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More shit riding today…..

Didn't feel like making many stops for pictures or stuff like that, so most of the pictures were taken on stops I did anyway to do something or enjoy the moment. I really just felt like spending a few hours on the bike and not much else, so after waiting a while for the rain to stop I left around 11:30 and took to the Douro to get a little bit inland before turning South. The rain that passed by the shore was in front of me and going the same direction, I did stop to buy a bottle of water and an espresso to give it time to get away from me, and that worked as the following kms I was riding on semi wet roads and getting a few drops, but no more. I was ok with that, but it highlighted that my last year's Mitas are not really confidence inspiring in the wet anymore, if they ever were. The street scene in front of the supermarket where I stopped for the espresso and the water, the music... I am amazed sometimes, stopped to look at a small river that ends onto the Douro and saw a motorcycle specific parking, civilization! Tried to take no more than one space but the GS is a little wide in the hips: Will come back here, it's a pretty place to ride over for lunch and it's close enough to home. Next stop was a lookout over Serra de Montemuro, there are at least two Montemuro places in Portugal, but this one is quite special. It's by the Douro and hosts a lot of wildlife, it's also pretty will in weather as I saw a lot of signs warning to have tire chains and the use of snowplows, it must get really cold in the winter as those are not common signs in Portugal. It's also a very well maintained place, the weather didn't make for the prettiest of views though. That valley there with the low clouds is where I'm headed: Those clouds made for a little bit of a wet ride as I went through them, gave me a chance to test my new plastic rain overalls on top of the summer mesh jacket I'm wearing, I was dry and they passed the comfort / fitment test. Further on, already on Serra da Estrela, Portugal's highest point, it was getting cooler again as I climbed so this time stopped to put a layer on, didn't bother with the rain stuff as I knew that not long in front I'd go down the other side and it was bound to be warm there. Remembered to take a BOTM picture, in close proximity to the bike!!! At 16:00, stopped for something to eat. It's a staple of the region, a sheep's cheese sandwich, the cheese here is probably the most famous in Portugal, strong and buttery and soft, it's delicious. It was 12ºC and wet outside, so I enjoyed a moment inside. Don't usually drink when on the bike, but can't have proper cheese without a taste of wine. Exiting the shop I met a german biker, he and (I suppose) his wife on touring on two CB500Xs, he was looking for a place to buy a few bottles of beer to take to his hotel for the night, just down the street. I told him he was looking in the wrong shop for beer and also that he managed to find the only place in Portugal where it'll be wet through the night to stop, he seemed happy with it though. Further on, and the 1993 meter peak breached the low clouds, made for welcome relief from the dampness: The little road going down the valley behind my bike in the picture below is a gem, it's a shame only 2km of it are unpaved as I'd love if it went on for 200! But before I got to the unpaved bit, I was faced with a herd of cows being moved from the top of the Serra where they graze wild to their field by two guys following them on a pickup. They said it would only take a few more minutes so I switched off the engine and coasted behind them enjoying the show instead of going past: Suddenly a huge cow decided to pretend to be a goat and ran by the road on top of some big rocks, despite the shepherd's efforts for her to return to the road she went back home cross country style and dove to the right, made an easy job out of that rocky cliffside. It was most impressive to see a big animal like that have such agility. Even managed to get a little of it on video as she went down the rocky cliffside and the shepherd gave up: Further on, a stop on the beginning of the dirt bit to again adjust clothing and take off that layer I put on climbing the Serra before. Temperatures went from 12ºC to 25ºC in a few minutes, this Serra is part of the mountain range that separated coastal from continental climates, and it really feels like an extreme difference here. An hour and something later, not enjoying the warm 27 or 28º at 18:15, on a water stop. The mountains behind me and the center of Portugal's dense forrest hills around me, it's not my favourite landscape but there are nice roads around. I was covering ground adequately in order to reach my destination before sunset while keeping off motorways. Rode out of the forest and over the Tejo river, enjoyed that bit of the N18 riding briskly with no stops and then cruised the last few 40 or 50km onto my destination at a steady speed enjoying the low sun over yellow scorched grass and the Alentejo rolling hills. I love the smell of this place when you get where, it does smell intensely of earth (does that work in English?) Didn't stop for a picture, took one on the go Did stop for a picture for @yen_powell though, riding through the old part of town in Crato, an old historic town. Made it to my hotel, where I have stayed a few times before over the last few years before sundown, it wouldn't bother me to ride at night, more so when it was still so warm, but night time isn't really clever here with the amount of wild boar around. A short walk around town and by the time I sat for dinner, outside, it was still about 25ºC at 21:00. Tomorrow, I shall probably face some heat and some familiar roads.

Today was the first Sunday in weeks where we've not had visitors staying or being away on holiday. We had a nice leisurely breakfast, milled around indoors for a bit, went outside and wallowed in the pool for a while and then did a BBQ for dinner. I'll be phoning my mum in a mo, to catch up, although we do text pretty much every day, so I'm not sure what I'll be catching up with!

Rear tyre on and all wheels refitted. I am kerrrnackered now.

Rode it in a day from mine last summer to meet up with some mates from the UK. On the Himalayan using scenic routes and avoiding all motorways, chugging along at 90 to 100klm per hour. Nearly 600 klms but no problem for the mighty Enfield. Needed several beers that night.

Just put a new front tyre on, rear will hopefully go on later when I have cooled down a bit. I tried putting zip ties on it to help with the change and for removing the tyre it worked a treat. I broke the bead both sides and then fed about 4 or 5 zip ties through between the bead and the wheel rim and tightened them up over about half the tyre before I got bored. Even just that much allowed me to just push the tyre off the rim without using any levers at all. So a totally lever less removal at least. Thought I'd try zip tying up the new tyre before putting it on the rim, but to be honest it seemed to make it impossible to even get started. In the end I chopped the zip ties, relubed it and pushed it on by hand, then used levers to finish it off. Going to try the zip ties on the rear later for removal as that is the bit I struggle with, getting the old tyre totally off the rim with only one pair of hands.

They accelerate almost as fast as they depreciate.

Actually got a few hours to ride my bike for pleasure rather than commute this morning. What was supposed to be a trip to fill up for work tomorrow turned into a bimble around Bodmin Moor. I love that place one of the most beautiful parts of Cornwall and still unspoiled by the questionable never ending quest to commercialise. The Old Inn at St Breward. Arguably the highest Inn in Cornwall but there are others that claim that plaudit. On the moor just west of St Breward. Dramatic skies today. There is a lot of history to this bridge but I have forgotten it and it’s name. I will ask the woman who knows everything when she gets him and update This is Blisland that claims to have the only village green in Cornwall but that is total bullshit, fuck me there is a place called Village Green in the clay country . Still great pub and lovely village. Headed home after Blisland through Bodmin and St Blazey, only just remembering to buy fuel which was the whole reason for going out in the first place.

This was faster

Well mine’s running at 24 degrees and it’s fecking lovely. The government can do one.

Rear tyre on. Zip ties didn't let me remove tyre from rim without levers, but it did go with just two levers and then it fell off suddenly, so definitely makes a difference. Turns out my zip ties were about 1/2 an inch too short so I had to join 2 together to get around tyre, so I will get some longer heavier duty ones for next time.

Finished the LED light install today. I decided to make some brackets to mount the lights off the crash bar brackets as it was a bit busy on the handlebars, plus the light was reflecting back off the headlight cowl a bit so needed to go forward or fit a shroud for that area. i picked up some tube blanks which finished the job off nicely test fit And completed job see if the charging circuit is up to it

Was a nice drive all the way to Ipswich, from there to Harwich it pissed it down. Still is..

So if you crash your miracle car nobody will want to fix it, how many panel shops have the space to park them up when you need a 15 meter exclusion zone around each one, an acre is about 60m x 60m so lets take a look, at a 15m spacing and given that a car is about 2m x 4m you would need around 1/4 acre per car, not happening, these things are leading the pack as the stupidest idea ever dreamed up by the climate loonies, and that's not taking into account the disposal of the batteries weighing between roughly 550 and 770 kilos for Teslas, remember that if you own the car you are responsible for the disposal of the toxic waste known as the battery. Remember that God hates wind farms.

Find a McDonalds or Burger King! That'll do for me!

Today I woke up lazily with no schedule except get on the bike while it didn't get too hot. I ended up not leaving until almost 9:30, surprised that it actually felt a little chilly in the morning, the 21º with which I left felt refreshing under the summer jacket, I rode the smooth rolling hills of Alentejo with little desire to stop. So little in fact that I have a few pictures of today but only of 3 or 4 locations. Headed south, went past Estremoz where the local motorcycling club was gathering a huge group of bikes by the town's entrance ready to go somewhere, rode around looking for a cafe to stop for the morning espresso but everything was crowded, everyone clearly enjoying a cool sunday morning before the heat arrives. A few days ago it got to well over 40º here, today wouldn't be as much but it still felt great to enjoy a cool sunny summer morning. Stopped for said espresso a little further south in Redondo, at an old lady's bakery, 8 old ladies sitting outside all said hello back to me with a big smile, the coffee was had and I took the change to buy something to eat later on for lunch. Quick stop by the Monsaraz Castle, just for this picture without even getting off the bike. Went to a supermarket by the side of the road near Monsaraz to buy a water bottle, and the place was packed. I noticed a few guys drinking cold beers at the cafe going in, and also noticed that all shopping karts had one or more 24 beer can cartons, it was warming up and it looked like beer was on for this sunday in Monsaraz Didn't stop in any of the two locations I usually do, just went straight onto the dirt road shortcut I found last winter in search for a tree and some shade to have my lunch. Saw some old Antas (Dolmen in English?) by the water, almost drowned by the dam, but no shade there so moved on. It was about 33º now, and stopping under the sun to eat in that temperature isn't pleasant. I stopped here almost the same exact location in winter, and everything was so green and lush, quite the contrast: Found my shade and stopped for a snack and water, a smooth breeze was blowing and it was really comfortable. Empadas de galinha, Chicken pasties, a very classic Alentejo food, it did alright and matched the scenery perfectly. A cold beer would have been ideal but I only had warm 35º water Got off the dirt / gravel road detour and continued south. From this point on I almost didn't stop or take pictures. Took some small forgotten Alentejo and Algarve roads, not much traffic and lovely dry tarmac, a lot of twisty sections if maybe sometimes alternating with some of not the smoothest. Rode almost all the way to Faro, my destination for the night, but got there and didn't feel like stopping. It was hot and had been well over 33º since lunch, Faro was also hot, looking to find a hotel in prime summer season and leaving the bike to sleep on the street was hindering my desire for an ocean swim, which I love but maybe not today. Stopped to drink some water and think of what to do. After a few minutes drinking warm water and "enjoying" the now 36º, I pointed the GS back north and took to small roads to my home, I hadn't been there in a while and arriving home was really what I was looking for. Took no pictures of that either, there was a lot of ground to cover. The motorway would have been maybe 2 or 2,5 hours, but I took the little roads, somehow I just didn't feel like stopping today, rode a little faster than normal too, maybe, it was just one of those days. Arriving home, I did take a snap and a little video when crossing the Rainha D. Amélia bridge with the sun starting to get low. I was surprised to have to fill up the bike again today, so I just went to look on google maps, today was a 700km day of mostly very small roads and lots of tight twisty sections, dirt roads, etc, most of it in around 34º/35º. I'm tired.

That new list @Saulis a long short list i just need that injection of having something new/different every few years … every bike I everv had never got rid cause I didn’t like em .. just see something else and think yeh .. like that … there’s many different soups out there … try as many as you can while you can .

We paid 150€ each for Michelin Premacy 4s for the Audi plus had to pay nearly 90€ for fitting, valves and balancing! Then a further 230€ for front discs and pads and 180€ for a service. Just as well we don't use the car much now, hopefully this lot will last a few years! Oh, and it needs new rear discs and pads too before the CT (MOT) in September! This all comes as a shock after driving company cars for over 30 years, until I retired!

Looks like home!

Not the first flash this year either. 500 wildfires last year devastating large areas. Worsening drought and water sold on the black market. A sad state of affairs. I hear Malaga has decided it can't refill the majority of it's pools and some regions have banned the filling of swimming pools using mains water and due to the electricity prices the law prohibits air-con below 26 degrees. It's going to be a miserable summer for some.

Yes mate, thought long and hard about what I will get next but I genuinely like what I have. I think its weight and seat height are perfect for me. Yes some more power would be nice but it doesn't feel slow unless I ride with a bunch of sports bikes and most of them tend to be wobblers that only use the power on straight roads.. As a allrounder the CB500F/X takes a lot of beating, currently doing a genuine 83 mpg on a mixture of B roads and dual carriageway to and fro from work. Cheap to service and just easy to live with. I do have a short list but not sure I want or need to spend the money for a change that may not prove as good.. New short list: Honda Hornet Triumph 660 Tiger Honda CL500 Secondhand shorts list: New Bonnie Honda Deauville 700 Honda Pan BMW R1100RS BMW R850 Honda CB500S Sachs 800S But no real intention of changing, just idle surmising.

You had Bibles falling out of the sky? Anybody see some twat on a Harley with a trailer nearby?

I think we've had more than enough of great British thinking Rich.....it never ends well!

So out weekend went tits up with skye being violently sick all day yesterday so my dad took the wife to the wedding and I stayed home with skye and my mum but she's feeling alot better today

Hasn't it always been a 50cc?

Went to feed the horses today as they haven't seen us for four days so they get stressed! They were all fine as our friends Antonio and Sonia were feeding them for us. Then went to collect the tortoises from our friends Steve and Julie......and they're back home now. The first thing I did when I got here yesterday evening was check the bike in case any of those fucking midgets had limbo danced under the doors.....but it was as I left it. No hope of getting out today as it's going to be 40c! But as it is I'd be struggling after the exertions of the last four days anyway.

Great photos in there Pedro as I've said before photos don't always give you the full experience of the view your looking at, so looking at how good the landscape is in the photos, actually being there must have been 10X the experience.

I think electric vehicles should be advertised as an alternative not a solution they are nice to drive but i cant see them being anything other than that

Watch out for the ark coming sailing past

Didn’t bother, had just stopped a minute before. I tried to enjoy today with riding for myself more than stopping for pictures Here’s one right now, since I’m stopped

We have a very busy thunderstorm right over us now, hammering it down with rain. Maybe going in the car tomorrow is a good idea. German pal wants to drive to Walton on the Naze, after driving to Harwich (190 miles) I could do without it.

Another BOTM picture I think

Proper day of riding today, left home at 11:30, stopped at 20:00 went through 11 degrees at 2000m and wet fog to 27 degrees at sunset, including a cow traffic jam.

I went to the Tendring Country Show today and I was a bit late leaving. When I arrived I was parked in a sea of cars, this is my bike when I came out.

Fuck when i read that i thought you were off on a road trip after the service. you need to word it better like i have loaded the Indian into the trailer so i wont be let down, i think six has some competition

Say no more.

Looks like a great trip Pedro! And the pics are superb! Wish I could get out for a while but I've come back to some brutal heat!

Not these ones...directly from indian...I didn't get those from amazon you twat..

We had some biblical downpours here today thunderstorms forecast for tomorrow i like a good thunderstorm

Imagine all the motorbikes they can ride.

Made a friend at dinner

Aw lovely pic. I see he has one foot slightly forward in a cool pose and yet no hand on his hip, how can this be?

They've never really got on......and when he first got involved with Fatty she sent him abusive messages for no reason. That was the final straw! This was around the same time she was abusive to us in 2016.......all part of her plan to split him from his family to get total control. Then in 2018 he married the fucking munter in Poland and none of us were invited. So this is the pic he just received......

I was going to try to photo shop a cock instead of the beer but i think that would only make it look better