Today was designed to be a short day. It was there in case anything went wrong with any of the previous long days, it would give me some scope to switch things around and catch up if need be .... This was not required so I'm gonna make the most of a short day.
The Deer started with a 12 mile radiator across not great roads to Villanueva de los castelejos, where I headed in to have a look around town and I was quite chuffed there was a statue of a horse in town and as I took a picture a guy on a Horse Road past it how cool !
10 miles later I was in El granado, where I stopped for lunch in the posada los pedregales. I had a good chat with the owner he was quite passionate about cycling and the green routes around Alentejo. He was very keen to use his hotel as a base for people to do cycle tours.
We chatted a while before I had to go, he did mention that there was a Via Verde on route to Pomarao, he also warned me about the hill at Pomarao.
I headed off towards Portugal and found the via verde which was great it took me down onto the guardiana at the Old Town of Puerto de la Laja.
After a couple of climbs I had a fast descent back down into the Guadiana Valley, I was flying down the hill to Pomarao and Portugal.
I stopped at the border where I looked up towards a huge Dam, this was on the river chanza and tailed back and Mighty Reservoir which flows down into the guadiana at Pomarao.
Pomarao was lovely but it has a nasty climb out of it, bordering on 20%, it was a 500 foot climb out of the guadiana Valley, and I guess it was a bit like boxing Mike Tyson in this frame. You know it's gonna hurt but it was over remarkably quick, after four hair pins and no time at all I was up.
I did stop at a little chapel halfway which offered great views of the dam and Pomarao.
I was never ruling 10 miles from Mertola and was soon on a fast downhill crossing a bridge which took me directly ino Mertola and my hotel.