November 2, 2023
Porto Torres to Alghero
Nasty headwind from Storm Ciaran
We were up early in an attempt to beat the forecast nasty wind. Ha. Not a chance. It was already very windy.
We had a great breakfast at B&B L’Ancora. Really impressive for a small place. Our hostess made cappuccinos. We had yogurt, fruit, and absolutely delicious cornettos.
When we retrieved our bikes in the courtyard, it was clear that there had been a rain shower overnight. But rain was not to be our problem today. It’d be the wind coming pretty much straight from the direction we were heading.
From the 2023 Racpat blog, we learned about the Roman Bridge in Porto Torres, so took that route out of town. It was super cool to see the ruts in the rocks caused by two millennia of use. The bridge was only closed to traffic in the 1980s. Today it’s a bit sad looking, overgrown with weeds, and a bit difficult to access.
Because of the winds being forecast to gust up to 75 km/hour in the afternoon, we took a direct route out of Porto Torres through the industrial area onto the highway that goes directly to Alghero. I had planned a more scenic route, but it was not to be. This unexceptional highway route was the scene of the Racpat carabinieri encounter. Littering is not cool. But I agree that it’d be hard to pick out one Racpat kleenex in a ditch full of trash.
We arrived in Alghero before 11 am and got sandblasted as we approached the beach front. There were many windsurfers and kiteboarders enjoying the gale, but nobody else was. A photographer was wearing ski goggles to keep the sand out of his eyes. Smart guy. We hunkered down in a very nice coffee shop until we could access our accommodation. We were welcomed early, and could leave our bags, but they still needed to clean, so we left for a walking tour of the old town, and in search of lunch.
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The apartment hadn’t answered our question about bike storage before we arrived. It turns out to be a tight fit. They are kindly letting us keep our bikes in our bedroom on the 4th floor. We’re not allowed to keep them in the living room or on the balcony because it’s shared with other guests. My bike fit into the elevator, but Sue has wide bars and she had to schlep her bike up the stairs.
This afternoon, the spray off the ocean made it impossible to get too close to the water. Our hostess says this is the maestrale wind. Google tells me it’s supposed to come from the northwest, which would be perfect for us. But instead, it’s pushing us backwards as we try to go south. So maybe it’s not the maestrale, but just the edge of Storm Ciaran, which is battering much of Western Europe.
We had a multi-course lunch. Mine was squid ink pasta followed by what was supposed to be pork belly, but turned out to be ho-hum pork tenderloin. That was our main meal of the day.
We had an afternoin nap while the wind raged. We had to put a towel under our door to stop awful whistling.
Alghero is an interesting small city with a historic centre and numerous watchtowers, with a few remnants of the city walls. There are Catalan roots here. And a few commemorations of the city being bombed by the Allies in May 1943.
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In the evening we went out for drinks and intended to have a light meal. We ended up at a very interesting bar and had spritzes while chatting with an ex-pat British chef who moved to Alghero just before COVID. We had just a few bar snacks for dinner. By the time we had finished our excellent drinks, we didn’t feel like eating much, so we just walked back through to our apartment. Winds were even crazier in the evening, but the rain held off until bedtime. We’ll stay here tomorrow and let the storm pass.
Today's ride: 38 km (24 miles)
Total: 293 km (182 miles)
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