May 19, 2013

It is chilly, but we have sunshine to start the day so we decide to risk it without the modified footwear.  The first part of the day is spent climbing ever upwards on a winding back-road up to the pass where it had snowed yesterday.  It is a brilliant day for tackling the climb as it is cold enough to keep us cool as we work our way upwards, but also sunny giving us perfect mountain views as we go.  We can see that the top of the mountain is shrouded with clouds and as we get nearer the top we become enveloped in icy cloud and bombarded with hailstones – we wear all our clothes and the bin bags as well in an attempt to keep dry and warm.  Should have worn the shoe modifications after all.

As we go over the pass we begin to see a continual stream of cyclists and walkers making their way up the other side – we’re whizzing downhill too fast to stop and talk.  The downhill run carries us a good 10 kilometres before we start to twist and turn our way upwards again still surrounded in cloud, eventually running downhill for the final time before coming onto a long, flat road.  For the first time in days we can power along in a high gear and it gives us the feeling of making progress.  We decide to pass the place we thought we might stop at as we are getting along so well – it just means that we have to hope there is a place to stay in a small place further on called Mombuey.

When we arrive in Mombuey it looks at first glance that we might have a problem, but as we come out of the far side of the village we spot a sign for a hotel.  When I go in to inquire about a room, I encounter the most unhelpful and surly girl I have come across on this trip. We do get a room, but, for the first time, we cannot take the bikes indoors and we have to leave them outside behind the hotel.  The room has certainly seen better days and is not cheap and the dinner is a complete rip-off, but we are a captive audience and so have no choice. The terrible experience is not reserved for foreign tourists as we observe when a coach full of Spanish tourists call in. They all buy drinks and food in the bar, but there is not enough room for them all to sit in there and so a few spill over into the dining room where we are.  A massive argument ensues all around us with lots of arm waving and shouting, as only those partaking of dinner are allowed in the dining room.  We leave before it gets out of hand.  We’re actually pretty fed-up of hotels and restaurants.  It has been nearly a couple of weeks now since we camped, which is one of the enjoyable aspects of cycle touring.  Still, tomorrow is Monday and the weather forecasts were predicting that it should pick up from then onwards, so you never know we might be able to camp tomorrow.