It was good and bad to leave Gdansk. It had a lot of eating options, was beautiful and I had a great apartment, but it was full of tourists and there was one particular local clown who sang at the top of his lungs from 6am. A few people got him to be quiet occasionally, but it didn’t last long.
The route out of town took me down Dluga, the main tourist thoroughfare, and the day tours were in full swing. Navigating around hordes of package tourists is never simple.
It was an easy escape from the town but hardly picturesque. A couple of hundred metres from the last tourist attraction, Gdansk turned a little ugly and industrial. That’s ok too.
Three Eurovelo bike paths coincided in Gdansk and I followed them out of town and into the countryside. One by one they peeled away, and I was left following a more direct Polish route (thanks Komoot). That was a good move to save some time, as it rained in the last 10 kms – it only ever does.
During the day, I went past a Lidl supermarket and got all of the bits for lunch but couldn’t find a good spot to eat. I settled for a bus shelter which was fine. The next part was unexciting but easy and traffic free until the next small town when I rode past an electronics store and realised I forgot to get a new charging cable back in Gdansk. That sounds so mundane, but it’s my lifeline. No power, no navigation, no maps, no trip, no happy John.
After that, I found a great spot to have the second half of my lunch. I was back on a Eurovelo and they’ve built quite a few shelter areas with tables, bench seats, bike tools etc. I saw the rain approaching, but the cheese and salami roll was too nice to rush, so I got wet.
The rain stopped as I got to Elblag and debated whether too camp. There’s rain tonight, but tomorrow is dry, so I opted to camp. The tent goes up in a few minutes and then everything except the bike is dry.its a nice campsite run by a lovely elderly couple. “Pay when you leave, no problem”. I hope I remember.
By the time I’d finished my shower, it was pelting down.