Lisbon to Caldas da Rainha

To upload from the GPS requires installing plug-ins. Therefore, I will back-fill the data upon return.

July 7th - Did the first leg L1-Lisbon to Santarem . 50 miles of flat through the type of dreary neighborhoods often surrounding a capital city. One of the towns on the edge of the countryside was holding a bull fight. Bravo. I did not stop, but it looked to be a bad day for the bull.

Santarem itself has it´s own appeal with a history. The last place of Islam´s last stand before getting it´s butt kicked out of Portugal in the 1100´s. But, it´s not dead. It´s that mid-sized town your don´t see, or over look, in most guide books with a specular set of buildings and art. Unlike those spots completely given over to tourism, Santarem, Nimes, etc. are places still in use.

I watched a couple of marriages exit the main church... and the town itself is still useful in the current economy. It´s not a tourist spot, but it is what tourist imagine they will find.

July 8th Sunday - Got lost today when the gps died. My own fault, but I sufferred two additional mountains in punishment. The route was suppose to be this L2e I ended up in Caldas da Rainha... wrong turn at Rio Maior. Compare L2 (Actual -GPS broke) verse L2e to see how wildly off course a person can get.. not even close mate.

- The best description of the riding here is undulating ag. land. Neither flat nor overly difficult. It is hard because of the distance not the terrain. Lots of people wave, assuming you are doing the Camino De Santago, and they do not see many coming this way... at least that is what they are telling me.

July 9th - Caldas da Rainha. Sick. Didn´t wakeup until 1:30pm. I think it´s the combination of getting lost yesterday and trip stress.

Did not go further than 500meters from the Sana chain hotel here. Spent the day fixing my rear tire which is already proving to have spoke issues.~

Regardless of how I feel in the morning, I will go to Leiria. It´s expected to be 35 miles with two classed (5\4) climbs between.

Gear and Planning

After the job ended unexpectedly on May 24th, immediately I started thinking of an adventure. This is the result. It's a solo effort.
FACTS:

• Bike    - Surly Long Haul Trucker
• Racks - BOB YAK Trailer  and Topeak Compact Handlebar Bag
• GPS     - Garmin Edge 800 with the City Navigator® Europe NT MicroScan (not download).
• Maps   - Garmin's mapping software was used to create the route.
• Gear List and weight – (I’ll post when I complete the pack.) 

COMMENTS:  

• Planning – This idea was generated over two weeks of research. First thoughts were rides from:

• Istanbul to Berlin
• End to End of Japan (Honshū)
• Lisbon through Berlin via Prague

Weather eliminated the first two, but there’s a chance I might reroute through Prague to Frankfurt. 

The basic criterion was roads. Specifically, having them.
Also, finding something you won’t see replicated in guide books. Granted, much of the trail through Spain runs along the Camino De Santiago, but the expectation is this particular route won’t be over-run with walkers. If it is populated, I’ll go through the northern coast of Spain.

• Bike - I have a road bike that would break immediately, so a "touring" bike was required. After getting a Surly Long Haul Trucker and putting about 500 miles on it, it appears to be a good choice. No expert on bikes, this was a choice derived from reviews and talking to bike shops.
• BOB YAK Trailer - I already pulled my trailer from Rome to London, and carried panniers while doing the Vancouver to Mexico track.  Personally, I prefer the trailer's feel, but you do suffer more going up mountains. Also, you can't go much faster than 30 mph descending. Go faster and the wheel will start jumping around, making for a too exciting trip. When you carry panniers (bags attached to the bike), the weight flexes and wobbles your bike. 
• Maps - I'm not taking any paper maps this time. Garmin's mapping software was used to create the route. mapmyride.com is another useful site of the same type.  I didn't have any other information before starting this. Just picked what looks like a sensible path using the mapping software. 
• Guide Books/Internet - Once a "sensible" route was drawn, I've spent the last couple of weeks researching on the web. The lonely Planet books for these countries were downloaded onto a Kindle Fire. The backup for the GPS is screen prints of the maps loaded onto the kindle.
• Conditioning – After five years of steady desk sitting, minor hip work, then fairly major knee surgery… I am not in top form. I went from 0 activity to 130-170 miles per week the day after leaving work. There's going to be some world class suffering along the way, but I'm not new to this level of activity. 
• Can you do it? This is something almost anyone could do. The only real requirements are curiosity, reasonable health, time, willingness, money (sadly somewhere between 10-20k), and to do it... I am nothing special.
• Should you do it? If you're in a place where you can (without abandoning your other commitments), absolutely. It will be a top-tier life experience for anyone.
• Words of caution: We can get hurt. (I have. Recovery took years.) You will get lost, frustrated, too hot, too cold, rained on, wildly tired, etc. If you're looking for a transformational moment, you're going to come back the same person you left as. Maybe in a little better shape, but you'll retain all personalized foibles. The experience goes with you, but it doesn't make you a better person in the ways that matter.