On Top of the World

Spain-Portugal Stage 10 – Sat 21st May 2016 – Aljezur to Monchique (32 Km)

Weather: 13⁰C min – 26⁰C max, fine, cloudless

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” The bicycle is the noblest invention of mankind “ ~ William Saroyan

Breakfast this morning at Guesthouse A Lareira was not until 9 am, so I made sure that everything was packed ready to go by the time I went downstairs for breakfast on the dot of 9 am. A couple from Utrecht, Netherlands, had the same idea as they were also attired in their riding gear. We sat at adjacent tables and enjoyed hearing each other’s riding stories, then as soon as we had finished eating we retrieved our bicycles from the storeroom and headed off down the road, with them heading for Sagres and me heading in the opposite direction up the mountains to Monchique 32 Km east of Aljezur.

Just to get my metabolism kick-started, there was a steep climb of 300m in the first 6 Km, then a long steady climb of a further 200m in the next 14 Km. By that time the fog had lifted to reveal another magnificent warm sunny day.

Traffic was no concern at all today. Although I was following the main EN-267 route I virtually had the road to myself, and once I reached an elevation of about 450m I enjoyed sailing along on a smooth plateau for the rest of the trip. Like yesterday the journey up to Monchique offers spectacular views and is totally different from coastal Algarve. The roadside was lined with the same amazing wildflowers and the hills were dotted with the white, cup-shaped, flowers that I saw yesterday.

There were still lots of eucalyptus trees and a few chestnut trees, but the dominant tree today was the cork tree which was everywhere. I was absolutely fascinated by these beautiful trees, with their wonderfully gnarled, black branches and mottled yellow and green leaves. Most of them were bare from the waist down, having had the bark harvested from their trunks for cork. Naturally I tried to strip a little piece of bark as a souvenir, but it was too spongy to remove easily.

Occasionally I glanced up to my left at the Serra de Monchique , an impressive mountain range, home to two of the region’s highest peaks – Picota and Fóia. On my right there were spectacular views of the valley below.

There was only one village that I passed through all day, a quaint little place called Marmelete (sounds like that inferior substitute to vegemite that the English eat doesn’t it). As luck would have it the town had a café so I grabbed my opportunity to have my morning coffee fix. It was so pleasant sitting in the sunshine watching the locals queuing up behind a fisherman’s tiny van to buy fresh fish. When the queue died down he would sound a fog-horn and a few more locals would appear. I was imagining myself living in a little village such as this … I think I could get used to the simple lifestyle and the sense of community. Apart from the café there were no shops at all, so I don’t know how the residents make a living. Maybe they are self-sufficient as there seemed to be lots of small fruit and vegetable plots.

Monchique where I am staying tonight is a charming, quiet and relaxed place. Because I arrived too early to check in at the Bica Boa Inn, I stopped at a café in town for another coffee and it was there that I met a lovely German couple Rolf and Monica who I went and joined at their table. Rolf is a keen cyclist like myself and even has his own cycling website so we spent at least half an hour comparing notes.

Altogether I would have to say it has been a corker day.