Montenegro and Albania in Winter // Dubrovnik to Sarandë // World Bicycle Touring Episode 12

After a long break in Dubrovnik, we rode to Sarandë through Montenegro and Albania. We were lucky and had pretty fantastic weather for late December, although we did get rained on a bit. We struggled with the steep climbs, the bad dogs, and the Albanian mud, but we thoroughly enjoyed this section despite the difficulties.

Overall, Albania may have been the most challenging country we’ve ridden through thus far, with crazy traffic, poor roads, difficult-to-find wild camps, and tons of roadside trash. The people of Albanian people, on the other hand, were by far some of the most welcoming and encouraging of all the people we’ve encountered since starting our ride back in May.

If you’re interested in more route details including GPX tracks, check out our post about bicycle touring Montenegro:

Montenegro: Winter Touring in the Balkans

And the blog post for Albania is here:

Albania: Challenges and High Notes

We’re Andrew and Jenny. We sold all our stuff, built our bicycles, and headed out on an around the world bicycle tour in May of 2021. We started our European tour in Paris, and we’re currently in the Balkans.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rollingexistence

First Episode: https://youtu.be/22LlxlE8EMk

Bicycle gear list below. We’re running a mix of traditional panniers and bikepacking bags.

– 2020 Surly Ogres
– 36h Rohloff Speedhubs
– 36h Son 28 Dynamo hubs
– Ryde Andra 40 rims
– Marathon Mondial 29×2.0 DD tires
– Avid BB7 brakes, 200mm front, 160mm rear
– Sinewave Cycles Beacon headlight/USB charger
– Brooks B17 (Andrew) Terry Butterfly Century (Jenny) saddles
– Rogue Panda custom frame bags
– Ortlieb Back Rollers Plus rear panniers
– Bedrock Bags Hermosa front panniers
– Tubus racks
– Planet Bike AL fenders

Camera Gear:

– Fuji X-T4
– Fujinon 16-80 mm f/4
– Fujinon 23 mm f/2 prime
– GoPro Hero 8 Black
– Rode VideoMic Pro
-Mavic Mini 1 drone

Music Credits:
Dillan Witherow x Sitting Duck – First Snow
– Provided by Lofi Records
– Watch: https://youtu.be/AMt-d4ivfL8
– Download/Stream: https://fanlink.to/BeforeSunrise

Chris Mazuera x tender spring – Giving, Not Taking
– Provided by Lofi Records
– Watch: https://youtu.be/83hRBa6wPgQ
– Download/Stream: https://fanlink.to/Perspective-EP

Chris Mazuera x tender spring – Winter’s Kiss
– Provided by Lofi Records
– Watch: https://youtu.be/ETevY6CLc_w
– Download/Stream: https://fanlink.to/Perspective-EP