European Divide Trail

Contact me on the road at:

rose@roseonwheels.nz

It would be great to hear from you!

Find the oldest reports (from the beginning in Portugal) at the bottom of this page

After EDT - Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands

4 June - 20 June

Skagen - Fredrikshaven - Gottenburg - Helsingborg - Helsingor - Copenhagen

On arrival at Skagen I was ahead of my "on paper" schedule by about a week, so had almost 2 weeks before my return to NZ.

After several attempts to book a train space for Wally online for our journey back to Amsterdam, and failing, I surrendered and made a different plan. Also, Karolina had invited me to visit in Berlin.

Rather than take Wally to Berlin, and in light of the bike / train issue, I decided to take Wally back to Amsterdam, and fly to Berlin on 13 June.

I also booked the Fredrikshaven to Gottenburg ferry, and made Copenhagen a planned stop on the way back to Amsterdam. Everything else depended on what dates I could get Wally a seat on the train, as everything I'd read said ICE (intercity express) trains would not take bikes unless folded/bagged/boxed. A series of regional trains was looking more Wally friendly.

An early departure from Skagen, via the bakery, and flat, fast cycleways had us in Fredrikshaven several hours ahead of the 1400 departure.

Aars - Skagen

2 June - 3 June

After the long stretch of cycleway into Aars, there was more on the North side of town. The landscape changed - flatter, sand hills, salt marsh and estuary. At Aggesund we crossed the fjord onto the island that makes up the Northern part of Denmark.

After a bakery stop at Fjerritslev it was onto trails through the dying pine and spruce plantations. Some of the areas had been harvested and the remodelled tracks were tricky to ride. It was clear that local riders were taking advantage of the challenging terrain, and remaking the tracks. On the sections that were not affected by bark beetle or machinery, wood chips had been laid across the deep silky sand.  This made a slow, but rideable surface. Without the chips it was a slow, hard push though deep soft sand.

This is clearly an area of bachs and cribs, with most being set low, painted dark green/ brown and with a sod roof. The disguise works really well, and the visual impact of a hundred houses is minimised.

South of Lokken I had 5kms on the beach, with the cars and the N'ly wind. It brought back memories of riding Ninety Mile Beach, but thankfully was much shorter.

Lokken is a small touristy destination with several ice cream shops, bars, restaurants and hotels. There was quite a buzz on a sunny Friday afternoon.

I had trouble locating my hotel due to the usual "Google pin in the wrong place" and the less usual "hotel has a new name". I had one of those movie moments of walking into a small bar and killing the conversation, but the barman gave good directions: "yellow building across the road" and the confusion ended.

I planned to set off early the next morning - with plenty of daylight at 0430 - "early" gets redefined! - but my combination bike lock would not open.

I knew the bakery was open from 6, so headed that way to accost passing foot traffic for help. I met a lovely chap who lived 3 streets away and took me home to view his workshop of tools. Along the way he must have had time to think about the risk of losing his snips, because he suggested I bring the bike to him. I explained I'd have to carry the bike, so he relented and came with me to the hotel.

Two snips and Wally was freed. Phew! I was so pleased, I hugged the guy and he fled!

My next moment of anxiety was not long in arriving - when I turned Gerry on, he couldn't acquire any satellites. No GPS trail to follow would be a problem!

Fortunately a reboot sorted the issue and we followed the track though soft sand and back onto the beach for another 5km experience. This time we had a light SW breeze.

The tide was just dropping from full and there was plenty of firm sand to ride on. Passing the graffiti covered WW2 debris on the beach was quite eerie, but the show was brief.

At about 2.5km there was a road entry / exit to the beach and the trail led past this. So I'm happily spinning along, firm sand, light tail wind, Gerry indicating a right turn in 2.5 km, all is looking good after a rocky start to the day.

Check out the photo of the stairs up the cliff. EDT goes up/down those stairs. A definite WTF moment!

In disbelief, I checked around for an alternate, say a sensible road, but no. So it was back down the beach to the actual road. I would love to see photos of some fool carrying their bike up/ down those stairs!

After that I let G-maps Iead me to Hirtshals, skipping the mtb tracks at Tornby, because by now I was over riding a wide heavy bike through narrow twisty trails.

Lonstrup is an arty town with galleries and ceramic studios - but no coffee - and might be a nice stopover if that's your thing, and you have cargo space.

EDT did no more foolish diversions, largely following Route 1 cycle trails (is that Eurovelo1?), and delivered me to Skagen by early afternoon.

As is normal with these long rides, you spend weeks focussed on moving to the end, but when you get there it's a bit of an anticlimax. You just stop riding!

(Except in Bluff, where the Appleby clan provide a rousing welcome - if you are lucky enough to be riding with Graeme.)

That completes Stage 24, (193km, 640m climbing) and wraps up my Potugal to Denmark ride (mostly) following the European Divide Trail.

I will add an update on my ride stats off Gerry, when I'm back in NZ.

Rodekro - Aars

30 May - 1 June

Another EU member with its own currency *sigh* and an unwieldy exchange rate. At least my charging plugs still work!

Starting my northward journey through Denmark, there were no significant changes to the cropping and farming activities, but there was a subtle change in the landscape - some small hills! Northern Germany was quite flat and sandy. Denmark has been formed by glacial forces and the moraine has formed small hills and the soil is both sandy and stoney.

The Trail is mostly following the Haervejen which runs the length of Denmark and predates cars. This means that a lot of time is on roads, both sealed and unsealed,  and does not take random excursions off on to short sections in woodland. (I didn't expect that I'd miss that, but it seems that I do!). 

My first night in Denmark was at an old farmhouse where I impressed the host's teenage son by pointing out NZ, Portugal, and my path to Skagen on a big wall map.

It does look quite a long way when viewed on a map!

Jelling is a world heritage site for Viking burial mounds and culture. I thought the modern sculpture was quite a striking interpretation of the stone ship settings often found at burial sites.

My next night was at a B+B right beside the trail near Them. Also in residence were two women who have been taking annual cycling holidays together for the past 10 years. They seem to have covered most of the trails in Denmark and they were informative housemates. Their next day's agenda included visiting a site where. a spring came up in two places, and one flows east, and the other flows west.

After Viborg the trail is on old railway beds for the remaining 60km to Aars (pronounced Oars), and the long straights were sometimes exposed to the fresh Northly that had got up. The surface was quite fast rolling, even if the sand did start to make Wally's chain noisy.

The wetlands near Skals were a beautiful distraction, and they are the inland end of the Hjarbaek Fjord, which eventually opens into the North Sea.

Aars marked the end of Stage 23 at 269km and 1240m of climbing - all those small hills definitely added up!

Next up, the final stage to Skagen, and the completion of my ride.

Wilstedt - Rodekro

28 May - 30 May

Germany is a very leafy place, or at least the parts I've been riding through are. After leaving Hamburg I didn't go through any more towns until Bad Bramstedt, (where I was booked in for the night) and most of the ride was in woodland or tree lined paths or roads.

Due to this section of EDT being on fast cycle trails and roads, and FLAT, I arrived into Bad Bramsted too early to check in, so stopped in for an ice cream - green apple is a very tangy flavour and works well with chocolate, FYI.

My host at the hotel was very chatty (and not at all busy) and informed me that Monday was a public holiday. It being Sunday, when supermarkets are closed anyway, meant I was already facing a potential food supply issue.

My contingency was to order a pizza for eating cold on Monday,  and to turn my breakfast tray content into filled rolls.

Turned out, this prep worked just like taking an umbrella to ward off rain. As I rode out of town at 7:25, fully loaded with food, I saw a queue forming at the bakery, so I bought more food, just in case there was nothing open for dinner in Schleswig.

Ha! Schleswig is a holiday town and was fully pumping on the beautiful sunny summer day when I arrived. So I sat in the sun and ate my cold pizza (now slightly squished and amalgamated) and felt smug about not having to queue for dinner!

At Rendsburg I had had another underwater river crossing, but this one was preceeded by confusion, as I didn't know I was heading for a tunnel. I thought I was crossing on a bridge, so rode around the entry point, looking for a path.

Eventually I followed a roadie inside the building and copied his stepping his bike onto the escalator. It was a steep, long ride down, and a short ride across the river, followed by a lift back to the surface. (Hey Wayne, Auckland needs at least one bike tunnel. How about it?)

Just before reaching Schleswig I'd stopped to admire a mill pond, and then followed the Trail as it went through the mill building. I was fully expecting someone to come out and tell me off. The bloke who did come out was super friendly, spoke Oxford English, and enthusiastically told me about the private museum where he had curated "all the small things needed for life in the mill over the past 200 years". Delightful!

The next morning was grey and threating rain as I left Schleswig, and it was an easy and fast 50km to Flensburg and the border with Denmark. One more country completed, and now the last few days in Denmark, heading for Skagen.

Stage 22 completed at Rodekro (another town I didn't see) with a total of 210km and 910m climbing.

Thonse - Wilstedt

26 May - 28 May

Thonse and Wilstedt are two small towns you are unlikely to have heard of, but this section is really Hannover to Hamburg.

The riding has been a total delight, though woodland, farmland, and an extensive heath. On small country lanes, single track trails and cycle lanes, the days have been interesting because the riding and scenery are so varied.

There was a small power station on the Ortze with interesting historic displays and the Trail used the station gantry to cross the river. Good idea except for the stairs. Heavily loaded bikes and stairs are not a fun mix, and Wally usually trys to fall down the stairs. In this case, I took the two rear bags off before attempting the down stairs. It was still a tricky manouvre, but there were no injuries.

On most main roads now there is at least one cycle lane, and often two. The lane is usually a separated lane, so even though there is traffic noise, I don't have to worry about cars and trucks sharing my lane space. Sometimes I've not noticed the start of a cycle lane to the left of the road, and by the time I do notice there is a drain, a fence or a barrier keeping me out. On one memorable occassion I ended up on a busy 4 lane road, unable to get across to safety, or go back, so just peddled franticly until a turn out option appeared.

The Luneburg Heide (Heath) area was a surprise treat. There are open areas with low growing heather and wide trails of sandy soil, with occassionally, a larger tree. There were many groups out walking or having picnics on this sunny Saturday.

Further on, the Trail went into an area of mountain bike trails through very dense woodland - lots of walkers in this area, including some without clothes - and this part of the ride was about 50 km in total. Well worth a visit.

Hamburg has many watery parts and for the first two hours of leaving my hotel in Harburg, I was beside, or under, or above water. The Elbe Tunnel was fun and a significant piece of the city's walking and cycling infrastructure. (perhaps Auckland can drill a bike tunnel under the harbour? How about it Wayne??)

Stage 21 ended in Wilstedt after 201km and just 870m of climbing.

Weiburg - Thonse

24 May - 26 May

Now that I was almost trusting the Trail again, I had been following all of the paths too. The hills in this part of Germany are not large and paths are usually a rideable surface, so apart from dodging mud, or making a wrong turn, I was spending almost 100% my day following the GPS line.

Until I left Paderborn. The Trail cuts across military land, and today was a live firing day on the range. I was politely advised that beyond the safety question, there were significant fines for bypassing the security barrier.

I asked G. Maps for a route toward Blomberg (my location for the night) and then let Gerry convince me he could take me back to the Trail. Mistake. We ended up within 500m of the point we'd departed from. A 45 minute loop to nowhere, thanks Gerry.

The old city gate at Blomberg is impressive, but as the town is/was at an important trade cross road, it has been burned down several times,  and the gate is the oldest thing remaining (to be fair, it dates from the 12th century, so is quite old)

After a night in a lovely spacious apartment, we set off into another cold, grey morning. The paths were really nice, through forest and crops, away from traffic and reliably rideable.

In Holzhausen I rode through the most perfect alley of trees I've ever seen, and in Hamelin I didn't see either rats or a piper. The forest at Kollnischfeld gave lovely riding and my last two significant climbs in Germany. It is mostly flat from here to Skagen, so it appears I'm in the final stretch.

My hotel both advertises and runs a restaurant, so with just 40km to the end of Stage 20 (193km, 1970m climbing) I'm well fed and will ride through Hannover tomorrow to complete the stage at Thonse.

Riding through Hannover was a real treat - I saw so little of the city scape I hardly knew I was in a large city. The Trail wound along wooded trails for just under 20 km with only road crossings and the number of commuters to alert me to being near an urban centre.

The Dohrener Turm demanded I take a photo - so little Repunzel's place it may have been the muse for the fairy tail.

Cologne - Weiberg

22 May - 24 May

It was a cool grey, hazy morning as I pedalled out of Cologne. Like most cities, it took some time to shake off the suburbs, but after crossing the Rhein and working past the big box stores, I was into some lovely forest paths. There were the usual dog walkers out, and less usual, two horse walkers.

The temperature slowly dropped but the rain held off and I enjoyed following the Trail in all of its random turns. I started to speculate that forest paths are well used in Germany, and seem less likely to to just stop or become impassable. This theory was tested in the early afternoon by a big pile of windfall trees, but the re-routing was simple, so supported the theory.

My hotel was in Ludenscheid and it being Monday, the advertised restaurant was closed, so it was another bed picinc with catering by ALDI. I am just a little embarrassed by the pile of packaging I leave behind after these "meals", and wonder if the cleaners ever comment.

I have discovered that Germans take their breakfast buffet very seriously, and I have been able to eat several bread rolls, pastries, cheese, ham in various forms, eggs, and several cups of coffee without feeling I'm over doing it. It still feels too early to eat, but it's important to use the opportunity. The rest of the day is bakeri fare, and sadly, nothing like patisserie fare!

The road was wet as I set off from Ludenscheid, but the rain was so light it was like a heavy dew. I spotted the frog band as I headed out of town.

It didn't take long for the rain to set in, and while the Trail went through some nice forest behind small towns, the tracks soon became very muddy and slippery, and the rivers were showing increased volume and colour. With the air temp around 12° I opted to keep moving on roads (there were a lot of good cycleways) and get to my hotel sooner.

The other noteable feature of  the landscape was the effect of the Pine Bark Beetle, which attacks both pine and spruce trees. There were large areas of dead spruce trees, and areas that had been harvested early, before the trees were mature, and before the beetles got there. There were some large gaps in the forest cover and this is being replanted with faster growing species.

My night's hotel (near Ruthen) was another which mentioned a restaurant, but didn't open it.  My hosts were planning a supermarket run, so kindly gave me a lift to get supplies for yet another ALDI bed picnic.

I completed Stage 19 in Weiburg about mid morning, after another damp grey start. Distance for the stage was 169km and 3210m climbing.

Oberhausen bei Kirn - Cologne
(via Koblenz & Bonn)

18 May - 21 May

My accommodation in Frankel was right beside the lock and my room looked across the canal to Ellenz- Poltersdorf - very serene and the sort of place that made me wish I was staying longer.

On the way into town the night before when I stopped to check navigation, I'd done the equivalent of putting my phone/wallet on the roof of my car, but with my bug defender glasses. I even heard them hit the road, but didn't realise what the sound was, so kept riding for another 1.5km. By the time I got back there the sunglasses were in 3 pieces, and I think I was right behind the car that ran them over. Surprisingly, they went back together and still work!

My first mission of  the day was to get some cash from an ATM. The first 3 machines would not take my card. I hadn't withdrawn cash in Germany and wondered if there was going to be a problem. The fourth machine coughed up the cash, and the sun broke through!

There is a cycleway on both sides of the Mosel, and I chose the river left. My fist castle sighting was a delight, and I expect there will be more in the next few days.

As the morning progressed the traffic volume increased, particularly large groups of motorcycles. I later found out that it was a public holiday in Germany (Ascension Day), and that explained why so many were out driving and no shops were open.

In Koblenz there were long queues at ice cream shops  as a warm sunny day and a public holiday signalled summer. We explored the streets a little and I couldn't resist a photo of the Schangel Fountain, which is a gothic treat, and a fun statement about the mischief of boys.

Riding the Rhien path was much more relaxing than the Mosel path as it is well away from the road; the only challenges being loose dogs and inexperienced cyclists afraid to share the path. I really enjoyed watching the river traffic and the changing activites on the banks.

Bonn provided another overnight stop, in the Villa district, all leafy and pretty and relaxing. Next morning I had a chance meeting with Conrad and Lee, presently from the Snowy Mountains in Australia, but originally from Kaikoura and Hawkes Bay respectively. We had a great chat, comparing stories and plans, just a pity we were heading in opposite directions.

Cologne is a busy city and my hotel was in the thick of the action. After stowing Wally at the bike storage in the railway station I enjoyed a bratwurst and potato combo that is my current fav German dish - lots of fat and onions to make the ultimate fry up!

Saturday night was elbow to elbow in the main square and I abandoned the idea of a rerun of the bratwurst in favour of more supermarket fare.

Sunday morning I went to the start of the Round Cologne bike. Another UCI ranked event with Pro teams in attendance and mega bucks of lovely bikes to look at. Oh, and a cafe making Flat Whites

Maaike arrived for lunch and we had a great time chatting and planning where our next trips might head to. I think Spain is a strong contender, for both of us.

Stage 18 is now complete, and while my path did not closely resemble the EDT, I enjoyed getting to and exploring Cologne.

Saverne - Oberhausen bei Kirn

15 May - 17 May

Saverne lies on the Canal de la Marne au Rhine, and the Trail followed the canal and then headed toward Hattmatt, Bouxwiller and Ingwiller.

I'd decided it was time to review the ban on "paths" and followed the trail into the forest. What a treat! Beautiful trails, some single track, and lots and lots of of freshly-leaved trees. It was all fully rideable and completely enjoyable.

I crossed into Germany somewhere in the forest and my first German town was Ludwigswinkel - just loving these names!

My hotel in Hinterweidenthal was convieniently located next to the B10 motorway, which unfortunately meant riding 300m on that very busy motorway. Of course I rode it very fast, and as far to the right as possible. There were a few toots. I don't think they were toots of approval.

Next morning, more delightful green forest paths, with very few human sightings, got me to Kaiserslautern for a late lunch of the bakery rolls I'd purchased in Hinterwidenthal.  It was my fourth day of riding through vividly green forest, and while there were lots of pig rooting signs on the paths, indicating a healthy wild pig population, I was pleased to emerge into a more urban environment at Weilerbach.

My hotel had sent instructions on how to let myself in and retrieve the room key from a lock-box. All good until the first number didn't open the door. It did open another entry door, and that led up stairs to an unlocked door on to a balcony, and a second unlocked door to the corridor to my room. The tight security continued later that night when I returned from dinner and found the entry door proped open with a brick. It was still Iike that when I left the next morning!

Earlier in the week I had arranged to meet Maaike (who we'd had dinner and lunch with at Lake Ohau Lodge and Omarama on Sounds2Sounds) in Cologne on Sunday. I also decided to make a rest day in Cologne, as I've ridden for 10 days since Geneva, and am in week 7 of my European tour.

With a little more investigation I realised the Mosel and Rhein Canals were very close by. My revised plan is to ride the cycleways on both these canals to get to Cologne.

To complete Stage 17 (183km, 3120m climbing) I peddalled for 50km into  a 20kmph Northerly headwind. This did feel rather like hard work, especially when immediately followed by another 63km to get me to Frankel, on the Mosel.

Saint Maurice sur Moselle - Saverne

13 May - 14 May

The rain cleared overnight and I headed out toward La Bresse in warm sunshine, so warm I was soon stopping to strip off layers. It was a gentle uphill to La Bresse on the D486. The Trail ran along a higher route but then headed into the unknown of "path-land".

In La Bresse I stopped for coffee just as a group of 6 roadies pulled in. Their bikes were very high end and it was quite a performance stacking them so they only touched in exactly the right way!

As I finished my coffee another group arrived, also on beautiful bikes. By now parking was at a premium so I unparked Wally, and that freed up 3 spaces for slimmer bikes. These roadies turned out to be Canadian and were polite enough to admire Wally's set up and express admiration for my Portugal to Denmark ride. They were in town for a big race the next day which carried world cup qualifying status. So that explains the bike porn!

As I rode up to Col de Grosse Pierre I met at least 50 riders heading down who were checking out the course. It was a very bike - busy stretch of road.

Over the pass, through Gerardmer, and onto the D8 through Anould to Saint Saulcy-sur-Meurthe had me at the B&B by 1400, 2 hours ahead of check in. Oops!

My hosts arrived home soon after my arrival and let me into the room while apologising for the lawn mowing noise they were about to make - as if I'd care!

Next morning it was back onto the D415, D420, and D1420 through Schirmeck, Wisches, Lutzelhouse, Urmatt and Oberhaslach on Sunday-quiet roads. Then the surprise of the day from G. maps - a left turn into the Wangenbourg-Engenthal forest. WOW! The green of the trees was breathtaking, and it went on for 2 hours.

My destination for the day was Saverne, and my final night in France. It being Sunday, there had been no open supermarkets along the way, so my last French meal was cheese and my emergency packet of rice.

Stage 17 was 171km and 3540m of climbing - which I definitely didn't rack up as I was still in "path avoidance" mode and had 2 days on the road. Next stop Germany!

Rochejean - Saint Maurice-sur-Moselle

10 May - 12 May

Riding out of Les Rousses was the first time I'd worn all my rain gear in 6 weeks of riding. The rain was steady for about 2 hours and then was replaced by overcast with occassional sunshine. The temperature started at 5, and remained below 10 all day.

I had planned to pick up the Grand Jura Traverse trail in Les Rousses, but due to the rain, decided to avoid slippery and muddy, and opted to ride along the valley past Lac de Joux and on to Pontarlier.

The Jura is famous for its cheese, and there were plenty of Montbeliarde cows (red and white) along the route working on the raw material. At Le Pont l decided to stop for cheese tasting, but sadly, couldn't find the venue, so had to be content with a view up the lake, and my last Swiss village before returning to France.

Somewhere along this stretch one of my Alexandra jandles bailed out, leaving me with just 1.5 pairs of shoes. (I'd bought this pair in Alexandra during our Sounds2Sounds ride, after I'd lost the first pair in one of the 35 river crossings after Omarama Saddle) So all photos of Wally will now feature the orange Pontarlier "thongs" (I bought ugly, hoping that makes them harder to lose)

Our hostel in Pontarlier turned into a fun evening when Dorian also checked in and we met a long distance hiker (Ben) and another touring cyclist (Teatske) both from Belgium. We spent a happy few hours comparing trail experiences (near death experiences at roundabouts; managing with no food when it's a national holiday and no shops are open for 2 days; the demise of small village shops due to big supermarkets; the ageing farmer population) before farewelling Dorian the next morning, on his way to the train at Basel and back to Vienna.

Pontarlier to Gilley was a voie Verde through farmland (more red and white cows) and forest. There were some fun wee art installations along the way that made me smile, and a great patisserie and coffee when I reached Gilley.

The route was through farmland and forest and the road sections had very light traffic.

Riding toward Saint Hippolyte it started to rain and by the end of the 10km downhill I was soaked and very cold. There was some lovely riding along the valley through pretty villages beside the Le Doubs and the sunshine made it all rather pleasant.

The rest of the ride to Montbeliard was unremarkable except for the airforce fighter jet display (I think it was a rehearsal) as I rode into town, and the hour I spent try to interpret G.maps instructions to get to my hotel. One was fun to watch, the other was deeply frustrating!

I let G. maps recommend the route from Montbelliade to Saint Maurice sur Moselle, and this turned out to be a poor choice for the final 30km. The first few hours was along canals and parks and was beautiful riding.

After Giromagny things took a less enjoyable turn. The first G. maps /recommended road looked good on the screen but soon became a trail, then looked a lot like an Andy Cox selected path ie steep, unrideable and rarely used, so I returned to the bottom of the hill.

My second choice (D 465) had a nice 6% gradient over 12KM and climbed to the Ballon d' Alsace summit. All the way up G. maps  kept suggesting I turn off this nice road and take an unsealed forest road. Well, we know how that would end, so I ignored all electronic advice and enjoyed the ride up to 1173m.

By the time I reached the top it was raining, so photos were taken and I headed down, without adding another layer of clothing. The rain got heavier and I got a refreshing facial "massage". At the bottom I was so cold I could barely speak, but did manage to order 2 x hot chocolates, a cheese quiche and a strawberry tart at the first patisserie I came to.

Accomodation for the night was a B & B where I had a pleasant evening chatting with the host family and a cyclist from Belgium who had come down for a cycle race on Sunday out of La Bresse (more on that later)

Stage 15 was, on paper, 191km and 2760m of climbing, but I think my stats are quite different as I'd taken a very different route.

Geneva - Rochejean

7 May - 9 May

After Culoz I continued to follow the Via Rhona to Geneva. Another beautiful ride, mostly on small roads and cycleways, and highly recommended. As I approached Geneva a gentle rain started, but it didn't get heavy enough to require a coat. I guess on the current NZ rain scale, it didn't rain at all!

My hostel for 2 nights was the Meininger Hotel,  on Rue de Lyon, nice and central and not crazy expensive by Geneva standards.

They call it a hotel, but you get to share a normal size hotel room with 3 complete strangers. One of my strangers was already in residence and kindly encouraged me to request a change in bed allocation, as I'd been given the only top bunk in the room. I agreed that something Iess elevated would be age - appropriate. My roomy laughed at that, suggesting that having cycled there from Portugal, I wasn't really a strong argument for "age appropriate".

I then met 2 surprises: the currency is Swiss Francs, not the Euro, and their power sockets are different from the rest of the EU. I can see the logic of retaining their currency, but how about aligning with the EU on power sockets? Would that be so hard?

I spent my birthday organising a service for Wally (new brake pads, some clean grease in the bottom bracket) and being a tourist by hitting the lake front for the waterjet and the floral clock, and then walking up to the UN. As much as that does not sound exciting it was fun being in an Iconic city for my birthday, rather than just another section of (beautiful) EDT.

I had been concerned about riding in the Jura, because of its apparent isolation, but some local knowledge from the bike shop guys and excited messages from Dorian about the Mtb trails put my mind at ease. l even got advice on the road to take to get up there - through Gex and along to Gingins and up to Saint Cerque.

It only took 20 minutes to leave the city streets and be back into farm land, following a G maps route directly under the Lear jets arriving for the business day.

There was very little climbing before Gingins, and the roads were very quiet. The 6km up the zigzag to Saint Cergue was a little busier,  but still a very pretty ride through forest. There had been several (invisible) border crossings on the way, but the old border station at La Cure marked my return to France more formally.

I arrived in Les Rousses just as the forecast rain started, and moved into my chambre d' hote for a cozy night.

Valence - Culoz

5 May - 7 May

I am delighted to advise the gluten experiment has not produced any pain or other symptoms. I plan to proceed on a plan of steadily increasing the croissant intake to 5 a day, perhaps supplemented with lemon tarts, pizza, and filled rolls - all items I haven't eaten in ten years. Ooh, and they are so good here, it should not be a difficult challenge to meet.

At the end of 6 weeks of riding all of my clothes are too big, so I am clearly not matching energy input with output, and this is another reason the prelim results of the gluten experiment are so exciting.

At the moment I can pull my trousers on without undoing the waistband - and it's not elastic!

More beautiful riding from Valence to Voiron (with the exception of another motorway experience, this time without any shoulder space to stay out of the way of trucks!) and on to Culoz, mostly on ViaRhona and pretty D roads. The photos are real, that's how green and lush it all is!

I have enjoyed the Rhone so much I've decided to head on up to Geneva and spend my brithday there, before continuing to Lausanne and rejoining the EDT at or after Rochejean. I will miss a whole stage, but I'm sure Dorian will send photos of the mtb tracks I'm missing out on.

Stage 13 has been a short 174km with only 1910m of climbing - and LOTS of insects! In NZ I have ridden for  several years without glasses, but here the insect population is so healthy, I'm constantly being bombarded, and some of the hits hurt!

Saint Jean de Fos - Valence

2 May - 4 May

My night in St Jean de Fos was very comfortable and a lovely breakfast was prepared for me with fresh croissant, bread, strawberries, yoghurt, orange juice and coffee. The croissant and bread were freshly delivered.

Since I'd discovered that eating anything containing gIuten made my left hip very painful, I've avoided gluten. I'd also read, and been told, that the flour in Europe is somehow different and gluten intolerant people are able to eat it with fewer effects. I was keen to test this, but nervous of the impact on both riding and walking, so the presentation of this beautiful breakfast was the perfect time to start the test process. I ate the croissant, and waited.

The riding from St Jean de Fos to Valence was through beautiful Rhone Valley fruit growing countryside, with the trail following voie Verte cycleways, and me choosing to re-route onto D roads when the Trail indicated a rough, steep path.

I had lunch in a park with Jack from Aubernas, who was out testing a 100km ride on his new ebike. He has a project to ride the Northern coast of Spain, and his preparation was well developed. He seemed impressed at me having ridden from Portugal.

When we joined the Via Rhona path we started to see many more touring cyclists riding South, bound for Marseille if riding the full 800 km route from North of Lake Geneva. On this particular day they were all battling a strong headwind, but usually the wind is consistently behind them. I may have been the only happy rider out there.

Our Gite host in Valence, Bruno, is a TdF fan from way back, with many posters and photos displayed in the dorm rooms. Bruno also had an excellent sense of humour, and delivered it in both French and English, and often against himself.

Dorian also made it to Valence for the night - this was the second time we'd met, with the first being back between Ourique and Mertola, 5 weeks ago! We have exchanged many messages about the trail, and our individual plans - I think he is now a Komoot Super User from all the re-routes he has made to his EDT experience. Dorian now has only 8 days riding before he is home, and this part of his adventure comes to a close.

Stage 12 has been a highlight in terms of beautiful scenery at every turn, and I've been amazed at the spectrum of greens I've ridden through in the past 3 days. The Trail has 260km for this stage, and 2820m of climbing.

Perpignan - Saint Jean de Fos

29 April - 1 May

In Perpignan I finally bought the glasses I'd been promising myself every time a bug flew into my eyes and drowned, slowly. There was no mechanic at the bike shop so Wally didn't get his 2nd from lowest gear tweaked.

The long flat stretch after Perpignan was not memorable, but the hot hiking path climb up to the wind turbines before Port la Nouvelle was, but not for positive reasons.  I may have been a bit light on the food intake for the day, and humour went awol. This was quickly resolved after I checked into the hostel and staggered the 50m to a Carrefour for dinner and snacks.

What I didn't do was stock up for the next day.  Alignan du Vent, the location of my gite, is a tiny town, were no restaurants and no grocery stores open over the rest of the weekend. More on that issue soon.

My lovely hosts in Port la Nouvelle provided an excellent breakfast and a suitably appreciative audience when I showed them the map of the EDT. I stepped out into the damp with my host's advice that the sun would be out in 2 hours. He was right, but possibly because by then I'd ridden 30km north, and into another weather zone.

The first 30km was along canal paths and cycle trails, sometimes into a 30kmph head wind,  and sometimes with a 30kmph tail wind. Gruissan was busy with tourists and at Narbonne Beach there was a triathlon just wrapping up - OMG some beautiful bikes!

Then it was inland toward Beziers and some time on the Canal du Midi. My first view of working locks, how exciting for me to see genius engineering in action, and how time consuming, waiting for water to transfer!

The Trail took us up to the Beziers bull fighting arena, an impressive building from the outside, and through a series of streets named after artists, on to a cycle trail and out into vineyards. Nice!

As I mentioned, my gite for the night was not near a food supply, so I ate my "emergency" rice and sardines meal, and all the corn crackers and cheese remaining from "lunch". This left a packet of almonds for breakfast and to fuel a 65km ride to Saint Jean de Fos. With the working expectation that no shops would be open (certainly all the big supermarkets indicated closed until Tuesday am) I was a bit anxious about how this would feel.

I rode to the next town with no real plan, and found a fruit shop that also stocked ham and cheese - of couse it did, this is France! Crisis mostly averted, I just need to replace my emergency meal, and that should be possible tomorrow. Seems that Labour Day holiday does not apply to restaurants, and I've appreciated that for Iunch and dinner.

Arriving in Saint Jean de Fos has stage 11 wrapped up. 206km of distance and just 2150m of climbing, a flat, easy stage through lush and pretty countryside.

Moia - Perpignan

25 - 29 April

I'm going to France this week!

From Moia to Vic was a very nice climb and descent, and I noticed an increase in the number of road bikers out training, perhaps for the Giro d'Italia (starting 6 May) or Le Tour (starting July).

In Vic my apartment was up two narrow flights of stairs, so after dragging Wally up, I went out to look for a bike shop. I had intended to take Wally but the stairs... and I'd decided that with the increase in humidity it was time to get some glasses to fend off the bugs.

As I stepped into the street, it started to rain, a bit. How much can it really rain in Spain, I thought. Over an hour, enough to get really wet, and to make the wetting worse, no bike shop in any of the 4 locations proposed by G-maps!

Our exit from Vic was was through a freshly rinsed spring landscape and on up to Tavernoles for a coffee stop. Outside the cafe two local gents were very concerned that I might leave Wally on the street unsupervised. We settled on a far more secure location 2m inside the courtyard, and they were happy.

As I was departing the chaps asked if I was doing the Camino. I waved in the uphill direction and mentioned reservoir, and got a lot of incomprehensible advice, but also enthusiasm for the views. I showed them my intended path, and after a few minutes of talking but not understanding each other's language they sent me on my way with their approval of the plan - I think!

It was a lovely ride up to the pass with hazy views back toward Vic. When Gery advised of an impending right turn we pulled into a car park with stunning views of the top end of the Sau Reservoir. In the car park was a rider getting his mtb bike ready so I consulted again on my planned route, and had my second map discussion of the day.

Our ride along the side of the reservoir, across the Sau Dam and then on a gravel path to the Sasqueda Dam was the best "path" ride since, well, since before the Prades - Montblanc debacle redefined "path". I'd recommend this easy and beautiful 50km ride if you are in the area.

Note that it is no longer possible to ride across the Susqueda Dam, but there is a bridge a few km downstream that works just as well.

I elected to avoid a 6km climb over a mountain, and rode the road beside the Rio Ter to reach El Pasterales. It was a gentle 8 km downhill.

At my rural hotel I met Jeffrey, a dutchman riding a hand cycle, and he had already explored the Via Verde up to Olot. As I was early for check in and the host was out, I decided to ride to Amer for groceries - Jeffrey advised that the advertised restaurant at the hotel was not operating so I needed to self cater.

I spent a pleasant evening in the very pretty garden making plans for the weekend, which I had discovered is a holiday for Labour Day on Monday.

For my penultimate ride in Spain I as on the Via Verde from Amer to Olot (it starts in Girona) and on to Castellafollit de la Roca. What a beautiful ride, and an awesome location to stop for the night. 

This is a small town perched at the top of basalt cliffs that have been worn down by the two rivers that meet below the town. I had a few hours to explore before the afternoon thunder delivered rain.

I will ride roads tomorrow and cross into France. The EDT takes a hiking trail through some remote areas, and while that may mean staggeringly beautiful scenery, it may also mean 10 hours of unrideable hike-a-bike, and I don't have enough information to guess which it is.

My road to France was busy, ran through a few acres of truck parks and major discount Mega stores, and was therefore nothing like earlier parts of the EDT. The old border post at Le Perthus still looks as it did pre-Euro zone minus the border guards. I guess they got new jobs.

Maureilias las Illas is a pretty green village just 14km from the border and a lovely spot for our first night in France. The Trail to Perpignan used cycle trails and small quiet roads, and there were many cycle paths to get us safely into the old city and the end of Stage10.

A total of 255km, and 4500m of climbing for theEDT, but probably a bit less climbingfor me!

Montblanc - Moia

24 - 25 April

After a busy weekend in Barcelona enjoying the sights and the crowds out for Saint Jordi / George's Day it was back to Montblanc on the train, and return to the eat / sleep / pedal routine of the EDT.

When planning the day's ride I realised that I have lost confidence in any part of the trail that is called a "path" in Komoot, and am not yet ready for another bike carrying fest. Maybe this will change in a few days.

This approach has made the past 2 days easy road rides of 85km to Manresa and 31 km to Moia to complete stage 9 with 4070m climbing and a trail distance of 183km.

Since Montblanc the scenery has changed from the hot, dry Spain we've been riding through for 4 weeks to a more lush and green landscape with more trees, and small fields of wheat. This is quite a change and to my eye looks more like the scenery on the northern side of the Pyrenees.

The roads contime to be enjoyable to ride, including my few kms on the Autovia, which I hadn't intended to experience, but it seems bikes are allowed and trucks and most cars gave me plenty of extra space even though I was riding in the wide shoulder. 

Crossing the off ramp to stay on the Autovia and then crossing the on ramp to get back to the shoulder can be a bit anxiety inducing, especially when trucks are involved, but they slowed down to allow me time to cross.

Barcelona

21 - 23 April

We were in Barcelona for the weekend, being tourists.

Gratallops - Montblanc

19 April - 20 April

The day started with a long downhill between steeply terraced vineyards, and then got harder!

The first section of "path" was actually a drainage channel,  then it became a very steep and rocky trail. We met two local riders coming down it, so it seems it is an established ride - just not in the direction we were pushing our bikes!

When Gerry showed the profile of the climb, I laughed, and at that point I was about 50 almost vertical meters from the top. It was hard work hefting Wally up over the rocks and trying to stop either of us sliding back down. The other side of the hill was just as scrabbly and took careful speed control to stay upright.

Karolina and I stopped in the next village - Poboleda - for a cold drink, and got into conversation with a local vintner about his product - his claim being that Priorat produces the best grapes in Spain. Maybe it's true?

The rest of the day was climbing, with some rideable sections, but a lot of pushing - although nothing as steep as in the morning. We arrived in Prades about 4-30, after a leisurely lunch in Cornudella de Montsant, and the walking made it a slow 30km total for the day.

The next day's trail section, from Prades to Montblanc left us both speechless, and black and blue, and grateful to get out without significant damage.

The "path" was a hiking trail, very narrow and very rocky. After 1.5 hours of the craziest effort to drag my bike along this path, Karolina messaged: "I'm glad this nightmare is over" but for me, the downhill was equally traumatic, so it was anther 2 hours before l escaped the labyrinth and arrived at the walls of Montblanc. There is not much more to say except, do not attempt this section of the Trail, or if you do, don't take a bike!

Aliaga - Gratallops

16 April - 18 April

I opted for a 70km road ride from Aliaga to Calanda and it was really enjoyable. Crossing the Puerto de Majalinos at 1450m marked the start of several hours of downhill and the steady peeling off of layers as the air warmed up. By the time I arrived in Calanda at 621m,  it was almost hot again.

The geology around Aliaga was very interesting, with layers of rock twisted and extruded to form stripes and channels, looking as though the rock had been kneaded like bread.

By taking the road option I dodged an almost certain 2 km bike push up a 16% probably rough and rocky track. I won't know what this section is really Iike, but I did get to enjoy similar scenery from a sealed rideable road, so I'm happy with the choice.

Actually I did find out about the section of trail I didn't ride - I met Karolina as we were both checking out of the Calanda hostel, and she told me how challenging the 2 hour push was!

We swapped whatsap details and arranged to met for dinner in Bot, then went about our separate day's ride.

The first part of the morning was though terraced fields - olives and fruit trees - and mostly easy riding until we reached the end of the valley and climbed to the ridgeline. In the next valley we joined a via Verde for around 50 km, so it was an easy day's 70 km to my cabin at CampingTerra Alta, about 500m before Bot.

On the Via Verde I stopped to use the selfish post - a cleverly positioned phone holder that could be pivoted to capture the desired background - no bananas needed to prop up the phone for this photo!

While I was admiring this tourist feature, Esther and Rolland, a Dutch couple now living in Spain arrived and we had a great chat about their relatives and friends living in NZ, their reasons for moving to Spain, and the wonderful emptyness and access to nature that they felt was not so accessible in Netherlands anymore. Rolland loaned me his binoculars to look at 5 eagles/ griffons that had just launched from the cliff behind us. A special trail moment, right there.

Karolina and I had a great time discussing our various trail experiences over dinner. She had ridden the first 3 weeks with her partner Henning, and had been riding alone for about a week, with only a 4 more days to go before her end point in Barcelona where she had arranged to meet her Mum for a few days exploring the city.

The last 57km of this stage took us to Gratallops, via Gandessa, Mora d'Ebre, Garcia, El Molar, and El Lloar. This was another varied day's ride though more  terraced fields, briefly alongside Spain's second biggest river, the Ebre, and then into some more vertical terrain where "terracing" took on a while new dimension!

The trail took us across the Ebre via a rail bridge, and I was a little nervous about being "allowed" to do this. But apart from a steep scrabbly track to get up to the rail bed, there were no fences to climb, no trains came,  and I didnt get arrested, so in Spain it seems its ok to walk across a railway bridge!

The hostal in Gratallops turned out to be a great deal,  with breakfast included, and Karolina and I both took full advantage of the bacon and eggs and bottomless espresso that was part of the deal. Our dinner had also been good hearty fare, so we were well set up for Stage 9 - just as well as things transpired.

Stage 8 was 198 km and 3040m of climbing.

Casa Bajas - Aliaga

14 April - 16 April

A pleasant day's riding through changing landscapes had us at Teruel at 4.30, for the unpleasant discovery that my hostal had cancelled my booking because they didnt have the CVC number from my card. When I booked, the page did not have a field for CVC, so hardly my fault!

I manged to get another hotel within 1 km, much higher spec and with a bike washing and repair station. Wally gets another bath!!

I enjoyed a brief wander through the Friday night crowds, taking in the vibe and the scenery. This is a small city that would happily take several days to explore, and I recommend a visit if you are in this part of Spain.

Next morning I met an engineer involved in developing a 40m solar powered aeroplane. The project had fallen victim to Brexit turmoil and he had a warehouse with a lot of parts looking for a purpose.

After Wally's bike wash, a muIti-lap buffet breakfast and several pods of coffee for me, we left Teruel and rejoined the trail.

The ride out of each of these towns is made very simple by the GPS track and the courtesy of the local drivers. It is a pleasure to ride on the larger Spanish roads as they have a wide, smooth shoulder, and drivers invariably cross the centre line to give even more space.

Dog walkers, mtb bikers, runners, and walkers were all out using a nice forest park on the outskirts of Teruel. The gravel road wound slowly up to a ridge line, making a pleasant first hour of riding.

Then came the NW'ly.

Initially it was just a cold and blustery breeze that had me thinking about adding a layer. By the time I was serious about needing the layer, it was difficult to find a sheltered spot to stop in.

The climb topped out at 1600m, mostly through sparse forest and over rocky ground, and turned more N'ly as we came into more exposed farm land. Then the grovelling started. Uphill, into an icy 40kmph headwind, hardly able to stay on the bike let alone propel it forward, the fun defintely tipped into Type 2.

Even the down hills were tough, needing 2 hands on the handlebars to counter the gusts, and using all of the lane to make a straight line. Lucky it was another road with no traffic.

I was pleased to get to Aguilar del AIfambra and stop the fight, having taken 4 and a half hours to ride 52 km. It had been so cold I had only drunk 1 bottle of water, and was way behind on the food intake.

After a shower and some focussed eating, I checked the trail direction and the forecast to mentally prepare for a repeat experience next day.

My early departure for Aliaga meant I was there before the wind picked up, and also before the air had warmed. Coffee in the sun (and downwind of a dope smoker) helped me thaw out after that first 15km.

That wraps up Stage 7 at 167 km and 3220m of climbing.

Balazote - Casa Bajas

12 April - 14 April

Balazote, first town in stage 6, was just a gas station beside the Via Verde, a changed stage on Gerry, and back into the NW blast down to Albacete.  As always with a following breeze, you don't know how strong it is until you turn into it. It was a "heeled into it" kinda strength, and I was pleased the trail headed mostly E and NE.

Balazote section was through a dry wetland area, and Albacete is surrounded by a huge plane growing wheat, leeks, lucerne and later, peaches and grapes plus lots I couldn't identify because they had just been planted.

At the start of the road through the Parque las Hoces de Cabriel was a lovely Roman bridge and at the end a grunty climb of 300m to give magnificent views back over where I'd ridden in the morning. Most of the parque was old pines and made for lovely riding.

The last 20km to Mira, and my bed for the night, was heading N with some NNW, and guess what? that NW'ly was still blowing strong! 

The final day of stage 6 I mostly stayed on the road to get a direct-ish 80km to Teruel, and to leave out a climb through the local ski field over Javalambre at 2019m (which is early in Stage 7). Call me crazy, but Moorish architecture in Teruel was more attractive to me than a slog up a barren hillside.

Stage 6 was, on paper, 196km and 1640m of climbing.

Cazorla - Balazote

10 April - 12 April

After coffee and a supply stop at a supermercado in Buruchel we were into the first climb of the day, a gentle 6% to Puerto de las Palomas at 1200m asl. So far so good!

The landscape had become very craggy and the trees beside the road provided great shade. The trail headed off to the right at an intersection, and soon after took a left into the wilderness. I was contemplating the awful scrabbly track in front of me when a local park ranger appeared and advised that it was a logging track and I shouldn't go that way. I was easily pursuaded!

My new ranger buddy also told me that I was in viper country and should not leave the road as they are just waking from hibernation. No argument from me, I detest snakes!

I returned to the road and after 3km my "track" joined the road from the right, or would have, had there not been a locked gate. I messaged Dorian so he didn't have the same issue, and he said on his version of the GPS track, the trail stayed on the road. WHAAT??

The road continued up to another pass and then meandered around the steep rocky hillsides with some lovely shade and stunning views. Apart from the brutal surface, this was a nice ride with hardly any other traffic and took about 3 hours.

My ranger buddy's other advice was to get water from a stream as it was the last supply before the trees ended and the scorching altiplano started. Maybe he had never been to the bar at San Pedro, right there, beside the road?

Without warning the trees did end and I was into an amazing landscape of jumbled grey rocks that just got more and more impressive. It was spectacular and totally worth the grind of getting there. A great example of the surprises this trail throws up and cudos to Andy Cox for stringing it all together.

I had loosely planned to kip at one of the refugios alongside the trail, but as I still had 4 hours of daylight I rode out to Ponton Alto. The refugios are cute and cosy looking, but with sub zero night temperatures might not be so cosy at 3am.

The moonscape steadily changed into farm land. The trail in to town was a bit confusing and I ended up in a dude's backyard asking how to get to my hostal. Lots of pointing and waving ensued, then his mate offered to show me the way - on his bobcat. So I was personally escourted through town by a Komatsu bobcat. How sweet was that?

The next morning's temperature was cool, as you'd expect for this altitude. The trail tuned left at the edge of town and followed the usual "unpaved road" through a steep sided valley with a stream at the bottom. The towering rock formations were just catching the sun and it was easy to imagine the ice and frost that would take hold here for most of winter.

Progress was good until the track faded out at a farm house. I was clearly in the right place on the GPS, but there was no track through the scrub or up the stream. I contemplated the effort required to drag Wally though the stream and up the bank, but as there was still no visible track, we headed back to town and set a course for Siles, on road.

At 17km out of Ponton Alto the "trail" joined the road from the right and looked to be a well used road - I guess I will never know what happens in the middle or how the two ends connect - if they do.

For the rest of the ride through to Riopar I stayed on the road, having become mistrustful of trails. The Trail also stayed on the road, as the steep terrain didn't allow any options. It was a beautiful ride with plenty of shade, great views and a fast rolling road surface.

Next morning I managed a 0730 departure, knowing I had 2 passes to climb and more than 60km of via Verde as a close out to the day.

At 1450m Puerto de Las Crucetillas was a 7.78km climb, followed by some nice downhill, and then a climb back up to 1428m to cross Puerto del Barrancazo. In the 3 hours on that very pretty, freshly sealed road, through pine forest, I saw one car and one other human, a fox, 2 eagles and a deer. There was also a chill NW breeze which kept me in three layers for most of the day.

Just before Alcaraz the trail left the nice sealed road onto an unpaved road. After hesitating briefly I headed on down and it was a lovely road, grass in the middle, running alongside a stream and then dropping sharply between two towers of rock, and finishing below Alcaraz.

HA! So trusting the trail has variable outcomes.

The via Verde was largely downhill and I had a pushy tailwind to assist, so the distance ticked over quickly. The many tunnels either had sensor lights or were short enough to not need illumination. Unfortunately sometimes the sensors were a little slow to turn on the next section of lights, leaving me pedaling into complete blackness for 10 or 15 seconds. I was suprised at how quickly I became disoriented and started reaching for the brakes!

Stage 5 ended at Balazote after 238 km and 4580m climbing.

Cordoba - Cazorla

7 April - 9 April

The EDT had brought me into Cordoba from the NW and to the old quarter. This made the exit into wheat fields very quick,  perhaps less than 30 minutes.

I met 8 hikers on their camino through Cordoba. I had a great "chat" to an Italian guy who had as much English as I have Italian, and he was able to tell me the trail when up and down a lot. Then Lazlo told me I would soon be very tired of olive trees.  Both of them were correct!

I was paused beside the trail, considering if the road I was crossing would be a good option, when a Citroën van pulled onto the trail, and set off (slowly) in the direction I was headed. I was immediately convinced that this must be a road, rather than a trail as I had perceived it, and followed the van.

Soon after, the wheat give way to olive trees and didnt change for the next 6 hours. There was no shade and the afternoon was very hot. I elected to ride the last 20km on the road into Martos to escape the olives!

In the two towns I passed through the Easter celebrations were in full swing, and at one point when I went to re-fill my water bottles in a bar, I thought I had wandered into a wedding party. By whatsapp Dorian and I agreed we felt somewhat scruffy and under dressed.

Departure from Martos was on another Via Verde, this one very busy with locals walking, running or cycling.

I hadn't been able to find any accommodation or camping in either Jimena or Jodar so opted for a rural hostal in Bedmar, just slightly off the trail. I'd been wanting to book one of these Tourist or Rural places, but their websites were only in Spanish, so it's been hard to identify details, until... Google Translate to the rescue!

I expect to have to pay back the downhill it took to get here,  but it is beautiful and serene, and if feels like I'm on holiday - oh, hang on, I am on holiday!

The climb back to Bedmar was not so bad, and my route to Jodar was on road. I met several groups of happy road cyclists on their Sunday ride - I say happy because they waved and "hola"-ed back to me.

After Jodar it was back into the olives except for a brief and lovely downhill on road. Cazorla was slow to appear, but when it did, it looked a lot like a monochrome Queenstown, without the lake. So the only real resemblance to Queenstown is the towering mountains behind the town, and its a tourist hot spot with quite a few adventure activities on offer.

The trail in to town, after the olives ended, was down a very steep concrete track, and I was very pleased I wasn't pushing Wally up it!

After a water stop and a photo op outside the crazy bicycle house, it was on-on for another 5 km and our lodging for the night.

I've been reflecting on how the tour is unfolding and I feel comfortably settled into a 70 - 100 km ride routine, less concerned about food supply, and happy to plan just 1 day ahead for accomodation. I almost trust the trail to get through, but it is still hard to guess how slow or fast or hard a day will be because of the variety of track / trail / road surfaces.

The trail is certainly taking me to places I wouldn't find on my own and just as the NZ rides took us to places we didn't know about, I feel that I'm getting to see a lot of rural life in Spain. Olives are a big part of their rural economy, I get that now!

That completes Stage 4: 219 km and 3530m climbing

Santa Olalla del Cala - Cordoba

5 April - 6 April

Mornings are brisk up here, and dark. I left Santa Olalla del Cala at about 8 but could barely read the GPS screen because the sun was not yet up.

Conditions were great for the climb up to Almaden de la Plata where the sun was up so I stopped for coffee in the square.

Rural roads took us past pigs, cows, and sheep, some on the road, some behind fences. A chunky climb, that looked worse on paper than irl, was over before the heat of the day.

Cazalla de la Sierra was in full lunch mode when I arrived, so getting water from a bar was no problem. This is a lush green area, fruit trees in blossom and grass growing faster than its being eaten. The trail out of town was a lovely single track down to a river and under a rail bridge.

The treat of the day was joining the Via Verde,  which is an old rail line, fully sealed for bikes - no gravel here!

I arrived at Batan de las Monjas at around 4 and set up camp for the night. A messy but tasty hash of eggs, chirizo and potato made a filling dinner. I also gave Wally a bath and cleaned his teeth (and chain).

It was a chilly night and for departure I was wearing tights,  vest, long sleeve merino, riding top, puffer vest, and puffer jacket. From the texture of the can of butt butter I'd guess it was about 2 degrees. Very stingey fingers as I packed up the tent, in the dark.

By first breakfast I'd only removed 1 layer, but by 1030 I was back in summer mode.

The trail started as usual on dirt roads, then a RH turn onto a sheep track was the beginning of 5 km of sketchy track - mostly the vague concept of a track. Frustratingly, it ran alongside a perfectly nice looking road - with a gateless fence between.

A bloke in a ute stopped to encourage me by saying I was nearly at the exit, but the spectre of a locked gate still hangs about! The gate was not locked, and I finally got onto the road.

After that it was sealed road, mostly down hill, and into a changed Iandscape of orange and olive trees. Who would have thought orange blossom could be become so ... overpowering and cloying?

Back in a more populated environment, the approach to Codoba was along a water race and there were a few riders out, getting started on their Easter break.

My water stop in AImodovar del Rio turned into an ice cream stop - yum! - and I think there will be many more of these on this ride.

In Cordoba central it seemed as though the whole city was out for the Easter parade, and the atmosphere was very festive.

Hostel checkin was followed by shower, laundry, shopping, drying the tent, eating dinner,... OMG, so much admin to get done!

That's Stage 3 done: 191 km, 2090m climbing.

Mertola - Santa Olalla del Cala

2 April - 4 April

Nice easy trails out of Mertola lead into farm land and about 20 gates. A shepherd followed me in his car and I think he was warning me about all the gates, but when I showed him the GPS trail, he shrugged, said something like, "don't say I didn't warn you" and went back to his flock.

The trail went through an old copper mine site, and as usual the landscape showed the impact of this industry. There were a few people about exploring, both on foot and by bike, enjoying their Sunday.

The big excitement of the day was crossing into Spain. After the required photo, excitement was all done, and I pedalled up my first Spanish hill and headed for Santa Barbara de Casa and the hostel I'd booked that morning.

On arrival at "the address", at about 5pm, I discovered the hostel was in a town 27km away!! There is nothing quite like feeling weary from a hot 75km ride, and surprise! you have not finished yet.

Fortunately 20km was downhill with a tail wind, and only the final 7 was uphill. Plenty of time to grumble about how the booking.com algorithmn is happy to suggest options well away from your search, and to vow to be more careful.

Part 2 of the saga was getting back to the trail, which had by then climbed high into the hills,  and so I did too. For 4 hours. To Jabugo, the town of ham, but no accomodation.

A quick search and I was rolling the 4km down to Galaroza and a nice wee hostal where I met Jess and Joseph, touring cyclists from Barcelona. We met again at a restaurant and Jess saved me from ordering completely blind by providing a translation service. As they had just riden a section of my tomorrow's trail, they also gave some insight into how fast/slow it might be.

Tuesday morning I set my sights on Santa Olalla de Cala and enjoyed some beautiful riding on a long distance hiking trail (trans Adaluce, or similar) as well as a bit of hard pushing up a few rocky sections.

 Riding through a small village Gerry Garmin opted to take a moment to do a firmware update, then couldn't find any satelites. This gave me about 20 minutes to stress about how I might navigate if this was the end of the line for Gerry.

Two re-starts later and normal programming resumed. Not funny Gerry!

Next unplanned divertion was a locked gate after Aracena. The re-route took 1.5 hrs and sent me up a long climb to rejoin the trail at Puerto Moral. More rough, boney, potholed road plus a section being watered and rolled (So that's how they get the surface ! ) had me in Santa Olalla del Cala in time to search for and book a cabin for the night - checking carefully its exact location, of course!

So ends Stage 2, with 413 kms on the trail, and a few more off it. Can't wait to see what treats the next stage has.  For those interested in stats stg 2 was: 202km 3010 m climbing .

Cape St Vincent - Mertola

30 March - 1 April 2023

The excitement of starting the actual EDT had me up and packed by 0700 on Thursday. Cape St Vincent was a deserted location, like most places at that time of day, so obligatory photos done, we STARTED!

First stop Vila de Bospo for coffee and eyedrops to ease the niggle caused by an insect hit, and then onto the trail to stack up some kms.

After a "wrong" turn and a wade through a thigh deep pond, twice, I opted for some road. Gerry Garmin is very helpful at rerouting, and that became the theme of the day.

The trail ran through acres of eucalyptus forest before climbing and crossing a highway. At that point I stopped for lunch and to refill water at a roadside store. Lack of water could easily become a problem when it's unclear what the next few hours will be like, so I resolved to not leave a town without a top up.

The afternoon was along a lovely valley and a 4km climb to Marmelette, where I lucked onto a council run hostel that was also hosting 5 long distance hikers. We had a great evening sharing tips and stories from our Portugal experiences.

Friday had us all out of the hostel by 7.30 and across the road to the gas station for coffee. I discovered that the free compressed air also delivers pressure water, perfect for chain cleaning.

My second day's ride was similar to the first, nice valleys, some rough forestry roads, and some rideable climbs. On the way into Ourique (the pig centre of the region, apparently) I raided the supermarket and booked a hostel bed.

The hostel turned out to be a guesthouse, and it was all mine. Very comfy.

Ourique to Mertola was unpaved roads through nature reserves and farm land - beautiful riding.

I stopped at a bike shop in Castro Verde to rescue my 2nd from lowest gear, which had been unusable for most of Friday.

At my Iunch stop I met my first other EDT rider. Dorian is from Austria, has just finished university, and is riding EDT before life gets serious and he has to get a job. Tonight he is wild camping further along the trail, and we are whatsapp buddies so we can share intel from the route.

Tomorrow, I go to Spain.

Mertola is the end of Stage I of EDT, there being 24 stages to Skagen,  each about 200km. I'm having a great time, and after 5 days riding and 1 rest day since Faro, this eat-sIeep-ride life is feeling good.

Sagres - Wednesday 29 March

Pedalled into Sagres yesterday around 4 and my lost bag was here at Sagres Sun Stay, waiting, as though there had not been the preceeding 6 days of drama.

SO pleased to have my gear back.  Suddenly this ride is back to manageable. Just have to swap out my new purchases for my old stuff, and all is good.

Also a relief to not have to shop anymore.

Excited to have my aero bars back as I was getting sore wrists/hands from not having an alternate position for my hands. Also having my worn-in shorts will be grand, everyone knows you shouldn't try anything new on race day!

Monday turned into a bit of a horror ride. Rear tyre valve was leaking and with no pump (it's in the lost bag) I had to get to a bike shop quickly, and I had more purchases to make. Finally left Faro around 1 pm after landing @7-30.

After a few confusing turns I got onto my route out of town, and got the phone call to say my bag was in AMS, after hiding out in SFO for 5 days.

I only had 60km to ride and it was rather hot and I ran out of water. Arrived at my Portimao hostel just on dark and feeling completely wrecked from my 19 hour day.

Tuesday was a much better day, riding along some cliff top paths with lovely views down to the famed beaches of Portugal's Algarve coast.

I think I have tracks and streets sorted now. Tracks can turn unrideable without warning - either overgrown or Grade 5 rockgarden down a cliff - but are mostly rideable. Streets can look like tracks but remain rideable.

Progress might be slow through Portugal as I may only average 10 km/ hr on the tracks of EDT. Will be scenic though!

I booked a second night at this hostel to allow time to arrange posting the duffle bag back to AMS.

I'm feeling ready to start the trail proper and hoping that the past week's level of drama does not continue!

Bring on the eat-sIeep-pedal routine.

Heading to Faro - Monday 27 March

Let the proper adventure begin!

Wally and I are checked in for the flight to Faro, scheduled to depart @ 5am. I fully expect to see that box in Faro. After the past couple of days it almost feels anticlimactic to be heading down to the start of the EDT.

My friends in AMS - Nigel and Michele - were wonderful hosts and I'm very grateful I wasn't alone for the lost luggage saga. Thank you!

The second bag remains absent, whereabouts unknown.

Today I plan to shop for bike specific items in Faro, plus a cooker and small/ light toiletries. I'm almost over the annoyance of not having all my small, carefully planned items that were selected for weight and functionality.

Almost.

I expect to be in Portimao tonight and Sagres on Tuesday. Assuming I have replaced essential kit I will start EDT on Wednesday.

Amsterdam - Saturday 25 March

Wally was handed over at 2245 on Friday, but my second bag is still not in Amsterdam.

Having the bike and most of the difficult-to-replace kit is great. It will be annoying, but easier, to replace the carefully curated and worn in range of clothes, shoes, tent, sleeping bag, cooker, etc that is in the not-yet-locatated bag.

I went out to SciphoI again but no bag came off the SFO flight that arrived at 0900. I am not encouraged by the fact that the bag has not been located in SFO and I'm not sure anyone is actually looking.

With my Portugal flight just one day away there is only a slim chance the bag will arrive before I leave, so I decided to start the mega shop to replace all the gear in the bag, knowing I won't be able to replace some of it

Decathlon have supplied a new tent, sleeping bag, mat, shoes, and riding clothes. Tomorrow I will hit the local bike shop for the bike specific items that Decathlon didn't stock.

From Faro I will be riding past 4 Decathlons so I didn't have to buy everything today.

Amsterdam - Friday 24 March

Found Wally!

Bike and bag are enroute to AMS, yipee!

Oh, but wait, I got excited when I saw that info on the bag tracking portal at 6.30 this morning, but at 4pm I still haven't had notification that KLM are in possession of the bags in AMS.

Amsterdam - Thursday 23 March

Where is my bike? Certainly not in Amsterdam!

Our best guess is it is in San Francisco, and sadly, we are still guessing.

Today I went back to SchiphoI Airport to get traction on solving the Where's Wally question.

All the KLM staff I talked to were very helpful and Mike from the unaccompanied and unclaimed baggage office made the most progress. He emailed the handlers at SFO an updated description of the bags and asked them to do a physical search of stored baggage. At 7.30 SFO confirmed they would take a look, and maybe Wally will be on tonight's flight

With the uncertainty on locating the baggage I decided to rebook my flight to Portugal for Monday 27th, a delay of 2 days.

Let's see what develops tomorrow.

Leaving NZ! - Tuesday 21 March

Flights all worked as planned, except for the minor glitch of no bags on arrival in Amsterdam.

I'm hoping the cause was the short connection at SFO and the bags simply missed the flight to Amsterdam.

This theory will be tested today when the next KLM flight arrives from SFO, so for now I'm waiting impatiently in Amsterdam!

Flight to Portugal is not until late afteroom Friday, so there is still time to resolve the situation before I need to start re-booking and making insurance claims.