November 3, 2013
Jimena de la Frontera
Hotel breakfasts on this trip have in general been much better than we had expected - some sliced meat and cheese, bread, of course coffee, and usually yogurt or cereal and some fruit have been the norm. Today's was the exception: a modest cup of coffee and half a roll, with pate. Period. After quickly dispensing with that we headed down to the plaza and had a second, more complete meal at one of the cafes.
Our ride began by reversing yesterday's ride in (but avoiding the staircase), which meant we got to start our day by whizzing down the steep hill that had tired us coming in. Barreling down at about 25 mph, we were passed by a pod of racers flying by at perhaps twice our speed. Today's ride was once again beautiful but featured some significant hills and a few low passes. We completed our fourth straight 4000' ride and by day's end were starting to feel the effects.
The ride to Alcala de las Gazules was relaxed, but soon after passing it we began climbing, peaking out several miles later. The road was almost ladder like, gaining fifty or so feet at a time in elevation in a long series of steep rises interspersed by plateaus that let us ease off. At the top we broke for lunch and enjoyed another cold cut picnic before generally dropping to Jimena de la Frontera.
In Jimena we stayed at the delightful Vina de la Linan inn, a place we highly recommend. It sits a bit out of the village, down an incredibly steep (perhaps 30 percent) drop. It is in a beautiful setting, surrounded by lush forest and with a striking view over the nearby mountains. The owners are very hospitable, accommodating and informative. Before dinner we enjoyed a lovely loop walk they suggested, along the creek just below and back up through the village. At dinner time they drove us up into the village to a restaurant they recommended, and left us with flashlights for a memorable after dinner walk back under starry skies. In the morning we were served a wonderful, diverse breakfast - the best of the trip. A great experience.
In the morning we drop down to Gibraltar to explore The Rock and then head northeast for Granada, now only a week away. Suddenly it feels as though the tour is drawing to a close.
Elevation log: 4200' today, 57,100' total.
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Today's ride: 47 miles (76 km)
Total: 1,038 miles (1,670 km)
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