Neither of us had ever been bike packing before. I don’t think we quite went in with an early 00s Top Gear “how hard could it be?” approach, but, as I’ll get into, we underestimated it.
This plan started on a Saturday in a hostel in Munich. We had a Sunday evening to kill when everything was closed and some upcoming gaps that needed filling in our travels. We’d definitely talked about both going to North Macedonia and renting bikes, so when we eventually plugged a ten-day cycling itinerary around North Macedonia” into ChatGPT, I don’t think either of us was that surprised. The route seemed simple enough, essentially a big circle starting and ending at the capital city, Skopje. We spent the rest of the evening booking AirBnBs and hotels along the suggested stopping points and working out where was worth pausing for a rest days. I also made some inroads into bike rental. It all came together easily, and by about day two of our walk through Bavaria with our dads, we’d essentially confirmed everything bar a few small details. We continued our travels, excitedly telling anyone who seemed interested what we were about to undertake. Balkan locals all seemed excited by the idea, saying that “Macedonians are incredibly friendly”, and one craft beer bar owner/cyclist in Bulgaria even mentioned how beautiful the country is to cycle in, albeit hilly.
Stage one: Skopje - Veles
When the day arrived for us to leave, we hit our first small snag…our panniers were much smaller than anticipated. Hurriedly, we jettisoned things that we felt we could into our baggage that the rental place was looking after and got down to a bare minimum. A little later than we expected, we began our first leg from Skopje to Veles. One of our shorter days, of a little under 55km. It was also one of our flattest days with 440m of incline. I’m sure to any seasoned cyclists reading this, numbers seem like an afternoon’s jaunt on a Sunday before a few pints and roast. Whilst we are regular cyclists in Bristol, it was already set to be my longest cycle at the very least! A couple of small teething issues (a phone holder falling off and a broken spoke), we made it to Veles in good time - even managing to stop for some chips and a beer with 10km to go - before a potter about the city, some food and bed before the next day.
Stage two: Veles - Prilep
We both woke up feeling pretty good! Our legs were good, and my shoulders were a bit sore as I was adjusting to drop handlebars and minimal saddle-based soreness (luckily, we’d managed to find bike shorts in Skopje). We grabbed a coffee and asked a confused elderly Macedonian man to take a photo of us, and away we went! There was a slight feeling of apprehension as we knew there would be a big climb. We took it slow and stopped/walked if needed to. A stop around halfway in a village for our wraps and a fizzy drink, and away we went, knowing the climb was coming. I’d say 8km after the break, the road ceased to exist, and we were very much on a rocky path, not a road. There had been some heavy rainfall in the days prior, which (despite being told by our bike rental people it was a cycleable road) had washed the path away to something that resembled a riverbed. Of that next 10-15km, if we cycled more than 1-2km of that, I’d be shocked. Morale was as high as it could be despite me nearly running out of water until we found a tap from a mountain spring with 3-4km to go. The view was very much worth the climb as we got a stunning view of Lake Prilep and a massive quarry. The descent, whilst initially rocky and a little precarious, was glorious, especially when we returned to tarmaced roads. We happily arrived in our Airbnb before heading into town and stumbling across a delicious veggie/vegan place called ‘Aura’. Another good feed and a couple of beers later, we headed back to bed with 63.13km and 1,145m of climbing under our belts for the day.
Stage three: Prilep - Bitola
This was set to be our shortest and flattest day, so thankfully, we didn’t need to rush off. Something we both were grateful for after our mountaineering the day prior. We returned to ‘Aura’ for breakfast, which included a free shot of homemade raikia (a spirit found across the Balkans) as a ‘thanks for coming back’. We set off, and it immediately started to pour with rain. Lorries and cars were extremely considerate, and a few even gave a friendly beep of their horns. It cleared up around halfway, and we were in Bitola in good time, which was especially handy as we were staying an extra day for some rest. Bitola is a very unique city for Macedonia as it has a long central boulevard with bars, cafes and restaurants lining it. Perfect for people watching. We noticed about three recurring groups/types of people: lots of fathers with their children, many adult siblings out for a walk and an extremely high number of twins (both adult and child). Who’s to say that this was an accurate representation of Bitola or the same phenomenon as if you get a new car and then see that same car everywhere? We spent the majority of the day off exploring the Turkish Bazaar, some Roman ruins and (of course) more people watching. As we came back to our Airbnb to do some bike maintenance for the next stage, our host greeted us with a bottle of wine to say ‘thanks for staying’, which made the chore of pumping tyres and oiling chains more bearable. That was until, in a very well-meaning move, our host broke our pump mid-inner tube change (Elen’s bike had picked up a puncture)...
Stage four: Bitola - Lake Ohrid
Luckily, our host knew the guy who ran the local bike shop (he seemed to know everyone), so we arrived at opening to buy a new pump before heading off. In all the hurry, we’d neglected to check the inner for any debris that may have caused said puncture. So, a little over 3km in, another puncture, this time on the side of the road. After negotiating some confusing tyre levers and a new pump (which didn’t seem to work well), we were off again. A long, slow, and steady climb which culminated in a bit more off-roading (nothing like stage 2) and then a fantastic descent saw us stop in a town called Resen for coffee, chips and a fizzy drink. The next couple of hours saw us cycling along a main road and up a 5% gradient for the last 5km that culminated with us reaching an altitude of 1,200m. As the old adage goes, “what goes up, must come down”, and for the final 10km we were truly rewarded for our climb. A glorious descent of the mountain with lush green trees and stunning vistas all around. A proper “wow, what an incredible adventure” moment. We finally arrive at Lake Ohrid after a 77.2km ride and 1,022m of climbing. We’d luckily decided to have a second rest day at Ohrid, so had a bite to eat, some beers and bed for a lie-in. The next day saw us exploring the old town, visiting some churches, a fort (where whilst sat in the battlements, we heard a man do the loudest fart from down below that either of us ever heard), having a wine tasting and a sunset cruise around the lake.
We woke up the next morning to torrential downpour. Biblical, some might say. Ultimately, we decided to stay in Ohrid an extra day and - thankfully - our AirBnB host didn’t have guests staying that night, making this challenge a lot less challenging. We did, however, need to find a way to get from Ohrid to Kikevo (the place we were due to be cycling to that day). Biljana (our host) came to the rescue again and called the bus company, who confirmed when the buses would be the next day and that we were able to to our bikes on so long as we took the front wheels off. It was disappointing not to be able to cycle in one unbroken line around the country, but it was the right call. It did mean we were then able to stay, chill out, and we even managed to see some of a Balkans folk festival that was there. Stage five didn’t look to be the most memorable day, so ultimately, we had a more enjoyable time as a result. We ended up going for dinner at a stunning restaurant with some amazing sunset views over the lake. Again, making the best of the situation.
Stage six: Kikevo - Gostivar
A very early start to buy bus tickets and confirm we could get our bikes on meant we had a coffee and breakfast by the lake, and the early morning sun shone. The lake looked so still and peaceful. A few hours later and one bus ride (with a grumpy driver who wasn’t super keen about the bikes being on there), we arrived in Kikevo. As we’d suspected, there wasn’t much there, so skipping a stage once more confirmed to be the right move. The day itself was set to be fairly short. Only 45km of cycling. The challenge, however, was that the first 24km of that was uphill. The first 10km were more gentle, but for the next 12km we went from 600m above sea level to 1,200m. Again, seasoned cyclists might read this and scoff. Combine the heat, our relative lack of experience and busy main roads, however, one can see how this felt daunting. Once more, ‘slow and steady’ was our friend. It was tough going. Combined with my front wheel deciding to squeak, it felt like the climb would never end. Motivation was fairly high, but after a pause to oil my wheel, the final 4 km felt like they would take forever. All of a sudden, a petrol station, a cafe and view viewpoint came into view. Essentially, as our starting point had changed from our hotel to the bus station, we’d lost 2km off our cycle. Honestly, reaching the summit 2km sooner than we expected was the highlight of the cycle for me up to that point. A well-earned fizzy drink later, we were treated to a technical albeit stunning descent for the remainder of the day. Gostivar also didn’t have much going on, so after a meal of noodles, veggies and vegan schnitzel, we had an early night ready for our final stage.
Stage seven: Gostivar - Skopje (via Matka Canyon)
On paper, this day looked quite long (70ish KM) and boring as Strava had made a dull - albeit flat - route along the highway. As it was the final day and we didn’t need to drop our bikes off until 10 pm, we decided to do two things: add an extra stop in Matka Canyon and use the Google Maps walking route, which seemed to take us through villages instead of along the highway. Now the canyon only added about 5km, and we’d initially planned on visiting before the cycle, but decided to save it for the end. Google Maps walking had treated us well on the trip, too. As we set off, we knew we’d made the right call as we cycled through one nice little Macedonian village after the other with kind but puzzled onlookers waving warmly at us. Admittedly, at one point, the road did cease to be a road and was more of a mountain bike track (which was a fun change of pace with some amazing views and wildlife).
This stretch culminated in navigating some deep, muddy puddles made by tractors, so we arrived at our lunch stop, greeting the locals with our laddened up bikes, English/Welsh accents and muddy legs. The baffled patrons were welcoming, but I can only imagine what they we saying in Macedonian. At the table next to us, an older man who seemed to hold some sway in the group asked where we were from and then said he lived in Denmark but was from the village, being home on business. He went inside as the man he was sitting with (presumably his driver) got his brand new Mercedes SUV. When he reemerged, he told us that he’d paid for our coffees and to have a great rest of our trip! This man had given particular instructions when the waiter refused a tip, and even brought us a glass of blueberry juice each.
The next stretch to the canyon was along the highway we’d tried our best to avoid. It was 20km, so nothing too far, and well worth it when we descended into Matka. It felt like one of those places that, if it had been in a more tourist-trampled track, the prices would have been 5 times as much and far more crowded. Whilst it was by no means quiet, the canyon was pristine and our boat ride for 30 minutes cost 400 Denar total (about £5.50/$7.50). A truly fantastic place which you’ll have to wait to see photos of, as I used my film camera. We had a quick bite to eat before starting the final 10km. This last hour or so was a perfect ending. The weather was warm but not too warm, it was largely flat and downhill, and we cycled through some more residential areas with one stage a group of small children cheering us up to the top of a (very) small hill. Much like how the Giro d’Italia ended at the Collesium and the Tour de France ends at the Champ-Elysee, the inaugural Giro d’Macedonia ended at its equivalent: Macedonia Square in front of a gigantic statue of Alexander the Great. We were done.
I’m writing this a few weeks later in Montenegro (although an initial draft was done in Serbia, but I didn’t save the last paragraph before I went to sleep) and have had some time to reflect on this adventure. I had two main thoughts come up. One, I didn’t realise how much I needed a challenge. This trip has been great and relaxing, which was the aim, but having to work out navigation, bike issues, and all the other logistics for an unsupported trip was the challenge I didn’t know I needed. And two, bike packing and going on slow adventures is a great way to spend time. This time was with Elen, and I honestly couldn’t have done it without her. We’re already thinking about how we can squeeze a shorter trip in somewhere before we go home. I think the fact that it didn’t feel like we needed to be anywhere at certain times, and could walk/push our bikes if needed. I know I’ll be doing a solo trip somewhere before the end of the year…