'Ride' Fifteen - beachbumming

Right so today was never going to be about the bike. I overslept until 9am and that is too late really to do a really long ride and avoid the mid day sun. Well that was my excuse anyway. I felt like a swim in the sea so it was time for Celeste to cover her eyes and take a day off.

I took the Marin Hybrid out for a change and headed down to the beach about half a mile away. Here you can still clearly see the old fortifications I guess to prevent invasion during the 1975 conflicts. I found a nice spot and set about the continuation of my cyclist tan line removal policy.

Just along the beach was a lady and her dog Bomber. Bomber was digging the first tunnel between Cyprus and Lebanon and doing a first class job too! Every now and then he would break off tunnelling duties to retrieve a rock from the sea thrown by his Blonde beach comber owner.

I was reminded of my Dog from many years ago, who used to retrieve rocks in a similar way.

The beach here is empty. But it needs a good clean up if I am honest. The usual trademarks of human peasantry abound along the dunes here, plastic bottles, cigarette butts, pink flip flops (why are they always pink?) and of course the obligatory remnants of campfires with beer tins thrown in them. I looked at this otherwise lovely beach and decided humans were less important to me than Bomber and his tunneling activities. It's a pleasant walk along the mile long beach and the water here is clearer than on the beach directly opposite where I am staying. Some of the sand here is black, a little like Tenerife beaches, but I'm unsure if Cyprus is volcanic to the same extent.

Bomber and his owner disappeared back to Lebanon through his tunnel and the beach became mine. I already have one beach where I live back in the UK, so this was a nice addition to my collection, and it didn't cost me a penny.

The sea here is lovely and warm, 'ish'. It's not anywhere near the best beach I have ever swam off of but it is quiet, as good as private, and it has sea and sand, what more do you want? I went in three times and decided to take my hedcam and test out it's 'waterproofness' claim. Sadly I have to report that until it dries out I won't know.

The midday sun was starting to heat the sand up to feet melting point and I was burning. The first time I felt at risk from the sun this trip. So it was time to re robe, and cycle back along the beach road to get some shade and lunch.

In evitably all this exertion and the ride of at least half a mile on the flat took it's toll and I fell into an uncontrollable siesta sleep until the second leg of the Iskele football game kicked off outside my window this evening.

I feel more exhausted on these 'tourist' days than I do after a 50-100 mile ride! Have made a mental note to get my finger out tomorrow.