The Baltics 26 July - 1 August

July 26 - July 27.   Tallinn, Estonia

We rode 90 km to Kapellskar to catch a ferry to Paldiski, Estonia. Cost $140 for the 8 and a half hour ride. I was so glad that we followed their instructions of arriving at least 2 hours before departure. Our ferry started sailing one hour earlier than the listed time! I have never seen anything like that before. So you will miss the boat if you arrive one hour before departure time! Incredible!!! So Estonia must follow the Russian system where schedule time is only a guide.

The next day was spent visiting the old town.

July 28 – July 29   Riga, Latvia

We had a minor accident. I made a sudden stop at a red light. Alan did not expect it,  and pulled hard on the brakes, and skidded a couple of metres and slammed into my side pannier. He had a dislocated side indicator, and a cracked headlight protector. My side pannier had a cut mark, and was twisted.  I managed to twist it back, and it seems  to be OK for now. I will only know if it will let in water next time I ride  through heavy rain.

Riga also has a nice old town with churches, cathedrals, etc.

July 30 – July 31   Vilnius, Lithuania

The day did not start off too well. Alan left his GPS on his bike over 2 days in Riga, and this had flattened his Lithium Ion battery. So his bike wouldn’t start. We borrowed a jumper lead from the hotel reception, and use my bike’s battery to jump start his bike. Our ride to Vilnius was high speed and trouble free. We checked into the Downtown forest Hostel and Camping which is an interesting place with a bit of hippies atmosphere. They had a 7 pm  free Jazz concert at the back of the hostel. We headed out to the old town for dinner,  and when we got back the  concert had already finished. The next day was spent walking around the old town again. The old town here is not as impressive as those in Tallinn or Riga. Cars are allowed in.

August 1 Riga,Latvia