24.05.25 Day 18 - Bisztynek-Klewiny. Green velo and more storks.

A rather uneventful day. I'll describe the route in some more detail, as I think it is a good alternative to the Alternative on the Eurovelo 13 web page, which I believe to a larger extent follows the Green Velo route in Poland (and has longer stretches with unpaved road).

The Green Velo routes are great, but you do get some unpaved stretches. My route was based on OrganicMaps routing. So if you use that app, you should find the same route I assume.

From Bisztynek I took the road to Ledlawki, then Grzeda and Swedrowka. Here the road, while still paved, is very bad, lasting all the way to Kowalewo Duze. Onb the 592, turn right, then left when you come to the 590. In Glitajny, you meet the EV 13 Alternative track as well as the Green Velo. Keep following the 590 until you meet the 591, turn right. Follow until Barciany, where you turn left towards Pastwiska and continuing to Srokowo, taking left on the 650. After a while you come to the lake Rydzowka, where there is a nice picknick place - a great feature of the Green Velo routes. No other country I have cycled in has these facilities - great Poland!

Picknick place at lake Rydzowka

This is a lovely area with several lakes, quite popular in Poland by my understanding. Instead of staying here, I need some more km however.

After Wegorzewo, my route keeps following the 650, while the Green Velo and the EV 13 Alternative take a parallel track, which I assume has more unpaved roads.

Finally coming to Banie Mazurski, I'd liked to stay here (˜100km), but there were no facilities. So continuing to Klewiny 6km from the border with Kaliningrad. where I booked a room. A few hard km upward on an unpaved (but not too bad) road, and arriving in a sheep farm in the middle of nowhere, which rents out some rooms, Fun! Fortunately I was prepared to make my own dinner, because there was nothing else here.

And then those storks, cf. yesterday's blog. I said I saw a lot of them, look here.

You need a nest number to find the right one

Overpopulation of the nests?

Hilly today to, 550m of ascent.

106 km in 8:30 hours, active time 6:15.

Total 1775km.

Fun fact: Sun going down early here. One hour earlier than in Naarden, where I started. Interesting to think I cyled one hour of "earth timne". Indeed the Baltic countries, like Finland, are one hour ahead of CET.