Baltic states tour

[midliferider]

If you need a summary, please go to the summary post

Day 1
At Tallinn airport.....
The bike has survived the journey from Stansted but the water bottle has not. The bottle is from Aldi, metal one, it was kept in the bottle cage. Some how it has been badly damaged.
So I was so pleased that bike itself has not sustained any visible damage. The airport is a small friendly place. I fixed the bike and hit the road from the airport. I saw few cyclists on the road which always make you feel comfortable. Joined the traffic.... Cars slowed down and let me change the lanes. GPS took me safely to the old town. Stored the bike in the hostel and explored the city by foot.
It is a beautiful city.

 

[midliferider]

Day 2, From Tallinn to Kuijoe (100km)
Hostel does not provide breakfast and nearby restaurant won't be open till 8am. I hit the road just before 8 without breakfast hoping to have some at city limits. But did have a banana just before I left.
Oh the beauty of cycle paths, so wide and everyone respect the cyclists. I passed the city limits, after getting lost few times, in about an hour.
Oh I love these sites, old Soviet style blocks, new apartment and those yellow wooden houses.
Had breakfast at a supermarket. Now for real cycling. Roads are so good, manage to maintain a good pace. Oh I am loving this.

 

[midliferider]

This was my resting place on day 2, small wooden cottage in this small village. The host was so friendly and welcoming and offer to carry my pannier bag in to the room. The dinner and breakfast was so delicious, all for less than £35.

 

[midliferider]

Day 3, From Kuijo to Risti, then to Virtsu and by ferry to Muhu island (110 Km)

It was lovely to wake up to birds chirping, outside air was cold but it was good weather for cycling.
The road sign warned about wild deer crossing the road. I thought it would be nice to see one but the experience was scary. Deer, more like a god size cow, tried to cross the road 200 metres ahead of me, cars took an evasive action and it ran to the other side of the road. I would have had no chance of survival if it attacked me.
The scenery was mainly woods and small villages. Wind was a problem.
The ferry staff was friendly I enjoyed the whole experience of ferry crossing to this small island.
The island itself is really beautiful.
Had dinner at local restaurant.
All young people speak good English and they are very friendly.
My resting place tonight is an old farm in this island. It is very comfortable and all good facilities.

 

[midliferider]

Day 4 , from Muhu island to Parnu (100km)
I have learned the hard way during last few days that there are very few road side café or shops here. The tourist info on cycling did warn to carry enough water and food as you may not find one for nearly 50km. So I stock piled water and food, meaning bananas, ceral bars, nuts before I hit the road this morning.
I had two routes to chose from. The scenic route, part of Baltic sea route or just the main road. I chose the scenic one. It goes through small villages, meaning few houses or you hardly see a house for a couple of kilometres. The trouble is that they all have dogs and most are not on leads. Suffice to say that I had some lucky escapes. Or may be they are trained to not bite unless one actually enter their premises. It spoiled the ride to some extent but overall it was good.
When I was few km away from Parnu, it is a big city, road became very busy and was not feeling comfortable. Just then the wide cycle path beside the road appeared. Such thoughtful planning.
Parnu, like many of their cities is a combination of old and new city. It is just beautiful.

 

[midliferider]

Day 5, from Parnu to Toju (100 Km)

Again scenic route was spoiled by occasional dogs barking at me. But I have now got used to it.
Crossed the border to Latvia by mid day. Latvia appears to have more population density than Estonia. Or may be I am on the highway from Tallinn to Riga.
Immigration police stopped me to check my passport and was friendly and helpful. They do think it is bit crazy to cycle like this.
Overnight accommodation was another gem. Host was so kind and prepared dinner and breakfast which is usually not offered as per booking website.

 

[midliferider]

Day 6 from Parnu to Riga (80Km)
After cycling over 100Km a day, it am looking forward to a relaxing day. It was so good to see so many road cyclists on the way. They all gave the friendly wave or nod. That gave me confidence to ride along with trucks and tanks on the highway.
Once you reach Riga city limits, there are cycke routes along the other roads. This is similar to my cycling experience in Geneva or Vienna. Cycling is a normal activity and everyone behaves in harmony.
So I have now reached the second Baltic capital, Riga.

 

[midliferider]

 

[psmiffy]

Things must have improved in Riga - I didn't see any cyclists between Parnu and Riga - or for that matter south of Riga until I got to Kaunas - Riga itself there were cyclists but none on the road apart from myself - the ones that there were - sorta scuttled along the pavements - half cycling - half walking

 

[midliferider]

I will read your blog later, I see that it was in 2009.
It has now changed. I think the highway between Riga and Tallinn was built recently. There are now many road cyclists.
Riga itself has many cyclists. At least enough to make you feel that it is quite normal to cycle.

 

[midliferider]

Things must have improved in Riga - I didn't see any cyclists between Parnu and Riga - or for that matter south of Riga until I got to Kaunas - Riga itself there were cyclists but none on the road apart from myself - the ones that there were - sorta scuttled along the pavements - half cycling - half walking

Hi Paul, I just read some of your blog. Latvia seem to have developed so fast.
I went through Saukkrasti. It now has so many shops, even an estate agent. I went in and had a chat about buying a property in the area.

 

[midliferider]

Day 7 Riga. Spend the day sight seeing Riga. It is all according to guide books.

Day 8 From Riga to Daugavpils.
There is a cycle route described in Latvia cycling guides and it is nearly 200Km. They also suggest taking the train. I opted to take the morning 7.40 from Riga to Daugavpils. It was a good comfortable train ride. Spend the rest of the day sight seeing this sleepy city. It is nice but not many people for such a big city. Planning an early night in preparation for early morning ride towards Vilnius tomorrow.

 

[midliferider]

Day 9, 10, 11
Cycled acoriss Lithuania to end the tour in Vilnius. Lithuania is a much more beautiful country when compared to Estonia and Latvia. Siinc I was cycling so close to the Belarus border, just 2.5 Km, made an attempt to cross the border. Guards appeared from no where and re directed me back on to the main road.

 

[midliferider]

In summary
It was a great tour, I loved the every minutes of it. Even the moments when I got lost in forest.
You can plan the tour using official tourism website taking your own interests in to account. I used a combination of 2 main routes described in the website.
Cycling is in general is very safe on main roads. In fact it grew my confidence to cycle with heavy high moving traffic.
There are plenty of cheap accommodation. There are various signs to indicate camp sites throughout the route but I am not sure about their facilities.
People in the villages are generally friendly and helpful.
Young people generally speak English and are a source of help when you are stuck on the road, restaurant or shops.
Food is generally good. One word of caution, portion sizes in restaurants are generally smaller for a touring cyclists.
Main caution: you may cycle for 20-30 miles without finding a shop on the road side. Even when you do find one, they usually has very few products except alcohol. I have had the worst apple and banana I have ever eaten bought from one of those shops. Therefore stock up well with water and other supplies before you set off.

 

[Hill Wimp]

That sounded like a great tour, very much food for thought.