Over the Puerto Foncebadon

The rest day in Leon was welcome I think. A bit of extra sleep & a late breakfast in the Hostal (€3 each & excellent), before generally chilling out & testing the legs a bit......well except for Kev, who went on a bike ride. The rest of us went for a circular walk around the centre, calling in on several bike shops before finding one that had suitable replacement tyres for Alex’s bike as the heavily treaded ones he’d fitted to come away with, were upsetting the bike & unnerving him. 

After a bit of sight seeing & a couple of coffee stops, Neil wandered off for a massage 😉 whilst Alex & I returned to the Hostal. He fitted his tyres & I had a siesta. 

Later in the afternoon we all met up. Alex & Neil did a bit of culture, visiting the Gaudi museum, whilst Kev & I watched a guy perform the Heimlich Manoeuvre on a 90 year old fella who was gasping his last. Amongst the hysteria, this guy did his thing & freed the obstruction. Good job! I was ready with the penknife & biro just in case 😬

After a rather indifferent evening meal, I headed back to the room to turn in & the real men went for a night cap. 

Friday 22nd June. 

We were up & away by 9am, picking our way out of Leon, heading west on the Comino. It was going to be a very hot, long ride, with a serious climb thrown into the mix. 

The first 30 miles to Astorga were dispatched in good time through relatively flat & uninteresting countryside. It was nevertheless a bit of a slog & by the time we got to the town, we were ready for  a stop. 

We then continued west along a bumpy, rural road &?the gradual ascent to Rabanal del Comino. A lovely little village on the Comino, where we stopped for a picnic lunch bought from a local shop. A wonderful spot it was too:

Then came the long climb up through the Puerto Foncebadon on the road to Molinaseca.  Peaking at nearly 1500m, this was a serious test in the heat, but we were rewarded with some incredible views. 

The decent to Molinaseca was fast, bumpy & dangerous. Fantastic! 🤪 We stopped there to consider our options. Despite the heat, we decided to press on beyond Ponferrada to Cacabelos and the rather nice Hostal La Gallega. The town was nothing special, but we enjoyed a reasonable evening meal & were heartily entertained by a bagpipe band. Good fun. 

I then turned in to write the blog & after doing so & in a state of knackeration, pressed a wrong button & promptly lost the lot 🤬

So this is a rewrite done as I lay on (not in due to the heat) my sleeping bag on a campsite in Sarria - now a day behind with everything.