Day 17. Ostrava - Nový Jičín 53 km (801 km)

My first day in the Czech republic since 2014. The air was cold and clear after last nights storm. The weather forecast was 15-18C and some showers for the next 4-5 days.

First project of the day is to find an ATM and get some cash. My GPS shows that there are several in town but none where I am so I ride in to town and get some cash. After that I find my way back to the river where the bike track runs.

The country side is very quiet, the route is along small roads and gravel tracks. It’s really cold, maybe 15C or so. There are lots of up and down, completely different than Poland.

After a while I see the mountains in the distance, there will be lots of mountains over the coming weeks. First battle will be to reach Bratislava, looking at topographic maps it looks like there might be some hills to conquer.

When I see the Coop I remember that I saw it back in 2014 as well. I don’t know if its the same brand as back in Sweden. I stopped to refill water and have some bread.

I am tired so I have decided to have a day of rest in Nový Jičín, I noticed this morning that I was hungry at breakfast. Probably a sign of that the body is working better in "cold" climate. It’s been very hard with these temperatures around 30C every day.

So now next couple of days will be cold, then perhaps back to more normal temperatures around 25C.

I wash some clothes at the hotel and have two excellent meals in the hotels popular restaurant.

The hotel is very nice, the cost is less than a youth hostel in Stockholm. Czech republic seems to be slightly more expensive than Poland.