Monster…

Day 8 - From Tardajos to Boadilla del Camino across the Meseta Central plateau.

“What's that coming over the hill?…is it a Brompton?”

From the storks last night, nesting in the village churches, to today’s ride where I planned to tackle the Meseta Central Plateau with warnings of scorching earth and limited shade. This is a grain crop growing area with a clay, claggy soil as the terrain totally changes now to up and down rolling hills through a patchwork of young crops.

After Hornillos del Camino I stripped off, ready to tackle the big lump ahead.            

Halfway up it started to rain so I stopped to don the poncho once again as the rain came in with the horizontal wind.

When I think of ponchos, I think of Clint Eastwood, looking cool, calm and dangerous, rolling into town wearing a handmade Apache Indian design, woven and embroidered woollen number.

My poncho is a little different.

Mine is in a light blue, waterproof plastic, in XL, as a last minute (just in case) buy from Decathlon.

As the rain got heavier and the track got muddier, the poor Brompton’s little mudguards and chain set couldn’t cope and the gears started to slip, I had no choice but to take a slippery-slip walk all the way to the top. 

But then here things changed. As I started to career down the other side, with the hood strings pulled tight so I can hardly see where was going, a strange phenomenon started coming over the hill, my poncho ballooning out like a 3 man tent with little pipe cleaner legs pedalling like the clappers, like a crazy muck-spreader, with big clods of shite flying off in every direction, splattering descending pilgrims on my way down, doing over 30 miles an hour!….”Buen Camino!” I called, as I passed each one with a grin on my face….God knows what they thought was coming over the hill towards them!

As I finally rolled into town I needed a shower and a bed for the night and had only one question…”Are you feeling lucky, punk?

… I was, and found a great spot, even though there was a lot of cleaning and drying to be had at tonight’s albergue - yet another gem of a place and time to sit and relax with a nice glass of Rioja.

https://juntos-albergue.com/

Today’s track, a bit of welsh indie from The Automatic’ with ‘MONSTER’ from 2006 and a daft video too (I don’t think them beards are real?)