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| Lilac growing beside the track |
After a substantial breakfast with spirals of flaky, cheesy pastry I set off to follow the published E4 route on waymarkedtrails.org and various Apps. This crossed a tree covered ridge. Initially progress was good but degenerated. Much of the track had been turned into a ditch filled with last year's leaves, the result of erosion by water. Fallen trees made additional obstacles. Then the route took a "path" to the left. Clearly no-one had used this route for many years as it was overgrown and progress was difficult. If there had been a hundred metres to push through I would have found a way around, but there was over a kilometre to what the map claimed was a bigger track. In addition, the maps indicated that there was no path or track at all later on. I decided to retreat and follow a route along roads and larger tracks to the town of Boljevac. This deviation took me to the west of the ridge, through a quarry and the village of Mirovo. At Boljevac I stopped for a coffee and bought a pastry containing two types of cheese and ham for my lunch. After this small town, tracks and gravel roads took me north. I passed the domed kilns made of brick used to make charcoal.
This morning the sun had shone, but after lunch black clouds gathered. Thunder boomed and rippled around the hills and I could see the slanting gray streaks of rain falling in the distance. It seemed a pattern that thunder and rain was more likely in the later afternoon. I hoped the storm would stay away from me and initially it did, but then it changed its mind. Lightening began to strike near me, the loud crack of thunder closely following the white flash of the electrical discharge. On occasions I could see the lightening forks reaching the ground or crossing between clouds. I was glad to be among trees which might not give complete protection against lightening but was better than being exposed in the open. The rain, which started as a few spots, turned torrential transforming the track I was on into a muddy river. I took shelter for a while among trees, which provided little protection, nor did my waterproofs. Despite rain jacket and over-trousers my tee shirt and trousers were soon soaked and my underpants followed. Water filled my boots. I lost concentration on my navigation, missed a turn and had to retrace my steps. The air temperature was dropping fast and my wet clothes made me very cold. As there were clearings in the woods I decided to pitch early at 4:30 pm. Once out of the rain in my tent, I pulled off my wet clothes, wrung out as much water as I could, and snuggled into the dry warmth of my sleeping bag. The rain and thunder eventually stopped and the birds have begun to sing. A dog is barking and I can hear voices but doubt I will be disturbed on such a wet evening.
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