Calalso de Los Vidrios, Spain
Best night's sleep in a long time. I realized that sleeping in the albergues for 2 months was the longest I think I've slept indoors in awhile! No rainfly. Bright big moon. I've missed feeling the elements.
That's tonight's glorious sunset. It's been a majorly sunny day. Thank goodness for the umbrellas to provide shade or this cycling here now would be unbearable.
Today's ride had more hills and April and I both struggling. We've gained hiking legs but our biking legs are weak. We may have to catch a bus to shorten the distance if our mileage doesn't pick up. Time will tell. Always keep your options open.
But tonight we have a California view of rocky terrain and mountains:)t
June 9th
Should have paid closer attention and not climbed that hill out of town this morning:(. April wasn't too happy with be to say the least. But we pulled it together and got going in the right direction.
Hot! Hot! Hot! And windy. Headwinds! But the worst part about that was not being able to use my umbrella much. Yikes. Sizzling in the sun!! And sunscreen doesn't help. I could not find enough shade trees along side the road to suit me. Makes the UK look better and better this summer:)
Tonight we're camped up in an open and mowed meadow off an old road we found. Sweet spot next to an old stone wall with a view of the mountains to the north.
We're taking a primary road across underneath a mountain range to the north. If I had a real map, I might be able to tell you what mountains:). But who needs a real map when you have Google Maps? Now, power don't fail me! I've added a real power pack to my system that carries enough power for a couple of charges and it actually works on the iPhone. I can recharge it with my solar charger.
The countryside reminds me of cycling in Idaho up to Stanley. Rolling mountains. Beautiful. We've had some tough hills, but we made it up them:)
The people have been excited to see us: honking, waving, and clapping out the car windows! They stop to talk...and we usually are able to converse somehow. We stopped for breakfast at a field entrance and two country bumpkins (husband and wife, salt of the earth) came by. And you know they didn't speak English. So they spoke Spanish and we answered in English and a happy energy exchange was had! It's truly amazes me how people can communicate beyond language if they just try. One day we stopped some cyclists to ask directions. They spoke some English but had trouble finding the words. I to them to tell us in Spanish, we'd understand some. And we did. Hand gestures help a lot!
We are all one. And we need to remember that.
June 15th
Coimbra, Portugal
Guess I'd better finish this post about getting across Spain to Portugal. I'm trying to keep writing, but seem unable to do it daily.
Camping spots have been challenging. It's high desert that we've been crossing and lots of fenced off orchards with scrub on our side. Not conducive to camping. Crunchy. Rocky. Tilting. One night we were in the corner of an old orchard thinking we were all alone down this dirt road. Wrong. So many cars and bikes went by. No one seemed to care so we stayed. A couple of young woman one bikes came by and stopes to chat. They had seen us earlier on the road and taken our pictures, they told us. That happens a lot: taking random photos of us. We just smile and wave.
Back to our camp spot. So off to sleep we go only to be awakened by barking dogs! A pair nearby and another further away. No remember these are Spanish dogs, so they were siesta-ing all afternoon so we didn't hear a peep. Then when the sun sets about 10 pm they come alive and stay that way until around 4 am. Yup. Dogs can bark for 6 hours non stop! When they pair took a few minutes break, their distant buddy would fill the void. Oh la la! A good sleep is just impossible no matter how hard I try to ignore them.
Gotta start biking early to avoid the heat...no when I'm finally sleeping because the dogs are quiet. The sun is so hot it sears my skin. The umbrella gives most of my body shade, but my legs stick out and feel the pain. And it gets hot about 10 am! One day we did try to sit out if the worst of it about 3-4 pm. Boring! And when we started up, no difference. You'd have to bike at night to avoid the heat and pain of the sun. So we just pedaled on, coping as best we could.
They're having a heat wave here now. Higher than normal temps. Let's get to a town and catch a bus to the coast, I suggest!
Livin' the life,
BagLady
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