The hostel was in a quiet location and the only other guests were a Spanish and an Italian family, we had a very comfortable night’s sleep. We left early to achieve a good distance before the heat slowed us down and enjoyed a lovely ride to Pedoso and then an easy coast downhill to the turning for Castroblanco. Vegetation was sparse here and the potholed surface was rough. We stopped for lunch in the shade of pine trees by an irrigation canal above El Rio Viar, followed by a five kilometre climb in the energy sapping heat and into Catroblanco. We paused in the village for ice cream and chilled water in partial shade before pressing on. After Burguillos came the long gradual descent towards Sevilla, the last section being along an uninteresting plain but with a slight breeze to take the edge off the heat. When we reached the city we made for the river and rode along the bank until we had to strike out towards the centre to find our accommodation. We’d booked a private room at the Samay hostel.
We were greeted by a vivacious receptionist who gave us a map and explained the city’s main points of interest, then showed us where we could lock our bikes on the roof terrace, a very welcoming start. Our room faced the noisy main road and the aircon wasn’t working the first night so we had to choose between stuffy or noisy, consequently none of us slept well. In the evening we strolled into the city for a paella in the historic and lively Santa Cruz barrio.