and stamped. All very friendly though. My stop for the night is only 40 minutes into Bulgaria but it’s obviously a different country. As well as the scenery, which had become a lot greener, it’s a lot less developed and I saw my first dog sleeping in the middle of the road soon after I left the dual carriageway.

Melnik is a quaint little place in Bulgaria’s wine region. There are a few hotels, restaurants and gift shops, a couple of small museums, a monastery and a natural feature called sandstone pyramids to see. I’ll have a look after breakfast tomorrow morning. I’m in no rush to leave; I’m planning on a short-ish day tomorrow. I haven’t quite decided where to yet but it’ll be in a generally northern direction and won’t involve motorways.

The hotel is nice; it’s an old building with modern fittings. It’s at the far end of town, well past the end of the tarred road so I’ve already done my first off-roading of the trip! It looks like there are plenty of dirt roads here for those that way inclined. You’ll see from the photos my GS has company; it’s an older 1150 GS with Swiss plates. I haven’t met the owner yet but maybe will at breakfast.

Anyway, here are some pics. BTW the food is Kavarna, which seems to be a cross between a pork and veg stew and a omelette. Very nice.

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Hairnet600 · Jun 12, 2022

kevm said:
You mean these guys? We saw the whole performance, very impressive if a little bizarre. View attachment 537100

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yessir - blame michael palin

kevm · Jun 13, 2022

Window view and photo from pre breakfast walk.

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kevm · Jun 13, 2022

Day 9 Melnik to Plovdiv 150 miles.

A more leisurely day today. I left about 10 after a nice breakfast. I had a chat to the Swiss 1150 rider; he was on an extended trip through what seemed like most of Europe on his way to Greece. He was aghast that I had come from Athens the day before; he’s a 200km per day/no motorways sort of tourer.

Anyway, the ride to Plovdiv was really good; every sort of nice road you could wish for and mostly no traffic. I did have a couple of heavy showers; I ignored the first one and ended the second by stopping and putting on my waterproofs! 10 minutes of rain and that was it so no complaints.

I had booked a hotel in Plovdiv, in the old town, which was probably a mistake. “Old” actually means “really narrow, steep, one-way streets paved with huge, uneven cobblestones”. And, it was closed off by a barrier that I had to persuade a non English speaking guard to open. The hotel does have a garage and after a sweaty 20 minutes (it was 30 degrees) I was in.

Plovdiv is a bit of a gem. It has a Roman stadium (it’s sort of incorporated into a modern square, which is better than it sounds) and a Roman theatre, as well as a 900 year old mosque, lots of other old buildings of various ages and a nice cafe culture. It’s actually Bulgaria’s second city, population 350,000 or so. Well worth a visit if you’re in the area. I’ll have another look round tomorrow morning before I leave.

As before, I’m not sure where tomorrow will find me. I’ll have a look later and decide.

Some pictures. I didn't take many on the way; I was too busy enjoying the riding. The one of the bike in front of the obligatory grim soviet-era blocks (these were some of the nicer ones) was when I stopped to remove a layer as after the mountains it warmed up a lot. I thought my bedside light switch tonight was an interesting bit of wiring.

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Deleted account 230523001 · Jun 13, 2022

Nice one...Brilliant pics.

Dave56 · Jun 13, 2022

Really enjoying this, thanks for taking the time and posting , it’s appreciated.
Must be honest I’ve always had a yearning to do a big trip to Turkey, a favourite holiday destination, before age becomes a stumbling block and this trip has rekindled that desire.

kevm · Jun 13, 2022

Dave56 said:
Really enjoying this, thanks for taking the time and posting , it’s appreciated.
Must be honest I’ve always had a yearning to do a big trip to Turkey, a favourite holiday destination, before age becomes a stumbling block and this trip has rekindled that desire.

You should go for it. If I can, so can you ...

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kevm · Jun 14, 2022

Morning view and yesterday's route.

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Blackblade-rry · Jun 14, 2022

Dave56 said:
Really enjoying this, thanks for taking the time and posting , it’s appreciated.
Must be honest I’ve always had a yearning to do a big trip to Turkey, a favourite holiday destination, before age becomes a stumbling block and this trip has rekindled that desire.

Me too.
A few years back I had a number of work trips to Greece, based in Thessaloniki, Athens, and Patras. I always had a hankering to ride there, but there was always an excuse that stopped me. Hopefully more available time coming soon, so no more excuses.
Thanks for the write up Kevm.

Athens and Back - the Trip Report

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getting away with it so far!

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