Eve of the Ride 10/2

The taxi careened upwards through sheeting rain and hail, our bikes had been stuffed into the boot and the open boot lid was ramming my rear breaks at every bend on the tortuous road. The omens were not good!
Arriving at our B&B in Neve Ativ, clinging to the slopes of Mount Hermon , our bikes were extricated, and closer inspection showed no serious damage other than some ajustment necessary to the abused discs, and a missing bike bottle. My riding partner, Ariye, ultimately retrieved the bottle from a raging torrent that had transformed the street outside.
The electrical storm that followed the rain added further drama to our evening; a suitable backdrop to the election exit poll predictions. No real excitement for revolutionary cyclists !
The dire conditions will necessitate changes in our route, I am trying to work out which trails will be passable and where we should stick to reliable old asphalt.
So my adventure gets off to a cold and damp start tomorrow ; thanks for all the messages of support and encouragement received, they will keep me going over the next 900 K . It can only be downhill from here !