getting ready.

OK any time now the next adventure will start. I am going to repeat the ride I made in 2004 from Southern Greece to Northern Greece. My plan is to try and chronicle the changes that have happened since the last ride. Obviously the fires of two years ago will have made a big difference. The floods that are happening now are obviously connected with the destruction caused by the fires then.. though...as I know, those are not the only reasons that the landscape is changeing so much.
George is gearing up for the start by eating as much as he can.
WELCOME newcomer... BLING. Bling has been on one long ride already. It was the experience she enjoyed most in her wholelife. When she saw me with the saddle bags (I`m making new ones for on the saddle, and patching up the old ones for in front of the saddle)she was filled with joy, and sits near them all the time, so I can`t remove them without her knowing.
Above is a photo that says it all about the relationship between Bling and George. George LOVES Bling because she isnt afraid of anything and runs ahead clearing the route of dangers- or at least proving that what he perceives as dangers aren`t THAT bad. Wildboar? Turkeys? spookey paper bags? Bling fears none of them. So our progress has many less halts and spinning round from George, and we get along much more smoothly and efficiently.
The other photo shows some new kit: my old thermarest mattress, which was the most wonderful thing in the world has been replaced by the featured thermarest neoair - which is VERY light, but the reviews all said it was easy to puff up.. NOT my experience, but - too late now. It cost arm and leg, and I`ll just have to get dizzy everyday.
Next to it is a JackWolfskin gossamer (isn`t gossamer a kind of condom?) tent which weighs hardly anything, is impressively waterproof - easy to put up and has a mosquito net, which you can use alone if it is a beautiful night and you want to look at the stars. It - at 1/2 the price of a new bivvy bag and weighing very little more than my now leaky OLD bivvy bag- will give me more flexibility about camping in rotten weather than I had with the bivvy.
Also featured in the picture is a NEW Anavasi map of Giona. I bought a whole load of maps from a shop called "Traveller" in Thessaloniki. The people in there were unexpectedly wonderful. They didn`t patronise me by pretending that maps that I KNOW are hopelessly inaccurate are any use. They gave me some interesting pointers about how to tell if a map actually has been properly updated, and someone has actually CHECKED stuff, or whether it is just a copy of an old map.
Last time I was on Giona I did get lost even though I had a map, and, I am sure, even armed with Anavasi`s latest best effort, I will get lost this time too.Anyway I`m OK with being lost on mountains. BUT what I said to "Traveller" and I also say to blog readers is that if you don`t like being lost, then your best chance of NOT being lost in Greece IS an Anavasi map. Some people mention that the layout of "Road "maps is very clear - and this is true.. but if they lead you to a dead end or a ravine because they havent been checked...then you are ****ed - albeit clearly ****ed. The photo of the end of a clearly marked road from a "Road" map makes this point -clearly.