Orson Posted September 1, 2003 Posted September 1, 2003 I took a week off & did a mini tour of northern Portugal & northwestern Spain. I left from my friend's house in Porto & headed north to the town of Ponte De Lima. From there, I turned west & headed for the coast. I crossed over into Spain via a small river ferry & proceeded north while hugging the coast. The Galician coast bears a resemblance to northern California's Highway 1 & I had I hopes that I may have found its equal. Alas, it was not to be for, the level of urbanisation along the coast & the ensuing traffic didn't allow for any spirited riding. Also, the road conditions aren't top notch. Still, the scenery was spectacular. Just when I was starting to think,"I could see myself living here"...
Orson Posted September 1, 2003 Author Posted September 1, 2003 ...it started to rain. I should have known anyplace as beautiful & green as this would require a lot of rain. Fortunately, there were only scattered showers & when I did hit rain, it only lasted 5 minutes. The rain also served to increase my feelings of Deja vu for the northern California coast. I proceeded to the northwestern tip of Spain where the village of Finisterra juts out into the sea on a jagged peninsula. The town is aptly named. Finis = end, terra = land. End of the land.
Orson Posted September 1, 2003 Author Posted September 1, 2003 By the time I reached Finisterra, it was time to turn around & head back to Portugal. I headed inland & was immediately enveloped in lush green landscape. This region was settled by the Celts & I could see a lot of similarities to England & Scotland as I rode along. The wet weather dampened my fun as I had to keep my speed down in the twisties but, traffic was a lot lighter than it had been on the coast.
Orson Posted September 1, 2003 Author Posted September 1, 2003 One last shot of the Guzzi looking down on the Atlantic Ocean, before the rains swept in. All in all, it didn't displace California Highway 1 from my personal Hall of Fame but, it was still a great experience. I rode about 1500 KMs in 4 days. Not a very high average but, that was because the road along the coast was very curvey with a lot of traffic & towns. The region is known for its seafood & I wasn't dissapointed. Like the French, the Spanish & Portuguese couldn't cook a bad meal if they tried.
Orson Posted September 5, 2003 Author Posted September 5, 2003 P.S. I forgot to add that, the Guzzi performed flawlessly throughout the trip. I got me a good one!
Orson Posted August 10, 2004 Author Posted August 10, 2004 Ignore this post. I'm experimenting with my new mapping software
al_roethlisberger Posted August 10, 2004 Posted August 10, 2004 ..neat ...neat ....neat So, I'm confused BTW. I thought you were in Saudi, and your bike was back in the States?? Where exactly are YOU and where is the BIKE stationed? al
gthyni Posted August 10, 2004 Posted August 10, 2004 Oh no, you got here too early, La Liga hasn't started yet!
Orson Posted August 11, 2004 Author Posted August 11, 2004 So, I'm confused BTW. I thought you were in Saudi, and your bike was back in the States?? Where exactly are YOU and where is the BIKE stationed? al no no no...now pay attention I live & w*rk in Saudi...my bike leads a vagabond existence travelling the roads of Europe. Between trips, it seeks refuge at the bike shop in Parma, Italy, where I purchased it, a friend's barn in Shropshire, UK and, another friend's garage near Porto, Portugal. It's nice having good friend's (with garage space) It makes for a convenient triangle of home bases.
twhitaker Posted August 11, 2004 Posted August 11, 2004 Some people have all the luck. Me, I live in an area where the greatest excitement is to barrel over a hill to see the back end of an Amish buggy or to dodge the associated meadow muffins. Did you ever look into the Hepco Becker bags?
Orson Posted August 11, 2004 Author Posted August 11, 2004 Some people have all the luck. Did you ever look into the Hepco Becker bags? ermmm...I dunno if livin in Saudi is called lucky. Actually, the locals are among the friendliest people I've come across it's just that, the terrain is like living on the surface of Mars. errr...haven't looked into the Hepcos yet. I'm a purty good procrastinator I don't know if they're available in Europe. I'll probably procrastinate until I get my clothes drenched again
twhitaker Posted August 11, 2004 Posted August 11, 2004 The HB bags are made in Germany. Met a guy last weekend who had a set of bags on his LeMans that looked like they came off a "Guzzi with sagging tits." Don't know the brand and won't see him again until last September. I empathize with sharing an area with a bunch of camel fleas. What I meant was all the European roads in your back yard. Wife and I are going to Italy in a couple years. Looking forward to that and at the same time dreading what the exchange rate might be. Procrastinator? I've had a PCIII for almost 2 years and have yet to install it.
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