Spain Motorcycle Tour - Day 7 - Hotel Fuerte de la Higuera to Ronda and back.
From: Hotel Fuerte de la Higuera Via: Ronda To: Hotel Fuerte de la Higuera Mileage: 10 miles Tuesday, 1st, September
Today is another rest day and we expected to chill out by the pool. However, after a phone call I ended up spending several hours sat on the sun lounger tending to some work on the laptop. Alisa relaxed with a book left in the room by a previous traveller.
While I was online I got a note from Alex, a friend who happened to be touring Europe on his BMW Adventure bike. Alex and his partner Lizzy were currently in southern Portugal, having stayed longer than planned, but if we were up for it they could easily join us that evening. We dropped a note back and planned to meet them in town that night.
It was fiesta night in Ronda so we arrived and met the guys at 9pm, watched some crazy floats and lots of kids dressed in flamenco outfits. We were especially mesmerised by a very scary Michael Jackson jack in the box float, complete with silver glove.
After the fiesta we found a place in the busy square for a bite to eat in the form of a beer and a large plate of Jamón Ibérico. We agree to meet up the next day to ride the short distance to Marbella together.
We head back to the hotel two up on the Explorer a little later than planned. We punch in the pre-loaded favourite (our hotel) into the sat nav. As our hotel ends in an unpaved road, the sat nav assumes it's safe to do the whole route off-road. After an unlikely left turn at a roundabout, we head down a dirt track on the outskirts of Ronda and screech to a halt just before a 6 foot drop onto a railway line.
After a very tentative U-turn in the dirt with a pillion we head back via the road, but instantly I get it wrong again as I ride round the roundabout the wrong way and weave frantically onto the right side of the road as a Seat Ibiza flashes its lights at us.
Fortunately when we arrive very late at the posh boutique B&B, all the doors are still open, even though no one is about. I imagine we woke up half the hotel as we parked the bike and found our way to our room in the early hours.