Offroad from north to south Portugal

When bits fall of mine i always try to hide them :augie :D

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Excellent stuff Tim - it looks cathartic.

Now, the perfect bike? Ricks' 640 or your Dakar?

Well... Rick's bikes ok for fat old duffers:D

When bits fall of mine i always try to hide them :augie :D
Well spotted Gary:o Touratech shite, the chainguard fractured through metal fatigue as they do:rolleyes:

The only other issue was the 'silencer' clamp same loose causing the can to rotate and get ripped by the rear caliper TT guard, the bike got progressively louder and faster! Although the police in Plymouth weren't so impressed when we got off the ferry:nenau
 
Nice trip

It's difficult to overstate how brilliant that trip looks in the Ride Report - fantastic trails, weather, scenery, not far away either from Santander, wild camping and the threat of a shop selling red wine never too far away.

I'm very, very jealous

Please count me in next time you come up with such a brilliant idea (I may be on my xt660 tenere (Ahem) after selling the xr650

cheers

Rich
 
For 12 Euros a night Rick and I decided to stay in the 'Surf Shack' over looking the Atlantic, eat swordfish and drink wine that night.
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This was the furthest point south the rest of the group got and we were pleased they'd made the coast. :clap
The going further south was often deep sand which would have been difficult for the 1200 and Africa Twin.

Next day we leave our luggage at the surf shack and see how far south we can get without really pushing it.
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For a while our route followed the stunning coastline
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Not many photos of the sand I'm afraid, it was hard going but our confidence was high and we really began to enjoy the conditions as the bikes felt at home
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We reached Vila Nova de Milfontes and the track log on Rick's GPS ran out:blast
Damn we could've made it all the way to Faro on our route that night
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So we had an early lunch
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..and thoughts of home ;)
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From here, in 1924, 3 guys had had an adventure far more epic than ours
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Top blokes:clap
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I'm very, very jealous

Please count me in next time you come up with such a brilliant idea (I may be on my xt660 tenere (Ahem) after selling the xr650

cheers

Rich

To be fair it wasn't my idea, it was Loz's:thumb who I think got the route from a group called the Nomads.

But I will do the trip again soon, in a smaller group.
 
We'll have some riding in Picos de Europa before the ferry leaves if we make good time going north, so reluctantly head east into Spain after I had a minor, ahem, brush with the Portuguese police:o

Spain, by comparison a land of bars with loud TVs, bad acoustics, often dour looks and the rubbish bin on the floor
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Oh and fat dogs, presumably from a lifetime's eating peanut shells from the floor
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I go up a tooth on the front sprocket and we blast up to the lovely city of Salamanca. It's a long way on a bike like mine :mad: so resort to tying my pillow to the seat.
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The typical wet ride over the Picos into Potes was dismal, with thick mist obscuring every hairpin.
Here's a more familiar view at Riano
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This was around my 5th stay in Potes and purely by chance I meet an old Spanish friend who used to frequent this forum. We had coffee and chatted for an hour or so, lovely:)
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The nexts day dawns bright and clear, there's one more track I know of to be ridden. "C'mon Rick, let's go"
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So we do
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I've ridden this trail several times before, usually on the way home from Morocco. After the long haul up through Spain it makes a great change.
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A lovely report, a touch of euphoria, melancholy and a real sense of contemplation and being 'in' the environment.
 
Looks a fantastic trip .
Now how do I get by the boss to have an adventure bike?
Grimmy
 
Taking your bike to these remote high places can be a great therapy, whether you need it or not
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And like they say, "If you can see the end of the road ahead, it's probably not worth travelling"..... life ay
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Rick A, a top man enjoying himself
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My bike, also leading an unexpected life
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Wishful thinking?:D
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This bike has carried me on an important journey
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Hope you enjoyed the pictures:)
We've learnt a bit now, so bring it on!
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Fantastic report, brilliant pictures, thats one off road ride i'd like to have done:thumb2

Well done!

Shep
 
Brilliant, what a lovely place with so much cracking off road. Who discovered that and came up with the idea of the holiday?

MotoPorto Adventures Holidays eh!
 


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