We rode to Randa today, or more precisely the Santuaria de Ntra. Sra.de Cura at the top of one of the highest points in Mallorca. The radar and other equipment for the Palma airport are located at the top. What attracts the cyclists is the café in this former church/convent and, of course the view of almost the entire island (shown on the left). With the vantage point comes the climb, 5.4km of nonstop 6% grade. Most of our altitude gain today was from this climb. It almost did us in, but the view and the snacks at the top were great. Fortunately, the return was pretty much all downhill from the top of Randa.
Two pics of the church follow:
And after we filled our water bottles, we found the water was non-potable! We did drink some, but are OK so far. Our ride to Algaida was pressured to find a supermercado (supermarket) where we bought 7 liters of bottled water to rinse and replenish our bottles. The happy re-watered team is shown below (Ken took the pic).
This was not an easy day and the group broke into three parts, as this ride was the most challenging yet. It was planned to be a metric century (63 mi), but went a little longer. A group of three reached the top first, and then our group, but we got lost in Montuiri at least three times in 15 minutes. So much for European charm of small streets which all look alike! On the way back we pressed through Algaida going the wrong way through the entire town on a one-way street- but we didn’t get lost. The crew in an intense map consultation is shown below as we try to find the way out of Montuiri.
The roads are lined with stone walls, sheep in the fields, and small farms everywhere. Fields full of artichokes, olive tree orchards, potatoes, lettuce, and onions were to be seen everywhere. Some plants are already up and growing, but they are tilling and planting the second crop. We continue to have delicious buffet meals here at Ivory Playa resort and we feel we have earned them!
And the blood? A couple of minor scrapes against some walls, but no worries.
It was a very warm and sunny day and beautiful for riding. We are all getting plenty of sun.
Stats for today: 72 miles and 3073 feet of climbing
This was not an easy day and the group broke into three parts, as this ride was the most challenging yet. It was planned to be a metric century (63 mi), but went a little longer. A group of three reached the top first, and then our group, but we got lost in Montuiri at least three times in 15 minutes. So much for European charm of small streets which all look alike! On the way back we pressed through Algaida going the wrong way through the entire town on a one-way street- but we didn’t get lost. The crew in an intense map consultation is shown below as we try to find the way out of Montuiri.
The roads are lined with stone walls, sheep in the fields, and small farms everywhere. Fields full of artichokes, olive tree orchards, potatoes, lettuce, and onions were to be seen everywhere. Some plants are already up and growing, but they are tilling and planting the second crop. We continue to have delicious buffet meals here at Ivory Playa resort and we feel we have earned them!
And the blood? A couple of minor scrapes against some walls, but no worries.
It was a very warm and sunny day and beautiful for riding. We are all getting plenty of sun.
Stats for today: 72 miles and 3073 feet of climbing
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