Map

Woke up around 7:00. Checked the weather—it looked cool. The temperature would max out around 21 °C, with a light S/SW wind, so really good. Since breakfast was included, I went for it. The downside was that I came a bit late, so there wasn’t much to choose from, but there were still scrambled eggs, some cheese, and bread. After breakfast, I paid for the hotel, went back to the room, and started packing. I was outside around 9:45, did some minor tweaks, and was ready to go.

The temperature was 19 °C—very good. Ten minutes into the ride (9:56, 1.6 km), I reached a railway crossing. You might wonder why I keep mentioning these—it's because I planned the tour route near railways so I could bail out by train if needed due to bike issues or illness. Thankfully, that hasn’t been necessary so far. Traffic was a bit higher—it was Monday—but I expected it to calm down later. So far, no wrong turns (but it was so-so), though Garmin sometimes makes it tricky to judge which right turn it means—you're not sure if it is the turn you see to your right or the one 10 m later. By 10:18 (7.5 km), the first hill of the day was behind me. Road surface was mostly OK; the rough bits were manageable. At 10:43 (15.6 km), I saw a worrying “road closed in 3.5 km” sign but I wasn't sure what should I think of it. Since there was no “dead end” sign, I hoped it was passable by bike. Detouring via a busy road didn’t appeal. Signs kept appearing every 0.5–1 km. At 10:49 (17.2 km), the first short cycleway started—only lasted five minutes, but still nice. In Lanškroun, I navigated around the closed road without issue. So my worries was unfounded. Another cycleway started in Lanškroun. At 11:08 (21.2 km), I took a quick break to avoid getting a sore butt to eat some snack and drink some water. After Rudoltice, traffic eased. At 11:26 (25.2 km), climbing started and I felt the heat. I removed my headband and considered switching to a short-sleeve merino base layer—but downhill stretches still felt chilly, so I just rolled up the sleeves. By 12:00 (32.2 km), it was around 20 °C and I was more seriously considering the short sleeve swap. After passing Dolní Dobrouč at 12:30 (39.5 km), another cycleway began, and I planned to eat at a shelter along it.

At 12:42 (43.2 km), I stopped for lunch and ate my last canned meal—no need to carry it further since my next accommodation has a restaurant. Originally, I had considered pizza in Ústí nad Orlicí but wasn't sure if they had outdoor seating; I didn’t want to leave the bike unattended. But then I realized I still have the can so the choice was made. Half an hour later I was riding again. The cycleway ended near Libchavy. Ahead was the biggest climb of the day. It was 21 °C by then, and I had already changed into the short-sleeve base layer during lunch. By 13:49 (50.3 km), traffic increased, a sign I was nearing my destination. After the final climb, I expected a descent with just one small ascent. While climbing, I reminded myself to wipe the chain, as I hadn’t done it since Ostrava. Hopefully, I’d remember during the rest day. During the last ascent near Svídnice I passed some farm vehicles, then I finally approached Kostelecká Lhota.

I arrived at the hotel around 14:41, right on time for check-in. I left the bike chained to the stairs—secure enough, as the receptionist assured me they’d keep an eye on it and the main door is locked at night. In the room, I drank all my remaining water, showered, and washed some clothes, knowing I had two nights here so they'd dry in time. I charged my GoPro, phone, and other devices. Around 17:00, I went to the restaurant and had vegetarian tartar, sour soup, halibut, and a non-alcoholic Primátor Tchyně beer—pretty good. After dinner, I returned to the room, listened to an audiobook, and went to sleep.

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The day off brought unpleasant weather—windy, with showers and a temperature around 15 °C. I went for a walk in the nearby forest before noon, but rain started after half an hour, so I returned and took a nap to catch up on sleep. Around 13:30, I went for lunch at the restaurant.

In the afternoon, I planned the next day's route—stops, meals, etc. I totally forgot about my chain. During the previous day I was also thinking that the oil in my Rohloff hub need a change. One should change the oil at least once a year or after the 5 000 km, whichever comes first (I almost always change the oil during September but I've skipped it last year because the oil should be changed when there is warm outside - because of oil viscosity and I do it outside - and in September it isn't as warm as in April/May. So I decided I'll postpone it to the April and will do it in April from now on regularly. Unfortunately the April weather wasn't warm enough while I was at home so I postponed it to May). Maybe I could change it in the Prague? But I'll need the tools for the oil change that I don't have with me. I could buy those but what to do with them? What will I do with the spent oil? There is enough unused garbage and spent oil on this planet even without them. So mentally I pressed the "discard though" button as you do in Disco Elysium. And it was gone.

After planning and some audiobook time, I went to dinner. The restaurant was almost full, there were only one table left, where I was seated. This time I ordered beef broth and the vegetarian "meatballs" which were really good. Overall the food in Hostinec U Hubálků was great. And because it was day off I treated myself with special ale. I don't remember what it was precisely but has something to do with lager so it might be lager IPA (lager IPA is like saying summer snow - just kidding of course).

Money spent: 102.78 EUR (Accommodation x2) + 46.82 EUR (Food + restaurant)