Stara Palanka-Golubac-Serbia_7-14-14

Rough paving much of the distance

Stara Palanka-Golubac

 25 miles (40 km)

Total so far: 124 miles (199 km)

Ascent: 843 ft (257 m); Descent: 904 ft (275 m); Max Elevation: 391 ft (119 m)

• World > Europe > Serbia > Banatska Palanka  – map
• World > Europe > Serbia > Golubac  – map

Took the ferry across the Danube today to Ram. The ferry to Ram is a barge propelled by a tugboat. We’re going to Golubac which is just five kilometers before the Danube Gorge. There is a steep climb up from the ferry landing. The Ram Fortress is accessed from near the top of this hill.

The paving from Ram is really rough; the road is paved, but it’s so patched up that you bounce all over the place. Traffic, however, is not an issue on this entire route.

When we got to Zatonje, there was a little store where we could buy some supplies. We were surprised to see such nice homes

From Zatonje, the Euro Velo takes a left turn down a very steep rough street then comes out right on the Danube. Still, the paving is broken and rough chip seal. Each stone has its own elevation profile!

Silver Lake is a very pretty spot where the Danube forks into a secondary river channel. There are very nice hotels, very nice restaurants and the Euro Velo 6 now has a legitimate bike path that is smoothly paved. But it only lasted about one kilometer! (From Smederevo to Silver Lake would be a very nice distance if one stayed on the paved highway instead of taking the dikes trail which we took.)

V Gradiste does not have hotels even though the town is quite large. There is an excellent tourist office however with English speaking young ladies to tell you the hotels are in Silver Lake or Golubac!

The final leg to Golubac is still rough paving, but not as bad as previous sections. In the tiny village of Vinci, they have just finished a brand new official bike path through the town. Wide, smooth and removed from traffic by a curb, but it only lasted a kilometer! The fresh fruit stands across the street were a real treat. Peaches were sweet and delicious!

Arriving in Golubac, signs assault you telling about Pilot Company. This is the gas station, bus stop, restaurant and hotel complex at the entrance to town. It is really a very nice complex. We stopped to eat at the restaurant right on the Danube. Be sure to check for a room early on. The restaurant waiters get very busy and told us they were full, but that was not the case. We wandered around town looking for other rooms and found very little, so we came back to Pilot. Turns out they had rooms and were just too busy to show us. They are basic but very clean and have a small kitchen and fridge.