Breakfast across the road from the hotel in the same restaurant as we had dinner. Once again we had the place to ourselves.
I didn't sleep that well last night, and so I was slow to get used to the bike again and very tentative on the trail when we reached it; the slick clay mud didn't help, I realise that's not a preferred terrain for me. At least it's not raining.
Before we reached the trail we encountered a few random cows on the road going through a village. That, along with the many unpaved roads in some villages and horse and carts still in regular use, gives me cause to think twice that we're still in the EU. Although, is that necessarily a bad thing; should paved roads everywhere be the norm in a developed country? It's nice to be a little rough around the edges, but I guess those who live there should be the ones to decide.
The trail weaves its way through the forest gradually uphill, my slow start leaving me at the back trying to hang on to Danny's coat tails. Eventually I get into the groove as the trail becomes less mud and more gravelly. This is the kind of terrain I'm more comfortable with and the back end drifts out on a few corners with a little bit of two-stroke braaaap.
We overtake a few cars, which are delicately manoeuvring their way between the ruts and potholes that our bikes take in their stride. In this area there are a few remote farm houses most with their resident pack of farm dogs that bark and chase us because that's what the farm dog union demands of them! There are also a few signs for holiday rental properties and small hotels. It must take an age to drive to them but once you're there you're away from it all - except for the occasional pack of wild bikers that pass by.
Back on the asphalt and we stop to pose, naughty, on a bridge over the reservoir. Shortly after we stop for lunch at a roadside restaurant that I realise is on the Transalpina Pass. We are riding the whole length of this next week in our brief 'Roadmaniacs' tour when we hire road bikes for four days. The Transfăgărășan Highway is also on our list, but at this point we're still sure it will be open. Fingers crossed.
The restaurant reminds me of some we've been to in more remote parts of the world, outwardly impressive but quite bare inside apart from the tables and chairs. There we meet a US biker who's been on the road for three years touring Africa and Europe, working in between. Groups of heavily laden bikers ride past outside doing their own tours of the area.
While we're having lunch it really does start to rain. And it pretty much doesn't stop for the rest of the day. Rain jacket out, we're resigned to having soaked trousers, underwear, boots and gloves when we arrive. No amount of wringing out the water helps. Not ideal conditions and visors are swapped for goggles, goggles for wrap around lens, and eventually some ride the slower sections with naked eyes to see the road ahead more clearly. My wrap around specs work pretty well, as they did in the Sahara.
Back off-road and the cloud is low and visibility is poor so we can't appreciate the views as we climb to around 2000m, traversing tracks on the hillside and across heavily sodden grass meadowland above the tree line.
Apparently Bobo said we should not get too close to the track edges as there are steep falls to the sides, we had no clue it was there as we could see nothing!
We find the last remnants of snow at the side of the track and Bobo rides each of our bikes up and into the packed snow, spinning the back wheels to bury them to hold the bikes upright. We pose by the bikes for a picture, but I felt a bit of a fraud.
Just like Ray, then we come down, but unlike Ray we do it under control. More up down in and out of the trees mud and gravel, a nice mix. Still it rains but it can't get any worse. Bobo gets a little disoriented and we take a few dead-end turns. On one we get quite far down having gone through a gate but have to turn around as the narrow path look like it's going to get too difficult. Everything changes in the rain, what might work in the dry becomes almost impossible in the wet and impassable when mud dominates.
Ray lets his bike have a little rest.
Eventually we got the road again and take the opportunity to fill up the petrol tanks. I get left behind as my bike develops a problem with the kill switch and won't start, Charlie takes it apart but that doesn't fix it. Bobo returns and disconnects the switch which gets me going again.
The last section sees us climbing from the valley along a wet wiggly asphalt road covered in muddy gravel run-off from all the rain. More fun as the rear end drifted out on several corners. Almost there but Bobo turns off the road again unexpectedly, more muddy gravel tracks and low hanging wet branches to smack you in the face. Many of us have tuned out of off-road mode at this point so it's hard going, but we power through. Finally we arrive at the hotel after passing though some wide gates that seem to be holding the clouds in place. The hotel is at the top of a hill and has a pool outside in which you can sit and survey the surroundings; we try, but the weather blunts the experience.
The lads are served boar in the hotel dinning room overlooked by the head of a huge boar on the wall. I'm sharing with Danny. He warns me about possible snoring, I riposte similarly. But a sight I shall not unsee is Ray's pink toothbrush holder... kinky 😱
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