Wow....woke up pretty stiff....the shoulder blades are starting to protest the abuse apparently. On the good news side....since I went to my little oriental back cracker buddy...I think my rib is stuck where it is suppose to be....cause I am not feeling massive spasms on the long rides like I was. He likes to use the electrical pads on the muscles to exercise em....he always asks to turn up the juice, more is always better so I say sure.....till about the point where I look like an epileptic..course I have no control of my mouth so I just flail about till the timer ends...all the uncontrollable flailing seems to have helped...who'd a thunk it....he seems to chuckle whilst I failed about...least I managed to maintain bladder control. Little bit of juice goes a lonnnng way.

So me shifting toe is swollen....I'm creaking as I rise.....and my socks are running around the room....I really don't have the energy to catch em so have to knock em out by throwing me boots at em. Not sure what the folks in the next room thought...between my moans of protest and the pitter patter of me lively socks prancing around and the thumps of my boots hitting things...must have been entertaining.

Either way got ready to roll....they had a great breakfast and I loaded up and it was going to be a long ride day. Ultimate goal...Toledo...just outside of Madrid. Last big ride day of the adventure. Soooo I need to again figure out how to get there.....and there are a huge number of options with the roads...so I pick what looks like a good path....green twistys on secondaries...and off I go. Its a great weather day to boot. Been really lucky that way.

So right out of the gate after I got out of town I hit amazing roads again.....the twists and climbs just went on and on....the longest straightaway was about a 100 m it seemed.....it was awesome.....my shift toe was getting a work out and the brakes were getting hot...I didn't even want to look at the tire.

So I ended up in the middle of nowhere all my myself and there are abandoned farm houses....the typical old stone buildings in rough shape. Very scenic so I figure it would be cool to get a few pics of one of them So I pull in the yard and proceed to pull up to it. There is a big dip and a hill and your there...so I'm putting slowly....hit the dip...up the hill and its soft earth...she bogs down...so I slow right down fast and give it some gas but not fast enough....put me leg down....and only feel air...and I got a long leg..frigggggggg......over I go.....BANG....fall hard...bike on top of me.

Folks its a first.....so the bike fell on me...and frig its heavy...killed the motor asap...but
my foot got trapped.....so I'm kinda laying there in a bit of a pickle...there is no one around and I am trapped....I at least fell on soft earth....the pannier landed on some sharp rocks....frig..thats
gunna cost me. So I had to get me wits about me for a sec....I'm on me own on this one....

So seems a rock is sorta got me foot trapped....sooo I tugged for a bit and it wasn't moving I pulled out me pocket knife....glad I had put it in me pocket..was..thinking 127 hrs or whatever its called...crap....leg...rock..leg...rock....rock won so I start to dig around the rock.....took a few minutes and lucky I managed to dig enough dirt away that I could move the rock enough to get me foot free.....whaaaa hooooooo.  

So I hopped up....shook it off....tried to get the adrenalin down. Now I had to get the bike back up...its in an ackward position on this hill....So I debagged it..and commence to lift...it slides a bit further down into the rocks....frig....scratched up the pannier. Well put me back into it and
got it back up with some grunting  

Sat down and took a look....fortunately the only damage was the pannier...scratched it up a bit and cracked it ... sighhhhh. So not too bad...I just can't believe it happened....very helpless felling when she goes over and you can't stop it.

So just sat there for a bit...didn't want it to ruin me day. It was still early. So I took some pics as planned....

Sparked up the bike checked it out all was good. Phewwwwww.....Loaded it back up and took off. Was hobbling a bit hurt something in foot cause it hurt to shift more than usual..... Did a functional check and no issues with the bike. All is good cept me pride.

So the roads just twisted and turned forever it seemed then I ended up turning on this connecting road. LOL....not sure why it was on the map.....but it was. I should have had a GS to ride this one....but you never know how long the bad road is till the good road starts...LOL.

Well this road was a true goat path but sort of paved. But had loose gravel in the center and sides. So there was a strip about 6 inches wide of ok road on the left or the right...but to cross to one or the other you had to go through the loose stuff....lets just say...that was some challenging riding and to add to it...it was a mountainous goat path...huge drop offs no rails and lots of ways ta oopssssss....ahhhhhhhhhh .... thump ...grunt ...swear ...thump ...grunt ...swear ....etc etc eventually you would stop bouncing I think. But no...no one would find ya.

About here I still had a cell phone signal sooooo I sent a gps location to Andy with a note that he should send the search parties to about here to look in the event I don't show up at the airport on time....told him to look for the body south of here just look for buzzards circling.

So eventually the climb turned into a descent...which is usually a little more hairy but was okay and the road just got better and better....sooooo twist of the wrist and started to get some serious lean again. Great fun.....and the twists and climbs and descents just went on and on and on....I was really getting tired....right about here I come around a bend that fortunately I had to slow down for cause it was a tight one...and out pops a Gaurdia Civilia.....ooooo crapppppp!!!

I had been sailing...and I didn't see any radar or anybody for that matter....so where the heck....so the dude waives me in...and I got the tunes cranked so....I do the hang on a sec with a smile and pop the lid off....take out me earplugs....and commence to do the is there a problem look? and I couldn't hear you cause I had me ear plugs in. Well I got a copper that looks like is 15...the gun he was fondling was huge on him. His partner was one mean looking dude too...and there is no one around...hmmmmmm..the mean guy starts going at me pointing at the ear plugs...seems thats illegal in spain...crap...not a good opener.

So...as a side note I had mounted my Hero cam on the windscreen to get some vids...well....they both saw the camera about the same time...then they started asking me about the camera....and they didn't know one word of english either...and I went on about ohhh yes its great...smile your both on it...LOL....you'll look great in the video. So about here they want to see my id....I give him the passport and he tries his darndest to pronounce me name...I just said wow can't believe ya got it so easily.

Then they want the papers for the bike...and right about here murphy steps in and decides to eliminate all evidence in my brain of where I put em for safe keeping so I could find them easily when in a situation like this...funny huh....I looked at the dude with a blank thousand yard stare for one of those lonnnnggggg uncomfortable pauses.

Then commenced to bable in the best spanish I could muster of how much of a dumb ass loco canadina touristo I was cause I have papers but not sure where I put emmmm sooo I start popping panniers and searching pockets...no its not with the travelling mickey...crapped my pants when that popped out...ooops. Not sure junior could drink yet so he just kinda stared at it...I distracted him by passing wind...not that I had choice cause I almost did crap my pants..he did the peee..ewwww and stepped back a bit...good tapas! :)

In the mean time the mean guy went back to the car and the mini John Wayne with the gun...just watched over me shoulder with his hand on the gun the whole time...I'm looking every where...had to stop...think o crap I remember where I put it so I wouldn't forget it now.....it was in my secret pocket in me tank bag, So I reach in....with a big grin....and he really grabbed his gun about there....soooo I slowwww righttt downnn...grinned..mumbled an easssssyyyyyy big guy..pulled out wadds of paper...and finally it popped out of the pile.

I was so happy I just about hugged the guy when I found it. He just stared at me like I was nuts. All good....so he loosens the grip on the gun...and takes the paper back to the car...well..they examined the hell out of it...and my passport and then my drivers license and needed me to show them that I had a motorcycle license...least it wasn't a speed trap was all I could think at that time...they came back and basically started to ask me what the hell I was doing there...and was I alone. I said I was exploring and yup and on me own...they were in disbelief. Not sure why. Then they asked me where I was going and at this point I was a bit lost and told him I was looking to slay Don Quixote windmills...well that was the ice breaker....they laughed there asses off on that one...gave me my papers back and said all was in order.

So we started to chat more and I told em how great spain was and how the people are awesome....so he wanted to see me map and he started to give me directions and I got it...sort of where I thought I needed to go. So they gave me a pat on the back and said get the hell outta here. Who was I to say no. So put the lid on and proceeded to make a nice getaway.

Well I rolled a few km's down the road and no way I was going to not wear ear plugs....(it tires you out). so I stopped and put in back in and then started to put some info into the GPS...well guess who pulls up behind me in the cop car...its me buddies ...oh crapp.....he hops out and starts to say to the right to Cuenta.....I nod .... ya I know GPS programming thanks......and I started off again. Whewww a few secs earlier he would have caught me putting the plugs in. So I hit the on ramp to the hiway I needed and was gone.

It was getting late and I really wanted to see the windmills so I honked on it...no one on the road and it straightened out a bit and became prairies....soooooo zooooom.   Consuegra was the target...and soon I rolled up into it and you make a quick turn and poof...there are the windmills...kinda cool looking...so take a break....and a few pics...and...its time to hit Toledo.

Time to make time as its getting late and I got some km's to comer and its open praire and no one on the road...so I doooo. Very uneneventfull and I roll into Toledo.

The thing to see in Toledo is the Alcazar....its pretty famous as this is where a major battle happened during Franco's war...sort of the turning point occurred...but it was also a hugely historic town like...from forever ago. So I rolled in and had no hotel sorted or anything. I figured I would just drive around a bit first. Welllll LOL....that was fun. I have never seen such narrow steep, slippery cobblestone roads in all me life.....on the gps it looked like Charlottes web.

K...I'm having too much fun...I managed to get out of the mess onto a bigger street and there happened to be a hotel right there...so I pop out the phone and look it up on Booking.com and its recommended and cheap and available. So I park and hop inside and they got a room..dirt cheap..awesome...so I go to get the bags..and I start to look around a bit...dammm big building across the street...holy crap..its the Alcazar...LOL. Kinda lucked out on that.

So unpacked....and went down to the local plaza.....and sure enough....a great lil cafe...with awesome tapas and great mojitos....time to say ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Sure enough .... another camouflaged Mcdonalds right next the cafe I'm in...they have them near every major historical site it seems....heh heh free wifi for me. So after a good relaxing meal....I limped back to me room and crashed......awesome riding day to cap it!