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Recap: We planned the route back during the preparation days, taking into consideration the terrain we knew about and the advice from others, however the reality once we were on the road shows that even the best made plans of mice and men have to change! Leg 1 fortunately remained pretty much true to our original plans, Europe being familiar territory.
However leg 2 was already re-routed from day 1 – originally we had planned to head down western Turkey through Gallipoli, skipping Istanbul. However, the advancing season made it necessary for us to head directly to eastern Turkey (via Istanbul) before snowfall deepened and made roads un-cycleable. Advice for anyone planning such a venture is to consider seasons first and foremost!
As well as weather, the political climate is also paramount, particularly as we head out of Europe into the middle east, as visas are required for almost every country we travel through, some of which are not obtainable in advance prior to leaving the UK because of time limits. Having just applied for our Iran visas in Istanbul, we were worried to hear from other fellow cyclists who were planning to pass through Iran that all British visa applicants are being rejected. This is due to increasing political tension between the UK and Iran, which led to UK nationals being urged to return home from Iran.
We are anxiously waiting to hear back from the agency applying on our behalf, so fingers crossed we might still be lucky! Otherwise we are developing a contingency plan for a route change – potentially swinging down to South Turkey and then into Syria – from where we would need to fly to Karachi in Pakistan to continue the rest of our trip.
Watch this space for news on this soon!
