May 19, 2014
Besalu
Breezing through Emporda
We have been lucky with weather so far - 5 days in and not a trace of rain. Today brought us the best conditions so far, and very welcome after yesterday's chilling headwinds - sunny, a high around 70, and a favorable southeast wind. The ride was the easiest so far too - after dropping three miles down from Begur, we entered the broad and flat Tet basin that comprises most of lower Emporda. For the next 25 miles we enjoyed a virtually flat ride, something I'm sure will be a rare experience for us on this tour. We took an unexpected break halfway through this stretch to explore the fascinating historical town of Peratallada.
The final 20 miles were over more mixed terrain as we transitioned into the eastern edge of the more rugged, volcanic Garrotxa region. On the whole it would have seemed like a quite easy day had we not failed to secure food when we left town this morning. We started running out of gas about 15 miles from the finish line, and after having our hopes dashed time and again by a series of barren villages, we arrived famished in Besalu at about 3 and headed straight to the nearest sidewalk cafe.
Saved from starvation, we then checked in at our hotel and loafed/napped until almost 6 before venturing out again to explore the town. Besalu is a fascinating little place. I had wanted to come here as much as anything to see its famous medieval bridge, but there are a surprising number of other fine things to see as well.
For dinner we ate at a tiny restaurant on the central plaza, the only place open here on Monday night other than a few bars. We enjoyed a simple but very good meal (salad, dorade, braised lamb), and also enjoyed the one man staff that served as greeter, server and (as near as we could tell) chef.
Net elevation gain: 2400' today, 13,200' total.
Today's ride: 50 miles (80 km)
Total: 191 miles (307 km)
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