Sunday July 13, 2014, 20 miles (32 km) – Total so far: 3,793 miles (6,104 km)

Saturday July 12, 2014 20 miles bicycle and 30 miles van We had an even earlier start today and were anticipating reaching the city of Akhaltsikhe about 50 miles away. But the road had other plans for us as after a few miles the paved section disappeared and was replaced by heavily rutted rocks and gravel. We thought that this would eventually revert back to a road but it didn’t. Jocelyn has much more experience with this type of cycling so I was struggling with my heavy load and by the time we reached a shelter for lunch I was hurting. We continued many more miles but 6 hours later we had only covered 20 miles and were beat. As we entered a small village we asked around and found a person that spoke excellent English. He told us that the conditions get worse as many parts are washed away and down to just barely a lane.

There are many passenger vans that traverse east and west across these mountains. They are usually jammed packed with people sitting on others lap. We look at them as hilarious due to the jamming and as they pass us they friendly honk and stick their heads out of the windows and smile probably thinking who is nuts enough to ride a bicycle across this area. We inquired about a van possibly headed east that we could get a ride on and the word went out that two Americans with bikes were looking for a ride. At our rate this route would have taken us another 2-3 days. We visited a small market for a few cold drinks and by the time we came out a group excitedly waved us to a dilapidated van. Before we knew it a group had manhandled Jocelyn’s bike onto the rooftop rack while I hurriedly removed my rear panniers. My bike was then hauled to the rack and they were both tied down. There were two (actually one) seat left in the back row so we took that as everyone stared at us. We settled down for a long bumpy ride so I opened the just purchased beer and enjoyed. A few miles later the driver ran over a particularly large rut and there was a very loud bang. The van was now sagging on the right rear and seemed un-drivable but we continued to a “mechanic’s shop” where the van was driven onto a precarious ramp. The problem was a leaf spring suspension bracket had broken so work was started to fix this. A few older ladies stayed inside as the van was perched on a pair of ramps supported by old tires and rocks. An hour later we were back on the road. Several hours later we arrived in Akhaltsikhe and found a cheap motel. Prices are getting very inexpensive and .5 liter beer is now about a dollar, dinner for two about $10, and a motel $24.

Sunday July 13, 2014 Weather day We awoke in town of Akhaltsikhe to rain that stopped around 9. Across the street from us is Rabati Castle that we wanted to explore. After a few hours thunderstorms set in so we decided to sit for the day and will continue our journey east through Georgia tomorrow.