Welcome to Portugal. The border is in the middle of the bridge in the background, hence the 1 km sign.
View from the balcony of the unit
25th - 31st Oct
Crossing over the bridge into Portugal, we were signed off the road to register our bikes for toll payment, there are a lot of toll roads in Portugal, but no attendants, it is all done with cameras and number plate recognition. Big mistake, we should have just kept riding, and would have not have to worry about tolls! We left the highway as soon as we could, and followed good backroads through little villages all the way to Albufiera, a coastal town where we had a time share apartment booked for 7
Crossing over the bridge into Portugal, we were signed off the road to register our bikes for toll payment, there are a lot of toll roads in Portugal, but no attendants, it is all done with cameras and number plate recognition. Big mistake, we should have just kept riding, and would have not have to worry about tolls! We left the highway as soon as we could, and followed good backroads through little villages all the way to Albufiera, a coastal town where we had a time share apartment booked for 7
Moto Club Faro Clubhouse
nights, all for under $300 aud for the week. I was looking forward to week of no riding, catching up on the blog which was way behind, washing etc, and just the little things which are hard to do whilst travelling, like replacing the zip on Lyn's tank bag, which had destroyed itself. We met a couple of girls there from Quebec, one of whom makes promotional videos, and she spent some time with Lyn showing her the basics of I Movie, so hopefully we can edit some of the 60 gig of video footage we now have of the trip. Thanks for that MC! We caught up with Chris Banks and his wife, also travellers, who we had been talking to on line, and met
Inside the clubhouse.
some friends of his, talking about the trip and different places we had been. We also met Rui and Rosa, a local couple, who took us to the Moto Club Faro clubhouse, and introduced us to some of the members. What a fantastic place, the clubhouse is awesome, with a bar, stage, outside beer garden, shop, offices, and dance floor downstairs, while upstairs there are 3 dormitories, two sleeping 6 people, and another for a couple, complete with showers, toilets, and a kitchen. The beds are are for travelling bikers, and available free of charge. They host a rally every year, last year there were about 40,000 bikers from all over europe attending! At one of them, one of the bands was AC DC!!!
Lyn and I with Chris and Ludmilla
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Lyn, Rui and I at the clubhouse
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Heath and I at Sagres
1st Nov.
After our holiday at Albufeira, we rode over to Sagres, near the south easterly point of Portugal, and checked out the surf there. We sat in the sun on the beach watching the surfers, and lunched on some food we bought from a nearby supermarket. There we met Heath and his wife. Originally from Cornwall, they both surf, and moved down for the weather a few years ago. Heath spotted the bikes, and came for a chat with us, he has a XTZ660 Tenere himself. We booked into a hostel, but the GPS couldn't find the address, a lot of asking the locals finally located it. A fairly early night, after a dinner of more supermarket food.
After our holiday at Albufeira, we rode over to Sagres, near the south easterly point of Portugal, and checked out the surf there. We sat in the sun on the beach watching the surfers, and lunched on some food we bought from a nearby supermarket. There we met Heath and his wife. Originally from Cornwall, they both surf, and moved down for the weather a few years ago. Heath spotted the bikes, and came for a chat with us, he has a XTZ660 Tenere himself. We booked into a hostel, but the GPS couldn't find the address, a lot of asking the locals finally located it. A fairly early night, after a dinner of more supermarket food.
The lighthouse at Cabo de S. Vincente
2nd Nov
We had packed up and left by 10.30, (early for us), and rode out to the lighthouse at Cabo de s. Vincente, on the south easterly point of Portugal. While it wasn't raining, there were showers around, and it was cold riding, so the liners went into the jackets. From there the coast road took us north, and we took a few little deviations took look at some beaches on the way. One of them was our lunch stop, a lookout from some cliffs, where the leftover kebab, cheese and ham kept us going until we reached Santa Luzia, our destination for the next week. It was home of Alfredo and Tina, our first Workaway hosts, where we would work for our food and accommodation.
We had packed up and left by 10.30, (early for us), and rode out to the lighthouse at Cabo de s. Vincente, on the south easterly point of Portugal. While it wasn't raining, there were showers around, and it was cold riding, so the liners went into the jackets. From there the coast road took us north, and we took a few little deviations took look at some beaches on the way. One of them was our lunch stop, a lookout from some cliffs, where the leftover kebab, cheese and ham kept us going until we reached Santa Luzia, our destination for the next week. It was home of Alfredo and Tina, our first Workaway hosts, where we would work for our food and accommodation.
Alfredo, Tina, Lyn and I at the farm
3rd-7th Nov.
After a big night and a warm welcome from Alfredo and Tina last night, when we drank too much and talked until the early hours, it was a slow start to the first day. We completed a few jobs, but the rain came, so lunch time was it, with the rest of the week being similar. As well as a farm, the place is set up as a B&B, with most of the guests being bikers from all over Europe. While we were there, Gerhard, the dealer principal and some guests from a Yamaha dealer in Holland were there, and they were interested in our trip. Gerhard took some photos of the bikes, and will put them in the Yamaha Europe newsletter. Being a mechanic as well, he kindly
After a big night and a warm welcome from Alfredo and Tina last night, when we drank too much and talked until the early hours, it was a slow start to the first day. We completed a few jobs, but the rain came, so lunch time was it, with the rest of the week being similar. As well as a farm, the place is set up as a B&B, with most of the guests being bikers from all over Europe. While we were there, Gerhard, the dealer principal and some guests from a Yamaha dealer in Holland were there, and they were interested in our trip. Gerhard took some photos of the bikes, and will put them in the Yamaha Europe newsletter. Being a mechanic as well, he kindly
The Yamaha guys from Holland with Lyn and I
gave me a hand to adjust the tappets on both bikes, which were overdue to be checked. Thanks again for that, Gerhard! If anyone is in Holland and needs some work done on their bike, give the guys at v.Sleeuwen Motoren a call, I'm sure they will look after you. By mid next year they will be in their new bigger premises too. Gerhard leaves some bikes at the farm, and the guys fly in from Holland for a few days and use it as a base to ride some of the great roads in the area. Carly, a young english girl, was also staying at the farm, and it was her birthday on the 7th, so we all went out for a seafood lunch at a great little restaurant on the coast, a top day out.
Rest stop at Odemira
8th -9th Nov.
The weather wasn't being kind to us, and our original plan of riding up the coast of Portugal was rained out, so we decided to head back to the warmer drier weather in Morocco until we left to go back to Oz for Xmas in December. Riding back to Faro was the first step, so we skirted a lot of rainclouds through the mountains, and arrived in late afternoon. The road would have been great if it was dry, good smooth bitumen with big sweepers. That night at the clubhouse there was a big party, with 30 or so members of the Firebirds MC arriving from Belgium.
We were kindly taken in and given a bunk in the dorm, and invited to join them for dinner as guests. A top night followed, the meal (including oysters), was delicious, and the band kicked in and played until around 3.00 am, then other music followed, I believe it went until about 5.00am. We didn't make it that long!!! I remember 2 other guys coming in to the dorm around 5.30, but we went back to sleep until around 10.00am. There were some sore heads around then........ We were heading back to Spain, so left at around 2.00pm for Sevilla, arriving damp, freezing cold and in the dark at the Ibis Budget Hotel again, to a nice warm shower and an early night.
Please go back to Spain II for more amazing adventures, thats it for Portugal.............
The weather wasn't being kind to us, and our original plan of riding up the coast of Portugal was rained out, so we decided to head back to the warmer drier weather in Morocco until we left to go back to Oz for Xmas in December. Riding back to Faro was the first step, so we skirted a lot of rainclouds through the mountains, and arrived in late afternoon. The road would have been great if it was dry, good smooth bitumen with big sweepers. That night at the clubhouse there was a big party, with 30 or so members of the Firebirds MC arriving from Belgium.
We were kindly taken in and given a bunk in the dorm, and invited to join them for dinner as guests. A top night followed, the meal (including oysters), was delicious, and the band kicked in and played until around 3.00 am, then other music followed, I believe it went until about 5.00am. We didn't make it that long!!! I remember 2 other guys coming in to the dorm around 5.30, but we went back to sleep until around 10.00am. There were some sore heads around then........ We were heading back to Spain, so left at around 2.00pm for Sevilla, arriving damp, freezing cold and in the dark at the Ibis Budget Hotel again, to a nice warm shower and an early night.
Please go back to Spain II for more amazing adventures, thats it for Portugal.............
