Pinhão to Peso da Régua (34.1km, 293m of climbing): our bike route was supposed to involve a train and a bunch of hard climbing, and we didn't feel up for any of that. So we took the route by the river, a somewhat trafficky road which nonetheless has a fair amount of bike traffic, and road in peloton, expertly guided by Dana and Sarah. It was a big success; most of the drivers were friendly, and almost none were rude, and we rejoined the route in good time with very few hills. The rest of our ride took us past Peso da Régua to our lodging for the last two nights of the bike tour, a B&B named Quinta da Salada on a hillside a steep climb from the town. The B&B was very pleasant, but a little strange. It had only six rooms, so we occupied the entire thing, and the restaurant served breakfast and snacks only. But it was very pretty, and Sarah, Dana, Gina, and i took a short cab ride into town, where we had a nice dinner of pizza and pasta.
Pinhão at sunrise |
contrail at sunrise |
clouds at sunrise |
the Duoro at sunrise |
a few hours later and on the other side of the Duoro, looking back at Quinta de la Rosa |
a group of intrepid road cyclists |
Tom and Helen at our photo stop |
the Duoro, still pretty when viewed from the south side |
a Sandeman sign above some terraces |
boat on the Duoro, cyclists on the roadside |
our driver Sonia stops to see how we're doing |
mysterious dots on the mountainside (probably some kind of avalanche netting) |
a sign on the mountainside |
train tracks, avalanche netting, and a runoff pipe, across the river |
we cross the river at the Regua hydroelectric plant |
at the crossing |
substation at the crossing |
the river west of the dam |
more parts of the dam |
bridges over the Duoro |
moss on a wall at the roadside |
the Corgo River, north of the Duoro |
buildings above terraces |
Quinta do Judeu farm along the Corgo |
returning to the Duoro and crossing under the highway |
Casa do Duoro |
looking across the river from Peso de Régua |
a dragon on a post, seen during the climb to our B&B |
our B&B, Quinta da Salada, pretty enough to be worth the walk down the steep cobblestone path |
looking into the valley from our B&B's courtyard |
many wicker lamps under the cypress tree in the courtyard |
coffee, juice, cheese, jam, and bread, delivered by the B&B kitchen |
sunset at our B&B |
the Sandeman statue overlooking Peso de Régua |
a chestnut roasting stand! |
zillions of little birds took off from a tree |
reference unit church in Peso de Régua |
we did not have dinner at this takeout chicken restaurant |
a cloud at sunset |
we bought a bag of roasted chestnuts |
bookstore window display |
a street in Peso de Régua |
an abandoned garage, full of plants |
a very dark photo of Dana, Sarah, and Gina, at our table waiting for dinner |
the street where we ate dinner and watched runners finish a road race |
bolognese! |
ad for an Armanda Passos art exhibit |
back at our B&B, the courtyard lamps are now lit |