Motorbikes – the places we go and the people we meet: Part 5
As much as I had loved my time in Evora and that I wrote about in Part 4, it was time for me to move on. I didn’t expect to be back in Portugal on this trip.
The next place I had decided to head for and where my next accommodation was located was the Andalusian town of Ronda. I had decided I would stay there for three nights.
This blog post can be decribed as picture rich – with plenty of pictures from the journey from Evora down to Ronda, another entry in the ‘people you meet’ series (Houston, Melania and Viggo) as well as pictures from my three days in Ronda and pictures from rides out on the roads from Ronda. Its another post that is worth opening ansd scrolling through the picture galleries to get a sense of the places I saw..
Leaving Evora
My stay in Evora had been really relaxing and really enjoyable.
I hope sometime to get back to Evora and if I do, then I would be very happy to stay again at the Hotel Solar de Monfalim.
As I settled my bill I couldn’t help but reflect on what great value my stay in Evora had been and what a good time I had enjoyed there.
The weather was looking pretty much perfect again and after enjoying an early breakfast in the simple and old fashioned dining area I was on my way for a little after 09:00am. Click on any image to open a scrollable picture gallery
My route to Ronda
My ride down to Ronda saw me cover 260 miles. I could have done the route in less miles but I was keen to bypass Seville and to make as decent a route as possible. I avoided Seville by heading for Lora del Rio (in the province of Seville), but about 40 miles to the east of the city on the Guadalquivir River.
On the way to Lora del Rio I headed out via Mourao (recommended by John the cyclist), then to Villanueva del Fresno, Jerez de los Caballeros and Llerna. Eventually I dropped into Ronda via Canete La Real and Cuevas del Becerro.
The roads to Ronda
Click on any image to open a scrollable picture gallery
I hadn’t expected this.
I hadn’t expected to come across a wildfire – but that’s exactly what happened as I made my way to Ronda.
I’m not quite sure where I was, other than somewhere east of Seville I think. I had seen rising smoke from a good distance away, and assumed it was probably controlled farming fires. I had not seen any warnings to suggest wildfires were an issue on the day.
An approaching car with all lights flashing encouraged me to stop, which obviously I did and, I was far enough away to move to the side of the road and take time to consider another route.
As I did so another car pulled up and also seemed to be working out an alternative route when a car came through and suggested it was OK to proceed. I watched two cars go, each stopped by what seemed to be a police or emergency vehicle before disappearing into the smoke.
Don’t stop
I turned my bike again, and advanced towards the police vehicle. I checked about whether I should proceed and the officer said it was OK but to go quick and not stop … which is exactly what I did.
There were other emergency vehicles there, including an ambulance and what looked like some sort of Forrest Ranger type service – but it all turned out to be fine.
As I made my way across some of the isolated plains there was a good but of blackened and smouldering scrubland and vegetation on my right had side … I was relieved the wind was blowing left to right, had it been the other way I’m not sure I would have continued!
I had been that way before
Although I hadn’t previously stayed in or visited the town of Ronda, I wrote in an earlier post that last year (2023) I had stayed a couple of nights in the caved town of Setinel de las Bodegas which is just a dozen or so miles away.
And again as I have previously written I was drawn back by wanting to ride the A397 again that runs down to Marbella.
Onwards to Ronda -a pretty interesting place
Other than the fire, my journey to Ronda had been really enjoyable and without incident.
The weather had been good with a temperature high of 32C. I had enjoyed another brilliant day on the bike. Some of the sights were incredibly memorable: the fabulous church, the superb 3D roundabout monument and of course the fantastic roads.
It was gone 17:30 by the time I arrived at my accommodation in Ronda The town is in the province of Malaga and set in the most dramatic of settings above a natural deep gorge called El Tajo.
The gorge basically separates the old town from the ‘new town’ when I say new town we’re still taking 15th century. The old town actually dates as far back as Moorish rule.
The gorge itself is about 500 metres long and about 100 metres deep. Geologists reckon it dates back about 5,000 years when a seismic movement created two plateaus separated by the gorge.
My accommodation in Ronda
I stayed at the Hotel Colon, which is pretty well located, with just a short walk to the town centre and a good choice of bars and restaurants etc. Parking was on street or at a discounted rate in the secure car park 100 yards away. I parked on the street two nights and in the car park one night – there were no issues with on street parking.
My welcome at the hotel could not have been nicer or warmer. All the staff that I met during my time there were lovely. It’s not a fancy 4* hotel but it’s a superb stopover, with a good cafe bar, decent breakfast, decent rooms and great location. If I go back to Ronda I won’t look for anywhere else to stay.
Wash time ….
Having a sun drenched terrace was ideal for me to get some washing done and dried so it was out with the travel wash before almost anything else, which you will see in the picture set below. Click on any image to open a scrollable picture gallery
It’s a busy sort of place
I think I mentioned in a previous post that Ronda isn’t the sort of place I would normally pick out to stay but it’s so well located for great roads that I couldn’t resist.
It’s a popular tourist place, not least because of the famous Puente Nuevo (new bridge) which is the 98-metre high bridge that is the dominant location to visit in Ronda.
Spectacular
Put simply the place is spectacular and I am glad I stayed there. Interestingly it seemed to me that a disproportionate number of the eating establishments were Italian (which suited me) but wasn’t quite what I expected. It was certainly good value to eat in Ronda – a decent pizza and glass of red wine for around €12
Ronda picture gallery
An extensive assortment of pictures taken over three days in Ronda. Click on any image to open a scrollable picture gallery
The people you meet
Another chance encounter led to me meeting a lovey couple and their son whist I was eating at one of the pizzerias in the town. I had ordered my pizza when a couple and their son sat at the table next to mine. It turned out thy were ordering a take-out pizza and having a beer whilst they waited – their three year old son was a understandably a little fractious with the wait. My pizza being served only added to his restlessness, which was quelled slightly when I offered him a little of my pizza.
All the way from America
We got chatting and it turned out that Houston who was from Chattanooga in Tennessee was a ‘stay at home Dad’ and his partner Melania was a Spanish national from near a town called Coin (about 50 miles or so away) and funnily enough a place where I had biked earlier that day.
Their three year old boy was called Viggo – a name I think that has a Scandinavian origin. Houston and Melania had been house hunting and were looking to buy a place in Spain, and Ronda was a possibility.
Once again as much as the trip was about the places I went to and the things I saw – as ever it was also about the people that I met. Not for the first time on the trip my day had been made better by the people I had met and I was glad I had met Houston, Melania and Viggo. Click on any image to open a scrollable picture gallery
Ronda roads
Just a selection of pictures from some of the roads I rode on whilst I was in Ronda.
The road out of Ronda to Gaucin is just top class. The road is superb and quiet, and in my opinion better than the well known A397 that runs down to Marbella.
Seriously windy
On one of my routes out I headed on down towards the Straits of Gibraltar – and it’s a seriously windy area down there. The area near Tarifa is apparently pretty well known for it and is regarded as one of the best spots in Europe – this isn’t kids with kites, it’s full on serious stuff with camps, kite flying schools and the like.
You can also see the Moroccan coast from Tarifa along with the mountains of Africa across the Strait of Gibraltar.
I enjoyed the road to Gaucin so much that I actually returned the same way and did it again on my way back to Ronda
An A* day
On my second day of riding out from Ronda I did a 132 mile loop that took me out to via Tejares, towards Marbella and then onto Coin (and roads that were off the scale), then it was El Burgo, Almargenb, Grazalema and back to Ronda (there a copy of my days ‘route card’ in the picture set below. Although I only did 132 miles the day was a contender for one of my best days ever on a motorbike – it really was that good.
It’s another extensive picture gallery
I have included a few pictures from the time down in Ronda, partly because I was asked by other bikers what routes I was doing and about the roads etc. so if you are a biker thinking about the roads down in this part of Andalusia the selection below will give you a flavour of what’s available. Click on any image to open a scrollable picture gallery
