75km – 9H46’
Altitude 756m
Last night we set up camp in the parking lot of a restaurant, taking advantage of the opening hours, 7:00 PM instead of 8:30 or 9:00, to eat the evening’s menu: soup, a nice thick piece of beef with French fries, fried eggs, tomato salad and an orange for desert. It was all delicious!
Since Braganza we have been following the winding main road IP4, which we keep crossing. The N15, which we are on, is the old road between Bragnaza and Porto. It’s a small road that doesn’t at all resemble a main road. It crosses villages on the side of the mountains, goes from one valley to the next, twists continuously, horizontally as well as vertically. The one advantage of this road is that it is available to herds, tractors, bikes and pedestrians, none of which are allowed on the famous IP4.
We have taken a bath, not in olive oil but of olives, which are everywhere, as far as the eye can see. In straight lines or planted at random, they stretch from the road to the bottom of the valleys. Joël tested them for us: they are bitter. To harvest them, sheets are put on the ground and the trees are shaken.
The large leaved trees give the landscape the bright yellow, ochre and red colors which are so typical of autumn.
At km 32, we cross the only town of the day : Mirandela. After crossing the Tua River, a 3.5 km ascent is waiting for Serge. It cancels the impression left by the city crossing but the day is not over…
There are thick clouds in the sky and the wind comes up.
At km 64 we cross Murca, a small town which exists thanks to the olive oil and wine co-op, because we are entering the region where Port wine is produced. Serge can’t take the time to enjoy his surroundings because there is another descent in view. He sees an old and wide bridge and he understands that what follows will not be easy, and he is right. There is a 6km ascent with hairpin curves… Serge begins to dream of flatness, of Holland.
But he doesn’t give in and finishes his stage at 75 km. It is at a crossing which marks a change in direction, since we turn south on the N212, to see no more of this N15, which has given us an impression of beauty, wild nature, calm, beautiful colors, dogs, sheep, shepherds, olive groves, old villages full of people from a different era, hairpin curves, ascents and descents, silence, early morning bird songs and contrast as far as the eye can see.
This 50th day was a long one for the whole team
On the program tomorrow: Alijo, Pinhão, Péso da Régua, Frende = The Douro Valley.
Town : Populo (district de Vila Real)