Will the Rain In Spain Be On The Plain?
- Thread starter Boxerboy55
- Start date
*towards San Sebastian
For those who always ask “how’s the weather in …”
It’s gonna piss down the entire week we’re between here and Portugal
For those who always ask “how’s the weather in …”
It’s gonna piss down the entire week we’re between here and Portugal
Sounds like you are having a ball BB, the smaller roads here are really great for motorcycling. 
Following your observations..
‘Er indoors and myself were talking about how the Spainish stuck to the outer lane at roundabouts lane no matter which exit they intend leaving at.
It’s not been a problem in our (obvs) larger van compared to a motorcycle as they tend not to stay along side us as we go around.
Weather: We are just W of Valencia and the weather here is excellent, but very chilly during the night.
Following your observations..
‘Er indoors and myself were talking about how the Spainish stuck to the outer lane at roundabouts lane no matter which exit they intend leaving at.
It’s not been a problem in our (obvs) larger van compared to a motorcycle as they tend not to stay along side us as we go around.
Weather: We are just W of Valencia and the weather here is excellent, but very chilly during the night.
Took a day off the bike. Leisurely start. Then a stroll through town and a lunch in a side street cafe. Spent more than I expected for a couple of plates. Chilled out then visited last night’s cafe for some protein and beer. And a wee Rioja.
Back in hotel bumped into an Irish GS12 rider heading north. While I’ll be heading south tomorrow to Caceres. Pin in a map. Showers expected.
Enjoyed a good blather. And amused by 6 local polis arrived for a free cuppa. They all looked like high school kids. Packing 6 shooters and all the other kit.
Back in hotel bumped into an Irish GS12 rider heading north. While I’ll be heading south tomorrow to Caceres. Pin in a map. Showers expected.
Enjoyed a good blather. And amused by 6 local polis arrived for a free cuppa. They all looked like high school kids. Packing 6 shooters and all the other kit.
I like the typography in Salamanca
Very smart and clean cut though, unlike some of our current collection of Officers with top knots and weird hairdo’s.
It’s Tuesday 28/4 and back on the road. Once I cracked the location of the underground garage exit button. Headed south avoiding M/ways to Caceres, a pin on a map.
A coolish start. Met a spit of rain and some damp roads. Rain must have passed over much earlier. Then sun came out and temperature reached 27 DegC as I neared Caceres.
Countryside changed from farming to Wild West scenery. No wonder Clint enjoyed his Spaghetti Westerns in Spain. Sets are still further south I believe.
Roads were very enjoyable. Quiet. Straight. Flowing. Twisty. Climbing. Falling.
It’s what a bike ride is all about.
I don’t understand why so much money has been wasted on No Overtaking signs.
Combined with white centre lines as well. Used so, so frequently. Plus the signs to also tell you it’s OK to overtake now. Thousands of them €€€
Paused at remains of a Roman bridge.
I almost wrote “old Roman”, but that would have been silly
The surprising bull silhouette on a hill is Huge.
Rolled in to a busy town.
Failed to find the fuel station I asked the GPS to find near the hotel. I like to put the bike to bed with a full tank, but it’s still almost half full and I’m not rushing anywhere tomorrow. Maybe nowhere.
ODO clocked 1,000 miles since leaving home.
Just as I was ready to go stroll towards the old town centre the thunder rolled in and it was a downpour for ages. Hotel beer it is.
A coolish start. Met a spit of rain and some damp roads. Rain must have passed over much earlier. Then sun came out and temperature reached 27 DegC as I neared Caceres.
Countryside changed from farming to Wild West scenery. No wonder Clint enjoyed his Spaghetti Westerns in Spain. Sets are still further south I believe.
Roads were very enjoyable. Quiet. Straight. Flowing. Twisty. Climbing. Falling.
It’s what a bike ride is all about.
I don’t understand why so much money has been wasted on No Overtaking signs.
Combined with white centre lines as well. Used so, so frequently. Plus the signs to also tell you it’s OK to overtake now. Thousands of them €€€
Paused at remains of a Roman bridge.
I almost wrote “old Roman”, but that would have been silly
The surprising bull silhouette on a hill is Huge.
Rolled in to a busy town.
Failed to find the fuel station I asked the GPS to find near the hotel. I like to put the bike to bed with a full tank, but it’s still almost half full and I’m not rushing anywhere tomorrow. Maybe nowhere.
ODO clocked 1,000 miles since leaving home.
Just as I was ready to go stroll towards the old town centre the thunder rolled in and it was a downpour for ages. Hotel beer it is.
Im just back from 18 days not 1 drop of rain ! .
I went In from santander to Sagovia - Salamanca - alberca- La Rioja - Leon- Picos- then back up to calis them roads are amazing the food and wine some of the best ive had.
I went In from santander to Sagovia - Salamanca - alberca- La Rioja - Leon- Picos- then back up to calis them roads are amazing the food and wine some of the best ive had.
The bull has an interesting, to me anyway, story: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne_bull
Today is end of April. Yesterday was another day off the bike. Enjoyed a leisurely start. Wondering which way to go dodging rain storms. Turns out the weather forecast are rather broad brush and pessimistic.
I strolled in to the old town Caceres. Found a busy cafe in the big square and enjoyed the cheapest 3 course meal I’ll ever have. Washed down with a couple of beers. I’ve learned the biggest glass is a “canyon” Canon. 2.50 is a snip.
The old town was quite a sight. Up hill, down alley. A cathedral stunning inside. Where some special event was on with lots of babies Queuing for a blessing.
Today dawned bright and warm. My chosen destination northwards to Avila. What a good choice. Dug my bike out of nearby underground car park. Silly me thought the hotel voucher was paying the fee, but it was only a discount. Cost me 20 for 2 nights. I noticed the UK XR beside me was lugging several kilos of ironmongery. It worked of course, bike was still there.
Heading east - north - east - north paralleled a motorway till I slipped up at a roundabout slip road and had to crack along to the next junction.
I rode 40 miles till I had to overtake 3 cars. Road deserted.
I played No Hands a few times. Upped my best shot at 4.5 miles. I don’t think I’ve seen a 4.5 mile straight in UK.
My day day came alive for last 50 plus miles out of 200 on N502 from Valeda to Avila.
Snow poles. Smooth tarmac. Climbing to 1500m. Swooping. Hairpins. Probably the best stretch of road I’ve every been on.
At times the plain stretched 10 to 20 miles all around.
(Seems this didn’t stick yesterday)
I strolled in to the old town Caceres. Found a busy cafe in the big square and enjoyed the cheapest 3 course meal I’ll ever have. Washed down with a couple of beers. I’ve learned the biggest glass is a “canyon” Canon. 2.50 is a snip.
The old town was quite a sight. Up hill, down alley. A cathedral stunning inside. Where some special event was on with lots of babies Queuing for a blessing.
Today dawned bright and warm. My chosen destination northwards to Avila. What a good choice. Dug my bike out of nearby underground car park. Silly me thought the hotel voucher was paying the fee, but it was only a discount. Cost me 20 for 2 nights. I noticed the UK XR beside me was lugging several kilos of ironmongery. It worked of course, bike was still there.
Heading east - north - east - north paralleled a motorway till I slipped up at a roundabout slip road and had to crack along to the next junction.
I rode 40 miles till I had to overtake 3 cars. Road deserted.
I played No Hands a few times. Upped my best shot at 4.5 miles. I don’t think I’ve seen a 4.5 mile straight in UK.
My day day came alive for last 50 plus miles out of 200 on N502 from Valeda to Avila.
Snow poles. Smooth tarmac. Climbing to 1500m. Swooping. Hairpins. Probably the best stretch of road I’ve every been on.
At times the plain stretched 10 to 20 miles all around.
(Seems this didn’t stick yesterday)
Friday and it’s a new month. May 1. At last I’ve found what’s been missing from trundling round Spain’s countryside.
A good old Air Museum. By Madrid.
A fantastic display of a wide range of engines and planes. From Red Baron, through ME109s with Merlin engines (used in movies) to modern jets. How complex were the old piston engine. Did I see 24 cylinders??
On my previous Euro trips I’ve always visited war museums.
Overloon. Thiepval. Menin Gate.
Hamburg sub. Munster tanks.
Tracks like Hockenheim and Spa. Umpteen museums, Mercedes, Porsche, Audi, Ferrari, Ducati factory. Plus all the ups and downs the likes of Grossglockner.
Spain just has countryside.
And good roads.
And lots of castles and cathedrals.
Today I enjoyed another 13 mile sweeper, then things got boring on miles of road with solid white centre line. Pity help the oncoming traffic totally ground to a crawl. Poor bike groups caught up in it.
Tonight’s town of Avila had one of the most impressive city walls I’ve ever seen.
As an aside, my hotel basement garage has 10 local bikes parked up. They’ll probably steal all the hot shower water and breakfast tomorrow.
Shower was a sore point this morning
A good old Air Museum. By Madrid.
A fantastic display of a wide range of engines and planes. From Red Baron, through ME109s with Merlin engines (used in movies) to modern jets. How complex were the old piston engine. Did I see 24 cylinders??
On my previous Euro trips I’ve always visited war museums.
Overloon. Thiepval. Menin Gate.
Hamburg sub. Munster tanks.
Tracks like Hockenheim and Spa. Umpteen museums, Mercedes, Porsche, Audi, Ferrari, Ducati factory. Plus all the ups and downs the likes of Grossglockner.
Spain just has countryside.
And good roads.
And lots of castles and cathedrals.
Today I enjoyed another 13 mile sweeper, then things got boring on miles of road with solid white centre line. Pity help the oncoming traffic totally ground to a crawl. Poor bike groups caught up in it.
Tonight’s town of Avila had one of the most impressive city walls I’ve ever seen.
As an aside, my hotel basement garage has 10 local bikes parked up. They’ll probably steal all the hot shower water and breakfast tomorrow.
Shower was a sore point this morning
(Spitting bullets at the crashing of my essay - between WiFi, internet and Forum)
Take 2 - I’m now heading north not south.
A lad in the restaurant suggested I ride Chaves to Faro. Or somewhere. Portuguese version of NC500 (don’t mention it).
I may do a Chaves loop from Braganca tomorrow, weather permitting. My XT is behaving this week
My map so far, ignoring loops and other variations due to me Avoiding Motorways.
Ah, so you are still quite far north. If you were heading south to Faro. Just to the south east of Sevilla is the jewel in the crown of Spanish roads. This is where all the manufacturers come for launches. Worth it if you are down this way.
Ref the roundabouts. Its prohibited to exit from the inside lane. This is why everyone takes the outer lane and will lap the whole roundabout from there. As if the inside vehicle crashes with the outside lane vehicle. Even when the outside vehicle is circling the whole roundabout with no indicator. Its the blame of the inside lane vehicle.
Safest bet for no trouble . Always use outer lane. But indicate left to show you are continuing round the roundabout.
Ref the roundabouts. Its prohibited to exit from the inside lane. This is why everyone takes the outer lane and will lap the whole roundabout from there. As if the inside vehicle crashes with the outside lane vehicle. Even when the outside vehicle is circling the whole roundabout with no indicator. Its the blame of the inside lane vehicle.
Safest bet for no trouble . Always use outer lane. But indicate left to show you are continuing round the roundabout.
Sat 2 May - checked out into a grey day. The 10 Spanish bikers were gone before me. T’was cooler than I thought and pulled in after a few miles to don my quilted jacket. NW to Braganca with ominous clouds ahead. I’d Rain Xed the visor and the rain drops appeared 1 at a time. Then it pished down for a while.
Met my 2nd black bull as the rain stopped and things brightened up.
A scruffy wee cafe got me a cuppa for elevenses. What a mess on the floor and in the street gutter outside. Fag ends. Matches. Tissues. Everything. Maybe UK looked like that more than half a century ago.
Had fast fun on a long straight, but a good breeze stopped me maxing bike out.
Prudence always rides pillion and helps me get where I’m going.
One country road ZA-302 was very bumpy. Odd road repairs looked recent and kept my speed down to 45.
Later on the EN218 I found myself rolling downhill on a twisty road northwards. Looked so good that I found a turn spot and ran back up the hill. They don’t build hill climbs like that in my back yard.
Then, exiting a wee village on lots of dirt from tractors, turned out to be sheep shit as a guy with lots of loose dogs was moving a flock of sheep for a mile along the road. I pulled in as I couldn’t pass them and the biggest dogs Were Big. A lad on a dirt bike went for the pass and a couple of snappy wee dogs went for him and he kicked one away and scarpered. Boss man wasn’t happy. I held off a few minutes and went for it when I thought the sheep had exited the road. But the wee snappy dogs did come to challenge me, but I twisted the Go handle to beat it.
Rolled in to a nice IBIS hotel on the edge of Braganca. But all dead quiet. Google map showed a nearby restaurant Acacio and I rolled up to find a restaurant come function place deserted. But the boss man welcomed me in, sat me down and served one of the best steak dinners ever. A real bargain. He took his suit jacket off and donned chef’s apron and hat and did the business. Beer. Wine. Picture of his K1600. Yadda, Yadda, Yadda.
Big TV was switched on and I half watched some footy match.
His young waiter had some English and that helped. As I stood up to leave a family entered to dine. Odd experience.
Met my 2nd black bull as the rain stopped and things brightened up.
A scruffy wee cafe got me a cuppa for elevenses. What a mess on the floor and in the street gutter outside. Fag ends. Matches. Tissues. Everything. Maybe UK looked like that more than half a century ago.
Had fast fun on a long straight, but a good breeze stopped me maxing bike out.
Prudence always rides pillion and helps me get where I’m going.
One country road ZA-302 was very bumpy. Odd road repairs looked recent and kept my speed down to 45.
Later on the EN218 I found myself rolling downhill on a twisty road northwards. Looked so good that I found a turn spot and ran back up the hill. They don’t build hill climbs like that in my back yard.
Then, exiting a wee village on lots of dirt from tractors, turned out to be sheep shit as a guy with lots of loose dogs was moving a flock of sheep for a mile along the road. I pulled in as I couldn’t pass them and the biggest dogs Were Big. A lad on a dirt bike went for the pass and a couple of snappy wee dogs went for him and he kicked one away and scarpered. Boss man wasn’t happy. I held off a few minutes and went for it when I thought the sheep had exited the road. But the wee snappy dogs did come to challenge me, but I twisted the Go handle to beat it.
Rolled in to a nice IBIS hotel on the edge of Braganca. But all dead quiet. Google map showed a nearby restaurant Acacio and I rolled up to find a restaurant come function place deserted. But the boss man welcomed me in, sat me down and served one of the best steak dinners ever. A real bargain. He took his suit jacket off and donned chef’s apron and hat and did the business. Beer. Wine. Picture of his K1600. Yadda, Yadda, Yadda.
Big TV was switched on and I half watched some footy match.
His young waiter had some English and that helped. As I stood up to leave a family entered to dine. Odd experience.
N2.
I missed my Black Bull. And the dam/sluice on the border line was impressive.
Similar threads
