April 20, 2013

We have a night of no noise, no mosquitoes, working air conditioning and a soft bed and wake up fully refreshed.  After breakfast I have a conversation with the girl on the reception desk about the best way to reach the road we want.  She really doesn’t have a clue and recommends we go in the completely opposite direction to where we want to head.  We decide to ignore her, head off in vaguely the right direction and see what happens.  Fortunately for us, the hoards of Spanish cyclists that emerge every weekend are out as usual and I stop to talk to one group that are taking a breather by the side of the road.  We end up being escorted by the group to exactly where we want to be, which we would definitely have had problems finding for ourselves as they took us through some real back alleys to get there.

We follow a very busy road heaving with Saturday morning traffic through one little town after another, separated with groves of orange trees.  The air is heavy with the scent of orange blossom.  Then suddenly we emerge into open countryside and although we are still on the same road, all the traffic has magically disappeared.  It is a perfect road for cycling, gently undulating, but not taxing.  Off to one side in the middle of the countryside we pass the Centre for Innovation in Renewable Resources.  Part of the complex includes four massive towers surrounded by mirrors on the ground focusing the sunlight onto a point at the top of each tower.  They have a ghostly look as the rays of light spread around them.  The sun is shining today, but it is not as hot as the last couple of days with the temperature around 27 degrees.

We hope to stop at a place called La Palma which is marked on the map as having a camp site, but when we get there I pop into the local police station (always the best option for getting directions) to be told it has closed down.  The next place we can stay is 30 kilometres up the road.  The riding is so pleasant today that we really don’t mind going further than we planned.  As we set off again the terrain changes from agricultural to a range of low, wooded hills covered with wild pines, eucalyptus, rock roses and lavender.  The air is now heavy with the scent of rock roses.  We cross the Rio Tinto, the water a bright orange colour caused by the iron content, and now the climbs get a bit steeper and longer.  By the time we arrive in Valverde we’re pleased to check into a small hotel even though we had hoped to camp today.