April 23, 2022 - Porto to Ovar - Return to Cycle-OPOLIS (Tour 22) - 2022 🇵🇹

April 23, 2022

April 23, 2022 - Porto to Ovar

Cycling alongside the sand dunes

Hotel: Vintage Balcony Guesthouse, €37.40

Restaurant: O Churrascão

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If this is a rainy day, then I'll take it.

My brain's timing is still a bit off and hasn't yet had time to adjust. I woke a few times in the night but when I suddenly woke up thinking it must be noon or midnight or something, when I checked it was 740 am. Almost breakfast time. Being fairly good at hopping right up and getting going, I hopped up and got going. First, I organized a few of my things into the panniers to be clipped on the bike before too long. Second, I went down a floor for breakfast. It seems everyone else had the same idea so there was a short lineup but before long at all I had my breakfast, including a Portuguese orange, and had gobbled it up.

I was really excited to get going. When I checked the weather on the tablet it said sunny, though it was 9 C, which is slightly too cool for me to cycle, but it said it would be 11 C very shortly. I quickly got ready, packing the rest of my stuff into the panniers and rack bag then carried down the bike and bags in shifts, one floor at a time. I chatted a few moments with the young Brazilian guy working the desk, he wished me well on my tour, and I headed out the door. This time, rather than having to load up the bikes into an Uber to get me to the far end of the Douro to start the tour (as in 2017), this time the tour started right here.

On went the bags, photo shot of the bike and hotel, a quick determination of which route I would take down to the Douro where I had to cross to the other side, and a slow roll-away on cobblestones, hoping not to break a spoke in the first ten metres. The brakes got a good workout as I rolled down the steep hill to the water's edge where I took yet another 'departure' photo with the Dom Luis I bridge and the river in the background.

My Cannondale loaded up outside the Hotel Peninsular as I head out on my first Euro-tour in three years. -- Porto, Portugal

I suppose this can be considered the 'official' start photo. A few hundred metres from the Hotel Peninsular, I wanted the bike photo with the Dom Luis I bridge spanning the Douro. -- Porto, Portugal

Before the Dom Luis I Bridge disappeared behind me, I took this photo as I rolled out of the area on the Eurovelo 1 route. -- Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal.

As with every tour, I had to get used to using my GPS. At first it is tricky to see the purple line indicating my route. I check it often to be sure I don't stray since sometimes an intersection can be tricky and my route not obvious without the GPS. Using it, I followed alongside the Douro until it emptied into the Atlantic. There the waves were crashing with fury against the dunes and rocks. The steady wind driving these waves was from the southwest which would prove to be a non-stop headwind for the day. The wind was not too strong but it did gradually tire me out.

Most of today's route was either along the bike path which ran parallel to the beach, along an elevated wooden boardwalk which was there to protect the sand dune rejuvenation, or along quiet streets through the towns. The physical beauty of the coast was amazing, but some of the built up areas were nonstop apartment blocks, or beach houses. Somewhat suburbia until I got away from Porto and approached Ovar. For the last ten to twenty km before Ovar my route went through big stands of pines - very beautiful. At this point a few clouds rolled in and I started to worry when raindrops fell, but after only 18.2 raindrops, they stopped, and the sun re-emerged. Lucky or what?

Right where the Douro emptied into the Atlantic the waves were crashing onto the rocks. I was mesmerized. -- Douro/Atlantic, Portugal

A lot of today's riding was along a boardwalk which is here to protect the rejuvenation of the sand dunes. -- Eurovelo 1 south of Porto, Portugal

Approaching Ovar, I reset my GPS to point directly to my guesthouse so I wouldn't overshoot the route. Just before arriving, I saw a little cafe so I pulled right in for a capp and a few treats to restore my energy. It's just what I needed. After an hour or so I decided to make my way to my guesthouse, and I kind of laughed to myself to find that it was about 150m away. There was a nicely restored guesthouse kind of at the edge of town. When I rang the doorbell, out came the very pleasant owner who had me store my bike in his locked garage, then showed me in to their beautiful guesthouse. He showed me the back yard and when I gasped when I saw the tree full of oranges, he said to help myself to some but to be cautious of the bees since the trees are flowering right now. I have never plucked an orange from a tree. Today will be a first!

My cute little room in the Vintage Balcony Guesthouse. -- Ovar, Portugal

Just outside my room in the Vintage Balcony Guesthouse. -- Ovar, Portugal

In past tours I start riding really early (like at sunrise) but with me still being jetlagged, with breakfast a bit later, and with the mornings below my comfort threshold of 10 C, I started around 9 am. Thus, here I am just lounging in my room just before 4 pm. I might actually make it to supper time. The local restaurants open around 7 pm. Not bad considering breakfast here will be at 9 am tomorrow which won't have me riding until 930 or 10 am. No problem!

Not too surprising, I lay down for a moment to rest... and woke up an hour or two later. I was starting to get a wee bit peckish so headed down the road for dinner. The main town centre was 2.4 km away so that was a bit too far, but O Churrascão restaurant was rated 4.1 and was only 1 km away. As it turns out, the route was pretty well back along the way I had come in, past the Caffe Bonsai and then a bit more. Dinner would not be available til 630 pm which was twenty minutes away so I just sat and looked around. Soon I ordered the 'tourist menu' which included their signature roasted chicken, potatoes, mixed salad and a drink. I chose the Fanta orange which is completely unlike the yucky drink back home. Here it seems to be real orange juice with carbonation. It is really good. When I first arrived nobody was around but in short order a number more people came along - so it must be ok if the locals eat here!

Dinner was fine and there was so much I did not order the included dessert though I think they had flan. Next time. I wanted to get back to the guesthouse to pluck my orange from the tree before it got too dark. It took a firm twirl and pull to free it from the tree, but there it was - an orange the size of a softball. Still not hungry, I will bring it with me tomorrow and have it as a snack along the way.

The Vintage Balcony Guesthouse as I returned from having dinner. The garden is at the back of the house. -- Ovar, Portugal

Here is the tree where I was able to pluck an orange from a tree for the first time ever. Simple pleasures! -- Ovar, Portugal

A final thought for today about my ride, the speaker I brought along and the sim card I got for my tablet. The idea was that I was going to Bluetooth TuneIn radio from my tablet to my speaker as I rode along - whether a local station or one from back home, the idea was to provide music along the road. Today that idea went out the window. Today's music was provided by the waves on the shore, the birds twittering in the trees and the wind through the pines. Maybe tomorrow.

Today's ride: 50 km (31 miles)
Total: 50 km (31 miles)

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Steve Miller/GrampiesReading and seeing your photos of the start of your tour is making us even more eager to try eurovelo 1 in Portugal at our first opportunity. We will be following your journey with great interest. By The way, our morning temperatures here in northern Germany have been hovering around 6 which is also way to cold for us. Layer up.
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2 years ago

Brent IrvineTo Steve Miller/GrampiesThank you! It certainly is an enjoyable route. It looks like weather here will be up to 20C I a few days.
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2 years ago