Tue 11th Nov
Saw what appeared to be 2 flocks of bats fly over last night, illuminated by campsite lights. Highlight of the evening that was.
Warm but cloudy as pack and head off to Ericeira. Just after getting supplies at Lourinha I notice bike behaving odd again; another flat. Dismantle everything by side of road and find patched hole in iner tube has split beyond patch. Replace inner tube, reassemble and set off again. Very hilly road with a couple of biggies at Ribamar and Ericeira but dramatic scenery. Slight showers start about midday and continue as I reach campsite and pitch. Couple of surfers from previous site also here and they say rest of week will be good..

Weds 12th nov
Looks like surfers were right so get washing done and stroll into Ericeira. As stopping for the day I can buy fresh food without having to worry about cramming it into panniers.
Do a bit of planning and decide to cut corner into Lisbon. Was originally going to follow coast round.

Thurs 13th nov
Leave Ericeira and head towards Lisbon. Hilly but feel in fine fettle and manage without too much difficulty. Get to Sintra and find no bikes allowed on road I wanted so find side roads to about 10k outside Lisbon then get stuck. Ask around but general response is you can't cycle into Lisbon from here, try the train. Meanwhile toe strap on sandal has broke. It first went 14th oct and I repaired it by boring holes in sole with a penknife and using a nylon cable tie to hold strap in place and its held so far. Now its the other side that's gone. Sit down by side of busy road with toolkit spread around me and get to work resulting in a repaired sandal and many odd looks. Get to station but it's self service and my Portugese is non existent. Find girl who speaks some english and tell her where I am trying to get to. She tells me nearest stop is the zoological gardens. Looking at my basic town plan in the road atlas I reckon I should be able to find way from there. Try luck with ticket machine and ask another girl which train I need ( I ask females as they are usually more helpful than men). Luckily she's going same way so off we go. Get to station and hoist bike off then try to get bearings. Eventually find a street name and, eventually, the campsite which is in a forest park surrounded by busy roads. Campsite not brilliant although supposedly 4 star. As its out of season all the facilities are reduced. Had thought about spending a couple of nights here but now having second thoughts.
The girl at the station said the Portugese don't use bikes and in general I think she's right. You don't see many cyclists at all.

Fri 14th nov
Leave campsite through park and into city. Cobbled roads, traffic and tramlines just wide enough for cycle tyres make for hazardous journey. Cut across to riverfront in hopes of following it into centre but it is manic. Two very busy dual carriageways separated by a trainline. Cycle on pavement as road too risky. Odd difficulty as pavement blocked and have to wait for pause in oncoming traffic, get onto road and make a dash for it . Eventually reach centre and after quick look make way to ferry. One leaving in 3 mins so get ticket and board glad to be away from the mayhem that is Lisbon. Cross river to Cacilhas. Road soon becomes very busy; no idea where the traffic comes from. Things quieten down and quite nice scenery as reach Arrabida national park. Head into Setubal and follow coast W to Outao. Very hilly and now hard work but reach campsite and rewarded by nice views across to the Troia peninsula.

Sat 15th nov
Cycle back into Setubal and call in supermarket. Come out to find sunglasses stolen. Catch ferry and have really pleasant trip across to Troia peninsula with nice views of Arrabida despite the cement works, then cycle S through miles and miles of pine and shrub covered sand dunes. Hot sunny day and really could have done with those sunglasses. Decide on campsite at Melides which turns out to be a huge shanty town of caravans with awnings canopies and all sorts. Quite a few portugese here as its the weekend.

Sun 16th nov.
Head S to Vila Nova de Milfontes as it looks like campsite is near civilization. So many of them are miles from anywhere. Bit of a tedious ride on main dual carriageway through usual pine and scrub sand dunes but at least not busy. Take minor road to Vila Nova de Milfontes and it is dreadful until you reach the regional boundary then it becomes excellent. Brisk southerly makes pedalling hard work at times. Find campsite and it looks good; no shanty town. Might stop for a day as backside needs a break.

Mon 17th nov
Go shopping and find cheap pair of sunglasses. walk along coast to see fort and old town then into the market to get fresh bread, cheese, pate and salad. Sit in sun and have picnic lunch. Vila Nova de Milfontes is quite a nice place so have relaxing day.

Tue 18th nov
Off S to Aljezur. Really pleasant cycling as road leads into national park. A few climbs but worth it for the scenery, steep wooded valleys with the odd village tumbling down the sides. Piles of cork bark in places looking like stacks of hollow logs.. I'd noticed the trees some time ago with grey gnarled upper and chocolate brown wrinkly lower trunk where bark has been removed. Sriff climb out of valley into Odeceixe then stopped for break by fountain in Rogil. Reach Aljezur and pitch on rock hard ground. Even using a stone as a hammer the pegs don't go in far. The toilet block however is the finest i've seen so far. Have dinner under eucalyptus trees watching a fabulous sunset.

Weds 19th nov
Beautiful day as set off for Sagres. Lovely scenery again; even the geology's interesting with folded shales often colourfully banded like candy stripes. Stopped for supplies at a Lidl in Vila do Bispo and saw a praying mantis on the pavement outside. Campsite not bad so might stop for a day or two and explore. Met a Swiss cyclist who's cycled quite a bit in Portugal. Apparently the best time to cycle in Lisbon is Sunday, otherwise its very bad. He prefers to skirt round it. He also suggested that Portugal was not the best place for first major cycle trip. I tend to agree; apart from the often dreadful roads, the portugese love their cars and are not as considerate to cyclist as the french.