Category: PENNY TO HELSINKI

For the drive from Volgograd to Voronezh we had the choice of a 580k route or a 780k route. We had spoke to a young Russian that had told us the short way was very rough so 4 out of the five cars decided to take the longer route on the better road. We arrived at the hotel after Reg and Mitchell who took the short route bur at the time of writing I have not spoken to them to know who’s decision was best.

The drive we elected was west to near the Ukrainian border them north up the main motorway that goes on to Moscow.

Yesterday drive was not quite as flat as it has been as we drove through squillions of hectares of broad acres faming land with the last of the harvests taking place and planting already started for crops the will sit dormant in the ground and under the snow for the winter.

A few blogs ago I mentioned that autumn had started, well it in full colour in this area with the changes noticeable as we drove north.

For about 3 hours we drove north approximately 50 k away from the eastern Ukraine border. During this drive we only say mild military movements. We did however see as we left Volgograd in the morning about 40 tank being loaded on a train to go somewhere.(no photos).

Voronezh was reached at 5.30 after 10.5 hour of driving. On arrival Frank Maurie and I went for a walk to get a coat for Frank as the temperatures are now in the range of 1C overnight get up to the very low teens mid-afternoon. Maurie and I have to get all our gear on first thing in the morning and wear it all day.  We both have an extra layer or 2 should the mercury drop any more.

The ooh aah days of the big hills are a long way behind us now. We haven’t seen a mountain range since our first day in Uzbekistan 10 days ago and we haven’t seen a thing you could call a hill for 5 days.

Before we pulled out of Astrakhan we went to the workshop were Peters car was to get a shock absorber mount fixed to check that it was going to happen today. The workshop mechanic assured us, it would be fixed for 5 this afternoon. We received word on our arrival at the hotel in Volgograd that Peter and Sue where just getting on the road so should arrive here at about midnight.

First things to report is a bit more about Astrakhan, when we drove in yesterday afternoon it was a town with the feel and look that made us think I’d like to stay an extra day and look around. Alas we where to busy fixing to even look around in the afternoon so maybe next time if there is one.

Today we slowly climbed up hill till about hallway through the 430k journey, we got above sea level and that is where the farming started again. Prior to that it was all just grazing country and as flat as a pancake for as far as you could see.

We stoped fro morning tea at a roadside cafe and meet a nice you man and his uncle who gave us some road tips for tomorrows route. Just after that we stoped at the roadside dried fish stall for a photo and he was there and gave us a dried fish to try. Later in the day we ate some of it, not bad taste but hard work getting the flesh from the tough skin and around the bones. We probably have not been hungry enough to acquire a likening for such food.

The drive into Volgograd, the old Stalingrad is a city spread out along the Volga river for kilometres and was not one saying stay longer, maybe because we entered through a very large industrial area on the south. Sadly we only have tonight so we will never know what we may have missed.

Sorting photos for the blog is a different process these days with only 50 photos to sort instead of 3 or 400 in the mountains. I will always endeavour to find interesting photos to include.

This trip is drawing to a close quickly with day 48 completed and only 12 days till Helsinki. Then all well Penny and I will drive to the UK so I can ship her home with parts and pieces I have stored with Daniel at Ripon Yorkshire.

Since just soon after we crossed into Kazakhstan we have been about 20 metres below sea level as we have skirted around the northern end of the Caspian Sea. Also it has been the flattest we have seen. For so long with out a hill.

We departed Atyrau early this morning so as not to get caught in the traffic chaos of the Putin visit. We got out of town in tine but 2 car wa bit later then us had a police escort out of town through the road block just to get rid of them from town.

The road in to Atyrau had spoilt us and left us with the belief that it would be smooth sailing from here on in. Our dreams were shattered just out of town when the road turned too a badly rutted pavement for the entire 300k to the Russian Border.

Due to the rain yesterday the drive was even more hazards with all the camels and wild horses drinking out of the puddles on the roadside.

Our drive was very close to a large disaster when a truck pulled out just in front of us, I looked to overtake but due to an oncoming car that wasn’t an option. So it was on the brakes big time, which lead to us siding sideways towards the back of the truck faster then it was driving away.  I stoped braking and took the last option which was straight of the side of the road down the 1 metre drop into the table drain, we landed in the bottom of table drain going well so back on the power to get through the slop from the rain to reach a track back up on to the road 50 metres further on. After sitting they a bit to catch our breath and thank whomever you do, we climbed back on the road to continue on with a resolve that this afternoon we would fit the new back tyres that had no tread left on after 12000k of tough roads.

Everything around the edge of the Caspian seems to be Oil and Gas due to it being reportedly the largest oil and gas discovery in the last 10 years.

The road didn’t improve on the way to the border. However the departure from Kazakhstan and entry into Russia was the quickest and least painful of any border, which helped make up for the bad road. The whole process was finished in just over an hour including push-starting Penny at the Kazak Border.

The run to Astrakhan in Russia for the night took us over a floating bridge across one of the many rivers in the Volga River Delta.

Upon arrival at the hotel one of the onlookers pointed out to me that we had a broken main leaf on the front. So the repair list for Penny was now a broken spring leaf to replace, fix a flat, fit 2 new rear tyres, put a new bolt in the starter and greasing because of the rough roads in the last three days. I enlisted the help of Mitchell who had the spring fixed while Garry helped me with the tyres and Maurie did the Starter. All in all we had the jobs finished and tidied up for 6.00pm ready to shower and find tea.

Some may even say a cold day, as the maximum for the day has been 12C. We awoke to it raining on our rest day so I decided to put off the few small jobs I had to do on Penny till later in the day hoping it would fine up.

I spent my morning catching up on some emails with the fastest Internet since Bangkok I think. At lunch a few of us ventured out to change some money ready for tomorrows entry into Russia and find the Irish bar for lunch with the dream that it would be a great venue like the one in Dushanbe a week or so back. After finding the Irish pub the beer drinkers were very disappointed with a Irish Pub and NO Guinness, just local brews. I was happy with the water being served. We all had lunch which was average and filled a hole.

After the failed lunch the rain had eased of a lot so we walked of towards home with some stopping at other establishments to try the local ales. My walk home took me through the Main Square, which had Yurts set up, and people in their national dress.

The weather eventually cleared enough for me to check the fluids in Penny, but not enough for me to get motivated to fix the flat from the big border drive day. I guess if we get a flat tomorrow I will have to fix it on the side of the road then.

The talk around town is the Vladimir Putin is coming to town this evening for a day of talks with the Kazakhstan President tomorrow. Our plan is to have an early breakfast and get out of town before the roads are closed and we end up trapped her for longer then we really desire.