Singapore to Ireland
From Asia to Europe by Motorcycle
The Project
I am riding a motorcycle from Singapore to Ireland in support of the Lotus Children’s Centre in Mongolia.
Read more about the work of Lotus and my route on the About & Donate pages.
You can support the children of Lotus and my ride across Asia and Europe, by making a donation to Lotus Children’s Centre through Virgin Money giving.
Thank you for your support.
5th October 2014 8-22℃ 153km
Bovec – Bled – Lake Bohinjka
After leaving Bovec, I made my way over the 1611M Vršič Pass. A pretty stunning ride today, up the mountain in the cold air. At one stage I took a wrong turn and ended up heading towards Italy, when I realised I had to turn around and ride some of the mountain again, which wasn’t a shame, and very enjoyable.
After descending the other side of the mountain, I rode into the picture-postcard town of Bled. Nestled beside Lake Bled, with an island church in the middle of the lake and an imposing castle on the mountain beside the lake, it is pretty much everything you can imagine perfect on a postcard, albeit slightly touristy, but that is to be expected when you have such a stunning sight.
I had been advised by numerous friends that I should continue to the even more spectacular Lake Bohinjka, so after a coffee beside Lake Bled, I went to see what I could only imagine must have been exaggeration, as Lake Bled was already pretty amazing.
On my arrival by the quiet shore of Bohinjka, I was to find exactly what friends had been telling me. Unbelievably spectacular, Lake Bohinjka is one of the two most beautiful lakes I have ever visited (the other in Mongolia)
Steep rock cliffs leading down to the clear waters edge where fish jumped in the icy water, and the reflection of sky, rock & trees made for an amazing sight as the sun began to set. I sat and enjoyed the view for quite some time, before heading back to my guesthouse for the night, just beside the lake, where they served up fantastic locally caught trout, followed by a delicious blueberry dessert.
A very nice meal to put me to bed, after a day of simply stunning scenery.
4th October 2014 5-15’C 160km
Pivco Jama – Bovec
After packing up the tent, it conveniently started to rain. Fortunately I had already put everything away before the mist descended, and I made my way in the rain to Postojna cave to explore the huge, 20km cave, the largest in Europe. The long caverns filled with stalactites and stalagmites, it is the largest cave I have ever been inside, and pretty spectacular.
After exploring the cave, I ventured further up the road to Predjama castle, carved into the mountainside as a protection from attackers, the castle is damp, dark and cold, and would have made for a very uncomfortable home during the middle-ages for its inhabitants.
Slovenia is a fabulous country, with great roads for motorcycle touring, beautiful lakes, mountains & towns, but the real stand out from Slovenia is the people. Warm, friendly, always ready to have a chat, they are genuinely nice people. Slovenian food is also pretty special, with some great desserts and sweet dishes, aside from the fresh trout and forest animals like deer & boar that always taste so good.
3rd October 2014 10-21℃ 264km
Plitviče – Pivko Jama (Slovenia)
The tent was still sopping wet in the morning, as it had rained all night, and was still drizzling after I’d eaten breakfast. But I packed up anyway, hoping to find a good place to dry everything out later.
Heading over the mountain range towards the Adriatic highway was a great ride, but ferociously windy, misty and cold. Although once down on the sea facing side of the mountains, the sky was clear and the temperature warmed up. When I stopped at the peak for a few photos, the wind was so strong it lifted the bike off the sidestand. It was only saved from being blown over by the quick action of a French tourist, who managed to catch it and prevent it falling over.
The Adriatic highway was an awesome ride of sticky road, right along the cliff edge, giving fantastic views out to sea and of the villages along the way.
I made a short stop in Rjieka for lunch, before crossing into Slovenia.
With the tent still wet, I decided to camp, hoping it would allow everything to dry, and found a good campsite at Pivco Jama, where it was dry and settled in for a cold but at least clear night, a great improvement over the last two wet nights.
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