The routing for today was to reach the town of Novi Becej then double back along the DTD canal before turning off and heading for Melenci.
I escaped the attention of anyone and had a peaceful night in my tent except for going outside to answer a call of nature, when I saw distant lights at various places on the horizon beneath a cloudy sky. It rained at some point in the night so it was muddy at 6:00 am as I packed up and set off. After a lengthy walk through fields I reached a "lake" with a sign indicating it's importance for birdlife, not that I could see many birds and the lake was hidden by the surrounding rushes. The salt lake is apparently called Slano Kopovo and is a nature reserve. A cowherd was leading his cows (actually he was behind them but I assume he was making sure they went the right way), fortunately his dog considered me sufficiently distant that an all-out attack was not required.
Novi Becej turned out to have a pretty promenade beside the River Tisza which the E4 returns to after its lengthy excursion to Kikinda. The main street was also pleasant and provided me with my morning coffee.Then it was off along the south bank of the DTD canal, which seemed to be connected to the Tisza with a lock. There did not appear to be any boat traffic although a little way up the canal a barge seemed to be under construction and there was a working one moored by the bank.
Passing fishermen, a heron and some swans I came upon the inevitable herd of cows, although the cowherd successful controlled his dogs while lying down relaxing.
Shortly after I reached the point where I planned to turn off. Maybe I was a little premature as there did not seem to be a good path but it soon joined a track heading south which I followed all the way to Melenci. It crossed an extensive area of grassland which was part of the Rusana grassland park, and later some oil or gas wells and a processing plant.
On finally reaching Melenci I was keen to find a bed for the night. The motel I was targeting was closed, but there were several signs for rooms (Sobe) with telephone numbers. I tried one but the call would not go through, then I found a place which advertised rooms but with no telephone number indicating the owner lived on site. With the kind help of a passing neighbour we raised the owner, fortunately their son speaks good English and now I am settled in a lovely room.
Before I had a shower and cooked some diner, I wandered down to the Banya Rusanda, the town's claim to fame. This is a health facility and there were plenty of people in wheelchairs or with walking aids. It stands by a lake, known for its birds, but half dried up today.
A GPS file of my route can be found on wikiloc.com, or it is route johnpon0021 on ViewRanger.com, and also on Wandermap.com. I walked 35.6 kilometres today including trying to find a room for the night and visiting the Rusanda Lake.
I escaped the attention of anyone and had a peaceful night in my tent except for going outside to answer a call of nature, when I saw distant lights at various places on the horizon beneath a cloudy sky. It rained at some point in the night so it was muddy at 6:00 am as I packed up and set off. After a lengthy walk through fields I reached a "lake" with a sign indicating it's importance for birdlife, not that I could see many birds and the lake was hidden by the surrounding rushes. The salt lake is apparently called Slano Kopovo and is a nature reserve. A cowherd was leading his cows (actually he was behind them but I assume he was making sure they went the right way), fortunately his dog considered me sufficiently distant that an all-out attack was not required.
Novi Becej turned out to have a pretty promenade beside the River Tisza which the E4 returns to after its lengthy excursion to Kikinda. The main street was also pleasant and provided me with my morning coffee.Then it was off along the south bank of the DTD canal, which seemed to be connected to the Tisza with a lock. There did not appear to be any boat traffic although a little way up the canal a barge seemed to be under construction and there was a working one moored by the bank.
Passing fishermen, a heron and some swans I came upon the inevitable herd of cows, although the cowherd successful controlled his dogs while lying down relaxing.
Shortly after I reached the point where I planned to turn off. Maybe I was a little premature as there did not seem to be a good path but it soon joined a track heading south which I followed all the way to Melenci. It crossed an extensive area of grassland which was part of the Rusana grassland park, and later some oil or gas wells and a processing plant.
On finally reaching Melenci I was keen to find a bed for the night. The motel I was targeting was closed, but there were several signs for rooms (Sobe) with telephone numbers. I tried one but the call would not go through, then I found a place which advertised rooms but with no telephone number indicating the owner lived on site. With the kind help of a passing neighbour we raised the owner, fortunately their son speaks good English and now I am settled in a lovely room.
Before I had a shower and cooked some diner, I wandered down to the Banya Rusanda, the town's claim to fame. This is a health facility and there were plenty of people in wheelchairs or with walking aids. It stands by a lake, known for its birds, but half dried up today.
A GPS file of my route can be found on wikiloc.com, or it is route johnpon0021 on ViewRanger.com, and also on Wandermap.com. I walked 35.6 kilometres today including trying to find a room for the night and visiting the Rusanda Lake.
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| Part of promenade beside Tisza river at Novi Becej |
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| Lake Rusanda, partially dried out |
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