The Rhodes countryside is full of contradictions; it’s a mixture of farms and dry scrubland, rough hills and beautiful bays, luxury resorts and poor farmer’s shacks.  I’ve been doing a bit of “exploring” over the past couple of days… some of it intentional… some not so much!

Yesterday was the first day of a new week at the resort so a new bunch of guests were finding their bearings.  The organised rides weren’t particularly exciting, so I decided to head off in a different direction, to see if I could make it to Faliraki.

I had no huge desire to actually make it there… but it is the next town up the coast, and could offer an interesting challenge.  A couple of headlands stood in my way, and the main route is via a dual carriageway, all of which needed to be avoided.  My directions were severely limited, so I was very much on my own.

Place of Interest #1: Olympic-Sized Swimming Pool
I hope they checked the Changing Rooms were empty before boarding it up!

Tarmac was quickly replaced by gravel.  At times, the terrain was extremely rough, real off-road (although to be fair, these were the times when it turned out I had gone wrong!).

I’m not the best at looking around when I’m cycling, preferring instead to keep my eyes on the road in front of me, however the search for a route forced me to raise my head from time to time.

I happened across a few places of “interest”… post-apocalyptic scenes of developments, abandoned long ago by civilisation and now frequented only by pigeons and graffiti artists.  I also found a gun turret from a tank, apparently discarded on a hillside, an improvised children’s attraction perhaps?

Places of Interest #2: Gun Turret
Fun for all the family!

I found myself in a few places in which I was extra careful not to have an accident, the sorts of places that it felt like I wouldn’t be found for days.  Places I’d be competing with feral cats and stray dogs for food… there appeared to be plenty of competition!

Places of Interest #3: Anthony Quinn Bay
Looks better on the way down than the way up!

I didn’t make it to Faliraki.  Instead I stopped at Anthony Quinn Bay, a beautiful spot that seems out of place with its surroundings.

I made it back safely, and much more efficiently once I knew the route.  As it turned out, I was a day early with my concerns of getting lost and fending for myself…