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by Liz Miles : 10. Ascent : 312′. Running total : 1,002 miles. Yesterday, cycling towards the Bilbao docklands, a mural caught my eye. Several actually, but one in particular jumped out from a little way down the hillside. Soñar: to dream. I looked it up and found a photo of the creation of the…
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by Philip Miles : 15. Ascent : 581’. Running total : 988 miles Today is our last day in continental Europe and then we will catch a ferry back to the UK. We needed to be at the port by 12:15 at the latest, so decided to give ourselves a bit of leeway – we…
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by Liz Miles : 48. Ascent : 3,130’. Running total : 973 miles. After breakfast in the family-run hotel this morning I asked about the baby in a manger in the corner of the dining room. Señora Carmén explained it’s Jesús Christo, that he used to come out just at Christmas but now he stays…
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by Philip Miles : 46. Ascent : 4,103’. Max elevation : 2,244’, 689m Running total : 925 miles. We had a tasty dinner last night having decided not to eat out, but instead to treat ourselves to pizza and bruschetta followed by artisan ice cream – all was delicious. We’d decided on an early start…
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by Liz It felt good to reach the border with Spain yesterday. We were a bit hot and bothered due to the weather and the day’s hilly terrain, and today we are glad of the opportunity to rest up. It was my turn to get dinner last night and I chose a paella to mark…
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by Philip Miles : 45. Ascent : 2,231’. Running total : 883 miles Well here we are! The final day’s riding on La Vélodyssée. Today we leave Ondres and cycle south to Hendaye, a French town right on the Spanish border. Our accommodation is close to the border, and we aim to see/touch the border…
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by Liz Miles : 39. Ascent : 581’. Running total : 838 miles. Last night’s accommodation without WiFi or signal made a welcome change. Instead of staying in touch with the outside world, I read my book, ‘La Vie’ by John Lewis-Stempel, a Herefordshire farmer who sold up and went to farm in Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Each…
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Miles : 54. Ascent : 892’. Running total : 799 miles. by Philip Yesterday evening we had a wonderful dinner at a hotel five minutes walk from our AirBnB – we sat outside on a deck with lots of others, looking out on the lake. There was little wind, it was warm, and neither of…
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by Liz A rest day is a chance for reflection. Three months ago we spent ages deliberating where to stay in this area, 80 miles south-west of Bordeaux. No spectacular view of the ocean this time, but as I write I’m looking out over a small garden with six flourishing banana trees, a tree fern…
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by Philip Miles : 37. Ascent : 965’. Tyre inflations : 5. Running total : 745 miles. We thoroughly enjoyed staying in the wooden cabin – it had been beautifully designed and equipped and had everything we needed which made a pleasant change. In the hours of darkness, it’s a very quiet and peaceful location…