http://www.frogonabike.com/blog France to Asia 2008 Thu, 31 Jul 2008 14:00:23 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The trip is over: I got hit two days ago by a car on our way out of Almaty. The car was going too fast and didn't see me in time as I was turning left. Diagnostic: Multiple cuts requiring stitches, right shoulder dislocation, broken arm (humerus tubercle), broken bike and ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/07/31/premature-end-of-the-trip-in-almaty/ 43.275455614748346 76.92935943603515 It takes us just over a week to cover the busy 700km between Shimkent and Almaty L43.24 76.95. There is a lot of traffic but the road surface gradually becomes excellent, the last 200km being as smooth as a French motorway. The scenery is also much more varied than in ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/07/28/the-great-administrative-wall-of-china/ 43.24 76.95 [album=9,extend] http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/07/12/photos-atyrau-to-shimkent/ From Aral the road is asphalted again and of relatively good quality and cycling with my recovering shoulder is relatively painless when my hand rests on the handlebar. I only have to be careful when mounting or dismounting the bike because of its weight. Our first day back in the steppe ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/07/12/dehydrated-in-the-steppe/ 42.309942361857345 69.58379745483398 40 years ago Aral used to be a port on the Aral sea but the Soviet irrigitation plans further North have left the sea to dry up. It is now less than half the size of what it used to be and split into a large and small sea. The ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/07/09/mishap-in-aral/ 46.81932766316868 61.681365966796875 In Qandiagash we stop for a couple of nights to get some rest. We are invited at some sort of wedding anniversary meal on the first evening. There are about 15 guests and everyone is already very drunk. An hour into the meal the bride is clearly very unhappy and ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/07/05/stuck-in-the-mud/ 46.81932766316868 61.681365966796875 In Qandiagash L49.46 57.41 we have a choice to get to Aralsk: take the road North to Aqtobe to rejoin a supposedly excellent road, or take the shorter (500km instead of 700) road/piste South which we have been told is in very poor condition. Our choice is made, we'll take the ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/29/decision-in-qandiagash/ 49.46 57.41 The road beyond Makat turns into a rough piste and we progress slowly on gravel, mud or sand. We all fell at least once. Sometimes the road is perfectly smooth for 10 or 20km and we think the worst is over, but there are always more bad roads ahead. Olivier ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/27/steppe-by-steppe/ 49.14 56.48 I just received my new Thermarest this morning from UPS as we were about to leave from the hotel! It took 10 days to get from Ireland to Atyrau. Thanks again to Thermarest and especially Tina in Ireland for their incredible support! http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/20/a-nice-surprise/ After three days in Atyrau I finally meet again Olivier 'rouk' and Olivier 'petit jedi'. We will be leaving tomorrow together to face hundreds of kilometres in the deserted steppe. We have been warned that the road ahead towards the Aral sea (or what's left of it) is of very ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/19/reunited-in-atyrau/ 47.11733618605657 51.915550231933594 After 300km of headwinds and intense heat I finally arrive in Atyrau, a small city on the Ural river which is the official border between Europe and Asia. The only business in Atyrau is petrol and you can even smell it in the air when the wind blows from the ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/18/atyrau-the-door-to-asia/ 47.11733618605657 51.915550231933594 [album=9,extend] http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/18/photos-astrakhan-russia-to-atyrau-kazakhstan/ I arrived to the Russian border with only 6 hours left on my Russian visa but I didn't get any hassle from the Russian guards, they were even very friendly! The Kazakh side was the classic border control experience with 6 booths to visit and many forms to complete in ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/14/first-days-in-kazakhstan/ 46.60 49.27 After almost a week of waiting, Olivier has finally obtained a two months Kazakh visa. In the meantime the other Olivier I met near Odessa three weeks ago has rejoined us as well as Geraldine and Xavier, a couple traveling to China on electric scooters. It is actually much more ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/12/fame-in-astrakhan/ 46.37749106535006 48.049049377441406 [DESC]A busy bridge on the Volga in Astrakhan[/DESC] [ID]DeExNchfVr4[/ID] [AUTHOR]frogonabike[/AUTHOR] [IMG]http://i.ytimg.com/vi/DeExNchfVr4/default.jpg[/IMG] [RATING]0.00[/RATING] [VIEW]0[/VIEW] [TAGS] Cycling Russia[/TAGS] [UPLOADTIME]1213263358[/UPLOADTIME] [LENGTH]37[/LENGTH] http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/12/crossing-the-volga-in-astrakhan/ [DESC]Following a track in the Russian steppe 100km from Astrakhan[/DESC] [ID]ma8b4Ivv6xc[/ID] [AUTHOR]frogonabike[/AUTHOR] [IMG]http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ma8b4Ivv6xc/default.jpg[/IMG] [RATING]0.00[/RATING] [VIEW]0[/VIEW] [TAGS] Russia Cycling[/TAGS] [UPLOADTIME]1213262971[/UPLOADTIME] [LENGTH]27[/LENGTH] http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/12/cycling-in-the-russian-steppe-2/ [DESC]Leaving a bivouac between Elista and Astrakhan[/DESC] [ID]k2b4xVtK-9A[/ID] [AUTHOR]frogonabike[/AUTHOR] [IMG]http://i.ytimg.com/vi/k2b4xVtK-9A/default.jpg[/IMG] [RATING]0.00[/RATING] [VIEW]0[/VIEW] [TAGS] Russia Cycling[/TAGS] [UPLOADTIME]1213262361[/UPLOADTIME] [LENGTH]51[/LENGTH] http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/12/cycling-in-the-russian-steppe-1/ Like most Russian cities, Astrakhan (Астрахань) is an expensive place: the first hotel we find, the Azymut hotel on the Volga, asks for 3000 rubbles (£75) for a room with 2 beds. Fortunately, after 10 minutes of pondering how long we could afford to stay in the city at this ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/08/astrakhan-last-stop-before-kazakhstan/ 46.37749106535006 48.049049377441406 New photos: the steppe from Elista to Astrakhan: [album=8,extend] http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/08/photos-elista-to-astrakhan/ The day we left Elista, the Kalmyk hotel staff in Elista gave us a free lunch and 200 rubbles (£5) despite our protests. We visited the enormous new buddhist temple on the edge of town and met an elderly woman who told us she came back to live in Elista ... http://www.frogonabike.com/blog/2008/06/06/on-the-road-to-astrakhan/ 46.27 47.26