May 14, 2016

Well, that was a long, hard day. What made it so hard? Lots of things. The morning was spent sorting everything out at home before we left. Loading the bikes with the new panniers took more time than usual because although we had tried them and adjusted the fittings with them empty, once they were full of stuff we needed to adjust them again. Eventually we were on our way when we remembered we had left a bag of rubbish back at home full of stuff from the fridge, so we had to turn round and go back to collect it (rubbish in Spain has to be thrown in the community bins). We’ve never managed to reach the end of our track yet when setting off on a bike tour without having to turn round for some reason or other.

Despite many hours carefully fitting new parts and making modifications, followed by several hours of road testing, the first few kilometres were notable for the number of times we had to stop because of various problems – chain jumping (Ken), chain coming off (Ken), gears not changing smoothly (Ken), panniers rattling (Ken) – spot the common link here?

Although the sun was shining there was a strong and gusty wind in our faces. When added to the very hilly terrain that we always have to travel when leaving from home, we soon felt our lack of pre-tour training. The heart and lungs were fine but try climbing a 9% gradient with jelly legs – not a good feeling. We had to stop and catch our breath many times and on one occasion we shared our cake with a goatherd.

Possibly the worse aspect of not having been on our bikes for some time was how quickly our saddles became uncomfortable, followed by unbearable. We both suffered but me more so because Ken has this fancy new ‘Thudbuster’ suspension for his seat. It is a bit of an experiment to see if it really does make the ride more comfortable, so far the results are promising.

We had only planned a short run for the first day. The place we head to is a town at the top of a steep climb (aren’t they always?). We have decided to give the first place we could stay at a miss because we stayed there on our tour in 2013 and it was rather basic (rough). We head further along the road, through the town and out down the hill on the other side to a much nicer hotel. Our hearts sink – the bars are across the doors – it’s closed. Not permanently, there are tables set up outside on the patio, it’s closed just for today. Why would a hotel decide to close on a Saturday evening? Monday is the day most hotels take a day off. We’re feeling nervous enough about setting off on a tour with no camping gear without getting stuck on our first night. With a distinct lack of enthusiasm we turn round and head back up the hill to the place we rejected, the only other accommodation in town. Our hearts really do sink when we get back there to see the gates pulled across the doors. At this point we’re ready to catch a bus back home. I’m just turning away when a voice shouts from a window asking me what I want. I tell her we want a room, she lets us in and relocks the door behind us. This is not the first time we’ve been let into a closed hotel on cycle tours. We’re not worried any more about it being basic.

We know from previous experience that the first day of a tour is the worst day of a tour.  Here’s hoping that it is true this time too.