Not only did Chappie have a puncture but my mattress does too meaning that a fairly uncomfortable night’s sleep was had. It was quite cold for once in the night so I slept in my fleece as well as my sleeping bag.
The day got underway at 0700 with a 1 mile walk back along the route to Secanvelope Service. They opened at 8am and I dragged Chappie down the road. The owner turned up at 0745 and ushered me in to the premises. The first thing he asked me was “Coffee?”. It went down very well while I did my best to explain to him what my mission was. He gave a large gasp when he found out.
The day got underway at 0700 with a 1 mile walk back along the route to Secanvelope Service. They opened at 8am and I dragged Chappie down the road. The owner turned up at 0745 and ushered me in to the premises. The first thing he asked me was “Coffee?”. It went down very well while I did my best to explain to him what my mission was. He gave a large gasp when he found out.
The lads worked very quickly on Chappie and I was on my way again with a few souvenirs. The owner gave me a red bag which I’m using to store my Cherry Active sachets in and also a tool kit with a much better spanner than mine. What a lovely bunch of people.
I got to the 5.5 mile point and decided to cook some food. My little stove is really quick and easy to use and I had one of the ration packs - Sausages and beans. I also used the break to have a bit of a tidy out of my plastic box. The plastic box stays outside Chappie at night under the cover of a poncho. It stays near the hatch end of Chappie during the day. It gives me the extra bit of storage that is needed.
I stopped again after 7 miles in Piscolt for a croissant and a bottle of cherry pop. This was a canny little village with loads of locals selling fruit and veg from outside their houses. I would love it if we had this kind of thing back home.
I chatted to an elderly man who spoke decent English. Once again, he had a reaction of almost disbelief when I told him about my journey.
I got lots of waves and thumbs up in Piscolt. These came from the locals as well as the passing cars and lorries.
I noticed a quite magnificent church in Petreşti. I have seen so many churches on my route in Romania. On a clear day I’ve looked east and west and there are so many church steeples to be seen.
I had another short rest at the 14 mile point. It was short because it started raining. I put my poncho on and plodded on towards Carei.
Once I got into the town of Carei after 18 miles I could see very dark skies in the distance and a possible storm. It was very warm but the temperature soon dropped and the wind picked up. Then the rain came!
I rang Donna for a second opinion on the weather. We agreed that I should press on and the rain started.
The final 6 miles were on a very straight road. I was very wary of the traffic due to the standing water left by the shower. A couple of gypsies passed me on their horses and carts.
I was relieved to get through Moftinu Mic and found a place to stay after the village exit. It wasn’t an ideal spot. Too visible and near the main road for my liking. I was even more relived to have managed 25.5 miles today. This means that I only need to run 16 miles tomorrow!
I celebrated with some cooked food. The steak, veg and dumplings ration pack was amazing. I was still hungry so I had a sausage casserole ration pack. That’s probably the most that I’ve had to eat so far in this tour.
It’s started to rain as I’m typing this blog. I’m pleased to say that the modification I made to Chappie (taped up the chimney) on Monday has worked and we are now water tight!
This is the view out of the rear hatch. Time to lock up and hope that there are no disturbances in the night.
Tomorrow is the 10th day of running in Romania. I’m looking forward to some rest days in Satu Mare!
Thank you to those kind people who have made a donation to St Benedict’s Hospice today via https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/rungeordierun The £36,000 barrier is not too far away.
