European tour 07/08 - selection of photos

First campsite on Med...........................................Col de Rates 621m.




Aftermath of floods...............................................Off road, Maro to Pinarillo





Balcone, Nerja, Christmas day.............................February almond blossom & cacti




Cielo summit 1500m..................................Bridge at Rhonda




Storks at Antequerra...........................................Parador Hotel, Zafra





Merida, roman aqueduct...........................................University at Salamanca





Avila, medieval walls.............................................Main square, Segovia





Crossing the Pyrennees 29th April.............and view south from France







Canal du Midi, south of Toulouse........................picturesque Arles






Pont d'Avignon & Popes Palace...........................Summit of Mont Ventoux 1912m




Roman arch at Orange............................................Typical view on Swiss cycle route







Painted buildings in a Swiss village square.........and Rheinfals from the Swiss side







Rhein view..............................................................The 'Bridge too far' at Arnhem





Lifting bridge near Leiden.....................................Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam





Barges & windmill at Leiden.

Nice to see you, to see you nice......!

Before we leave on the next stage of our journey, we have summarised below the highlights of our summer in the UK (just in case you think we’ve been doing nothing!).
· A glorious sunny trip with Ian and Janet on their boat, whizzing from the mouth of the Exe, along the coast as far as the wreck of the Napoli, then back at a leisurely pace, catching 38 mackerel on the way.
· Catching up with Harriet and all her news, just before she had to return to work in Qatar – she was enjoying the summer rain in UK (glad someone is!); also Chris before he set off to Bulgaria on a holiday with old school mates (where is Bulgaria, Mum?)
· Hilary and Dave at Lower Frittiscombe Farm have, as usual, provided a home-from-home for Chris now he`s back from Uni, and Sophie has helped dye Chris`s hair black to cover the alarming red colour he dyed it to celebrate the end of exams. Not one of his better ideas.
· Fantastic news that Roly has landed his dream job in Melbourne, and Jeannie is joining him just around the time we get to Oz. Brilliant timing!
· A relaxing stay near Loddiswell with Mike P and Barbara - they had not been able to meet up with us as planned in Spain, as bad weather stopped them getting their yacht past Cadiz. Let’s hope this year’s sailing weather is better for them.
· Some fine weather as we ambled through Lodmoor country park near Weymouth with Liz and Pete. Close views of wading Godwits, and tiny moorhen chicks.
· More birding along the Bristol Channel tidal flats with Mike Kacher and his bouncy little rescue dog, followed by Alison’s fantastic secret recipe lasagne.
· Another memorable dish in Edgebaston, prepared by Will, while Barbara L explained why they have just started an estate agency!
· Being amongst a party of jovial guests, chauffeured in 2 beribboned London buses, from the wedding of nephew Stephen and Sarah at Nottingham Cathedral to their reception, on the hottest day of the year. A lovely few days with big sister Jenny & husband Richard in Mansfield.
· A fun croquet match with Ann and Mike T at the Lansdowne croquet and tennis club in Bath, followed by walks through nearby fields and Georgian crescents.
· A trip down memory lane to Weymouth with Sue`s Mum, on another perfect summer`s day. Reminiscing about family hols here in the late 60`s as we people watched along the esplanade – great fish & chips!
· The usual hilarity around the kitchen table at Smithson`s farm as Brian, Alice and Belinda brought us townies up to date with sheep world (or “nibblies” as Alice calls them).
· Lots more sheep around when we met up with Gill, Andrew, Sue & Graham at the historic Speech House Hotel, bang in the middle of the Forest of Dean. A deluge of rain didn`t put us off a forest walk the first day, where we got seriously lost, until Jill`s intuition at last brought us out on a familiar road. The weather relented the next day, so we had lovely views of the river Wye at Symonds Yat.

Work & play....

Hard work planning & organising the Aussie trip - we now have the necessary visas so have bought the flights to Cairns. We leave Heathrow on 27th August (not terminal 5, so hopefully we will see the bikes again!) We have bought a new tent (lighter than the old one) & are now working on travel insurance. The bikes are booked in for a service soon.

Meanwhile it has been great to see family & friends, & we will be doing more of this over the next few weeks. Hope the weather improves - we are not used to this cold & wet stuff!

A rest.....& planning for the next adventure....

We are currently having a short rest from cycling & planning for the next stage. Expect to see another entry from about early September 08 - bye for now blog-watchers!!!

Leiden to Dorchester....

White and yellow water lilies covered the canal we followed into the renowned university town of Leiden. Like Oxford, but with lots more canals, a couple of windmills and thousands of bikes, Leiden is particularly famous, academically, for law, and for being the birthplace of Rembrandt. Red roses grow effortlessly from patches of sand between the cobbles at the front doors of the typical tall narrow town houses.

Our student host, Matthew, accidentally managed to lock us all out of the first floor flat as he greeted us. Remarkably, we decided not to spend the next five hours in the pub waiting for his Dad to get home from work, but instead went on the scrounge for a ladder. No immediate neighbours were able to help, but the security guard at the nearby International centre took us down into the ancient basement cells and lent us a ladder, of just the right length for Matthew to climb onto the balcony and let us in.

We left our bikes behind to catch a double-decker train to Amsterdam, where we gave the sex museum a miss and instead spent a very enjoyable day in the Rijkstag and Van Gogh museums. We had a cycling rest the next day too as it was market day in Leiden. We meandered past loads of stalls selling everything from bikes to cheeses the size of pram wheels. Matthew easily persuaded us to join him at one of his favourite watering holes, where we sat on a floating pontoon. The beer was great but we don’t think the nibbles served with them ,”Bitte Balls”, will ever rival crisps, as they tasted like deep fried wallpaper paste. Saturday night was very quiet as everyone was in watching Holland being beaten 3-1 by Russia. We went to the local cinema where there were only 6 other punters and the projectionist, doorman and barman were all the same chap.

Using the flat as a base it was luxury to explore the area without our “luggage”. Haarlam on Sunday was very busy as the Holland Philharmonic was playing on a stage set up outside the magnificent Cathedral. Small shops and workshops are built attached to the Cathedral in a medieval layout and many other central cobbled streets retain medieval buildings. The chandeliers on the stage swayed alarmingly in the westerly wind that grew increasingly strong. We were reminded of how much of Holland is built on a big sand dune as we battled back into a ferocious headwind which whipped up sand from the fields, into our faces. A quick cycle out to Nordvick takes us to our first glimpse of the North Sea. A dyke protects a long promenade backed by grand seaside hotels. A good surf was up as we watched tankers ply up and down. Our main reason for visiting the town was to meet Paul (Matthew’s Dad) at his workplace, the European Space Agency, where he gave us a very interesting tour of the base.

Eventually we had to part from our generous hosts, taking the cycle path through dunes and villages to the port of Hoek van Holland and the overnight container/ferry to Harwich. We tried following the National cycle route through Harwich at 6.30 the next morning, but it took us round in circles, so we plotted our own way along the beautiful Stour estuary at low tide, past little single keel boats tipped at all angles on the mud. Our first night back in England was a room at a farm near Stanstead, where the crop was a type of broad bean being grown for the Arab market. Our second night was completely different, in a posh town house in Chorleywood in the London commuter belt. Finally we reached the towpath on the Kennet and Avon canal, at Reading. A passing cyclist (Steve) helped us through some very difficult gates as he made his way to his canal boat. We joined him for a cup of coffee on his narrow boat, where he had a wealth of cycling info for routes all over the world, as he had cycled India, Vietnam and China – he made us feel like cycling softies.

Our last night on the road was at Newbury, very handy to the canal path. The B&B owner was a lovely elderly lady who also enjoyed travel, as her fridge magnets from all over the world testified. She still cycled into town for her provisions, as had her late mother until she was 96! Her full cooked breakfast fuelled us to cycle onto Salisbury Plain, where we watched parachutists dropping out of a clear blue sky on training at an airfield. Into a stiff head wind we kept to little back roads to Shaftesbury and finally to Dorchester. After 97 miles we arrived at dusk , back where we had set out 9 months and 5,719 miles ago, at Sue`s Mum’s house, to a very welcome cup of tea.

Into Holland

Although not actually into Holland until lunchtime, it all looked Dutch today. The plentiful local clay & lack of any building stone, has led to brick houses, clay pantile roofs, & brick pavior cycle paths. Neat little villages are linked by cycle paths along dykes, overlooking fields of horses & cows. They are quite adventurous with new enterprises though, as we also saw kangaroos & llamas! We knew we were in Holland proper when the football supporting flags changed to orange. We camped at a lovely wooded site N. of Arnhem in an area of country houses & parks. Arnhem is understandably mostly post war, but the Station is a new colourful modern design. We took a photograph of the Station bikepark. There must have been at least a thousand bikes!

Our main reason for visiting Arnhem was to see the 'Bridge too Far'. Now called the 'John D Frost Bridge' after the commander of the only battalion of the First Airborne Division to reach the bridge in the attack of September 1944 - they held the bridge for 3 days waiting for the reinforcements that never arrived, & suffered enormous losses against a much larger German force. The photos of the complete devastation are on display. Every building around the bridge was destroyed. They only surrendered when they ran out of ammunition.

On our way W., we visitied a Dutch war grave site. All the hundreds of beautifully tended graves were very young soldiers, killed around the 11th of May 1940, when the German Army overwhelmed the Netherlands, on their way to France. We camped in beautiful woods at Doorn near Utrecht, with red squirrels & Greater Spotted Woodpeckers in the nearby trees.

We are now heading for Leiden to stay with friends & explore the Amsterdam area.

Fussball Fever....

We popped into Bonn to use the internet, opposite the station - where the helpful owner allowed our bikes inside the shop for security. Nearby is Gilde's Bookshop. Starved of reading material since Spain, we fell on their English section. Eventually common sense prevailed & we restricted ourselves to 1 book each, & a map of Holland. Football fever has hit Germany, with everyone flying flags, eagerly anticipating kick-off at 6.oopm between Croatia & Germany. We watched the match on a big screen in the Camp restaurant. Its a close game, & the Ref gets very stressy towards the end, waving yellow & red cards at anyone who catches his eye. Croatia win 2-1, deflating our fellow diners.

As we approach Koln, there are fine views of the twin-spired cathedral, as we pass close along the river front. There is a lot of high-rise flat & office development here, & its is busy with tourist boats, including one shaped as a whale called, you've guessed, Moby Dick. N. of the city is heavily industrialised, including acres of Ford motor plants along by the railway. We crossed to the other bank to peaceful meadows, where the Rhein dam is full of rabbit warrens, & bunnies run across the cycle path. We camp at a Rhein-side site, & watch Barnacle Geese with their goslings, & fellow campers with an impressive array of fishing rods catching nothing.

Duisberg & Dusseldorf merge into a huge conurbation. In the densely populated inner city areas where there are snooker halls & kebab shops, the Turkish red flag outdid the German flag in size & number, as football fever mounts. We eventually emerge into flat open country, & camp in a huge lakeside site. The young German cyclist in the next tent confirmed that this is the largest site in Europe. His tent was a genuine American Vietnam War tent in mint condition. He encouraged us to visit Xanten as it is full of Roman remains. We had hoped to follow his advice the next morning, but there was only a very limited Sunday service on the foot ferry, so this will have to wait for another time.

Middle Rhein....

The path through Mainz was excellent, taking us under sandstone & iron bridges, passed a tall ship & a wonderfully aromatic huge Nescafe processing plant, then finally through acres of allotments & orchards.

At Bingen the whole of the large waterfront was taken over by their equivalent of the Chelsea Flower Show - on until October if you fancy a visit. We camped right opposite the famous Loreley Rocks, where it is fascinating to watch the pilot tugs pull enormous barges through this treacherous section. Just around the corner, we pass through St Goar, very busy with cruise boats. From here we can see 3 castles, & the rest of the day brings us views of all shapes & sizes of 'schlosses' set in very steep vineyards.

At Koblenz, we suddenly notice the river flowing the 'wrong' way & realise we have turned up the River Moselle. This is the point, therefore, for us to cross the arched Roman bridge & regain the Rhein path. As we enter Remagen, we recognise immediately the remains of the famous Luddendorf railway bridge. This was used by the first complete American infantry batallion to cross the Rhein in March 1945, showing great enterprise & bravery - it was subsequently destroyed 10 days later during the fighting, but a significant strategic step had been made. We camped at the site right by the bridge, where we had had a family holiday 5 years ago. We chose a different plot this time, remembering our tent flooding in a summer thunderstorm on the last occasion!

A bit of culture....

We paid a flying visit to Speyer, a World Heritage site due to its fine Cathedral, Churches & town gates. The spires were visible for miles. Worms was also impressive, with its red sandstone Cathedral (Dom) & ancient fountain. They appeared to be launching a spaceship from the city centre, but it turned out to be white sheeted scaffold enclosing an enormous tower under repair. The majority of Worms centre is postwar, so it must have been badly damaged in WW2.

We met 2 very friendly German touring cyclists on their way home to Koblenz. They had an excellent detailed map, & so helped guide us through a muddy diversion, & to find a campsite, on the waters edge just short of Mainz. This was the first of many sites where the electrical connection points are 5 foot above ground to escape flood damage.

Mind the gap....!!!

We shopped for lunch in Kehl market the next morning. The cheese stall man told us the piece we selected was made by Bavarian Monks. As we left the outskirts of town, a hare overtook us on the verge. We followed the Rhein on top of the dam on the E. bank. At last there were large barges to watch, mostly carrying sand & gravel. In the quieter waters edge there were lots of swans & tufted ducks. We reached the bridge we hoped to cross to the French campsite, but found it was a retactable bridge, fully & permanently retracted! We took the nearest car ferry, which was fine until we reached the opposite bank, where the ramp was under 6 inches of filthy water. We were glad we had transferred our sleeping bags to the higher rear panniers.

We carry on the W. bank the next day (now both banks are in Germany), on a smooth tarmac cycle path through beech woods, glimpsing deer. Because the path is so good here, it is used by all sorts of cyclists, including tandems with the front part recumbent, recumbents operated by hand pedals, & a wheelchair tandem like the one Josie Dew cycled round Britain raising money for charity.

Good weather for ducks....

For the first time in weeks we had to pack up a wet tent in the morning drizzle. We kept to the German side of the Rhein as it had been such a good route thus far, but we were soon plunged into woods, & then a bike 'No-Entry' sign blocked our way. We ignored this (as we usually do), but were soon up to our pedals in mud, as they were logging.

Ten wasted miles later, after going round in circles, we gave up on Germany, taking a car-ferry to France, & soon were on a lovely clean tarmac towpath on the Rhein-Rhone Canal taking us easily to Strasbourg. We stopped to let a Mallard marshall her 9(!) tiddly-tiny ducklings across the path into the Rhein, then crossed back into Germany to camp at Kehl.

Towns with a past.....

On our way to Colmar, we passed through Neuf Brisach. An enormous ditch surrounded thick octagonal walls, they really didn't want visitors in the days of old Alsace. In 1951 however, French N Brisach & German Breisach were the first European towns to sign a Common Market Agreement, leading to todays EU. What were they thinking of!!!?

Entering woods on the Cycle Route, we were going in the opposite direction to a large enthusiastic group of teenagers taking part in a cross-country running & cycle relay race. Unscathed, we reached Colmar. Many medieval timber-framed houses & public buildings remain. There is also an area referred to twee-ly as 'Little Venice', where a few canals surround the old Fish Market. The steep tiled roofs & gable fronts to the houses lining the canals, we thought, were more reminiscent of Amsterdam then Venice.

There was enough time left in the afternoon to follow a town trail around Breisach. In contrast here, most of the old buildings were destroyed in 1945 by American troops shelling across the Rhein.

Downhill all the way from here.....?

We now choose to cross the Rhine into Germany & follow the E. bank, as on this side there is an unsurfaced but excellent cycle path right along the waters edge, separated by beech & oak woods from any development. No large vessels use this part of the Rhein, as there are electricity generating barrages across. A few yachts tack passed, & rather unsettlingly, a German Army Unit is practising with amphibious vehicles.

We camp in an orchard in the village of Hochstetten. A pair of Greater Spotted Woodpeckers pick ants off an ash tree trunk by our tent. We are stayinfg here 2 nights as tomorrow we are to cycle across the bridge at nearby Breisach to reach the French town of Colmar, another of those 'Thousand Places to see before you die'.

We are blogging in the local library for free!!!

Last of the Lakes....

We cycled the S. shore of Bodensee, & then lake Untersee, our 12th & final Swiss lake. The water was very busy with yachts & dinghys. The cycle route took us alongside the railway, passed many village stations, & over innumerable level crossings. We saw more touring cyclists today than we have seen in our entire lives! There were also herds of Roller-Bladers & Nordic-Walkers of all ages.

The Rhein-side campsite near Schaffhausen has lawns down to the waters edge. We breakfasted next morning beside some hopeful looking ducks, & watched early morning scullers pulling hard against the very strong current. Only a few miles from here we had magnificent views from a fortified village over the Rheinfalls, where 600cu.m/sec of water pours over enomous boulders in a white frenzy.

The cycle path now took us through villages of timber frame houses. In one of these the Rolls-Royce Appreciation Society of Switzerland was meeting, & showing a fine collection of vintage cars. We camp at Zurzach. The 2 Dutch touring cyclists on the next pitch are cycling to Rome from Maastricht, & give us directions to our next campsite N. of Basel. We found this most useful at the end of the following day, as Basel was a mares nest. An attractive old town, with fountains, murals & trams, but complicated by roadworks & some enormous football event they were hosting. Eventually we found our way to the recommended site in the French village of Huningue. The dutch touring cyclist here was also cycling to Rome!

Oops, there goes another country.....!!!

Along the S. shore of Walensee, through 2 specially made bike tunnels, very steep inclines (the Swiss don't do hairpins for bikes), then an easy valley floor to Sargens & a short hop to the Rhine. Here there are some WWII gun emplacements. We cross over into Liechenstein at its souternmost border at 11:10am, follow the Rhine Dam Cycle Path, with a small diversion to whizz round the village of Ruggel. At 12:40pm we pass out of the N. border into Austria. After 2 hours, which included a lunch stop, we are through Austria & back into Switzerland near the Bodensee.

The Rhine had seeped through the dyke as it approaches Bodensee, & flooded the cycle path. An elderly Swiss lady cyclist turned back with us, saying she'd never seen it that bad, & helped us find a dry route around. Soon we happened upon an immaculate campsite on the S. shore at Altenrhein & had a good nights sleep after 69miles of rather warm cycling in 3 countries!

Lake Lucerne to Walensee....

Our journey continues back through Lucerne on Cycle Route 9, N.E. to the top of the Zugesee. At the improbably named lakeside town of Zug, we lose our way in roadworks, but the local postman on scooter with trailer leads the way to open countryside. We then head E., passed another small lake, gaining height most of the way, on forest tracks up the side of the tumbling Lorse River. Now into a magnificent high valley of traditional farms, it was a very hot day &, panting from a very steep climb, we saw a mirage. In the middle of nowhere, there were tables & chairs outside a barn, & a farmers wife selling ice-cold beer through a hatch. The local Eichof beers didn't touch the sides going down. Not much further on we camped at a farm in the tiny village of Bennau. We share a small field with 2 Christmas trees & 3 empty caravans, with a view of the valley & ski-lift in the foreground.

Raised at 5.30am by the Church bell opposite the farm, we had an early start. Not far down the road, we passed an enormous ski-jump, snow -blowers & chairlifts, with cows grazing under - it must look so different in the snow. We cross 2 lakes by road bridges, including the E. end of Lake Zurich. We camped in a wooded site at the W. end of the Walensee, right on the waters edge. There we met 2 Canadian touring cyclists, who had started from Barcelona. The lake is full to bursting with snow-melt, rivers tumbling in from the mountains carrying loads of driftwood. There is a magnificent waterfall opposite, & a village with access only by water.

Wanderweg....

Leaving the bikes at the camp for the day, we walked up Pilatus Mountain following well-marked footpaths (Wanderwegs). through decidous woods with myrtleberry bushes under, then across alpine meadows straight from the 'Sound of Music' poster, with acres of marsh cotton, purple orchids & enormous buttercups. We pass wooden ski lodges closed up for the summer, decorated with antique wooden skis.

At 1,430 metres, just under the snowline, we picnic with a view of the end of the chairlift & the start of the very steep cable car to the summit. This is as far as we can manage today, but hope to return someday to take the rack-railway up the other side. On the way back down, we take a slightly different route, passing through a traditional farmyard, with herds of goats with tinkling bells, & some reindeer. As it is midweek, we have the mountain to ourselves, just a few nordic walkers & mountain-bikers.

Swiss lakes...

The Campsite Iris at Yverdon-Les-Bains is beside a small harbour. There is a comprehensive electronic weather display which tells us the N.E. wind is 25km/hr, a force 4 on the Beaufort scale, a 'jolie brise'. We wash our clothes in the campsite washing machine & the 'brise' dries it very quickly. The choppy lake has driven a variety of fowl into the harbour, lots of swans, great crested grebes, tufted ducks & a mallard with her chicks. We notice here, as in other Swiss towns & villages, the school mini-buses double as Post vans. Wandering around looking at several restaurants, there are a variety of fondues advertised, including 'de cheval'. We enter the blog using a computer at the very helpful local library.

Along the S. side of Lac Neuchatel there is firstly a large reed bed bird reserve, then lots of small wooden chalet summer residences & little yacht clubs & boat parks. The well-signed cycle route is very peaceful, passing through woods, country lanes & villages. Estavayer-le-Lac, a quaint walled town, is holding a religious festival. They have strewn mown grass over the cobbled streets leading from the town gates to the church. Children are carrying posies of wild flowers, & the youth band is smart in a blue uniform - all rather subdued & organised in comparison with Spanish frenetic celebrations!

At the E. end of Lac Neuchatel we camp in a very smart site with a view of the lake from our tent. We offload our gear to cycle round to the N. side to the handsome town of Neuchatel, full of cobbled squares, painted fountains & a lot of posh shops. We have now moved into the german speaking part of Switzerland, but as we are not up to a third foreign language, they have to put up with our French.

In lovely weather the following day, we continue on National Cycle Route 5 along the S. side of the next lake, Biele See. Picture-postcard villages are full of timber-clad farms & houses with enormous steep-pitched roofs, & piles of logs for the winter. We pass several parties of teenage children, all on bikes, following their teachers.

Buren-am-Aare has a wooden bridge enclosed on the sides & covered with a pitched-tiled roof. We are to see several more just like this, & suppose it means the river crossing are kept open when the snows come. We camp at Solothun on the Aare river, Switzerlands biggest river, it is about 100m across here & very swift flowing. Again this is a beautiful waterside site, the 3rd TCS (Touring Cycle Suisse) site we have stayed on. Whilst here, we at last see a live red squirrel, it nearly runs over our feet! In nearby fields, we see the first storks since Spain, as they & Red Kites follow the working plough. The storks nest in trees here, not on buildings. There is a very helpful cycle repair shop in Solothun called Tropical, which fit Mike's bike with a new set of Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres.

We head S.E. towards the middle of Switzerland now, passed immaculate timber farms with flower boxes & painted verandas. We cross lots of level crossings, as the train lines continue to serve lots of local stations. As we approach Sempacher See there are fabulous views of the Alps to the S., extremely jagged & snow-covered. The cycle route takes us past this small lake to Lucerne, & its lake. What a lovely city, with 2 covered wooden bridges, & 2 ornate filigree iron ones. The old centre of cobbled streets with mural-decorated houses & hotels is a delight. There are literally thousands of bikes parked, or being used around the city. This is the prettiest lake yet, & following the quiet S. shore, we have terrific views across to jagged snowy peaks. A big paddle steamer & a few sailing boats make the scene picture-perfect. Outside some houses we notice Christmas trees decorated with glittery streamers. These are to celebrate the recent birth of a child. We stop at yet another lovely TCS site right on the Lake edge near the cycle path at Horw. Dominating the scene is snowy Pilatus Mountain at 2,050m. This has a dramatic cable car to the very top.

We have now completed 4,000 miles since we left Santander last September, & 2,200 since we left Nerja in April. No wonder Mike needs new tyres! As the weather is good here at present, we may stay on the Lake for a few days, cycling & walking, before heading N.E. towards Bodensee to pick up the Rhine.

We spend the next day cycling around most of the Lake, 41 miles. We miss out the far east corner as the cycle route takes us on the ferry here, & it ids a great opportunity for a boat trip on the Lake.

Geneva to Yverdon-les-Bains

There are cycle paths throughout Geneva, so we easily meander through, cross a bridge & then follow the N. side of Lake Geneva (Lac Leman). On the way we nearly get run down by a tram as they are so quiet. There are cyclists everywhere. The lake is lined with magnificent private houses & the handsome building where the Geneva Convention was signed. There are small dinghy sailing clubs every few miles. We are surprised to see red kites swooping onto the lake surface, appearing to pick up flotsam. As we pass into open countryside there are vineyards & orchards. The lake was choppy & we spot a wooden schooner that follows us into the town of Morges, where we camp on a site near a marina. Mallard ducks from the lake wander right up to the tent, hoping for titbits. One was even walking around on a caravan roof!

The next morning, into a strong headwind, we turn off the lakeside N. on a National cycle route, which climbs through hills on unmade tracks through beech & pine woods, & tiny quiet country roads. Then into flatter grasslands & market gardens, we approach Lac de Neuchatel. Bent over pickers are working the strawberry fields. We decide to take the next day off cycling, & stay at the lakehead town of Yverdon-Les-Bains.

After this we will be contiuing on the cycle route E. along the S. side of the lake.

Cote du Rhone

We did not find a museum of mobile phones in Orange but they do have an impressive Roman colesseum & triumphal arch. We spot people with plastic bags full of snails the size of mice, they are picking them from the verge plants. Through heathland now of oak & pine, carpeted under with masses of small pale blue star-shaped flowers. Unfortunately the only red squirrel we see is road-kill.

Camped at an immaculately tended site where the River Lez meets the Rhone at Bollene. the pitch was so hard we couldn't peg the tent, but tied it to trees & bushes. Our neighbours were Dutch caravanners, who generously provided us with fresh cherries for our tea. Passing out of Bollene the next morning we see their nuclear power station with giant steaming cooling towers. A flat route then of tiny empty country roads by irrigation channels & domaines advertising 'Cote de Rhone'. Into rolling hills of cherry & peach orchard. In the distance was a giant Lafarge limestone quarry & cement works, that Mike says I am not allowed to say is a blot on the landscape. Then another nuke power station using Rhone water.

Camped at a mini campsite wedged between the Rhone & the village of Charmes. The old centre was a tumble of houses squeezed into a ravine headed by a disused mill. There was a view from a ruined castle for miles up & down the Rhone. The hills to the W. are the edge of the Ardeche.

Most of the next morning we are off-road right alongside the edge of the Rhone on fishermens tracks & railway maintenance gang acesses. Then quiet roads through orchards, passing some gorgeous chateaux. We nearly fall off our bikes with fright thinking someone was shooting at us, but it was just a neaby bird-scarer.

We cut a large corner off the Rhone & avoid Lyons, by crossing at St Valiere & heading into wooded hills NE. We camp near the village of Anneyon in a family-run site called Chataignerie (Chestnut Grove). Two sweet chestnut trees remain in front of the old house. Coming down from the hills the next morning we pass dairy herds on virtually traffic-free country lanes. The farm buildings here are of cob walls with large river pebbles laid in herring bone pattern as a plinth & sometimes decorating a whole facade. To the E. are the snow-covered Alp foothills. Joining the Rhone once more, there are spectacular steep hills on either side as the valley narrows. We camp at the village of L'Ile de Verbai next to a young American touring cyclist with a 'bob' trailer. He started his tour in Iceland (because he got a cheap flight there from the States!)

At Seyssel, a charming town with a handsome bridge, there is a barrage with no lock on the Rhone, & so this is the upper limit of navigation. The river now narrows into a dramatic gorge. We turn a corner, & without warning, are into a dim tunnel with no cycle lane! We quickly stop to put on our lights & get through before anything comes to mow us down.

The houses are now distinctly alpine, with very steep roofs & wooden balconies. We cross the Rhone & enter Switzerland. Almost immediately we are on an excellent cycle track separated from the road that takes us to Geneva.

Sur le Pont & Tour De France....

We loved Arles. Around every corner is a pretty square, ancient arch or shuttered houses. The church in the Place Major (Notre Dame) was closed to the public but the caretaker arrived & invited us in for a private tour! Lovely simple stone vaulted ceilings & coloured marble altars & font. Everthing of interest in the city is within easy walking distance including cafe & garden scenes familiar fron Van Gogh paintings. The Roman coliseum reputedly held 20,000 people, & the ampitheatre 10,000. The Rhone is an impressive size, here on a vast bend.

As we walked back to our tent after strolling the sites, we met 3 male Tasmanina touring cyclists (Greg, Chris & Nigel) who replaced the departed desmoiselles. They are going on to take the boat from Nice to Corsica to tour the Island. We would be really interested to hear how they get on, & gain advice on quiet cycling roads & camping there - send us an email guys.

We took the scenic route to Avignon via pretty pristine villages, Fonteveille & Mausanne Alpilles. Les Baux de Provence area is a spectacular oolitic limestone (like Bath Stone) landscape of escarpements & weathered features. The ancient village of Les Baux is almost carved directly from the hillside. There are as many olive groves as vineyards & some very grand chateaux. The fruit in the cherry orchards is just turning to red. For some reason there are also quite a lot of donkeys.

The Camping Pont D'Avignon where we stopped was on an island in the Rhone, well recommended by the Tasis. Our pitch was directly opposite the old Pont D'Avignon & the Popes Palace behind. The Pont was originally built in the 12c but kept getting washed away by the flooding Rhone. What remains is mainly 17c. We enjoyed an evening promenading in a park on the opposite bank. Very long cruise boats passed by. Conveniently there is a free foot & bike ferry from the island to the city. Before we set off N. on Sunday morning, we cycled the beautiful old streets of Avignon before the coach parties arrived.

We take a detour on the way N. to camp at the village of Bedoin at the base of Mont Ventoux. This is a famous cycling mountain, as we are sure Mike Murphy will confirm, that often features in the Tour de France. The summit is 1912metres. After days of heat, black clouds collect over the mountain, & we have just erected the tent when there is thunder & lightning with a heavy downpour. Later we stroll round the village & read of its history. In the Revolution, a guillotine was brought in to execute some locals, & the village was burnt down. It was later rebuilt, & is now an attractive cycling centre including 3 bikeshops, & lots of posing visiting american cyclists! Many of the gardens & roadsides are filled with purple irises, & the campsite was really pretty with lots of wild flowers.

Early Monday morning we pass through Bedoin & discover it is Market Day. The best market we have seen by a long way, with all local produce including wine, cheese, fruit, veg & meat in abundance, & no tacky stalls! We start our 14mile ascent of the mountain, passing cherry orchards, vineyards & then pine woods. The road surface is kept in excellent condition, with a cycle lane on the last third of the way. We are passed by 'Lycras' on racing bikes & groups of touring motorcyclists. There are encouraging remarks painted on the tarmac; 'Allez, Allez', 'Go, Go' & 'Courage'. There was also encouragement in English most of the way for someone called Audrey, celebrating her 40th birthday. Once beyond the treeline, above 1400metres, there are small snowdrifts alongside the road & very tall snow poles at the edges. Near the top there is the memorial to Tommy Simpson, the British cyclist who dropped dead at this spot in 1967 whilst competing on the Tour - this was less encouraging. Just before the Weather Observatory on the summit, we had great views E. to the snow-covered French Alps. As we stopped at the top, cloud enveloped us & the temperature plummeted. Our hands froze on the first few seconds of the descent, so we stopped & adapted a pair of socks to cover our hands, & then whizzed back to the warmth of the lower altitudes. A celebratory litre of 1euro red wine restarted the circulation, after achieving our highest point yet with the bikes, & our biggest single climb in one day (1600metres).

We are now at Orange (is this where the mobile phone was invented?) on our way N. up the Rhone valley.

Carcassonne to Arles...

Carcassonne is another European Heritage Site due to its walled citadel. It is entirely given over to tourism so you cannot imagine real people living there anymore. The rest of the town outside the walls contains some fine old houses & a big quay on the Canal du Midi.

Near a religous retreat we are stopped in our tracks. About a dozen nuns in long cream habits are walking in a line through a cornfield. The steady headwind is blowing their cassocks out behind them like sails. Surreal.

We enter the wide valley of the Aude, firstly passing orchards of trellised apple trees, then chateaux & their vineyards. Big estates are called Domaines, smaller ones Mas. The verges are full of wild flowers including masses of poppies & elderflowers. We follow some sections of the Canal du Midi under shady plane trees. The canal verges & wetlands are yellow with flag irises. The canal is busy with boat traffic, identical white hire cruisers, traditional dutch barges & longboats. There are occasional moored houseboats & fishermen with long poles line the banks. The canal towpath is an easy traffic free way for us to dip in to Narbonne & Bezier. Both look worth exploring further another time. We lunch on the shore of an enormous etang (saltwater lake). There are oyster beds & canal boats crossing from Bezier. Sete, opposite, looks like an island joined by a slim causeway.

We are now in the Herault region, & enjoy a visit to Agde where the River Herault is very broad. Further NE. the vineyards we pass advertise their Merlot Noir grape. Many of the lovely stone villages such as Pomerols, have long main streets of large terraced houses with great arched entrances, presumably for carts laden with wine barrels to enter in days gone by. We camp in a charming small site next to vineyards on the edge of the village of Fabregues. We shall remember it as 'Frog' site. We went to sleep to a chorus of frog song, & Sue shared her shower the next morning with a friendly smooth green frog!

Most of the following morning we were alongside the Med. It reminds us of the Costas. Miles of blocks of balconied flats on promenades as La Grande Motte & Le Grau de Roi merge in identical development. Everywhere is busy as its another French bank holiday, May 8th, & the good weather is drawing everybody to the beach. The French seem to have a liking for extending their bank holidays - for many this Thursday off is unofficially extended to next Tuesday!

Near the edge of the Camargue is Aigues-Mortes, a medieval seaport, now miles form the coast due to silting by the Rhone river. In the Camargue we spot a few flamingos, lots of terns & ducks as well as the famous black bulls & horses. Chateaux are now advertising Muscat wine. Local produce is sold along the roadside from large wooden stalls, cherries, asparagus, apples & 'taureau viande'. We camp in the suburbs of Arles near the ancient long Pont de Crau. On the pitch next to us are three young French lady cyclists who are all sharing a teeny-tiny tent. We don't know how they all fit in! There are now some mosquitos about, inevitable in such a wetland area.

Over the top.....!

There was ice on the tent in the morning. The sun came out & warmed things up as we cycled the last 7 miles to the summit of the pass, & then down hairpin bends through beautiful beech trees towards the border. At Arneguy we crossed the river, which is now the only indication of a border - other than the change of road signs (EU open frontiers!)

St Jean Pied de Port has a very pleasant setting on the river & some fine town walls, but was very touristy so we headed off on country roads. We cycled over 2 more cols over 500metres. We met a French couple on racing bikes who were very pleasant & passed on some useful local knowledge. Many trees are heavy with globes of mistletoe.

We reached the pretty campsite by the River Saison. Here we met the wonderful Henri in his caravan. He generously provided endless cafetierres of coffee, & his home-made chocolate mousse. A 4 star Hotel Concierge, married to an English lady, he spoke perfect english. It was difficult to drag ourselves away the next morning, but we eventually made good progress in the Tarbes direction. Houses here have steep slate roofs & great piles of logs. The skies threatened rain clouds off the Pyrenees at around 6.30pm. We were cycling up a steep hill as we passed a handsome house with a B&B sign. We booked into a lovely room & just avoided the heavy downpour. The owner spoke excellent english, as she had worked in England & Australia. The vast woods behind the house provided us with a beautiful evening walk once the rain had ceased.

Madam`s homemade bread, myrtille jam & gorgeous yoghurt for breakfast set us up well for our morning cycle into Pontacq. Being May 1st it was a holiday, so we cycled through 2 village fetes & a bike race. After a lovely sunny day, we camped on a little farm near the town of Montrejeau. We woke to braying donkeys & crowing cockerels. Now heading E. out of the Pyrenees into the Haute-Garonne region. We cross the swollen Garonne river at several places, & then pick up a green cycle route that takes through quaint villages. This is a cattle farming area, with 2 storey timber-framed barns attached to farmhouses (apparently called "Fermettes"). We camp on a tributary of the river, on a pretty site with lots of lilac trees, near Martres-Tolosane. Unfortunately along this riverbank & others today, we have spotted lots of the dreaded Japanese Knotweed (none seen in Spain - perhaps the Pyrenees has been a barrier to its spread?)

The next morning we were lucky to pick up other green cycle lanes as we crossed into the valleys SW. of Toulouse. Amazing to see Red Kites following the farmers harvester, mouse-hunting? We spend a morning sight-seeing in the attractive town of Cazeres. It is Saturday market, so nicely buzzing. We were so hungry after our Pyrennean travels that we consumed a whole cooked chicken & family portion of sauteed potatoes from the market! We end this evening cycling up a very steep drive to a wooded campsite just short of Pamiers. We sit on the verendah of a nearby empty chalet, using their table to study maps, & watch the sunset.

By lunchtime the next day, we have reached the Canal du Midi towpath at Bram, to cycle to Carcassonne. It is a bit bumpy in places (similar to the Kennet & Avon) but nice to be away from the cars. We meet 3 young touring cyclists (1 Brit, 2 French) who are heading to the Municipal Campsite. As they have directions, we are happy to follow them to this well-placed facility with a view of the Medieval Cité. There are 2 other pairs of touring cyclists on the site. We book in for 2 nights to sightsee Carcassonne (& do the blog!)

We have now pedalled 1,386 miles from Nerja with only 1 puncture! Next heading E. across southern France in the direction of Montpellier & Avignon. We have been in France for a full week, but are still saying "hola" & "gracias"!

Tarazona to the Pyrennees....

A postscript to last weeks blog, the wedded couple emerged & were driven away in a flower-decked donkey cart. The bride was disconcerted, hanging on tight over the cobbles. As the evening promenaders gathered in great numbers, a jazz band struck up. It was then we noticed a poster showing we had arrived on the day of the local feria (fiesta).

Having paid the night before, we let ourselves out of the enormous front doors of the Palace into early Sunday morning sunshine. We spotted a cycle path to Tedula, a disused railway line, which was soon busy with Sunday leisure cyclists. Reaching Tedula, we have now completed a circular route of Spain, as we passed this way south from Santander last autumn. We passed over the swollen rio Ebro, heading N. towards Olite. The road became pretty boring, busy, in the light industrial area. We transferred to a smaller road by the river, passing wheatfields & vineyards. A wandering shepherd was very sensibly wearing a high-viz. vest & had his dog on a lead, as the traffic was sparse but travelling at breakneck speed.

We lunched at Villafranca, which had the red metal bull-running barriers in place. We noticed the ubiquitous graffiti was becoming more political with "Falangist" & "ETA" often occuring.

Olite was a wonderful surprise. A contrast to Tarazona, as the old buildings were beautifully preserved, including a medieval castle & attached Parador - a bit touristy as a result. We camped near the town in a large but quiet site.

We are now in our last full day in Spain as we progress N., bypassing busy Pamplona on a road marked on the map as scenic & quiet. Unfortunately we share it with about 25 Quarry Lorries. Somewhere near Pamplona, Susan loses her knickers! Having washed them, they were attached to a pannier to dry. We think we know at which bus stop they became detached, so if anyone is passing that way....?

In a fierce headwind we reach the reservoir Embalse de Itoiz. It has flooded, trees covered to their crowns & a village road totally submerged. What a contrast to Andalucia! We then followed the rio Urrobi up through a wooded valley on a blissfully quiet road. We spot a few deer running for cover in the woods. It rains for a couple of hours, but we are just drying out at 5pm, at 800metres, when we arrive at campsite Urrobi, the most gorgeous Spanish camp we have used. Spacious, grassy & lightly wooded, it is on a bend in the river, & has a bar! The sign at the end of the road says 25k to France........!

Avila to Tarazona....

The hotel receptionist stood in the road waving us off in the morning. Although there is an increase of 5deg in the temperature of the last 24 hours, there is still extensive, thick snow on Sierra de Paramato to the S. Trees are winter bare until we drop down to the plains approaching Segovia. Hillsides have eroded to expose sandy banks in which rollers nest & perch on telephone wires nearby. Kites, eagles & vultures are such a common sight that we no longer stop the bikes to look at them. If you are ever whizzing past this way on the Autoroute, take a small detour to visit the charming, quaint village of Valdopardes.

Our route in to Segovia is not the most scenic direction to approach this majestic city, passing 'council flats' & building sites, but the only campsite, 'Camping Acueducto', is on this side. It has excellent facilities, helpful staff, & wonderful near views of the even more snow-covered Sierra de Guadarrama.

Similar to Avila, but less austere, Segovia is a World Heritage Site that has city walls encircling a Cathedral, churches & leafy plazas. The honey-coloured stone is everywhere highly decorated. The Roman 1st Century aqueduct is an astonishing 163 arches of huge granite blocks. The Alcazar at the NW corner of the walls is like a fairy-tale castle, visible for miles. It has steep slate roofs, complex turrets & towers. It is relatively modern as the original 14c building was burnt down in 1862. There are attractive buildings also outside the city walls, especially to the N. where chuches, a convent & a monastry can be approached through a pretty hamlet bridging the rio Ciguiñela. There is a lovely walk under the city walls through shady woods & past allotments.

A Scops Owl, or similar woke us in the night, calling nearby, & in the morning we had to clean off the tent having inadvertently pitched under a magpie's nest. We felt kindlier towards the hoopoes & skylarks that were competing in song as we headed off N.E. A wonderfuil days cycling over rolling hills of stone villages, all the time accompanied by views of the sierras to the S. We were aware that this part of Spain has a harsh winter, followed directly by a hot summer, & summer has now definetely arrived at about 25degs.

The extensive wild thyme & ambulante shepherds remind us of Andalucia. The sheepdogs are bigger. Here they are like a tall cross between a St Bernard & a wolf! So far they are curious rather than aggressive. The stony fields have been picked, with piles of light-coloured stones in the middle of fields or around trees. We cycled 75 miles today, & wild-camped in a pine copse.

We set off at dawn, down into a red valley, dark red soil & houses in red sandstone. Some villages have lots of simple old stone crosses, others old derelict towers, possibly defunct windmills? On the ridge to the S., we counted more than 120 wind turbines. Cervantes & his creation, Don Quixote, would be impressed with Spain's modern tally of windmills! Roasting hot so have along lunch stop with a 'menu del dia' in a tiny village (Retortillo de Soria). Half a gallon of potato & meat soup, large veal steaks cooked to perfection with a salad, followed by natillas postres (desserts like creme brulee) & coffee plus a cold beer included. We enjoyed instead cycling in the cool of the late evening, to great effect as we completed 95 miles (a record for us on loaded bikes). This placed us in a good position to cross over the Puerto La Cascara (1200 metres) at dawn, mainly a long downhill swoop into Tarazona, through lush orchards & vineyards.

Again with no campsite, the Lonely Planet Guidde led us to a 'palace', The Palacete del Arceidenos Hotel. The lady owner was upset that she could not find the key to the ground floor store, so we had to carry the bikes up 3 flights of a grand marble staircase. Our room has views of snowy mountains in the distance (the Sierra de Moncayo) & a hotpotch of ancient houses etc in the foreground. We added to the local colour by hanging our sleeping bags out of the window to air. The 'palace' is like the rest of town, dignified but decaying. They know how to enjoy themselves - on our arrival their was a short colourful fiesta procession with flamenco dancers & men on horseback. Later, as Sue booked in at the hotel, Mike was delayed with the bikes whilst the processionary dancers filled the hotel courtyard to briefly perform a flamboyant dance. Now the town centre is filled by the beautifully-dressed guests waiting for a bride to arrive at the gorgeous old Town Hall. They have built a new bullring out of town, & have converted the old one into flats & bars to great effect.

Tomorrow we head N for Tedula & the rio Ebro

Salamanca to Avila...

Salamanca is a magnificent city of ancient sandstone buildings including a prestiguous university, arcaded Plaza Mayor, cathedrals, convents & palaces. The Casa de las Conchas is decorated externally with the Santiago shell motif, & inside has a 2-tier courtyard. We also enjoyed the 2-storey market, with a staggering array of fresh fish & meat. We were very pleased to bump into a couple of touring cyclists (Jennifer & John from London) who we had previously met at Merida & Caceres. They had taken a different route from the latter place, so we were able to swop info. They fly back from the small Salamanca airport at the weekend. A very blustery day with heavy showers, which the local papers say will set the pattern for the next few days.

However, no rain overnight so happily packed up a dry tent & headed E. on easy roads across the level plains towards Avila. We past flooded rivers & then into rolling countryside, very pretty with poplars lining watercourses, friesian milk herds with young calves, & sandstone villages with sturdy churches & single storey cottages. The last 20 miles was transformed with enormous granite rocks littering the landscape, & smaller fields divided by drystone walls. Very reminiscent of Cornwall & Brittany.

Avila is in the book of '1000 places to visit before you die' & we could see why. The view as you approach is incredible. A hilltop town with a complete city wall incorporating 88 towers, reputedly the best medieval city walls in the world. Entering by any of the gates doesn't disappoint. Many of the streets are pedestrianised & cobbled. Handsome plazas set off the cathedral, churches & convents. It all appears most tastefully restored & maintained. The celebrity of Avila is a Saint Theresa, who transformed the local Carmelite Nun's way of life in the 15C, & many public buidings are dedicated to her.

As we know of no campsite nearby, we resort to hotels recommended in 'Lonely Planet' Guide. We're not disappointed by Hotel San Juan in the centre of the old quarter near the colonaded main square. The view from our tiny balcony includes the cathedral & market. Our bicycles are secured in the basement by a very helpful receptionist.

There is a laid back atmosphere here, allowing us to wander into interesting places unchallenged, such as the College of Architecture where we saw their collection of ancient life-size granite pigs, symbolic of the city & area. We also snuck into Saint Theresa's Convent by the tradesman's entrance, & saw the revolving wooden hatch where goods are delivered to the nuns without them being seen by the delivery man!

Moving on tomorrow towards Segovia, & then N.E. from there.

Caceres to Salamanca...

Travelled E. on small mostly untarmaced country roads to Trujillo, through large fields of crops, & smaller fields divided by drystone walls. Red kites & Montagus Harriers in abundance. Some English birdwatchers pointed out a pair of Giant Bustards on the horizon; like big turkeys. Azure-winged magpies & hoopoes also plentiful. A large mobile phone aerial had been spiked to prevent storks nesting - this was no match for the intrepid stork, who had built her nest on the attached satellite receiving dish. This had been successful, as we could see a large chick poking its head over the edge.

Fields of white-faced sheep, some with lambs, & then dozens of black 'toros bravos' (fighting bulls). Just short of Trujillo we called at the tiny hilltop village of La Cumbre. Time has stood still here, with an ancient sturdy church, single storey white cottages, & untarmaced tracks. The one bar was full of old men playing cards. The village children gathered round us, practising their English & honking our bicycle horns.

Trujillo is a hilltop medeival town of chuches, palaces, convents & an arcaded Plaza Mayor hosting a 'Medieval Market'. Magnificent views of the surrounding plains from the town walls. Overwhelmed by the choice of local cheeses, we accidentely bought one which tasted of old goat. This is probably why, at our stop for lunch on the rio Tozo, we had at least 50 Griffen Vultures circling overhead.

We now had magnificent views of the mountains of the Monfrague Parque National, & once again are passing oak plantations with pigs grazing under as we head N. towards Plasencia. A good road surface sweeps up towards the mountains, passing occasional vineyards &, being a weekend, we encountered groups of lycra-clad cyclists.

Monfrague is a spectacular escarpment backed by mountains around the rio Tajo, dammed here to form a 100km long serpentine reservoir. A fantastic windy road snakes through, with many viewpoints to stop & watch the Black Vultures, Red Kite & Eagles. Just an amazing number of raptors all in the air together. Difficult to drag ourselves away, so arrived at 9pm at the excellent Monfrague Campsite, pitching next to some very friendly Flemish Belgians. Also met on site an English couple with a 'Thorn' bike, the same make as ours! In an adjoining field a red deer stag was sitting in the sun.

Plasencia is yet another town with a wealth of 13th & 14thC buildings. Ten cobbled narrow streets meet on the Plaza Mayor. Convents, churches, & houses of the rich with arcaded courtyards are set off shady plazas. The Parador vies with 'ours' at Zafra, being in a 14thC convent in the town centre, retaining magnificent vaulted ceiliings & arcaded courtyard. Tarried 3 nights on the Monfrague campsite, as the weather & bird-watching was wonderful. We cycled back into the Parque to have close views of vultures nesting & feeding their young at a large rock face adjacent to the dam.

Headed N. towards Bejar. Power pylons are protected here from storks by rows of poles with artificial nest sites. There are so many storks, however, that they still find places to squeeze nests onto the pylons. There is snow above about 1500m on the approaching Sierra de Candelario. We are the only occupants of the wooded campsite overlooking the quaint high village of Candelario. The cloud cover kept the temperature above freezing overnight. The next morning we past through the cobbled streets of timber-framed tile-hung houses in Candelario & the similar village of Navacarros.

We take the horribly busy N630 N. towards Salamanca, but before lunch find a way to the E. along country lanes by the full rio Tormes, in an area like the Somerset levels. We are relieved to reach the campsite 4km E. of Salamanca, as the strong side/head winds have been hard work.

Staying 2 nights here in order to visit the city, then moving E. towards Avila & Segovia.

Zafra to Caceres...

Much of the centre of Zafra is c15thC, including 2 arcaded plazas, 3 convents & numerous churches on cobbled streets. There are storks with chicks nesting on most towers. It is on the N/S Santiago Pilgrims route, so we spotted lots of backpackers & a German cyclist. There is a large bullfighting ring & many bars are full of men only, watching live bullfights from the Sevilla festival on the TV.

On the way north we passed through the innocuous looking town of Almendrolejo, where we glanced into the Town Hall, & found it to have the most wonderful tiled arcaded courtyard & staircases. The staff were very happy to let us wander around admiring their building.

As forecast, it rained in the afternoon as we headed N. to Merida. Fortunately an easy cycle on gentle hills, past orchards planted with alternate rows of olive trees & vines. Merida is on the site of the Roman town of Augustus Emerta, the largest Roman city on the Iberian peninsula. It boasts many fine Roman remains. Our favourites were the 60-arch Roman bridge, Milagros aqueduct (with storks nests) & the Temple of Diana. As well-recommended by Ros & Mike, we camped a few miles to the E. in a very friendly campsite where we met a French-Canadian family of 4, on 2 tandems (with a trailer) - their 1st trip to Europe.

In showers & a welcome tailwind, we set off N. following a straight Roman road to Caceres. We passed 2 castles with storks nesting on the battlements. Red kites soared overhead. Stayed 2 nights at a very posh campsite at Caceres, each pitch having its own bathroom - ours usefully doubling as a secure bikeshed! Caceres is the highlight of the trip so far. The old town centre is a pristinely preserved mixture of Roman & Medieval, palaces, convents, plazas, churches, town walls & entrance gates. The narrow cobbled lanes & flights of granite steps make it virtually car-proof. We have never seen such a large number of historic buildings together in one place, & would recommend it to anyone for a visit. The rain has stopped & we finish a lovely evening in 'El Asador', a traditional tapas bar, eating morcilla (black pudding stew) with iberian hams hanging from the bar walls.

Tomorrow plan to head E. for Trujillo, then afterwards N. into Natural Parque Montfrangue & then Plasencia.

Nerja to Zafra

Monday 31st March we headed out of Nerja northwest to our first night on the new journey, to Ros & Mike's country home near Los Marines. The 360deg view from their terrace is stunning; Perriana, Mt Maroma, Laguna Viñuela, the Med, Sierra de Chimeneas, & in the foreground their next door neighbour Dolores, in her pinny, pruning her olive trees. After a very convivial evening with our generous hosts, we set of the next day well refuelled.
We wild-camped the next evening in the natural park of El Torcel, in a stone sheep pen with views of Malaga on the distant coast, overlooked by cliffs nested with vultures. Our only company was a shepherd who helpfully showed us the nearest fountain. He went home at dusk, his flock having fed on the carpet of wild crocuses. At dawn, the temperature in the tent was a bracing 4degC due to our height at 850 metres.
Antequerra at the base of a breathtaking whizz down from the mountains, has fantastic dolmens (megalithic funeral chambers) & many other fine old buildings.
As expected no flamingoes at Laguna de Fuente del Piedra due to low water levels.
Osuna & Ecija are 2 small towns stuffed with medieval buildings & storks nesting on the church bell towers. We saw hundreds of flamingoes on Laguna Calderon just north of Ecija.
There are vast estates of orange & olive groves on the way to Palma del Rio where unsurprisingly, there are enormous orange juice & olive oil processing plants. We cycled 67 miles today so celebrated with a night in a hotel & ate in a very friendly tapas bar.
By Friday we were passing though Natural Park Hornachuellos & on into the Sierra Norte, Imperial eagles frequently soaring overhead.
The wild flowers have been overwhelming - predominantly lavender / thrift, but loads more we couldn't identifiy. Cork oak plantations are everywhere, the cork stripped from the chocolate-brown trunks. In the shade of the trees now in the massive farms are herds of free-range black pigs, who invariably stampede noisily away as we pass. Surprisingly, no pong. Fortunately, the enormous ferocious-looking farm dogs also always run away in terror on our approach. Glimpses everywhere of deer, hoopoes & bee-eaters. Our thermometer confirms the weather forecast of shade temperatures the last few days of 30degC.
The last village in Andalucia, Guadalcanal, was like a Mexican cowboy film set - all ancient simple adobe houses, tiny bars & a big white church. Many of the men were wearing cowboy hats & riding well-turned out white horses. We think this must be something they do on Saturdays!
Into Extremedura. Wonderfully quiet, good condition country roads through heathland. Wild-camped amongst lavender far from civilisation.
Downhill all the way to Zafra, passing storks on unwieldy nests the size of sofas, precarious on the top of electricity pylons. Grey & white hen harriers glide low over vineyards & olive groves. At this historic centre we just had to book into the Parador Hotel - the local castle, a former ancestral home, the Alcazar de los Duques de Feria (built c1437), for 2 nights rest & sight-seeing, approximately 300 miles from Nerja.

As we are in the wilds, future blog postings may be a bit infrequent. The plan is to cycle north through Extremedura to Salamanca, then eastwards.

Easter Sunday Procession, & Dolphins at last

The procession was at midday in brilliant sunshine, more uplifting than the sober evening ceremonies last week. We sneaked in to San Salvador Church through a side door, to watch the frantic preparation of the 4 'tronos' (thrones, which is what they call the floats). Once out into the plaza in front of the Church, they posed for photos in their long red & white robes, & then proceeded to carry the heavy tronos on their shoulders over the rosemary-strewn streets. The ubiquitous local band accompanied the procession, beating the march-time in the hot sun. (Photo: Procession)

Gill & Andrew had joined us in the crowd, so we four then strolled to Antonios on the beach for our Sunday paella. We walked our lunch off with a circuit of the local fields, putting up dozens of little egrets which had gathered round the grazing oxen. The avocados have now been replaced by the lemon & apricot crop. (Photo: Antonio's enormous paella - 1 metre diameter dish).




The following day on our usual cycle to Cerro Gordo, we stopped at a midway viewpoint where at last we spotted a school of dolphins just off the cliffs (we have been looking out for these for months)! Our luck continued as on the return journey we had views of a hoopoe & a black squirrel. It must be dolphin season, as we walked to Maro Tower today & saw 2 dolphins even closer in to shore off Maro Beach. Also saw another hoopoe & some Short-Toed eagles.

Santa Semana

Refreshingly, Easter here does not mean supermarket aisles stacked full of easter eggs, as it remains the most important religious festival of the year. Good Friday evening we joined the crowds in front of the Church of San Salvador. When the doors opened a cloud of incense emerged, & so many processioners that it was difficult to see how they had all fitted inside. The two effigies of Mary & Jesus, each mounted on very heavy gilded platforms, were borne on the shoulders of parishioners. Beautifully decorated, with hundreds of blue irises & tall altar candles, they paused in the square under a balcony where Antonio Cortes (handsome local flamenco singer) sang a passionate religious prayer. The processioners ranged from tiny tots to Nerja grannies, mainly in flowing silk robes, carrying crucifixes & candles. They proceeded around the streets of the town behind the smartly uniformed youngsters local brass band, drums beating out the funereal pace. (Photo: Statue of Mary)

Orange Blossom & Ostriches

Sue & Graham E. flew back to sunny Ruithin on Tuesday & were greatly missed by the Walking Group on Wednesday. A strong turnout of 18 left from Competa taking olive-strewn mule paths around the valleys in wonderful weather. The return leg crossed a Roman bridge & skirted an ancient hilltop church with arab origins. At various small Cortijos, Katy pointed out the sloping south-facing areas where grapes are sun-dried to raisins. Less traditional were a pair of stabled Ostriches adjacent to the path! A day of mixed odours - heady wafts of orange blossom tempered by very smelly mounds of goat dung & the pong from the malfunctioning sewage outfall at the otherwise charming village of Canillas de Albaida. (Photos: Noddy House in Olive Grove; Canillas De Albaida with Mt Maroma behind).

Some rain forecast this week, let's hope not much, as Nerja's elaborate preparations are in place for Santa Semana (Easter Week) parades every day from Wednesday to Sunday.

Dust up

A truly memorable first trip to the Alpajurras valleys, tucked away in the mountains south of Granada. Ancient white villages of Arab origins on steep slopes, & ruins of Arab Baths & ancient water mills. We walked on cobbled mule paths in an area thankfully not scarred by tourism. (Photo: Sierra Nevada snows from the Alpujarras)

Another trip organised by Gill & Andrew L. up the valley towards Peña Escrita. The weather is really hotting up now so we took it easy up the steep country roads, picking up plenty of windfall avocados. We saw a mule with basket panniers being used to transport fruit from the fields.

We had our first bike ride for 2 weeks, up the Miel valley, terribly hot! The smell of herbs wafted all around. No traffic at all. The track on the return journey was very steep & slippery in places. We spotted lots of wild cerise orchids. (Photo: Head of the Miel Valley)

Gill & Andrew's friends have arrived to take their car back, so Gill generously took the last opportunity with her wheels to lead us up another local valley. Graham, following in his car to the start point, was taken off guard by the road's sudden change from tarmac to cart track surface. He hadn't time to temper his 'Jeremy Clarkson' motoring technique, so a passing little old Spanish lady was completely enveloped in a cloud of dust from his spinning wheels! Thankfully she emerged eventually unscathed, shaking several pounds of stone dust from her shawl. The walk was up a dry river bed & incorporated a disused quarry, to Mike's delight. The valley was dotted with derelict small farms & lots of active beehives. (Photo: a Compo & Cleggy moment - l to r Mike, Graham, Banny & Andrew).

We were taken to Ronda (northeast of Malaga) by our kind Danish neighbour, Nils (& his miniature Dachshund, whose name is unpronouncible to non-Danes!). Fantastic winding mountain roads. The journey was slightly marred by Saturday motorcyclists racing this challenging route. Ronda is in a stunning location straddling a very deep gorge. There are dramatic vertiginous views from the town walls & bridges, picturesque plazas, & beautifully preserved Arab influenced architecture in the church in the centre. On the cross-country return we saw many eagles & vultures wheeling around the cliff tops. (Photo: Nuevo Puente {new bridge}, Ronda).

Summiting

A week of glorious sunny weather for Janet & Ian's visit so we spent most of the daylight hours walking. The highlight was achieving our ambition of getting to the summit of 'El Cielo' (1503 metres). This was thanks to Ros H. & Mike T., who made sure we did not get lost, & Sue & Graham E., who also risked the undercarriage of their car to get us to the start on the very un-made up track. The views were incredible, including snow on the Sierra Nevada, & only a slight haze on the horizon which meant we couldn't quite claim to have seen the north coast of Africa. We had the mountain virtually to ourselves, apart from some young ibex & eagles. As we brushed passed pine trees, clouds of orange pollen floated off.

It was difficult to beat this high, but we also greatly enjoyed 'Pinto' the following day, & the walk led by Jean of the Walking Group, up the Miel (Honey) Valley. We passed little farms with incredibly steep terraces of vines, olives & avocados on our way to snow-capped Sierra views. Strings of Processionary Caterpillars crossed the tarmac in front of us, & we came across beautiful cerise orchids. This valley had not escaped the damaging September 07 rainstorm, with road edges washed away in many places, & a riverside house almost totally destroyed.

Up early on Thursday for Janet & Ian to catch the 6.30am bus to Malaga & their flight home. We think we'll spend the remainder of the day resting our feet!

On the hoof

On our local walk through the fields, we were met by a very large herd of goats, being driven down the river bed to new grazing. Nearby a Spaniard was calling through the gate of an avocado orchard. On approach we could see he was addressing 'Pepe', a very large pig, white with black spots. He also called it 'Guapo' (handsome boy)!

A fascinating lecture in English (by a Swede) about post-Franco Spain has inspired us to read more. A visit to the wonderful Nerja second-hand bookshop provided us with a book to be getting on with.

A surprise bank-holiday on Thursday, not mentioned on any calendars, turned out to be 'Andalucia Day'. The locals celebrated with a 'Dia De Pedal' Bike Ride around Nerja town. Every one of the 1,500 plus participants was provided with a yellow t-shirt & a event number. They ranged from tiny toddlers to a novelty bike with 7 saddles, & everything in between.

Janet & Ian arrived from Exeter on Friday. The plane was late as it had to have ice removed from its wings before take-off! A wonderful river & ridge walk with them on Saturday gave us several great views of eagles. We rounded of the day with a visit to 'Irish Annies', where Mike T (Walking Group Guide) & his musical mates were playing to a busy bar.

Really great to speak to Mum in Dorset by phone today (Mothering Sunday) - she is obviously in good form, & enjoying the spring Dorset weather & flowers. We are all hoping for good weather here for an attempt on the summit of 'Cielo' (1508 metres) tomorrow. Off now for Paella at Ayo's with Sue & Graham E., & the newly returned Gill & Andrew L - great to have them back.