The Trail of the Lonesome Pine...

Now I, as much as anyone,
Like a forest pine,
But days and days and days of them
Will likely dull your mind.

Days 10 - 15        Distance 350 km

Pavilosta - Riga (Latvia)

Our next stop was Ventspils, a great holiday town with lots of life, and a very bovine theme...

But after that...more endless pine...

Eventually, and for sanity's sake, we veered off the pine road and headed inland to Tulsi, a very pretty town where we camped on a lovely farm and were once again given home grown strawberries to feast on.

The closer we got to Riga (Latvia's capital) the busier it became (which wasn't hard because there had been NOTHING for days...) and we arrived on the eve of Latvia's biggest holiday - Jani - the summer solstice celebrations.
Originally a festival for pagan farmers long before the arrival of Christianity, traditions are kept very much alive. Everyone makes garlands of oak leaves and wild flowers, there is enchanting song and dance, and plenty of food and drink as nobody must sleep before dawn (we didn't even make midnight!)

But regardless of this wonderful celebration, Riga is a charming city with its art nouveau buildings and old cobbled streets, and well worth a city break.

I fear we may be heading back into endless pine territory for a few more days...wish us luck!

Strawberry Fields Forever

The ever changing Baltic weather
Makes your skin go tough like leather,
It's far more changeable, I'd say
Than anything in the UK.

Days 5-9   Distance 187 km  

Nide (Lithuania) - Pavilosta (Latvia)

Cycling across the Lithuanian half of the Curonian Spit was glorious. Cycle paths criss-crossed through endless tall pine forests right next to the beach.

We were in such a good mood when we finally reached the end of he Spit that we didn't even mind paying the extortionate amount of €1 for 2x people and 2x bikes for the ferry crossing over to Klaipeda.
Now, I'm going to give you a little holiday tip here - go to Palanga. Cheap flights, loads of bike rentals, miles of flat pine forests and beaches to explore - a super relaxing holiday could be had there.
The atmosphere was great, even with the Harley Davidson bike rally in full swing, and it was a pity we couldn't hang around a few more hours for the fish soup to be ready...

But from then on things went downhill. A small pedestrian bridge required crossing, no problem there you would think. Unless you meet hundreds of people all in a frantic rush to get nowhere in particular. Stuck in the middle, unable to move and with hoardes of "busy" holiday-makers squashing past us in both directions, the bridge started to sway. I seriously thought we might all take a dive at one point...

But we made it into Latvia - despite the relentless heat.

Next, Steve decided to get off the road and follow a cycle path that was showing on his map...uh-oh. 4km's of neck-jarring, bumpy gravel tracks that then turned into bog...

Then into sand...

Before we gave it up and headed back to the road.
But, our faith in the world was restored the next day when we were flagged down by a couple who wanted to give us their delicious home-grown strawberries. We had a nonsense conversation and a photo session, and left the best of friends.

And all was good with the world...until it started raining. After sheltering for hours and realising it wasn't going to stop, we booked a hotel in the nearest town, and tested our rain-proof gear out for the next 20 km.
Now the sun is hot but the air is cold...

Let's see what the next few days brings...