2010 - Introduction to the Pyrenees
There & back again... 13 & 18 June 2010
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There...
The last few days before tour Chris was getting more and more concerned as his weather apps were predicting extreme conditions in the Alps. At the end of the week we still wanted to do best of the Alps tour, however, Chris was getting cold feet as lightening and downpours were forecast for the Alps. Nick, on the other hand, was determined to ignore all such concerns confident all the forecasts were wrong!
Despite Nick's stance Chris started looking at alternatives. Scotland appeared relatively dry with reasonable sun forecast but we really wanted to go abroad after having to tour in the UK last year. Denmark and Norway were forecast to be relatively dry too but we were unsure about the roads and the quality of the riding. Instead we settled on Spain as a contingency but agreed to finalise our decision on Eurostar; still hoping for a miraculous turnaround in forecasts.
Riding at night in France is usually pretty easy but this time it was tricky as we ended up following a blue flashing fire truck for miles. We couldn't tell whether there were police present or not so just had to sit tight and travel slower than we would have liked. Also there were usual massive arrays of red lights in the sky. It can be difficult to work out what they are and at times it is disconcerting, however just the many wind turbines that adorn the Northern French countryside.
We were making good time when we reached Paris and had decided to get to the South of the city and then bail out into an F1 for the night. Sadly Tom had other ideas. Combined with major roadworks on the Paris peripherique, Tom completely lost the plot and we rode down many one-way streets between rows of terraced houses before we eventually rejoined the main road only for Tom to take us the wrong way down it! After a painful 20 minutes of looping round motorway junctions we got back to the start of Tom's diversion and then gotit right. Relieved, we stopped at the first motorway toll and pulled over to navigate to an F1 only to find that the nearest ones were either 20 miles back into Paris or 50 miles south to Orleans. We decided to head for the Orleans F1, eventually arriving totally beat at 03:00.
Back again...
After a good night’s sleep we got up had breakfast and watched the ferry pull into Cornwall. We packed and headed down for the bikes and disembarkation. We got seriously lost trying to find our way to the right bike deck and it was hellish lugging our panniers around narrow corridors and up and down the stairs.
Our bikes were completely different ends of the ferry and Chris got out quickly, Nick didn't. Of course we had to go through passport control and the whole procedure took ages. After all the rain abroad it was warm and sunny in England. Chris persuaded Nick to go back via the A303 which was a mistake as it was jam packed with cars - sorry Nick!
Conclusion:
We learned a lot on our 2010 Passport Tour and hopefully it will stand us in good stead for future tours:
✓ Riding down the motorways is pretty boring and on a
non touring specific bike uncomfortable as well;
✓ Rockets are fab, but not up mountain passes in the
rain. When it's dry they are awesome and a draw to
nearly everyone you meet. When it's dry they are
surprisingly good on the passes;
✓ The ferry is a great way to cover boring motorway
distances. Despite appearing expensive at first
when you work out the petrol, toll and
accommodation costs they are not that bad;
✓ The Pyrenees are great;
✓ Taking breaks and meeting people is an essential
part of touring;
✓ Ensure you have contingency plans should it be
raining where you are heading as biking in the rain
is not much fun.
The last few days before tour Chris was getting more and more concerned as his weather apps were predicting extreme conditions in the Alps. At the end of the week we still wanted to do best of the Alps tour, however, Chris was getting cold feet as lightening and downpours were forecast for the Alps. Nick, on the other hand, was determined to ignore all such concerns confident all the forecasts were wrong!
Despite Nick's stance Chris started looking at alternatives. Scotland appeared relatively dry with reasonable sun forecast but we really wanted to go abroad after having to tour in the UK last year. Denmark and Norway were forecast to be relatively dry too but we were unsure about the roads and the quality of the riding. Instead we settled on Spain as a contingency but agreed to finalise our decision on Eurostar; still hoping for a miraculous turnaround in forecasts.
Riding at night in France is usually pretty easy but this time it was tricky as we ended up following a blue flashing fire truck for miles. We couldn't tell whether there were police present or not so just had to sit tight and travel slower than we would have liked. Also there were usual massive arrays of red lights in the sky. It can be difficult to work out what they are and at times it is disconcerting, however just the many wind turbines that adorn the Northern French countryside.
We were making good time when we reached Paris and had decided to get to the South of the city and then bail out into an F1 for the night. Sadly Tom had other ideas. Combined with major roadworks on the Paris peripherique, Tom completely lost the plot and we rode down many one-way streets between rows of terraced houses before we eventually rejoined the main road only for Tom to take us the wrong way down it! After a painful 20 minutes of looping round motorway junctions we got back to the start of Tom's diversion and then gotit right. Relieved, we stopped at the first motorway toll and pulled over to navigate to an F1 only to find that the nearest ones were either 20 miles back into Paris or 50 miles south to Orleans. We decided to head for the Orleans F1, eventually arriving totally beat at 03:00.
Back again...
After a good night’s sleep we got up had breakfast and watched the ferry pull into Cornwall. We packed and headed down for the bikes and disembarkation. We got seriously lost trying to find our way to the right bike deck and it was hellish lugging our panniers around narrow corridors and up and down the stairs.
Our bikes were completely different ends of the ferry and Chris got out quickly, Nick didn't. Of course we had to go through passport control and the whole procedure took ages. After all the rain abroad it was warm and sunny in England. Chris persuaded Nick to go back via the A303 which was a mistake as it was jam packed with cars - sorry Nick!
Conclusion:
We learned a lot on our 2010 Passport Tour and hopefully it will stand us in good stead for future tours:
✓ Riding down the motorways is pretty boring and on a
non touring specific bike uncomfortable as well;
✓ Rockets are fab, but not up mountain passes in the
rain. When it's dry they are awesome and a draw to
nearly everyone you meet. When it's dry they are
surprisingly good on the passes;
✓ The ferry is a great way to cover boring motorway
distances. Despite appearing expensive at first
when you work out the petrol, toll and
accommodation costs they are not that bad;
✓ The Pyrenees are great;
✓ Taking breaks and meeting people is an essential
part of touring;
✓ Ensure you have contingency plans should it be
raining where you are heading as biking in the rain
is not much fun.
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Statistics
Start - 1650hrs; Finish - 0300hrs; Miles covered - 378 miles; Tour distance - 378miles Passes bagged - 0 |
Countries
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Passes
None |
Day one, Monday 14 June 2010
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Chris woke at 9:00 feeling lousy and definitely not wanting to get back on his bike. However, after showering and a surprisingly nice breakfast at McDonald’s we both felt much better and soon were back on the motorways and the bikes performed brilliantly.
At our lunch stop we checked the weather forecasts and the Alps were getting even more rain than expected. Worryingly the Pyrenees were also forecast to get plenty of rain too; although we had little option but to continue south, we also knew we wouldn't want to have to ride 900 miles back home. Against Nick’s better judgement therefore, at one of our many stops we booked a ferry home from Santander and headed for Barcelona.
At one of the petrol stops we met an American, currently living in Leicester, who was impressed by Chris’ Rocket III and told us that he had once worked at the Triumph factory in Hinckley on the Thunderbird. At nearly every stop someone would come up and talk about the Rocket, a magnet attracting all sorts of motorists to come and admire. Every time it happened, it made Chris grin from ear to ear and confirmed what a great decision it was to buy the bike.
Later in the day we stopped for lunch and met John, solo touring on his Honda VFR. He was an amateur electrician and showed us how he had wired up his Garmin to his battery using various other leads and plugs not meant for it; it was a bit of a mess! John lived in Hampshire and had left his girlfriend behind as she was unwell. We could only think that was a good thing as we couldn’t imagine sitting on the back of a bike like that, hammering down motorways could be much fun.
Just before this petrol stop we had passed a massive bullion run. Four trucks and three police vans all with blue flashing lights. We passed carefully and as we exited the autoroute to the services there were police bikes, armed guards and more police vans. Distracted we overshot our turning and had to double back in front of all the police through a no entry! Luckily they were not interested in us as just then the convoy came into the services. We filled up as and went inside to pay.
Chris, his French not being tip top, accidentally paid for the wrong pump and went back outside not noticing. Nick was then charged for Chris’ fuel, much more than his, the Rocket being a thirsty beast, and not unreasonably, refused to pay the extra. Nick then verbally wrestled with the garage staff in front of the armed police! Eventually Nick got his way and Chris got cheap fuel, a good result.
We had managed to avoid the rain up until now but it arrived shortly after we set off and didn't stop again all day! The Rocket had been amazingly good on the journey so far and given it had been solid motorway riding, Chris was impressed with the way it had handled. Not as soft as the Tiger and the riding position not as comfortable but it was much better than Chris had expected. In the wet, however, the wide tyres, enormous torque and weight meant that it slid more than expected. Painted surfaces and over-banding were no fun at all, forcing Chris to slow noticeably.
We stopped just before the start of the Milau Bridge at an official viewpoint. However, it was raining hard and the only way to see the bridge was to park the bikes and go for a walk up loads of steps; in full and very wet bike gear, that was never happening so we had a quick pee stop and jumped back on the bikes.
As we remembered from the 2008 tour, the motorway south of the Milau viaduct was stunning, hilly and twisty, but sadly in this rain, not much fun! However, despite the wet we made great progress and the last leg of the day went very well. We stopped at a services and had a great stop with fillet steak and chips to warm us. It tasted fantastic and we needed warming as the rain had made us so cold.
Whilst enjoying our steaks we discussed our plans and decided there was no point struggling on in the rain to Barcelona and that we should head to Perpignan and hope the rain stopped overnight so we could head up into the Pyrenees. We set our Toms to find the nearest Ibis and then hung everything up to dry. We used lampshades, windows, radiators, everything!
At our lunch stop we checked the weather forecasts and the Alps were getting even more rain than expected. Worryingly the Pyrenees were also forecast to get plenty of rain too; although we had little option but to continue south, we also knew we wouldn't want to have to ride 900 miles back home. Against Nick’s better judgement therefore, at one of our many stops we booked a ferry home from Santander and headed for Barcelona.
At one of the petrol stops we met an American, currently living in Leicester, who was impressed by Chris’ Rocket III and told us that he had once worked at the Triumph factory in Hinckley on the Thunderbird. At nearly every stop someone would come up and talk about the Rocket, a magnet attracting all sorts of motorists to come and admire. Every time it happened, it made Chris grin from ear to ear and confirmed what a great decision it was to buy the bike.
Later in the day we stopped for lunch and met John, solo touring on his Honda VFR. He was an amateur electrician and showed us how he had wired up his Garmin to his battery using various other leads and plugs not meant for it; it was a bit of a mess! John lived in Hampshire and had left his girlfriend behind as she was unwell. We could only think that was a good thing as we couldn’t imagine sitting on the back of a bike like that, hammering down motorways could be much fun.
Just before this petrol stop we had passed a massive bullion run. Four trucks and three police vans all with blue flashing lights. We passed carefully and as we exited the autoroute to the services there were police bikes, armed guards and more police vans. Distracted we overshot our turning and had to double back in front of all the police through a no entry! Luckily they were not interested in us as just then the convoy came into the services. We filled up as and went inside to pay.
Chris, his French not being tip top, accidentally paid for the wrong pump and went back outside not noticing. Nick was then charged for Chris’ fuel, much more than his, the Rocket being a thirsty beast, and not unreasonably, refused to pay the extra. Nick then verbally wrestled with the garage staff in front of the armed police! Eventually Nick got his way and Chris got cheap fuel, a good result.
We had managed to avoid the rain up until now but it arrived shortly after we set off and didn't stop again all day! The Rocket had been amazingly good on the journey so far and given it had been solid motorway riding, Chris was impressed with the way it had handled. Not as soft as the Tiger and the riding position not as comfortable but it was much better than Chris had expected. In the wet, however, the wide tyres, enormous torque and weight meant that it slid more than expected. Painted surfaces and over-banding were no fun at all, forcing Chris to slow noticeably.
We stopped just before the start of the Milau Bridge at an official viewpoint. However, it was raining hard and the only way to see the bridge was to park the bikes and go for a walk up loads of steps; in full and very wet bike gear, that was never happening so we had a quick pee stop and jumped back on the bikes.
As we remembered from the 2008 tour, the motorway south of the Milau viaduct was stunning, hilly and twisty, but sadly in this rain, not much fun! However, despite the wet we made great progress and the last leg of the day went very well. We stopped at a services and had a great stop with fillet steak and chips to warm us. It tasted fantastic and we needed warming as the rain had made us so cold.
Whilst enjoying our steaks we discussed our plans and decided there was no point struggling on in the rain to Barcelona and that we should head to Perpignan and hope the rain stopped overnight so we could head up into the Pyrenees. We set our Toms to find the nearest Ibis and then hung everything up to dry. We used lampshades, windows, radiators, everything!
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Statistics
Start - 1000hrs Finish - 1900hrs Miles covered - 421 miles Tour distance - 799miles Passes bagged - 0 |
Countries
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Passes
None |
Day two, Tuesday 15 June 2010
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We had a great night’s sleep in the Ibis in Perpignan and didn't wake until 9:00 despite going to bed relatively early at about 23:00.
We packed up and went to McDonald’s for breakfast and a fix of free wi-fi! Sadly it was past 11:00 and breakfast was finished so we had to order lunch instead. We planned our route and as it was dry we decided to head up into the Pyrenees.
We had virtually no idea of where to go in the Pyrenees. Chris had managed a couple of quick web searches in the UK prior to leaving and so we had some hastily printed web pages with a couple of recommended routes. We also had Chris’ AA map of Europe but the scale wasn’t very good. We did our best to plan a route aiming for the highest mountain passes we could find and a route into Andorra.
We set off up the N116 turning off on to the D618 and up to Mont Louis. The roads were great. The N116 was mainly dual carriage-way with great sweeping bends and allowed us a fast start. It then started to rise up into the mountains becoming single carriageway but still with a great surface and little traffic. We were soon climbing up into the snow clad mountains, it felt just like the Alps!
Continuing along the D618 turning right on to the E9 (N20) towards Andorra. Once again the roads were fantastic and we continued to meet little traffic. Climbing up Col de Puymorens (1,920m) we got some great views and the sun came out fleetingly! Sadly though we were fast loosing the good weather and by the time we got into Andorra the mist and rain had descended and the temperature dropped to near freezing, in mid June! Turning left on the N22 we passed lots of ski resorts and even more building works. Clearly the recession had not hit this region. Andorra, itself, was inexplicably full of petrol stations. Many on mountain tops and other bizarre locations and the fuel was really cheap. Our highest pass of the tour and possibly of the Pyrenees, Port d’Envailira (2,408m) was completely covered in fog and it was raining and snowing as we rode up. Normally this would be challenging but in these conditions and on a Rocket it was more or less impossible.
As we dropped down the other side, we found Andorra le Vella, a horrid concrete jungle full of traffic.
Leaving Andorra le Vella on the N260 we discovered some great roads with beautiful scenery. There were some sunny intervals and we had some great biking moments (Col del Canto 1,725m). At Sort we turned right onto the C13 and shortly we stopped for a tea break in a tiny restaurant/bar with a stunning view across the valley. Unfortunately the rain hit and stayed for the rest of the day.
Following the C13 and then the C1412 we climbed our second highest pass of the tour, Port de la Bonaigua (2,072m). The wet once again made the tight corners hard but add cows on the road and their excrement and the combination became treacherous.
We stopped at Vielha finding the lovely Hotel Ribaeta (www.hotelribaeta.com). We walked in dripping wet and in full waterproofs resembling drowned rats. Despite this the staff at reception were very friendly and offered us a room. It was the hotel’s first day open for the summer season and there was free food and drink in the restaurant. When we got there it was so crowded we could not force our way in and it was also too smokey so we headed out to a tapas bar and had an excellent meal while watching Brazil vs North Korea.
We were not sure what to plan for the day 3 as the weather forecast was dire so we went to bed exhausted and once again hoping our kit would be dry by the morning.
We packed up and went to McDonald’s for breakfast and a fix of free wi-fi! Sadly it was past 11:00 and breakfast was finished so we had to order lunch instead. We planned our route and as it was dry we decided to head up into the Pyrenees.
We had virtually no idea of where to go in the Pyrenees. Chris had managed a couple of quick web searches in the UK prior to leaving and so we had some hastily printed web pages with a couple of recommended routes. We also had Chris’ AA map of Europe but the scale wasn’t very good. We did our best to plan a route aiming for the highest mountain passes we could find and a route into Andorra.
We set off up the N116 turning off on to the D618 and up to Mont Louis. The roads were great. The N116 was mainly dual carriage-way with great sweeping bends and allowed us a fast start. It then started to rise up into the mountains becoming single carriageway but still with a great surface and little traffic. We were soon climbing up into the snow clad mountains, it felt just like the Alps!
Continuing along the D618 turning right on to the E9 (N20) towards Andorra. Once again the roads were fantastic and we continued to meet little traffic. Climbing up Col de Puymorens (1,920m) we got some great views and the sun came out fleetingly! Sadly though we were fast loosing the good weather and by the time we got into Andorra the mist and rain had descended and the temperature dropped to near freezing, in mid June! Turning left on the N22 we passed lots of ski resorts and even more building works. Clearly the recession had not hit this region. Andorra, itself, was inexplicably full of petrol stations. Many on mountain tops and other bizarre locations and the fuel was really cheap. Our highest pass of the tour and possibly of the Pyrenees, Port d’Envailira (2,408m) was completely covered in fog and it was raining and snowing as we rode up. Normally this would be challenging but in these conditions and on a Rocket it was more or less impossible.
As we dropped down the other side, we found Andorra le Vella, a horrid concrete jungle full of traffic.
Leaving Andorra le Vella on the N260 we discovered some great roads with beautiful scenery. There were some sunny intervals and we had some great biking moments (Col del Canto 1,725m). At Sort we turned right onto the C13 and shortly we stopped for a tea break in a tiny restaurant/bar with a stunning view across the valley. Unfortunately the rain hit and stayed for the rest of the day.
Following the C13 and then the C1412 we climbed our second highest pass of the tour, Port de la Bonaigua (2,072m). The wet once again made the tight corners hard but add cows on the road and their excrement and the combination became treacherous.
We stopped at Vielha finding the lovely Hotel Ribaeta (www.hotelribaeta.com). We walked in dripping wet and in full waterproofs resembling drowned rats. Despite this the staff at reception were very friendly and offered us a room. It was the hotel’s first day open for the summer season and there was free food and drink in the restaurant. When we got there it was so crowded we could not force our way in and it was also too smokey so we headed out to a tapas bar and had an excellent meal while watching Brazil vs North Korea.
We were not sure what to plan for the day 3 as the weather forecast was dire so we went to bed exhausted and once again hoping our kit would be dry by the morning.
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Statistics
Start - 11000hrs Finish - 1800hrs Miles covered - 205 miles; Tour distance - 1,004 miles; Passes bagged - 4 |
Countries
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Passes
Col de Puymorens 1,920m Port d'Envailira 2,408m Col del Canto 1,725m Port de la Bonaigua 2,072m |
Day three, Wednesday 16 June 2010
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Perhaps not the best sleep as we had overnight excitement caused by Chris’ datatool alarm which went off 3 times. The first time Chris thought it was the fire alarm and woke up in a daze not sure what to do. It was only when Nick shouted at him to get his keys that Chris realised it was his bike. Second time he had his keys ready and waiting. The 3rd time Chris put the ferry mode on! No damage so probably caused by the wind and rain.
When we came down from the room in the morning, we were the first people into the breakfast room and all the staff were waiting for us - the first and only guests of the hotel so far this summer season. It was like being in a 5 star hotel. Breakfast was lovely; very good quality food, great coffee and even more importantly a dry and good looking day outside. In fact the sun was shining so we rapidly set off having expected nothing but rain all day.
We headed south on the N230 towards Pont de Suert. We quickly reached and rode through the outstanding tunnel under Tuc de Betrén (2514m) followed by a great run down to Vilaller where we turned right onto N260 heading for Castéjon de Sos. This route was excellent lovely high roads, with good surfaces, great sweeping corners and beautiful scenery. We climbed Coll de l'Espina (1407m) and Coll de Fadas (1470m) before arriving in Castéjon de Sos. We raced on heading down through Puerto de Foradada (1,150m).
At Ainsa we continued on the N260 north west towards Biescas and went through a stunning canyon. We stopped just after it for coffee somewhere around La Catalana. Sadly we didn't get any photos of the canyon partly because we were enjoying riding through it so much we didn't stop but also there were very few places to actually stop, the road was so narrow! At the cafe we met Tony from Jersey, albeit originally from Watford. He was on a BMW R1150GS and joined us for coffee and a good chat. He was very positive about the Santander ferry and also about the Pyrenees roads. He had also been riding in the Picos, near Santander and recommended them to us too.
As we rode through Campo and then Ainsa we decided to alter our route and headed to Broto to avoid more bad weather. The roads were excellent, fast and high. We were quite often riding on our own as one of us would stop for a photo opportunity and the other continue. Then the one in front would pull over to video the other coming through, very childish but great fun! After Nick had taken a shot of Chris racing passed him, Chris entering a town to find a large cow walking up the middle of the road. Chris jumped off the bike to take a photo and hoped that Nick would not come shooting round the bend and into the cow.
From here we rode high into the mountains bordering France climbing an un-named pass (1423m).
At Biescas we turned right onto the A136 heading north for Laruns. There was a tremendous dam just before Lanuza. In hindsight we should have riden across the dam and around the local road through Lanuza but at the time hadn't realised we could. Next time! We then had a very fast section riding high up towards ski resort country and the French border. We stopped for lunch just before the border near El Formigal. Again there was a loop of road here which may be worth taking next time that goes through El Formigal. We sat next to 5 biking Brits, all on Japanese bikes. Our tapas lunch was truly excellent and after lunch we continued north to the border and the Col du Pourtalet (1794m).
We then followed the D918, although it was raining so much it was hard to tell where we were going! That continued to be the case all the way to Lourdes. Amazingly in this bad weather we conquered Col d'Aubisque (1709m) and Col du Soulor (1474m) - a shame we could not enjoy them. After a wet stop at Lourdes we headed by the fastest roads to Biarritz (D940, E80 / A64, D1).
We stopped at the Tulip Inn (first hotel we saw) for the night and importantly got a room with a radiator to dry our soaking wet kit and even better we had parking for the bikes.
After a great, albeit broken, shower we headed for a pizza. It was raining so hard we tried to find the closest place to our hotel. It looked pretty run down but they served some of the best pizzas we had ever tasted. In fact they were so good Nick had two! In traditional style we watched the World Cup, Uraguay beating South Africa 3:0. All was going well and we started chatting to the friendly patron. We would have stayed longer but as the owner continued to chat to us he became increasingly racist and we felt it was time to leave.
The next morning we got an early start in order to get to Santander for 13:00 and a ferry home.
When we came down from the room in the morning, we were the first people into the breakfast room and all the staff were waiting for us - the first and only guests of the hotel so far this summer season. It was like being in a 5 star hotel. Breakfast was lovely; very good quality food, great coffee and even more importantly a dry and good looking day outside. In fact the sun was shining so we rapidly set off having expected nothing but rain all day.
We headed south on the N230 towards Pont de Suert. We quickly reached and rode through the outstanding tunnel under Tuc de Betrén (2514m) followed by a great run down to Vilaller where we turned right onto N260 heading for Castéjon de Sos. This route was excellent lovely high roads, with good surfaces, great sweeping corners and beautiful scenery. We climbed Coll de l'Espina (1407m) and Coll de Fadas (1470m) before arriving in Castéjon de Sos. We raced on heading down through Puerto de Foradada (1,150m).
At Ainsa we continued on the N260 north west towards Biescas and went through a stunning canyon. We stopped just after it for coffee somewhere around La Catalana. Sadly we didn't get any photos of the canyon partly because we were enjoying riding through it so much we didn't stop but also there were very few places to actually stop, the road was so narrow! At the cafe we met Tony from Jersey, albeit originally from Watford. He was on a BMW R1150GS and joined us for coffee and a good chat. He was very positive about the Santander ferry and also about the Pyrenees roads. He had also been riding in the Picos, near Santander and recommended them to us too.
As we rode through Campo and then Ainsa we decided to alter our route and headed to Broto to avoid more bad weather. The roads were excellent, fast and high. We were quite often riding on our own as one of us would stop for a photo opportunity and the other continue. Then the one in front would pull over to video the other coming through, very childish but great fun! After Nick had taken a shot of Chris racing passed him, Chris entering a town to find a large cow walking up the middle of the road. Chris jumped off the bike to take a photo and hoped that Nick would not come shooting round the bend and into the cow.
From here we rode high into the mountains bordering France climbing an un-named pass (1423m).
At Biescas we turned right onto the A136 heading north for Laruns. There was a tremendous dam just before Lanuza. In hindsight we should have riden across the dam and around the local road through Lanuza but at the time hadn't realised we could. Next time! We then had a very fast section riding high up towards ski resort country and the French border. We stopped for lunch just before the border near El Formigal. Again there was a loop of road here which may be worth taking next time that goes through El Formigal. We sat next to 5 biking Brits, all on Japanese bikes. Our tapas lunch was truly excellent and after lunch we continued north to the border and the Col du Pourtalet (1794m).
We then followed the D918, although it was raining so much it was hard to tell where we were going! That continued to be the case all the way to Lourdes. Amazingly in this bad weather we conquered Col d'Aubisque (1709m) and Col du Soulor (1474m) - a shame we could not enjoy them. After a wet stop at Lourdes we headed by the fastest roads to Biarritz (D940, E80 / A64, D1).
We stopped at the Tulip Inn (first hotel we saw) for the night and importantly got a room with a radiator to dry our soaking wet kit and even better we had parking for the bikes.
After a great, albeit broken, shower we headed for a pizza. It was raining so hard we tried to find the closest place to our hotel. It looked pretty run down but they served some of the best pizzas we had ever tasted. In fact they were so good Nick had two! In traditional style we watched the World Cup, Uraguay beating South Africa 3:0. All was going well and we started chatting to the friendly patron. We would have stayed longer but as the owner continued to chat to us he became increasingly racist and we felt it was time to leave.
The next morning we got an early start in order to get to Santander for 13:00 and a ferry home.
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Statistics
Start - 0900hrs Finish - 1900hrs Miles covered - 280 miles Tour distance - 1,284 miles Passes bagged - 7 Tour passes - 11 |
Countries
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Passes
Coll de l'Espina 1,407m Coll de Fadas 1,470m Puerto de Foradata 1,150m Col du Pourtalet 1,794m Col d'Aubisque 1,709m Col du Soulor 1,474m |
Day four, Thursday 17 June 2010
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The final day abroad was motorway and rain all the way to Santander. We set off in the rain, rode through the rain and arrived just as it stopped raining. The worst aspects were the spray which severely limited visibility and also having to take gloves on and off at the toll booths.
The route should have been very beautiful but the weather really spoilt it. The motorways were new and more were being built, no sign of recession in Spain! They ran along the coast with beautiful views of the Bay of Biscay and the mountains running along the coast. In fact they ran all the way to Santander.
The route to the ferry was reasonably well sign posted which was good as Chris’ Tom had died in the extreme wet. Amazingly Nick's older version was still working. We arrived in the massive queue for the ferry and to Chris’ relief the officials happily accepted the fact that we had no paper ferry tickets; they were on Chris’ iPhone. We then joined a large group of bikes waiting to board. Thankfully the rain had now stopped and the sun was coming out.
We parked successfully and found our cabin, rather a long walk with all our heavy gear, helmets and leathers. The cabin was fine but very small. After changing and putting our wet stuff out to dry we went up on deck for a drink. The voyage was very good and smooth. There were loads of bikers on board and a great atmosphere.
The route should have been very beautiful but the weather really spoilt it. The motorways were new and more were being built, no sign of recession in Spain! They ran along the coast with beautiful views of the Bay of Biscay and the mountains running along the coast. In fact they ran all the way to Santander.
The route to the ferry was reasonably well sign posted which was good as Chris’ Tom had died in the extreme wet. Amazingly Nick's older version was still working. We arrived in the massive queue for the ferry and to Chris’ relief the officials happily accepted the fact that we had no paper ferry tickets; they were on Chris’ iPhone. We then joined a large group of bikes waiting to board. Thankfully the rain had now stopped and the sun was coming out.
We parked successfully and found our cabin, rather a long walk with all our heavy gear, helmets and leathers. The cabin was fine but very small. After changing and putting our wet stuff out to dry we went up on deck for a drink. The voyage was very good and smooth. There were loads of bikers on board and a great atmosphere.
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Statistics
Start - 0900hrs Finish - 1500hrs Miles covered - 152 miles Tour distance 1,436 miles Passes bagged - 0 Tour passes - 11 |
Countries
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Passes
None |
