Poland, Slovakia
Day 22: Sunday (8/31/2025). Today we sought out hidden gems and random sights around Krakow. Loved riding and walking around town with no agenda.
Day 23: Monday (9/1/2025). Be careful what you wish for. We have thus far (perhaps foolishly) throughout the flatlands bemoaned the topographical sameness. That changed today. As soon as we left Krakow, the roads pitched up, and the hills just kept coming. Our legs burned. Salty sweat burned our eyes. In spite of that, the landscape, the views, and the downhills had us grinning all day.
Late afternoon, the map said we had arrived at the campground that was our destination for the day. We weren’t sure. There was a fenced in field of nicely tended grass with one gentleman sitting under a pavilion. With a computer assist, he assured us that this was his campground. He very kindly accepted half price for the night (the remainder of our Polish cash). The site was perfect. The only sound was gentle white noise from a nearby stream. We had a hot shower, a cooking facility, and electricity. And when he left a bit later, he asked me to lock up for the evening. How cool.
Even better, shortly after we arrived, Valentine and Victor rolled in. They are currently two months into a twelve month hiatus from work. They left home in Normandy, France and are taking a grand tour of Europe, and east through Turkey. Good for them for making it happen. So glad our paths crossed, and we had the opportunity to make new friends. Bonne chance on your journey, Valentine and Victor! Hopefully our paths will cross again.
Day 24: Tuesday (9/2/2025). Such good company, and so many interesting stories! It was hard to leave this morning. It would have been easier had we known what glories awaited us. Sure, the first climb started immediately and continued for ten plus miles. And yes, it was muggy. And yes, there was a headwind. But the hard stuff paled in comparison to the riding. We pedaled through an area known as Gorczański Park. Then we skirted east of the High Tatras mountains which form a portion of the border between Poland and Slovakia. At appropriate intervals, interesting villages appeared. We traveled on lightly traveled roads and dedicated bike paths. The last several miles were along a path following the Dunajec River through a Slovakian National Park. Stunning, and even better because it was unexpected.
Day 25: Wednesday (9/3/2025). Rain was in the forecast overnight. Sure enough, in the wee hours it came knocking. Our little tent took a beating, but did its job admirably.
Lying comfortably warm and dry in the tent, neither of us was eager to head into the soup. Some sites said it was going to rain all day. Some sites forecast it to end by 8:30am. In this day and age of picking “facts” to suit you, we picked the “rain ending soon” weather site. Good call. Right on cue, the celestial sprinklers turned off. Still, it was a foggy, soggy day. The air was so thick we needed Moses to part the waters in order for us to pass through on dry ground. Low gears got another workout today – and it was glorious.
The same site that correctly predicted an early end to rain, also predicted dangerous thunderstorms in the afternoon. We were very aware of dark clouds quietly lurking behind us on our way to Poprad. With no campground available, we sought refuge in a guest house before the skies opened. The storms were a bit underwhelming, but we felt smug having dodged another drenching bullet.
Day 26: Thursday (9/4/2025). Today we moved out of the mountains and headed west through a broad valley between the High Tatras mountains on our right, and the high forested ridges mountains of Nizke Tatry National Park on our left. A lengthy bike path along the Poprad River led us out of town. Then we fell into a predictable pattern. We rode through a series of small towns separated by large hills. Mountains all around kept us entertained while we fought gravity.
We ended the day near the small town of Vavrisovo in a hostel/campground. For the princely summer of $13 we had showers, a full kitchen, a comfortable sitting room, and what I value most – silence. Some workmen were staying idea in the hostel area. Google translate allowed us to satisfy the curiosity of one gentleman. It also allowed our new friend to extoll the virtues of his country.
Day 27: Friday (9/5/2025). Four days in a row of hot, hilly, hard days of biking had us thinking “rest day?” Might that day be today? We discussed it. By day’s end we were fifty miles farther west. The answer was “no!”
With an earlier than normal start, we took our time and poked around little towns like Svit, Strba, and Vazec. We wandered bike paths, dirt two-track, and even some gnarly single track. We saw the Slovakian version of “Wisconsin Dells-esque” touristy shlock. And still, by noon we had covered thirty miles. The rest of the afternoon we enjoyed payback for all the climbing done in the past week. We followed the Vah river on its gradual path to the sea all the way to our campground outside Turany. We celebrated being alive at the end of this glorious day with a cold beer, a frosty radler, and grilled ham and cheese sandwiches. Yay us!
An unexpected highlight of the day was meeting Pavol. A trail we were following ended unexpectedly, and we had to backtrack through the town of Stankovany. Our second visit in town seemed like a good time for a short break. A friendly gentleman rode over on his bike and attempted to chat. We had few words in common yet communicated well enough to have a heart-felt moment. One of the joys of travel is making those connections – however brief. Thank you Pavol! (happily he emailed us the next day and we’ve been able to talk some more).
Day 28: Saturday (9/6/2025). Rain overnight into the morning hours. Nature gave us a good excuse to laze about in our bags, until the other nature rudely forced us out into the rain. Rest day today? Weather radar showed clearing later in the morning. We packed, had breakfast in the common lounge area of the campground. Once the rain did, in fact, clear, we set off again. No rest for the wicked, apparently.
The Vah River valley continues to delight. At one point the valley steepened and deepened, and the ruins of an ancient castle suddenly loomed above us. Even as we were making plans to explore that one, another even more impressive castle appeared. We had to stop. In doing so, we stumbled upon a whole medieval themed children’s festival. The castle itself dated back to the 1200’s. The only way to see it, however, was in the company of very nice, very Slovakian speaking tour guides. That yielded surprisingly little useful information. It also made us painfully aware of our foreign-ness. The guide spoke, the group nodded thoughfully, asked questions, and laughed at all the appropriate times. We stood to the side silent and clueless. Still a worthwhile visit.
A bike path continued from the castle along the Vah River all the way into Zilina. Sharon found us a lovely (and inexpensive) guest house for two nights. We have decided that this will be the site of our elusive rest day. We are looking forward to doing laundry, making phone calls, finishing the blog (me), updating Polar Steps (Sharon), reading or listening to our books, surfing, eating, etc. May not sound restful, except for the salient feature – no bikes. We love riding, but absence even for one day really does make the heart grow fonder.
Four weeks on the road. Eight hundred miles. Six countries. This is starting to feel like a real trip! Until next week- STC!
