On the (silk) road

BIKERS Jaume Barrachina and Hans Schneegluth are back in La Nucia after their ‘Silk Road 2016’ adventure.

Setting out on July 30 they travelled 21,300 kilometres by motorbike through 20 countries, emulating the 13th century journey of Marco Polo.

After crossing Europe, Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan as far as the Chinese border Barrachina, who is 62, and 58-year-old Schneegluth, returned by the ancient Silk Road linking Asia and Europe that merchant caravans used more than 2,000 years ago.

During their 59 days on the road the two bikers endured temperatures that ranged from 44 degrees in the Kazakhstan desert to six degrees below in Tajikistan.  They followed paths, roads and motorways that took them from the steppes of Kyrgyzstan, where they camped amongst herds of wild horses and yaks, to the fabled cities of Tashkent, Samarkand and Persepolis. 

La Nucia Town Hall was one of their backers and on their return to the Costa Blanca Barrachina and Schneegluth visited the local mayor Bernabe Cano and sports councillor Sergio Villalba to describe the journey that took the name of La Nucia halfway round the world.