Canadian cyclist Madhuri Pendharkar got in touch with Pedal Portugal earlier this year to pick our brains on a few ideas for a planned cycling trip. Last Sunday, she and partner Rob Lang got home after spending just over a month bikepacking around Portugal, riding from Porto to the Algarve and back again. Madhuri (62)… Continue reading Bikepacking Around Portugal
Pedal Portugal began life in 2012 giving out general advice on cycling in Portugal for both casual visitors and serious cycle tourists. One of the pages I put together for the website was series of links to companies running guided cycle tours. Trouble was, I had a look at a few of their sites and soon… Continue reading Pedalling On Into Year Three
There are so many reasons I love Portugal - the range of landscapes, the sunshine, the quiet roads, the history, the (cheap) wine, all those castles, the food etc. etc. But one of the most important ingredients is the people. When I first visited the country I thought many of the Portuguese seemed a bit dour. But I soon learnt not… Continue reading Would This Happen At Home?
Since announcing the first Pedal Portugal guided cycle tour in early October, I've been working hard to develop a range of tours for 2016* taking in a selection of the country's different regions. *NOTE: This blog post was about plans for our first year of guided tours (2016) - to see what's coming up in… Continue reading Guided Tours of Portugal
Fancy riding your bike to some of the most gorgeous and unspoilt beaches in Portugal? Want to escape the crowds on tiny back roads that aren't marked on any regular tourist map? Like the idea of tackling some some rugged hills and exploring orchards full of oranges and olives? Well, help is at hand! My second guidebook… Continue reading Cycling The Algarve – Published!
Here's some inspiration for anyone thinking of a trip to Portugal... not my work but a gallery of photos from Bulgarian rider Nora Gavazova. I was able to help Nora with some route advice while she was in the Alentejo earlier this year and she kindly sent me these pictures. She's also added some useful… Continue reading Alentejo gallery
It's about time for the next ride report... and another posting from fellow cyclist and Portugal fan Ian Mitchell, writing about his latest trip to the Algarve. Ian's previous guest post was in June 2014, when he sent in an account of his ride through the Intoxicating Algarve Hills. Now, he's just back home and has kindly contributed another… Continue reading Oranges, Lemons and Poppies
So, is it time to expand? Stop just providing advice to fellow cyclists and start running guided tours of Portugal? Over the last few years the Pedal Portugal website seems to have taken over my life. Visitors to the site went up from around 3,000 in 2013 to more than 13,000 in 2014 - and… Continue reading Cycle Tours – Thinking Out Loud
With most of Europe in the grip of winter, January seems a good time to put together a new touring route for Portugal's Algarve region - which provides some of the best opportunities for cycling anywhere on the continent at this time of year. Look carefully at a map and you can see how far down the Algarve… Continue reading Winter Riding
It's taken nearly two months but I'm finally updating the Pedal Portugal site with details of some great bikes in the north of the country. I've completed details of three rides so far. Well, possibly four as one ride is made up of two loops that could be done as two separate circuits. So far,… Continue reading Rides In The North
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