Day 513 15th December
47 miles (Sao Miguel dos Milagros to Maceio) Average speed 9.3 mph Top speed 29 mph
Another great day.
I was up at 5 with rain landing on me as I had not bothered to put fly sheet on my tent due to the heat. Frankie couldn’t get gas to light so we had milk and cookies for brekkie and put our tents in the sun to dry. While packing up I saw the reason for all the holes in the sand, a very bright red crab!
Bright red crab
It was hot packing up and we left at 7.15, pushing our bikes through the sand and undergrowth. This was to become the norm for the mornings events. We found a bin for the rubbish and then made our way to the ferry crossing. At first we went straight past as it was behind a closed blue gate, but the people in the house next door showed us the way and opened the gate for us. The incoming boat arrived and we pushed our bikes along the beach and up the ramp, but the ferry only took us to the other side of the river and not all the way to the road, which turned out to be 3 miles away. So after a long discussion and being quoted a price of 100reais to take us there,and much head scratching, we decided to take on the challenge and pushed the bikes across the beach to a narrow sandy track.
Sandy track
Apart from the occasional thick sand we managed to negotiate the route without too much trouble, but it was tiring in the heat. We arrived at a T junction and a guy on a moped stopped to give us advice and laugh a lot as he knew what was next. We climbed up a steep hill which was partly sand and partly stones and rocks but the reward for our hard work was a fantastic view and then a red sandy, very wide open road all the way down to the Barra (bridge). On the way we met Bruno in a pick up truck who told us to go to his coconut farm and get a coconut water from them, but they only had dry ones, so Frankie asked at the neighbouring farmhouse and gave the lady a big sweaty hug when she produced a frozen bottle of water. I’m not sure she appreciated the hug but we had much needed refreshment.
A better road, but still sandy – and hot
We continued onto the bridge where we had a rest with biscuits and cold water then crossed the bridge and found the good main road. I noticed some sprinklers on the other side of the road and we both took a shower, but the water wasn’t good to drink so we pushed on. I was struggling with the heat and at one point was almost asleep, but then we had another rest in a small town called Pescaria with good music blaring out and as we took cover Paulo got chatting and gave us a free coconut each to drink. This gave me a real boost and I felt much better as we pushed on towards Maceió.
Pressing on across the bridge
Once there we found an iPhone repair shop which supplied us with cold water and a bathroom to wash in and a socket to charge my phone. Unfortunately Frankie’s phone was dead and not repairable so we went to the beach and asked at the tourist office for WiFi. Opposite was a money exchange and a travel agent who gave me their WiFi code and I found and booked this hostel, but it was another six miles away. The cycle path was reasonable for a while and then we took the road and arrived just in time to watch the sunset with a beer and cook steak and chips for dinner.
Much needed beer and rest
We sat up drinking and chatting and then some freestyle singers had a jam session with people staying in the hostel and locals. The music was great and we stayed up til midnight enjoying the river, stars and music. We even got a bit of rain to cool us down.
Hostel Proxima Estation 40 reais