Decision
October 23, 2024
While on the ferry, I make a spontaneous decision to change my route through Albania. Instead of taking the SH23 to Kukës and then continuing to Lake Ohrid, I opt for the SH22, which will take me through Tirana and then along the coast southward. The two routes diverge shortly after the ferry, and once I turn in Fierzë, there’s no turning back, as I won’t be able to access the other route by bicycle. My decision is final.
This is the same route a couple I know took just a few weeks ago. They were very enthusiastic about it, and they’re the same couple who had told me about the green border crossing between Bosnia and Montenegro, which I later took as well.
I have now arrived in the "Albanian Alps".
Surrounded by rugged rock walls and towering mountain peaks, I begin my climb up several hundred meters. At first, I enjoy a stunning view of a massive dam. "I hope it doesn’t break," I think to myself. The flood of water that would follow could devastate the valley below. The landscape here is dotted with power lines.
Albania’s electricity production is almost entirely based on hydroelectric power, much of it from these mountains. No wonder these power lines accompany me for the next three days in the mountains. I camp at a high altitude, on a vast meadow.
The next morning, I wake up to a sea of fog blanketing the valley below.
I fill my water bottles at a nearby spring. Fortunately, fresh spring water is plentiful here, though there are no shops. The only signs of human life are a few scattered farmhouses; otherwise, it’s pure nature as far as I can see. I share the road with only a handful of cars. It winds through the mountains, with many ascents and descents along the way.
It’s exhausting. But the breathtaking scenery makes the effort worthwhile.
My next campsite is easily the most beautiful I’ve had on this trip, and it will likely remain one of the most stunning until the end. I pitch my tent near a ridge, with panoramic views of numerous mountain peaks and a winding stretch of the Fan River. As the sun rises, its warm light kisses the mountain tops. I continue riding, feeling grateful for the decision to change my route - it has already proven to be the right choice.
