On my way south again Jenny and Al directed me to a quiet cross country route that by passed the main towns. The weather was very sunny and it was heavenly to get back on the bike again in such tranquil conditions. Just outside Baza I picked up another Via Verde trail, the old railway line between Baza and Guadix. As I mentioned on an earlier page of the blog I've visited this area about seven times before and it's always very emotional when I leave. Whichever way you go it seems there's a quite specific moment when you leave the Altiplano. Maybe because it's more or less surrounded by mountains, and when you look down on it from above as well as being able to identify many of its features, there's also a strong sense of its "genius locii" or essential nature as a place. Here's one of my last glances backwards towards La Sagra, the mountain which dominated my view of the Altiplano, in the far north and at the centre of the background. To get some ide...
