Day 5: Seville to Cazalla de la Sierra - Traversing the Iberian Peninsula from South to North - CycleBlaze

April 27, 2023

Day 5: Seville to Cazalla de la Sierra

We left Seville and its Feria behind using a great bicycle path that kept us separated from the city traffic.  We rode through a lot more agricultural area just like two days ago, which has been interesting since we eat a lot of fruits and some veggies from Spain.  It's obvious that their seasons occur much earlier than ours up north in France.

Almond trees on one side of the road
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Orange trees on the other side of the road
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kath vowlesThese will be Seville oranges. Much sharper in flavour that the ones we normally eat from the Valencia area. Seville oranges are used to make your Marmelade. (Translation from jam in Spanish (Mermelada))🙂.
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11 months ago
Sanna PhinneySo we learned. And they use them for distilling liqueurs.
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11 months ago

Eventually we turned off onto a small country road and headed out to the hilly country with wonderful scenery.

Riding along with our great companion, Roxan from Anacortes, Washington, who is also our ride leader.
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Cork and oak forests again
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We've been seeing these brilliant yellow trees (shrubs) all along the way and they have a wonderful scent. My plant app identifies them as Jerusalem Thorn, a species of palo verdes.
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We're descending down to the valley floor below and hoped to see the lake up close. But it didn't happen, we crossed a bridge over one of its tributaries instead.
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Roadside bourne (Spanish style).
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We were having a blast on this descent! He's serious because its a corner and I knew Roxan was waiting to photo us.
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Correction: These are Guinea hens, not the peahens. A new sighting - Guinea hens. I had originally thought they were a turkey based on their size. And they were very noisy and upset with me.
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Bill ShaneyfeltLooks like guinea fowl. Noisy!

https://www.shawlocal.com/2019/03/20/outdoors-guineas-not-peacocks-used-to-be-farm-regulars/axvizny/
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11 months ago
Sanna PhinneyI think you’re right and the bird guy on our trip was wrong. We just didn’t notice the black and white that closely. I was more interested in trying to get the photos. They were pretty upset with me and very noisy about.
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11 months ago
Guinea hen
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CHRISTOPHER JAMESthey must be related to the California quail..very similar bird.
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11 months ago
Sanna PhinneyNot at all, Chris. These birds were the size of wild turkeys.
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11 months ago
The cork trees are interspersed with many holm oak trees.
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Finally we were able to get up close to examine a core tree that has been stripped.
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kath vowlesWow, I assume it grows back?
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11 months ago
Sanna PhinneyYes, and is harvested again in 10-12 years.
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11 months ago
Looking even closer . . . Be sure to notice what the bark looks like above the cut line.
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Check out the various layers that have been stripped over the years. Also notice how it looks like "cork"! Apparently they are stripped about every 10-12 years.
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When we came across a little village, we stopped at a bar and had an ice cold lemonade and several bottles of water.  Just what we needed with the rising temperatures.  After we were refreshed we want in search of the local churches and found 2 that weren't locked up.  

The little cafe that offered ice cold beverages
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A chapel in the first church
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There was a gentleman sitting in the church, so I used my handy translator app to see if he would mind if Chuck sang. He sat with me and we listened to Chuck's amazing voice with a perfect echo in this church. It so happened this gentleman was the caretaker (or something) and he loved hearing the songs.
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The alter of the second church.
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The lovely garden of the second church.
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We had been forewarned about a very bumpy road and our tour leaders offered an alternative (shorter, too) route.  But we opted to stay on the original route because we heard it was scenic and no cars.  Well, one car passed us!  Scenic?  Absolutely!  Bumpy?  That was putting it mildly!  Right choice?  No question about it!  Loved the route!!

This was the best part of today's ride. Fantastic scenery!
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Blooming prickly pear with a jumping cactus in the mix.
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The full scene of cactus with the background hillside.
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Once upon a time cooperative.
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The cooperative from another angle with the blooming Jerusalem Thorn in front.
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Poppy field!
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Street scene of Cazalla de la Sierra, our home for the night.
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Our hotel - another paradore.
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That chandelier would be perfect in my living room. Sadly, it wasn't for sale.
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rod dayWould it have fitted in your panniers?
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11 months ago
Sanna PhinneyThat was my problem … no way to get it home.
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11 months ago
Our "red" room with the best air conditioner!
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We took a very short stroll (it was over 38C/100F) and saw this stork and nest on the church steeple.
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The patio and bike parking spot at the hotel.
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Some really fun glass dividers at the hotel.
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The second glass divider . . . some people are so artistic!
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This was my favorite day to date.  It was the hottest, but the road (yes, it was super bumpy and we felt like we were gravel riding) and the scenery almost made you forget about the temperature.  I should say that the last few kilometers into town were on a perfectly smooth tarmac - ahhhhh!  

Day 5: Seville to Cazalla de la Sierra
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Today's ride: 93 km (58 miles)
Total: 1,940 km (1,205 miles)

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