Mud bashing

Another day down, we were well rested after the 18 hour boat cruise down to Greece and disembarking saw us face first into rain, rain and a wee bit more rain, oh and more tunnels! The main highway out of Inguminesta (something like that) literraly went straight upward, up and up through the hills until about 3 and a half thousand feet amongst the snow.

Once we popped over the top of the mountains the weather cleared up and we took our roof off to enjoy the scenery a bit better, especially as we knew our route would take us to Kalambaca (something like that) to the giant rock formations with monasteries perched on the top, I think they were also featured in a James Bond movie once. And they were spectacular!

A bit more of a transit and we were leaving the valley floor and on to the top of the next set of ranges to do some time trails up in the snow somewhere. The slog from 500 feet to 3000 feet was done without getting out of second gear the entire way, round and round the hairpins that seemed like they went on forever. Every now and then going through a little town that looked like it was stuck in the 1800’s and at times was less than one lane wide and you had to breath in to fit between two opposite building corners. The timed sections were once again so much fun!

All day me and dad have been laughing, because every now and then we would be overtaken by a 240z or a peugot 504 (Alex and Nigel respectivel) and then get overtaken by them again and we say “wtf, they must have taken the wrong turn and got lost AGAIN!” My god it’s funny when it happens 4 or 5 times for the day!

You can really see how stuffed the Greek economy is, everywhere there is half finished construction zones, roadworks that looks like the workers have literally walked away at the end of the day and never come back, a bridge over a valley but with no road at either end of it.

Tomorrow we rally on some smooth graded gravel roads and make our way to the next port to get the longest ferry ride down to Egypt (I don’t handle boats at the best of time so i hope this 40hour crossing the Mediterranean sea will be hassel free)

James

Ahoy hoy Cap’n

I’ll get more photo’s up when I can. I’m typing this out on our second ferry pulling out from Ancona on our way over to Greece, thats 2 from 2 ferries! 2 of the cars have already retired, i think maybe another one didn’t make this ferry as well, from going too hard too early and having accidents.

 

This mornings time trails were clmbing up and down some skinny muddy dirt tracks for 10k’s or so. So much fun! Our strategy is to make it to cape town, and to do every time trail as practical and that wont be detrimental to our car’s longevity. But it was so much fun! Ripping around the place –rally style in a 1923 car. AND we didn’t even come last, we did it in our allotted time plus 6 minutes and there were 2 other cars behind us. I was so chuffed!

 

I think we would have driven a cumulative total of like 80 kilometers of tunnels in the last few days. The Europeans are hectic crazy in love with tunnelling, why go around a mountain when you can go through it!! We did one giant 14km tunnel across the French/Italian border and at least 20 or 30 1-2 km smaller ones. Along the Italian coast we would be on a bridge 400ft above the valley floor with towns and suburbs in it, then straight into a tunnel 400ft below the peak, and the other side another tunnel again, and for 30 k’s that is all it was, tunnel -> bridge -> tunnel -> bridge -> tunnel.  Somehow i don’t think the African countries are going to have an abundance of tunnels, more of a “well a road here will do.”

No time or resources to wash clothes yet, still on my first sock of the rally, its like putting on a smell gumboot hahaha.

 

James

Tunnels and tunnels

Beaune to Florance, 840km’s with a wolrd cup (timed to the second) section in the dark in the foothills of the Italian Alps. We set off from france yesterday morning at 9am and just highway slogged our way to itali, some beautiful massive mountains though. And then crossing under the alps through a 14km tunnel into some fairly flat and relatively un interesting plains of north Itali. I was shocked at just how industrial itali was, for some reason in my mind i had expected grape farms and olive orchids stretching to the horizon with villas and mansions plotted around the place, well i was wrong…

 

Dad worked out that the time trails last night were the same roads that he did in Peking to Paris last year but in reverse and knew that if we did them, we would already get maximum lateness penalty and then get maximum lateness for the final time control for the night at the hotel, so instead we bypassed the time trails and copped the penalty so we didn’t end up getting compounding penalties and be worse off for hours and hours more driving. And by the time we get to cape town, no one is going to remember that we skipped out that one section back in Italy. Our goal is to make it for the long haul!!!

 

Penny is still trooping along great!

Je ne parle pas tres bien francais.

 

Last nights sleep was much needed. after starting form london the night before and driving the best part of 24 hours and only a lucky few having an hour’s interupted sleep on the dover-callais ferry, everyone was glad to finally finish the 500km slog to Beaune. Dinner couldnt have been eaten much faster from 8pm and i was fast asleep by 9. Yesterday’s world cup section through some muddy/gravel farm roads were sooooooo much fun. Our skinny tyres are remarkably suited for slippery mud on these little tracks, they cut through and sit on the hard stuff.

 

The long motorway slog was beautiful driving through Champagne valley with long undulating rolling hills on the 4 or 6lane highway. Pity we cant do more driving through france, off to Italy today and driving through a 15 kilometre long tunnel!!!!

 

Must be off.

 

James 🙂