M1 tried a short ride first thing in the very hilly terrain but didn’t get very far. He had not spent so much time in the 3rd chainring before. Even though coming down hill at 42 mph was exhilarating the average speed of 10.7 mph says it all.
We wanted to compliment the management on departure but the empty reception meant we could only leave a thank you note. Through some tortuously narrow roads we eventually got on the A23 to the west and arrived by lunchtime in Torres Vedras. It was a bigger town than the map suggested but surrounded by compact, steep hills and with a prominent fort atop the old town. A coffee and a sandwich in the town centre while waiting for the tourist office to open gave us the chance to appreciate how the town had blended old and new. It had a good atmosphere. In a prominent central location there was a large and impressive monument to the Peninsular War, inscriptions recording the battles of Rolica, Vimeiro, Busaco and the part played by Wellington and his army. In the adjacent museum housed in part of an old convent, there was a good display of Peninsular War memorabilia including an oak table at which it was recorded that Wellington signed the Sintr Agreement which governed the terms of the French surrender. This agreement which gave the French free passage back to France in RN ships received widespread condemnation back in England and a formal Inquiry was instituted. There were some robust exchanges between Wellesley (as he was than) and his superiors and the following day we obtained a verbatim transcript of the proceedings and findings. Fascinating stuff.
The only camp site in the area was at Santa Cruz on the coast about 15 km away (see picture above). We found it easily enough as it was huge! With nowhere else available, we took a spot crowded in by caravans and tents only to have to move as our electricity cable was too short to reach the supply point. Once settled, it became clear that we were in a voluntary concentration camp: surrounded by high wire fences, control of entry, guards, badges, blocks for sanitation etc on a vast site which was largely taken up with permanent or semi-permanent bungalows, caravans and tents with fully demarked territorial rights established. Grim but they did have a supermercado, a butchers and a bakery on site. We soon resolved to escape although we recognised that we would need to remain there for two nights to explore the important battle sites. Out came the bikes and we shot down to the coast where the Atlantic was majestic and the claustrophobia of the camp site was dispelled. Despite nominating this day as a no alcohol day, we had a couple of cold beers in a seafront bar served by a lovely creature whose attributes included a lovely smile which made us feel much better and wish we were younger.
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