Adventure Bike Rider Forum

A bit of a ride report done from my iPhone, in a hotel bar in Sarf Portugal it might come out alright
So I’m heading off to Morocco to meet Keith and the other motley crew and see as I can’t be bothered to ride to Portsmouth to catch the ferry, I get one from my home city Plymouth and head out a few days early, it also a good excuse to do some of the Portugal TET
The wife and dog come down to make sure I’ve left.

Seems like I can only add 3 attachments, so could take awhile. Some times it adds 3 sometimes 1 I’ll tryto sort it when back from maroc

Bugger all sleep car alarms all night and a smooth crossing too, first off quick stop to put passport away and off pretty good a light shower a bit breezy on high bridges my aim is to start where tet crosses into Portugal but at chaves a quick fuel stop and pretty knackered so wife books me into ibis braganca so i do a couple of hrs trail riding back the trails are great overgrown in places and some stunning views get back after dark quick beer and food then bed shattered sodding car alarms Grrrr

I fill up and grab some bottles of water and head off, all good the trails are more remote than the north to south I did a year ago and very overgrown in places and a bit of a battle to get through in places would be awesome on excs but the 690 is doing grand. after about 4 hrs I get to a village and stop for a lemonade and notice coolant leaking so check web for a motorcycle shop the nearest to me is a Ktm in braganca so back I go, he tops up and says rad cap needs tightening and won’t take any money, it’s now mid afternoon I have done most of the route before down to Barca de Alva’s so hop on to tarmac and head there and wild camp

Down by the river err it’s upside down

Earlyish start head down tet towards Monsanto awesome trails having a hoot, while stopped somewhere I realise I only transferred 1 part of the route to my Garmin so start posting on the tet Facebook to see if anyone is around on the trails and I could meet and WiFi the missing track, but to no joy here is Phil in France steep down hill that nearly had him off heck of a surprise if you come over the brow and not knowing it’s there. At about Monsanto I head for fuel and somewhere to buy a Garmin lead then off to library to down load routes and base camp but library won’t let me instal basecamp, but after some head scratching I mange to opening folder and dropping gpx straight in, it’s getting late now so head to Castelo de Vide as this is where the two routes separate (the n to s and the tet) so fresh tracks for me I head out for 2 beers pizza and a half bottle of wine on my way back as psssing bike I thought better check rad to see if all is ok but find it’s still leaking and it’s defo not the cap etc etc so rad off and JB Weld up most night and early doors to put back together then trails and checking to see if all ok after portagalre the trails are wide and fast with a dusting of sand so it’s awesome blasting through the cork trees spinning the rear but this goes on and on and on a couple of looked gates and another wild camp nice local vino bed early mozzies about little sods

Night shift just like Dakar boys

Wild camp

Not a bad sleep, pack and leave about 9 same as yesterday trails through cork trees and olive trees,see a group out shooting with some big dogs but no one else , not seen any other riders on the trails a few tyre tracks but that’s it about midday I pop out on to a road with a sign saying algarve 150 odd km’s and I fancy a beer so turn left and Algarve it is, I also need a day off to sort stuff and wash my clothes and I need a new rear it’s got about 5mm left and seeing as I left Blighty with about 3 times that ... spinning the rear on the trails for smiles will do that. So end up in cracking little town called Loule not far from faro so a night on the pop and the hunt for a new rear on a sat morning I strike lucky pretty quickly and get a Karoo 3 I’ve had one before, for Morocco then I decide to head to the beach for a ice cream on the way I follow a learner rider with the instructor following in a car and on a mobile ..... as always if no pic it didn’t happen that’s it I’m now off to find Keith and the edc crew in maroc

More pics ..

That’s it sorry for the lack of pics but 3 at a time is a pain. Here is the garage where I got the Karoo 3