Gavar

I'm not getting out of the campground very fast. The sun comes up over the ridge very late and I would like to have my tent dry before I pack it up. This leads to an invitation for a cup of coffee with the French couple, And that turns into a wonderful 2-hour conversation in the sun under a tree on the edge of the canyon.

It is a transportation day for me. I need to get in position for tomorrow's bike ride over a ridge which will be a great adventure but in order to do so I need a taxi to reposition. This is a good idea because this is a big trucking route with lots of climbing. And I missed a very smokey nasty 2 km long uphill tunnel. The driver is great as we stop in a few places, he is proud to show off his country.

By Sevan I get dropped off and I ride the final 35 km along the coast of the lake which sits at 2,000 m altitude surrounded by peaks.

In Gavar I join Manuel, a Spanish 60 year old with a Chinese girlfriend, for dinner. He is a psychologist who has written seven books. He is extremely current on politics and social pressures in Europe and we have fascinating conversation about what is happening in the world and what direction we can extrapolate from what we see happening.Read more