panta rhei – everything flows!
Heraclitic doctrine | Plato | Simplicity
Stand: 7. January 2022
Stage # 1
From Saarbrücken to Venice – The gateway to the Orient
Duration of the trip: 2 weeks
Travel time: March
Countries: Germany, France, Austria, Italy
Special vaccinations: none
Special entry conditions: EU
The route is the easiest way to get to Lake Constance. From there it goes partly over the Bodensee-Königssee-Radweg via Garmisch to Innsbruck. If the weather conditions are right, there is a small loop over the Reschenpass to the border to Bolzano in Italy. Then I ride to the final spurt to the stage destination Venice.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 8.70
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
Stage # 2
From Venice to Istanbul
Travel time: 6-8 weeks
Travel time: March – April
Countries: Italy, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Greece, Turkey
Special vaccinations: TBE
Special entry conditions: EU and entry agreement between the EU and Turkey
Partial stages:
- 2.1 Venice – Budva (Montenegro) | ~ 1,000km
From Venice I hope that the climate will develop more towards “Theo temperatures”. My living temperature actually only starts at 15 degrees outside temperature. I’ve been dreaming of the route through the Balkans along the Adriatic coast for years. - 2.2 Budva – Athens (Greece) | ~ 1,000km
In the second part of the stage I will travel across Greece and then be able to take the obligatory bike photo at the Acropolis in Athens :-) - 2.3 Athens – Istanbul (Turkey) | ~ 1,300km
The last and longest section of the route leads me through eastern Greece, along the Aegean Sea to Istanbul, where I will leave Europe behind on the Bosporus.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 10.64
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
Stage # 3
From Istanbul to Tbilisi (Georgia)
Travel time: 6-8 weeks
Travel time: May – June
Countries: Turkey, Georgia
Special vaccinations: TBE, rabies
Special entry requirements: German passport for Georgia
Partial stages:
- 3.1 Istanbul – Antalya | ~ 1,600km
From Istanbul onwards, my travel planning becomes more and more blurred. The basic idea is to make a generous round trip through Turkey in beautiful weather. I am currently planning a tour of the south. In principle, however, a short route through the north via the capital Ankara is also conceivable. - 3.2 Ankara – Ordu (north coast) | ~ 1,300km
But once across the country also means around 16,000 meters of altitude! - 3.3 Ordu – Tbilisi (Georgia) | ~ 700km
I drive along the coast of the Black Sea across the Georgian border to the capital of Georgia and twin town of my homeland Saarbrücken.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 11.36
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
Stage # 4
From Tbilisi to Tehran and Isfahan (Iran)
Travel time: 4 weeks
Travel time: June / July
Countries: Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran
Special vaccinations: TBE, rabies, hepatitis A.
Special entry conditions: e-Visa and Visa “on arrival”
I decide the final travel route and the countries to be visited on the basis of the local political situation. Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan in particular will have to reassess the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. In case of doubt, I plan to travel back to Turkey via Armenia and then travel to Iran. The current situation around the corona pandemic does not currently allow German nationals to enter Iran by land anyway.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 8.60
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
Stage # 5
From Tehran via Samarkand (Uzbekistan) to Dushanbe (Tajikistan)
Travel time: 4 weeks
Travel time: July / August
Countries: Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
Special vaccinations: TBE, typhoid, rabies, hepatitis A / B, measles
Special entry requirements (Turkemenistan): Transit visa (5 days visa for 500km desert)
Special entry requirements (Uzbekistan): German passport (30 days visa)
In Tehran I have to apply for a visa for Turkmenistan and probably also for China. Turkmenistan is a little adventure in itself. But I will probably only be allowed to spend the 5 days there that the visa allows me. After Uzbekistan there is a highlight of the trip: the Pamir Highway.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 4.53
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
Stage # 6
From Samarkand to Karakol (Kyrgyzstan) via the Pamir Highway
Travel time: 4 weeks
Travel time: July / August
Countries: Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan
Special vaccinations: TBE, typhoid, rabies, hepatitis A / B, Japanese encephalitis, cholera, meningitis
Special entry conditions:
Weather planning becomes very important for the Pamir Highway. I actually want to be out here in August at the latest. In September it can get very cold on 4,000km. The next section through the Taklamakan in China doesn’t necessarily get warmer the closer I get to the winter months.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 13.55
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
Stage # 7
From Xinjiang (China) to Gansu – China Part 1
Travel time: 8 weeks
Travel time: September / October
Countries: China
Special vaccinations: measles, tetanus, typhoid, rabies, hepatitis A / B, Japanese encephalitis
Special entry conditions:
- Application via visa agency on the way (additional passport)
- China
The province of Xinjiang with the Taklamakan Desert will certainly be one of the greatest challenges of my trip.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 4.62
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
Stage # 8
From Longxi to Hanoi (Vietnam) – China Part 2
Travel time: 4 weeks
Travel time: November / December
Countries: China
Special vaccinations: measles, tetanus, typhoid, rabies, hepatitis A / B, Japanese encephalitis
Special entry conditions:
- Application via visa agency on the way (additional passport)
- China
The thing with the climate remains exciting. The average temperatures of the linked climate tables can lead to confusion. Example Kunming: The average daily temperature here is 15 degrees. Since the temperature can drop well below freezing at night, the overall average temperature drops to 7.9 degrees.
This is no higher math, but explains why the average temperature is so far south, still so low.
Key figures
Elevation gain in m / distance in km: 12.2
Travel weather
By clicking on the button, the climate diagram opens in a new window / tab
