April 26, 2017
April 26, 2017 - Vessadas to Porto: Sadly, the Douro Valley leg is complete... see you next time Douro!
Hotel: Veneza, Porto
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I SLEPT poorly due to the size of the bed which was made for someone 150 cm tall. I am 175 cm tall. That and my stomach was rumbling for most of the night. The good news is that by around 5 am I felt a whole lot better. So good that when I heard the worker downstairs preparing breakfast I felt both hungry and excited.
The food was both delicious and plentiful which I was hoping at 7€ per person. There was enough that the remainder was packed up for the road for a lunch break or at the hotel in Porto.
Since nobody else was in the guest house, I had loaded up the bike before breakfast so the wheels were turning by around 8:30 am. The route turned upward immediately for the 2 km to Castelo da Paiva as per the owner's directions. The walking method of cycling was used for this portion. The next section was so convoluted that even my GPS had a hard time navigating to Porto so I stopped to ask people on the street a number of times for the N224 across the Douro to meet with the N108 which would lead right into Porto.
- Vessadas, Portugal.
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Finally, the road led to the smaller bridge across the river and there was the sign for Porto, in 38 km. Though not as hilly as last week, there were still a number of hills along the river. The traffic increased, more villages and towns were scattered along the route, and in the distance I could see the bridges of Porto.
For a number of km there was a bicycle path which avoided all traffic, then as the main city was approached, pushing the bike was a smart idea since the traffic was as thick as molasses in January, as fast as Jacques Villeneuve on the F1 circuit. In short, no fun.
The road first followed alongside the river, then turned away and past numerous abandoned old tiled buildings as the road ascended way up, and into the Campanhã area of Porto. Our little guest house is about 500 m from the Campanhã a train station which is perfect for tomorrow's train ride to Santarém.
Though not at all fancy, this place is an older guest house run by an even older little man who was very welcoming. He ushered the bikes into the tiny lobby where the ancient rotary phone house phone system was still behind the foyer desk.
I wanted to get some pics of the Ribeira so that was the direction taken. I even saw my old guest house from my 2003 bike tour. There were throngs of tourists around, of course, because the day was beautiful. I could see where the contestants from Amazing Race 3 boated kegs of port from the opposite side of the Douro in Vila Nova da Gaia to the Rebeira district.
- Porto, Portugal.
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General wandering through the streets above the river was fascinating, poking into shops here and there before wandering to the São Bento area, up past the castle and onward to the Campanhã train station so I get a feel for what it looks like for tomorrow's train to Santarém. I booked a hotel in Santarém, so not much riding tomorrow, to speak of. A holiday, I suppose!
Today's ride: 46 km (29 miles)
Total: 221 km (137 miles)
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I am researching our 2024 tour. Tentatively, we are interested in riding from Porto to Frankfurt. I was thinking to ride along the Duoro River as far as we could, then head north of Madrid, but not on the coast, towards Pamplona. I see the Grampies were discouraged from doing this by the author of a guide book, who said it wouldn't be pleasant riding, with all of the motor traffic of people exploring the wine route.
What do you think? I understand we will have climbing. We enjoy deserted roads. The kind with no center line is best. Do you have an opinion about my route idea, or options? Another thought we had was to start in Barcelona/Valencia/Madrid, and go from there to Frankfurt. But, we wanted to see more of Portugal and Spain to the north, as we've seen the south.
Thank you for any help.
6 months ago
I would have to say again that the most beautiful route I have toured is the Douro.
As an aside, there is a great B&B along that route not far from Pinhao, though it is somewhat of a climb to get to it. In the village of Valenca do Douro there is a B&B called Casa Cimeira. Sometimes it is on the booking sites but sometimes you have to go to their website. The price is reasonable, the place is beautiful, there is a dinner option where you dine with the other guests all around one table after first meeting in their bar area. And they treat you like gold. Highly recommended. From there you can go back down to the river to continue your route, or head east from there toward Pocinho and points east.
I have kind of rambled along here but I hope I have been helpful. If you wish I could give you a number where you could call and we could chat if you prefer.
6 months ago
I would love to hear more. Jacinto is now thinking of starting at Lisbon because of better tickets. But we will work our way north. Please email your phone number to: Kelly.iniguez@gmail
Talk to you soon! What time zone are you in?
6 months ago
6 months ago