[Blog #15] Cycle with me | Rural Roads Exploration | 66 km tour


Heyho Readers! How are you? Amazing Saturday ride on the rural roads of my city, gotta love the fresh air.


Oh yeah! Sharing another cycling day to inspire you into entering the bicycle world. This time though I've decided to explore something different and away from the everyday path you know from my Blog posts. Come with me.

Ah! By the way, I don't know how my blog will advance when it comes to organization. I'm kinda nuts when it comes to having things organized and easy to find. But for now I'll keep my cycling posts and small trips as Blogs and leave the Travel Stories for things from the past.

Without further ado, let's talk about this past Saturday.

THUMB
Click Image to enlarge!

I knew that the weekend would be rainy from the weather forecast, it's been like that for the past weeks - Sun during the week when I'm working, rain during the weekend when I want to travel.

However, this Saturday seemed promising. It's been as cold as Antarctica here but if there's sun, no problem. I'm not the type of person to surrender for some cold or rain, I've been through that many times, but the sun makes everything more appealing.

With that in mind, on Friday night, I finished working at the school and on Steemit; cleaned my bike's chain (this is important); grabbed some stuff for the trip; ate a lot of carbs and drunk loads of water. That's the way to go if you want a nice cycling day - Nutrition is key!

Pro tip to avoid laziness during the cold mornings: Sleep with the clothes you'll cycle, then it's easier to kick the blankets and go.

I hadn't followed the pro tip, turning my plans of waking up at 6 in the morning into a nightmare. The alarm clock did turn on, but I turned it off as quickly as possible, I love how my unconsciousness works against me - You bastard. Seven in the morning, still, nothing of my body moving, I was getting kinda worried about myself - Will I really spend the morning sleeping?

Then I decided to open the window to check if I would indeed waste my time. Surprise! Beautifully sunny outside, motivation kicked in, I jumped out of bed and went straight to the morning routines. It was cycling day, baby.

Pelotas
Image from my window at 9AM. Click Image to enlarge!

The plan was, ãnnnn, there wasn't a plan. I knew where I wanted to go, from there on I'd give myself permission to get lost, I just wanted to explore without worrying about time. And it worked.

Pro tip two: Feeling bored? Just do that, go out and get lost, I'm sure you'll discover amazing places you had no idea existed.

With the bike prepared and everything in my backpack I started hitting the main road, RS 471, heading to a small district called Cascata, 24 km away from my city. This amazing little place is just a stress relief, it's so quiet and surrounded by nature. Most, if not all the people there, live from agriculture, families working together to produce food and subsistence.

Travelling through there feels like being in the rural parts of Europe as that region is mainly inhabitated by French, German and Italian descendants - The happiest people I have ever seen. They talk loudly and cook the best foods you'll ever taste, not to mention all the various desserts. Superb!

The 24 km cycle from Pelotas to Cascata went smooth as butter, apart from a bus, that passed too close for comfort, almost extracting the living life out of my body. I stopped on the crossroad, where there's a restaurant, to buy a Chicken Pastel for lunch, took one or two photos and off we go! I was now entering unknown land, exploring dirt roads and insane uphills.

Pelotas
Fire in the hooooole. Click Image to enlarge!
Pelotas
Old colonial houses. Click Image to enlarge!

My first stop was at a place called Cascatinha, a district of the district.

I remember going there as a crazy little kid, that place used to be great until a strong storm modified the landscape. The centenary stone bridge collapsed and the waterfalls ceased on existing as the insane waterflow moved all the rocks. It's still beautiful and wild, the native jungle makes the air so fresh and the water flow is relaxing. It is cool to do some hardcore trail down to the river with the mountain bike, does she think she'll only go on smooth asphalted roads.

Pelotas
The sexy machine. Click Image to enlarge!
Pelotas
This used to be full of waterfalls. Click Image to enlarge!
Pelotas
Lovely nature. Click Image to enlarge!

The further inside the colonial zones you go the wilder it gets, sometimes the ascends required a bit more of strength than I was willing to give, but the bike doesn't go up by itself. There's an ascend called The Cemetery Ascend. I wonder why they've build a cemetery right there, maybe to bury the dead cyclists that dare to race all the way to the top.

Jokes aside, I took some pictures to show how a rural cemetery looks like, it's really creepy in my honest opinion, still gotta respect the dead.

Pelotas
Entering there? No, thanks. Click Image to enlarge!
Pelotas
Rural cemetery in Pelotas. Click Image to enlarge!

You learn quickly that what goes up, must go down at some point, that's when the fun beggins. Release the brakes and tell Jesus to hold the wheel, going down those roads was the coolest part, wish I could've filmed it.

I like how cycling in rural roads you end up triggering ALL the dogs in the area, they could just stay there enjoying the morning sun on a cold morning, but no, they will go after you no matter how fast you cycle. I've tried taking some photos, but I was more worried in protecting my skinny legs from the jaws of death than taking photos to illustrate how I would get bitten. Use your imagination to see the dogs running along the bicycle, barking and going crazy.

There were many different roads going all over the place, at every intersection I would say.

     - Left; or right? - I thought.

On the way I've passed by nice single lane wooden bridges; And by nice double lane wooden bridges.

Pelotas
Go and come back. Click Image to enlarge!
Pelotas
Go and don't come back. Click Image to enlarge!

When you are going through such lovely places you'll learn how to communicate, you don't need to stop and talk, but the locals will be looking at you until you say something.

     - Oooo good morning! - I said.

     - Opa, morning! - The man eating oranges said.

     - Uhhhhh morning Sir. - I said.

     - Good Morning! - The man gardening said.

     - Opa, o/ - I raised my hand to the tractor man.

     - o/ - He raised his hand.

It's a must to at least greet people, they'll be waiting for it as a sign of respect. Even if you keep on going without stopping to talk.

After that I continued cycling until I found a nice shadow to eat my Pastel and fruits. Sorry, no photos of that. The Lion inside me was so mad that I ate it before thinking about a cool photo for Steemit.

The journey continued through the quiet roads - I love how it's so peaceful over there; you can listen to the birds flying around you; wild animals making noises to hide in the bushes; the smell of firewood coming from the farm houses; the sound of an axe hitting a tree; the cockcrow here and there; dogs running after you.

I've found the way out of that magestic place after some hours, where I took another main road to return to my city, the fun had ended, I was now entering back into the craziness of a big city's traffic.

My last photo was of this abandonned little castle somewhere in Pelotas, willing to enter it someday!

Pelotas
This is asking for some exploration. Click Image to enlarge!

This is the conclusion of yesterday's ride, it was surprisingly tiring but rewarding, I'm glad I did it because today it's pouring rain outside. I hope you've enjoyed virtually cycling with me.

THE JUICY INFO FOR BIKE GEEKS

treino de mtb

Would you like to know more about my city? Drop a message down below, I love talking to you all.

If you liked this post, please, consider leaving your upvote for a hot coffee.

~Love ya all,


Disclaimer:  The author of this post is a convict broken backpacker, who has travelled more than 10.000 km hitchhiking. Following him may cause severe problems of wanderlust and inquietud. You've been warned.


I'm Arthur. I blog about Adventure Stories, Brazil, Travel, Camping & Life Experiences.

Follow me to stay tuned for more craziness and tips.

You may also want to read:

7 Day Positivity Challenge | Day 6 | I Love Being a Teacher

7 Day Positivity Challenge | Day 5 | Gotta love your Bicycle, bike, cycle.

[Blog #14] Cycling When It's Cold | Layer Dressing | Winter in Brazil

7 Day Positivity Challenge | Day 4 | The Most Important Element - Water

7 Day Positivity Challenge | Day 3 | Being Grateful For My Homeland

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