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Dolzhanka. Day 1.

By Vladimir Zakharov

There is really something to `love` about this darn `Global Warming`. We need to stop measuring wind speed in knots but measure it in `girls`!

So, 4300 km and two and a half days our world was shrunk to the size of the steel box called `Isuzu Midi` (we called it `Mitjok` of course), and now it is over!


Ural, dear, I love you so! I did not have such fun in a long time. Artillery range with shell-holes of all kinds and calibers is called a federal highway due to some weird mistake. Night, rain, trucks in the ditch - it is all as usual, looks like Russia and good roads are incompatible forever.

We have finally arrived to the Azov Sea, Dolgaja Spit, Dolzhanka Village.

The South of Russia is not very friendly yet. It was warmer in Siberia. It is 9-10C of heat during the day and intermittent wind with gusts from under the storm clouds up to 15 m/s (30 knots).

The rain is over, the Sun is showing and my girlfriend wants to take a walk.. She opens the door of the cabin to scout the weather and instantly is thrown out into the nearest puddle by the gust! Yeah, the wind speed has increased. That is how we shall calibrate the wind in one `girl` and shall wait for summer kiting season opening until tomorrow. The forecast promises `global warming` and less wind.

In the meantime there is 4-5 kites flying around the Dolgaja Spit and around 10 wind surfers. Not too many people have come here this year, that is unusual!

The Surf Shelter camping where we live has surpassed all expectations - so far the difference between advertisement and reality is to reality's advantage!

Rustler Ice

Here is the picture to illustrate the kind of ice described by Barney Kenney in the previous post. We call it "Rustler" in Novosibirsk. The photo is recent by Vladimir Travnikov. Enjoy the sound of thin ice needles crumbling.

By the way, the ice on the Ob' Sea of Novosibirsk is gone now and Vladimir Zakharov is testing his new Flysurfer kites on Azov Sea. I am planning to translate and post his reports in the next couple days.