Balakən - Şəki

It is raining on and off on the night of Monday, July 29, 2019. Around seven o'clock, I am driven out of the tent, I have breakfast and feed the dog. Then I slowly start preparing to leave. It takes a while for the tent and all the clothes to dry, and we can only start after half past eleven. I pay the camping fee for the last 6 days at the tourist center at the Lagodekhi National Park and go down to the village with Rango. There I find a small restaurant and take a coffee break and have one last khachapuri before we head to Azerbaijan. Fortunately, the road to the east is lined with many trees, and we can mostly walk in the shade. Before the border crossing, I exchange a few Lari for Manat, the next ATM is about a day's march away in Azerbaijan. The dog is already struggling with the heat at the border, and after a successful entry, we pause for a while in the shade of a small snack bar. I have coffee and Rango has water. Then we continue east, unfortunately often in the blazing afternoon sun. Shortly after Poştbinə, we have to pause again, the dog needs to cool down. The village seemed quite sleepy. A few houses with gardens, a market, a few cows and horses, that's all I saw. After about an hour of acclimatization, we can continue. In the late afternoon, just before six, I fill up my water reserves at a small restaurant and have a conversation with the owner. I am allowed to camp on the property. So after enjoying a cold beer, I set up my camp in the shade. I can shower and provide a small dinner for Rango and myself. Before going to bed, I am invited for tea.

On Tuesday morning, we have breakfast around seven-thirty, I pack up my backpack, and we can continue our journey around nine. After about an hour, we reach Balakən, and I leave the dog and the backpack in the central park of the small town. I organize something to eat and a coffee before I search for an Azerbaijani SIM card. In the meantime, I take a little stroll in the city, everything quite unspectacular. Men in parks drink tea and play board games, there are many small shops, a mosque, and several administrative buildings. Back with Rango, I am invited to the terrace of a tea house by a young man for tea, beer, and snacks. I use the Wi-Fi, and Rango is offered water. I am not allowed to pay for the goodies. In the late afternoon, I go with Rango to the train station, the train to Şəki is supposed to leave around seven. On the way, I buy a hat and sunglasses, both seem appropriate given the weather conditions. It is about 35°C with clear skies. I also replenish our food supplies. At the train station, after some back and forth, I finally manage to buy tickets for the evening train to Baku. At first, they said there were no tickets left. But with the help of a young couple from Kazakhstan, I find available seats online, and the lady at the ticket counter tries again. Because of Rango, I have to reserve a two-person cabin. We are then in the train around half past eight, which apparently had all day to heat up on the platform. A sauna on wheels. Shortly after eleven, we reach the stop south of Şəki, and after consulting with a few train station employees, I set up our camp directly on a small lawn at the platform. After having tea with the guys from the train station, I wash myself at a nearby faucet, and we go under the tarps shortly after midnight.

Wednesday, July 31, 2019, 7:20 a.m., I am woken up by the train to Balakən screeching to a halt at the platform. Time to have breakfast and pack up the tent. I have to wait a bit until the ticket office opens at nine o'clock, and I can buy two tickets to Yevlax. Actually, a railway employee from the previous evening offered me to leave Rango and the backpack on his property. But it seems that the good man has gone home without me. So I leave the dog in the shade at the train station building, give him water, and head to Şəki. The city is about 20 km from the train station. On the way, I can ride in a taxi for a small fare (1 Manat) to the bus station. From there, I stroll into the center and take a break in a small park. Then I go to the old caravanserai. Already some houses on the way there have a quite oriental impression. On the caravanserai premises, there are several museums, craft shops, and an art gallery. All very interesting. Then I stroll back to the town and then to its southern end. In my map, something palace-like was marked, but I couldn't find anything. Then I look for another Lada that takes me in the direction of the train station. In the late afternoon, I am back with the dog. He seemed to have behaved admirably. Good dog. I treat myself to a little shower at a slightly distant faucet for cooling down. Back at the train station, bad news awaits me. I have to return my tickets. I can't travel with other passengers with Rango, and a separate cabin is not available. I almost saw it coming in the morning, but it's still annoying. To catch the next train, I would have to spend another day near Şəki, which seems pointless to me. So I decide to cover a few more kilometers to the south in the evening. So after dinner, we set off again around eight-thirty. Despite the absence of sun, it is oppressively warm, and Rango struggles with the heat. Even walking along the highway in the dark is not enjoyable. We almost managed to hitch a ride in a transporter to Mingəçevir, but when Rango emerged from the darkness, the offer was withdrawn in no time. After about 10 km, I finally set up the tent on a small path just before Böyük Dəhnə. Before going to bed, I am bothered by a young taxi driver who apparently has some mischief in mind. After threatening with violence, the pig retreats, and I can go to sleep.