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The day ' s route took us through charming small villages. At one point, a tractor nearly collided with me, the driver not expecting two motorbiking tourists in his quiet village, but no harm done, and I waved in good spirits as we passed.
Eventually, we stopped and booked a room at Quintas Do Valbom e Cuco near Torre de Moncorvo. On arrival, we were warmly greeted by a friendly woman at reception, despite the language barrier, my Portuguese was dire despite two months of Duolingo. Still, we managed to communicate well enough.
Just before reaching our accommodation, we noticed smoke from a nearby fire. Firefighting planes and helicopters quickly appeared, and onlookers gathered to watch the response. Thanks to the swift action, the blaze was soon under control, a relief for everyone. As we prepared to walk the 2 kilometres into town, the receptionist offered us a lift. The restaurant she recommended wasn ' t open yet, but, happily, dinner times in Portugal are more sensible, with meals served around 7pm. With 45 minutes to spare, we sipped wine at a local bar, then enjoyed a much-needed meal before tackling the 40-minute walk back uphill to our lodgings. By the end, I was thoroughly worn out. What a day!
We woke around 7:30am, had coffee and cereal bars, then set off to refuel and stock up on water, ready for another epic day. The first half went smoothly, but fatigue caught up with me in the afternoon. I opted to skip the day ' s optional hard section, having already found the sandy tracks challenging. Indeed, there was plenty of sand on day two!
Along a dirt track, we encountered a woman herding sheep. We stopped and switched off the bikes to avoid
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