We’d heard stories about the cold northern winds (known as the Bora) that blow down off the mountains in Croatia, but with the warm and sun over the last few weeks it all seemed far away.

Well they arrived in force yesterday. We set up the tent the night before in blissfully warm and still conditions, right next to the ocean (I even had another swim). The next morning however, we woke to the sound of trees being blown around. At first the wind wasn’t too bad, and we set off in high spirits knowing we had only 60 odd km to Skradin and the Krka national park.

After an hour or so, the wind really picked up, and was gusting hard enough to actually push us off the road. The temperature also dropped really rapidly, and soon had us in jackets once more, something we’ve not had to bother with since northern Italy.

Cycling through some forlorn and semi-abandoned towns, with the wind howling soon had us wondering why anybody would live in these parts. The occasional bullet riddled old bunker did little to add to the charm.

By 3 pm we were struggling to maintain 6kms an hour into the wind and starting to wonder whether we would make it too our planned destination by nightfall. Just as we were beginning to really tire, we found a small valley, which for some weird reason changed the direction of the wind so that we now had it at our backs. We were soon cruising at 30km an hour, and whooping for joy, surrounded by vineyards and (for the first time in Croatia) running water.

One of the real joys of cycle touring is the immense relief you get after a really hard period in the saddle. It really let’s you know you’re alive!

From Wikipedia – In February 2012, during the Eastern European Cold Wave, the shoreline in Senj froze and snow piled up after a 150 km/h bora plummeted the temperature to -14°C, with waves of 7 metres. The bora ripped the trees from the soil and destroyed roofs of houses. On the island of Pag, the bora threw fish out of the sea. In many Croatian coastal cities, fresh water froze inside the pipes.

Gulp!