Day 23: Half a river away

Mohacs to Apatin (46km)

Well rested after a good night’s sleep, I headed to the local supermarket to meet Hugo and Toby. One of the things that we had been joking about last night was the Hungarians love for paprika, it is in everything. I was happy to inform the guys that my breakfast was absolutely riddled with paprika, even with some on the side in case the given amount wasn’t sufficient. With our Kayaks filled to the brim of Hungarian cuisine (no paprika), he headed off, the Serbian/Croatian border awaited us.

Mohacs is only about 15km from the border, the Danube then acts as the border between Serbia and Croatia for a couple of hundred kilometres. We had been paddling for about an hour when a police boat sped across the river and stopped right next to us. It was the Hungarian police and they kindly asked to see our passports. I handed my pristine new passport over to them with glee, they inspected it and handed it back. It wasn’t until later that I realised that because we had had to take the passport picture in Ulm, the morning I set off kayaking, I was actually wearing the exact same t-shirt in my photo as I was now, the police must’ve thought it was the only one I owned. The Hungarian police were very nice and waved us on our way. A bit more paddling and we were into Serbia/Croatia.

This section of river is probably the most politically confusing of the entire Danube, Croatia is EU, but Serbia is not and it appears there is still not great relations between the two countries. We started looking for a good place to have lunch and found a perfect little beach area on the Croatian side. As soon as we pulled up, a local guy came over to talk to us. He was very nice and spoke good English, but warned us that if the police come then they will tell us to leave or give us a fine for stopping here. Apparently, people travelling on the river must first check-in at the police station in a town called Vuckovar, then they are allowed to visit Croatia. The problem is, that Vuckovar is around 60km downstream. We thanked the guy for the information and decided to quickly have lunch anyway. We had just finished repacking the boats and were about to set off when a police boat came round the corner, it lingered for a bit and then continued on. A few minutes later, a policeman came round the corner on foot and explained much more abruptly the situation that the kind local had outlined to us previously. We played the confused tourists. To be fair we were extremely confused, Croatia is a fellow EU country, therefore we are permitted to travel and even live in Croatia without hindrance. He didn’t simply ask to see our passports, he told us that if we get caught again on the Croatian side, we face a large penalty. With his warning, we continued on our way.

Our destination for the day was the Serbian town of Apatin, the first real town in Serbia. We arrived in the afternoon and paddled into the marina looking for somewhere to leave the boats. We were immediately met by a friendly chap who took us up to the marina office. He explained that we needed to go to the police station and then acquire specific papers that would allow us to use the Serbian section of the river. Furthermore, the papers we needed to continue on the river would cost 60 Euros and can only be issued by the captain and as it was a Saturday, we would have to wait until Monday for the privilege of doing so.

He then drove us to the police station to get our passports stamped. We went in one of the oldest cars I’ve ever seen, a car so unreliable that he genuinely said a prayer before turning the key, this was after he had replaced the battery. The police gave us a few grunts and one small stamp on our passports (my first stamp!). We then headed back to the marina, which also acts as a hotel and settled in for a couple of days in the tiny and unappealing town of Apatin.

Today was memorable for another reason, not long after leaving Hungary, we went passed the 1430km marker sign, a notable milestone as this is the halfway point of the river. The first half has been hugely eventful, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed most of it and the bits I’ve not enjoyed, well they tend to make the best stories. From the tiny stream in Donaueshingen that ran out of water, to the galloping and seemingly unstoppable force that now separates countries, the first half of the Danube has provided plenty adventures already and if today is any indicator, then there are plenty more to come.