In the crisp morning air (we wore wind jackets for the first few kilometers), we set off for Toledo. In my research I learned about the importance of Toledo especially in the Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand era. I'm really looking forward to seeing it in the bend of the Tagus (Tajo) River.
But first we have a couple of decent climbs to conquer. The first climb was crossing the Parque Nacional de Cabañeros, which is known for ornithology more than scenery. A lucky individual could see a red deer or javelin (wild boar) while crossing the park. The birds were very vocal as we rode through the park - it is that time of year!
The second climb became visible as we road across the plains after the descent. We passed a couple of small villages and crossed golden fields that were magnified by the mountains in the distance and the blue skies above.
Retuerta de Bullaque, one of the small villages we passed through.
And then came the climb over the mountains from the village of San Pablo de los Montes. It's about a 7k climb with 400m of elevation gain . . . hmmm, should be interesting. The good thing is that it is almost all downhill from the top into Toledo - at least that's what the profile map looks like. We will see.
We had just started the climb - looking back down - and we're still not sure which way it will take us up and over.
We stopped at a cafe at the bottom of this descent for a refreshing lemonade before finishing the ride into Toledo. The rest of the ride was fairly flat and as we got closer to the big city, the traffic became heavier. There were a lot of golden fields and some vineyards. The traffic was very respectful to us and gave us plenty of room.
Rock walls were built all over the hillsides - that must've take a lot of labor.
Since we have a layover day, we went to walk around the old city center in search of ice cream and to get the lay of the land. We didn't plan any tourist site visits here and are thankful to be free to see what we want when we want. What a historical trip this tour has been so far. Spain is full of history!
As we left our hotel, we entered this city gate. Our hotel is actually built into the old city wall.
We had a simple dinner of magret (duck breast) in raspberry sauce and pork tenderloin chimichurri. The food has been delicious and very different from our typical fare in France.
