26 August 2025 (sunny and hot) 48km
Woke at 4.55am. Thought about rolling over for an hour, but we need any advantage we can get on these roads. Seamless pack up and on the road by 6.05am.
We had been warned about this next stretch of road. Skinny road, no hard shoulder with dangerous drivers and busy. Made worse with some climbing, as of course we were slow.
Croatia and Bosnia have been terrible for oncoming traffic to overtake and head straight for you. Just when you think you have a bit of breathing space with nobody coming up behind you, next thing someone's flying straight towards you on the wrong side of the road with their hoof down, trying to overtake the thoughtless person doing a mere 80kph.
Shortly after that we were able to take a secondary road, which took us off the busy roads for a lengthy reprieve, through some lovely countryside. Parts of this road reminded us of the England we love, with their stone walls and limited amounts of cars.
We were now away from the water, so no chance for swimming, but the ripe figs had made a welcome return as the ones we saw yesterday looked as though their season was done and dusted.
Met the main road again and mercifully it was a lot quieter now. We shopped for breakfast, but couldn't find a spot to eat it, so were forced to carry on.
In fact, next thing we knew we were waiting in the hot sun for fifteen minutes at the Croatian border. Out of Croatia without a smile from the Croat customs guy. All customs people seem to be similar the world over.
Then we had about a 5 minute downhill ride to the Montenegro border. Straight away we noticed all these black rubbish bags, piled up at parking bays along the road. They didn't look like they had been there long. More like someone had been cleaning up the roadside and these bags were waiting to be collected.
As we approached the Montenegro border, we came across quite a queue.
Normally we'd go straight to the front, but there were a lot of vehicles waiting, so we chimed in behind a bus. It shaded us from the hot sun but insisted on keeping the engine running so we got a faceful of exhaust fumes for the half hour we were stuck there.
Checked into another country,...Montenegro, by a marginally better border guy after a good hour’s wait all up.
The first thing we notice is how clean the country roads are. It's as though they've looked at Croatia and Bosnia and thought,
"You filthy bastards. We're going to keep our country spotless."
Not too far away was a children's playground, with a shady spot to eat. During breakfast, I saw two locals, walk from their houses, to drop litter in the bin. Very commendable.
A cycle path took us into the seaside town of Igalo. Would like to say I enjoyed being off the road, but the path did have glass on it. Into Igalo and although busy, it immediately had a more relaxed vibe.
Met a guy called Joe from Chester, here for a week with the family. He's enjoyed his stay and told us we could cycle the prom without any bother. Once again, the promenade had all the usual outlets and bars, but with a quite relaxed feel.
Went in for a swim as the heat was beginning to get to us. Beautiful.
Through Herceg Novi and out the other side, cycling past little bays or beaches. Some lovely spots.
Stopped for nectarines and peanuts under a shady tree before carrying on until a playground/workout area saw us grab an ice cream and some more shade. Ju hadn't had a good sleep so lay down for a nap while I blogged. Now off to hunt down a campsite.
So...we arrive in the seaside resort of Kumbor. The ride entailed some main road riding, which I hate to say, is not pleasant at all.
It's hard to enjoy a country when you're putting so much effort in trying to stay alive on it's roads.
I just cannot for the life of me understand why these drivers can't slow down when approaching two cyclists, even a little.
They see a gap, which most times, is far too narrow to drive safely through and they floor it.
Arrive at the Nirvana camp. No one there, so Julia asks someone in one of the apartments if she could call the people.
Five minutes later, the girl turns up. Nice girl, good English. Ju and I had picked a shady spot and had checked out of riding mode for the day. Then she hits us with Euro 40 = $80.
Hello?? This is Montenegro. This is the place that we've been looking forward to for some remnants of price control.
We are getting hammered over here and it's put a downer on the day. We were hoping we could afford to eat our tonight, but walked to the supermarket after a swim and shower. But even the supermarket was no different to Croatian food prices. So tinned tuna and tomato for dinner again. We're hoping this is just because we're still only about 15km from the border and not the norm for Montenegro.
This little guy has no worries. Cats are plentiful here and are very slim. They all appear to be quite young with lots of kittens about. People just leave food out for them in parks and outside supermarkets. There are a lot of full bowls of food too so I don't think they're skinny because they're starving. It might be because they have an active lifestyle or they don't live that long so are all quite young.
We got an idea it was a rip off when we heard a young bikepacker pull up and phone the owners and ask the price. She promptly left.
Ju working out the route for tomorrow. That blue tent at the back was the one the latecomers were forced to use and pay for.
A couple of German bikers pulled up looking for reception so I went to talk to them, told them what we'd been charged, they looked shocked, and also left.
On a good note. So far Montenegro is streets ahead in keeping their country clean and tidy.
Their drivers are very much a worry however. We will be pleased to get out of the busy Kotor Bay area just for that reason.
Went for a walk tonight to see Porto Novi Resort, just down the road. That is some resort. It's absolutely stunning.
The super yachts in the marina were gorgeous. And I think I've got to think about our money. The mooring fees alone for those things would be more than our entire trip. It was nice to see how the other half live.
Back to the tent, which was lit up like Las Vegas. Don't know how much sleep we'll get tonight.
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