After a couple of days the realisation that I would not manage through China this year has finally settled and with a heavy heart I started thinking about my route options.
I need to be motivated and enthusiastic about where Im heading otherwise I find it very difficult to keep pedalling, keep getting wet, smelling bad and verbally abusing the wind.
Visas are not my only problem, weather is too. I could head East through Russia to the sea but its gets cold and if I didnt die first by being eaten by a bear or dissolved in a bottle of vodka, my tyres will shatter when it reaches minus 45deg call me a wimp if you like.
Ive spent the last two days looking at options and alternatives and Ive narrowed it down to roughly two ideas:
Route One
Continue my route Crimea -> Russia -> Georgia then Armenia ->Turkey ->Iran.
Whats interesting about this route is that I could delay in Iran killing time seeing much of the country that Im interested in, this was a truly civilised country once and the people are still. Visa extensions in country are reportedly easy to get and I could then head to China via Pakistan but this bypasses most of the silk route. There is the possibility of going via Mashad but it could still be wintry there in early spring.
Route two
My other idea is to head through Western Ukraine where if the people Ive met so far are any indication the locals are fabulous. This has the distinct negative that my beer belly will unquestionably get worse but the following leg should knock that out of me. Then after a quick blast through Moldova down through Bulgaria ->Turkey avoiding Stabul (been there dodged that traffic) and into Syria & Jordan hopefully making Petra.
I would then turn tail and head back but this time cross central Turkey -> Armenia -> Georgia -> Azerbaijan and would be once again after a pause for Visas probably in Tbilisi be back on the route Id planned early/ late the spring.