I made it through the border after a bit of a false start as I had didn't have a customs clearance docket but when I rode back they said this was not required so at my second attempt was allowed through the arches of plenty with apologies.
I entered the country in the top right and my plan was to ride down to Balakan and then continue along the foot of the Caucasus mountains which separated Azerbaijan from Russian and then across the interior of the country to Baku on the coast. From there I would then head south along the coast to the port at Alut to get the ferry across the Caspian Sea.
The road was pristine and as this was not a busy crossing I had it to myself as I sped downhill to the first town of Balakan to search for a hotel.
The first one I found entering the town looked like it was falling down and reminded me of the hostel in Tbilisi so I moved on to a four star affair and the other end of town which had the first usable pool I had come across on this trip luxury!
The next morning I spend some time updating this blog and doing some route planning for the next stage to Baku. There looked to be hotel options at about 40 miles and then at 64 which looked like a bit of a stretch as I wanted to sort out a sim card before I left.
This was again a long winded affair where I had to hand over my passport and complete forms before one would be issued. I also had to choose a number with the option to pay more for a fancy one which I declined and got the £4.50 bog standard offer.
It was about 11 am when I eventually set off so 40 miles was the target which with the heat building was still not going to be an easy ride. I stopped at the first town to get some money out and buy some provisions for lunch but I laboured up the hill my iPhone overheated again so I hid it in the ice cream fridge under some look-a-like magnums whilst I bought some bread and cheese to go with my Georgian sausage. My iPhone restored I headed out and found a bus shelter on the outskirts of town to have a picnic.
I continued on and like before passing over more huge river beds thinking it must be spectacular when these are in full flow.
Eventually I approached the town on Qakh/Kakhi take your pick which was a long climb. I stopped at a roadside spring and got accosted by another Turk attracted by my shirt being mistaken is wearing quite thin as is the shirt so hopefully I can find a replacement in Baku.
I soaked my buff in the cool water and squeezed it over my shoulders which gave me some brief relief from the oppressive heat put my iPhone away i the shade and carried on climbing.
Eventually I was only 500 metres from my hotel but desperate for a cool drink. I saw a shop and pulled in nearby in the shade which was outside a bar well I though that might do. Inside there was a single beer pump I asked if they had Coke the universal soft drink there was a nod of the head so I pushed my luck for a Sprite yes again and was ushered to a table outside.
After about 10 minutes I was getting to the point when I was thinking let's just head to this hotel my Sprite appeared he had obviously been somewhere to buy it. A beer was then ordered to make DIY shandy which cool and refreshing and was just what I needed in the heat.
The hotel was pretty basic more of a doss house with just male residents but I got a room to myself for £10 and headed into the city which had an impressive flag at the centre to try and find some food.
Unfortunately the choices were not as impressive as the flag I passed a few Kafes which were just empty rooms full a men drinking tea but then found this place that looked promising.
I asked the woman for a menu but the answer was no, undeterred I pointed at the pictures on the window at which she put up her arms in a cross which either meant she was a big fan of the X Factor or there was no food. It was the latter.
Further down the street I found a restaurant who had one customer in there drinking. I make the makaton sign for food which worked and a menu was produce.
Chicken kebab? No
Pork kebab? No
Spaghetti?...I'll check...no.
Jarlsberg? Feta?
This process was thankfully fast tracked when he led me to the freezer and pointed to some frozen frankfurters. Seeing I was not impressed he added a serving suggestion "with beer good"
I declined when back to the hotel and had a rematch with my lunch which, with beer was better.
Having not covered a great distance yesterday I assumed breakfast was not provided or would be pretty basic so didn't hang about and was on the road at 6.45. It was great to be on my way before the heat of the sun got going and the first 5 miles out of town once I crossed the dodgy bridge were all down hill which was payback for the painful finish of yesterday.
I sped past a small chapel perched high on a rocky outcrop It looked more impressive earlier but I wasn't going to cycle back up the hill for your benefit!
Then it was business as usual making my way along the base of the mountains and crossing the broad river beds. With the occasional climb as the road linked the towns and villages along the way.
There were a few places where crushing plants had been set up and they were hard at work with JCB's collecting the rocks which had been swept down. At this one they had erected a small basin to slow down the water and encourage the build up of raw materials. Very enterprising why go quarrying when nature can deliver it all to you door!
The day wore on and when I made my afternoon stop I thought my Magnum substitute was a little close to the real thing. I think Unilever need to get their patent lawyers flown in pronto!
It was 2 pm but my speedo was reading 70 miles covered which was impressive but I still had 15 to go so I started to think about finishing and thought maybe I will cycle until 3 pm and then try and find a hotel. I had passed a couple on the road however a double check on Strava showed only 58 miles ridden and I recalled my speedo was showing 36 mph when I was standing still so must have added some miles as well, maybe the heat was also getting to that.
At 3 pm and 67 miles done I saw a hotel and checking the route could not see any for the next 5-6 miles so I headed over to see if there was a room available. As I set off my back tyre deflated so I was definitely done for the day if I now had a puncture to repair.
Room sorted I took out my slime inner tube that had bled out as I had been pumping that tyre up since Turkey. So a replacement was put in and this one patched up not bad thought my first puncture of the trip and I entertained the staff at the hotel who all watched the process with earnest.
Next morning it was more of the same keep the mountains to the left and keep pedalling I had a 70 mile target for the day so was on the road early again and benefited from a couple of hours of cooler temperatures.
I briefly hit carriageway in the next town but that petered out and I was then cycling under a canopy of trees and it was great to be in the shade as the sun was out now in full force.
As I rode through the forest I passed many cafes nestling in the trees with open kitchens play areas with some offering horse riding.
Then I was climbing and thankfully at the top of the first climb there were some shops I was tempted by some fresh lamb but made do with my sausage with the last of the cheese and bread for lunch.
Another climb and I was soon looking down on the dry rivers which had been a feature of the last few days.
I was 60 miles into the day and 4 pm so I thought I would keep a look out for a hotel or guest house and attempt the next climb tomorrow. I was soon dropping down at speed back to the riverbed pictured above but the valley was bare apart from some more rock processing plant.
I could see the next climb ahead which looked like a beast with some steep ramps up. There was no trees or cover so camping was not an option as I would be baking in my tent waiting for death or sunset so I had no option but to climb.
As I suspected the hill was a git and with 60 miles already in my legs it was hard going. I go hailed by a passing police car but don't know what they were saying and had a bit of a set to with a Mercedes who kept blowing his horn to dissuade me from swerving about the road, like I had a choice!
At 5.30 I made it to the summit and was looking back at the previous hill with some satisfaction.
It was a posh hotel tonight and I had time for a quick dip the pool before grabbing some food and off to bed.
I looked at the options for the remaining distance to Baku. I was meeting my Sister in two days and it was about 75 miles so a gentle day and half would get me there. Unfortunately a search showed there were was a hotel 15 miles away then nothing until I got to Baku so I resolved that it would have to be done in one hit.
It was disappointing that I was told breakfast was served at 7 am and when I arrived the staff were asleep and said it would be 8. I wasn't going to hang about to bought a couple of apples and headed off.
I soon caught up with the Azerbaijan road building programme and briefly had a carriageway to myself for the first climb which was great.
This didn't last though and for the next I had to do battle with dust and traffic on a temporary road surface which was hell!
It was 9 am and the traffic was heavy with lost of dodgy overtaking with the right of way appearing to go to whoever had the least to lose which seemed to be those driving big 4x4s with more money than sense or Lada 1200 drivers who had neither.
The boxy Fiat 124 derived Lada was by far the most prolific car in Azerbaijan I started seeing how many passed me in a row my record was 5.
I passed the hotel at 15 miles which was in a strange theme park in the middle of nowhere it had poor reviews for overcharging people. You could see how they could get away with it they had a captive audience.
I was soon in the interior of the county and could see why there were no hotels there was nothing here just dry grass no cattle or any agriculture. There were some trees planted by the road presumably to stabilise the ground and as I rode past these were being watered from tankers.
As I climbed higher a headwind began to develop which was cooling as it came from across the Caspian Sea but was slowing my progress at the top of the last climb it was being funnelled up the valley and I almost came to a stand still so took one last photo of the wasteland before I battles over the crest and descended
As I dropped down I could see a blue smudge on the horizon which was my first sight of the Caspian Sea.
As I approached civilisation the road become 28th May Street which I later found out was Independence Day. I could also smell sulphur in the air and remembered that there were some mud volcanoes in this area which must be producing the gas.
I then had about 10 miles of inner city driving and strange looks from the other motorists who had obviously not see a bike before and I had arrived.
The next day after a bit of a panic my sister Rachael and husband David found me in a cafe near the apartment we had rented for the next 5 days.
We had a wonderful time getting to see the sights of the city a slide show of which is below:
Plus a video of the Flame Towers doing their party piece:
Whilst out on a day trip we had lunch with this Japanese guy who had spend 6 years in the 1980's cycling around the world it was a very different time then with the iron curtain and no internet!
My sister was also able to bring out the new panniers and most of the replacement equipment that I had bought so I was all set for the next leg of the journey so unable to contact the ferry company I set off early on Friday morning to the port so see if I could catch a boat.
The road to the ferry was along the coast with lots of oil installations commercial ports and shipyards along the route it was an easy 40 miles with a good tailwind so arrived at the port before noon.
There is no timetable but ships leave every 2-3 days when full but subject to delays due to weather and availability of berths. I was preparing for a long stay at the port but arrived to find a ship was leaving that day and there was space available so that evening I was steaming away from Azerbaijan an on to my next adventure.
End of stage 3 next .....The Stans.
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