Day 42: Alcudia de Monteagud (Drive/Cycle)

I arrived in Alcudia de Monteagud later than I'd hoped having been delayed by some chat that had a life of its own and a necessary supermarket visit. Thus, I did not arrive here until about 12.45pm.

I therefore made a quick change to my planned cycle route and embarked on an enjoyable cycle ride, some of which was new to me and the rest taken in the reverse of the direction ridden last year.

Following a short descent from the village I could see my first port of call:

And here it is up close and personal (the climb gets pretty steep towards the end!)

Although "Santuario Virgen de la Cabeza de Monteagud" was closed, I managed to take this photo through a small window in the main doors:

There followed a short section of off-road descent that was a bit too gnarly and at times, too steep for my liking, which enabled me to get back to tarmac and, just around the corner I "bumped in to" the puerto de La Virgen!

Descending to a mountain pass made a change!

Later I passed through Líjar, which appears to have seen the Vuelta in recent times:

All-in-all an enjoyable ride. This simply reinforced my belief that this is a good area for cycling.

• Distance driven: 86 miles
• Distance cycled: 52 kilometres
• Weather: Sunny in the AM, mainly cloudy in the PM

If you've made it this far, you deserve a bonus (accidental) photo: self portrait - beard and left shoulder!

Today's route: