Omsk to IrkutskeIn my last report it stated there was a mere 2000kms to Lake Baikal and UlaanUde. Well I was wrong as the distance was closer to 3000kms. And the road did not improve either. The general rule was after 15kms of excellent new pavement it was followed by 60kms of poor surface and a further 30kms of the worst 'sealed' roads you can imagine. Yes I did achieve 500kms in one day and it was hard constant work. One stretch of 40kms I recall travelling in ...

Vologda to OmskI arrived in Omsk having travelled some 10,000 kms since leaving the UK a month ago. Despite the horrendous roads in Russia at times the Mule had performed faultlessly and to date I have not used my tool kit for anything bar an oil change in Estonia. It was not without plenty of warning from previous travellers that I would face suspension and frame failure problems on these roads. So far my preparation and attention to these issues had paid off fo...

After taking some more wrong turns on the motorway out of St Petersburg I was presented with no alternative but to settle down and accept that some of these roads would be bad, very bad (10%) and good (50%). Most of the drivers learned their skills by riding the Metro in St Petesburg. If it will get to 100kph in 4 secs, that is acceptable. Apart from having to constantly watch for crevasses and holes and rough bits the trip to Vologda took 1 1/2 days with a camp ...

Its the weekend in Saint Petersburg and everyone is out prominading the streets in their best with their best. This place is the jewel of northern Europe and from what I have seen rarely visited by the west this early in the spring. The locals however love it! The warm sun and cool air is perfect and no better place to be seen but Neviskiy Prospekt. It was literally teeming with thousands people on Saturday. Families, daughters and mothers, sons and fathers and L...

I have spent the last hour trying to control a PC that speaks Russian. Sorry but the photo download became difficult. I departed Vosu in northern Estonia 2 days ago after enjoying a peaceful break with saunas and an entire campground to my self. Already the jibbers was setting in in anticipation of getting into Russia as it had been so hard and time consuming and expensive to negotiate. Narva-Joesuu was a small but touristy place to stay before my last swansong ...