Day 18: Plasencia to Cáceres: 52 miles. 2950 feet of climbing. Testy headwinds

The Old Cathedral in Plasencia.  It was right outside our hotel room window.

I'm not sure how well you'll be able to see the cities on this topical map.  I saw it this morning in the lobby of our hotel.  In the upper right, you can see the two mountains we rode over yesterday.  We continue to head southwest towards Portugal.

Thank goodness it was a short day today.  I didn't get much sleep again last night and I could really feel it as we rode out of Plasencia.

We've passed these "clubs" during the past few days.  James reminded us NOT to stop there, even if we needed a bathroom break.  Turns out, "clubs" are brothels.

The ride took us, once again, along our road companion these past few days, Route N630.  At times, it was a well-paved highway.  Other times, it was merely a service road alongside the superhighway; a cracking, rippling mess of a road.

Jesse took this from the bridge over the arroyo we've ridden through during the middle of the day.  The bridge in the distance is part of the new Linea de Alta Velocidad, the high-speed rail line being built to connect Madrid to the Portugal border.

I'm not sure if it was the sleep, the heat or merely the accumulation of miles, but not long after checking and and grabbing a bite to eat with Jesse, we both retired to the room and passed out.  We were both long overdue for a good nap.

We weren't the only ones trying to keep out of the sun today.  These guys are all lying in whatever shade they can find.