Rezort Apartmany Hrabovo Ruzomberok

... we didn't feel like socializing with the chickens and got a penzion instead.

Luckily there was a Pension just near the campsite but unfortunatly they were full up except for the Suite. Fortunatly the Suite was only 28 Euros, Gotta love hotels in the middle of nowhere. Most of our campsites cost that much!

After a great nights sleep and a delicious breakfast we made our way to Krakow through the Tatras mountains.

The rains had broken and the day was fresh, a really fat fish kept breaking the surface of the lake and I thought of Tom's wise words "get fishing hooks man", I was salivating.

I found the best way to overload my bike and finally set off at about 12 p.m. The lake was nice but I didn't fancy swimming in it, too much foam.

At about 3 p.m I had to choose whether to continue east to Poland or turn south and ...

... in time to shelter from the next 24 hours of rain.

29th September 19 km

The rain didn't bother me, I had no intention of going anywhere as I was in need of a day of rest after my first day of serious riding.
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I constructed a porch for the tent out of binliners and cooked there.

As the rain turned to drizzle I clocked up a few unladen kilometres round the lake.

... places. Iˇd estimated the space left for people to pass to be more than sufficient, however, the succession of VERY large grandmothers which struggled passed me, virtually squeezing me through the cracks of the train carriage proved me wrong.

Slovakia has a population of 5.5 million and you notice it, the capital Bratislava was without much traffic and small. The train ...

... unless you want to be closed in one of the chambers - in this case you'll have to wait until the next group sets you free.

I end my visit in the Oravsky Podzamok getting trapped behind the entrance gate to the castle and I spend 15 minutes in a pouring rain until a tour guide opens the gate to let in the next group of tourists. I buy some postcard and a pint of beer with raspberry juice, and I go back home.

... towards Blysť, trying not to be blown off the cliff into Poland. The climb up Blysť was very difficult, both because it was very steep and also because we couldn't tell how high we had to climb. The trail marker at the pass had said it would take half an hour to do the climb, but with the wind and the steepness it took us over an hour. Finally at the high point we found the red trail marker. Then we had to plunge down the equally steep path on the ...

... 1970 World Nordic Championships, and some ski runs above them. The trail went along the shore of the lake, then through some construction sites and out into the countryside. Here it climbed up a considerable amount, which was rather frustrating as Podbanské was much lower in elevation. However we were actually crossing a continental divide; east of here the streams flow through Poprad to Poland's Dunajec River and into the Baltic Sea, and west of here they flow via the V ...

... with a drop off spelling instant death should one slip. One of the hikers is frozen in place and his friend has to clamber down to retrieve his backpack and help him up over the hump of rock above. However, several minutes prior we had witnessed a middle aged heavy set women in a pink sweater and tennis shoes take the path without the use of chains as though she was climbing over her couch to get a better seat in front of the TV. It was quite the contrast and possibly humbling had the ...

... Fatra range), I made sure to ask about getting into the park before booking accomodation. It turned out that my best bet (with what was available and I could afford) was to base myself in Vrutky for a couple of days. A shame the town is a complete dump, but at least I didn't have to spend much time there, and it was only a 30 minute walk to the nearest trailhead. Initially, I was a little unsure about the Mala Fatra. I had heard good things, but on the afternoon I turned up ...

... to be home - even though she was born in Toronto. In no time at all, her and Mana are fighting like long-lost adolescent sisters about one thing or another, in a language that is foreign to me. But it's fun to watch and I smile at them. Sometimes they'll see me, stop for a while, and smile back. Dominant Gender Study - Initial Findings Criteria of the Dominant Gender: Combination of physical strength, intelligence, forcefulness, and physical appearance. Politics and the ...