San Lázaro Aqueduct and Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalup

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. San Lázaro Aqueduct

   Mérida had more than one aqueduct, and the one that gets less attention has a certain modest appeal. San Lázaro is a Roman water channel whose surviving piers, built of granite blocks and bands of brick, cross open ground on the edge of the modern city, and it was part of the network that fed the baths, fountains and houses of the colony. It is easier to appreciate if you have already seen its bigger cousin, Los Milagros. While that one is tall and showy, San Lázaro is low and workmanlike, a reminder that the Romans built water systems as everyday infrastructure rather than as monuments.

   Read the complete San Lázaro Aqueduct write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   San Lázaro Aqueduct is where the day begins. Next is Old Town of Cáceres.

2. 2. Old Town of Cáceres

   Cáceres has an old town so complete that film crews treat it as a ready-made set, and walking its streets at dusk, when the stone glows amber and the crowds have gone, you can see why. Inside the walls, built largely by the Almohads in the twelfth century, are dozens of fortified mansions, towers, churches and palaces, many built by noble families who made their fortunes in the conquest of the Americas. The towers once had battlements, but Queen Isabella ordered most of them cut down to curb the nobles' power. UNESCO listed the old town in 1986.

   Read the complete Old Town of Cáceres write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Old Town of Cáceres comes up about 75 km into the recorded legs. Next is Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalup.

3. 3. Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalup

   Planning note

   about 212 km into the recorded legs you reach Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalup. Next is back through Old Town of Cáceres.

4. 4. back through Old Town of Cáceres

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Old Town of Cáceres write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Old Town of Cáceres, late in the day. Next is San Lázaro Aqueduct.

5. 5. San Lázaro Aqueduct

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete San Lázaro Aqueduct write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at San Lázaro Aqueduct. That is the ride.