Final comments on EV1 Atlantic Route Portugal( a dubious coastal cycle route from Northern Portugal to the South)

I must commence by thanking all those people who have read and responded so positively to the blog. It is really intended as a record of progress for Alan and myself (memory not always being very reliable) but it is nonetheless gratifying to know that it also brings a small amount of pleasure to a few followers; not to mention the encouragement we obtain from your comments.

The most notable result of this ride for us, was the sense of achievement. At times, it was very testing both physically and mentally but we had managed to overcome any problems and meet the challenges head on. It has also provided us with total confidence in the ability of the bikes to deal with very difficult terrain (often, the only limitation was our personal ability and considerations of safety). Alan is dealing with the proclivities of the route and you will already be aware, from comments in the blog, that much of it was of an unacceptable standard. However, it is clear from the number of commercial bike tour enterprises that we encountered, that there exist safer and easier ways of exploring Portugal by bike.

The country, the coast and the people are a delight. In particular to the north, we cycled through villages still strip farming (well, not the villages, but the people!). The coastline is glorious, and where there existed cycle paths, it was possible to watch the waves and still be vigilant enough to avoid pedestrians. Other times, though, our eyes were firmly fixed on the ground and sightseeing was a luxury we could only afford if we stopped – which we did, if only to catch our breath. By contrast, the south of the country appears to be more densely populated with an emphasis on tourism. Thus, roads are busier and drivers less concerned about the hapless cyclist. It has to be said though, that we received many signs of encouragement from drivers and even the police in the form of toots (as opposed to blasts) on horns and thumbs up appearing out of windows. Even other cyclists training for the Tour de France! acknowledged our efforts as they overtook us or passed going the other way.

It has been an experience like no other of our Eurovelo rides and needs to be approached with caution but with the potential to be a superb endeavour.