| |
 |
| |
| Aug
2 - 8 Pyrenees - Pamplona - San Sebastian
After having crossed the
Alps and the Massif Central, what was described as a daunting 27km climb over
the Pyrenees turned out to be a pleasant storm in a tea cup. |
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
On top of the Pyrenees
|
| |
| We
followed the main pilgrim route to Pamplona and then branched off to San
Sebastian to continue on the northern coastal camino to Santiago. The
route through the Basque mountains led us up and down rolling hills, in
and out of thick forests and quiet remote villages, with not a car in
sight, to a camp site beautifully hidden away beside a little stream,
deep enough for a swim. A cyclist's paradise.
|
| |
|
 |
 |
|
Après
Velo...
|
| |
|
 |
 |
|
The Basque Country
|
| |
|
| Now
it's time for a wee holiday here on the Cantabrian Sea. It seems we're
not the only ones with this idea as everyone and Joe has landed to
populate the beautiful La Concha beach and partake in the tasty pinchos
in the numerous, crowded tabernas in the old town. |
 |
|
La Concha, San Sebastian
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
San Sebastian |
Pincho bar,
Pamplona |
| |
| For
now it's sand and sun, wining and dining... so if you'll excuse us,
we're off to the beach! |
|
|
|
|
|
Aug 9 to Sept 7
San Sebastian - Gernika - Bilbao - Santander - San Vicente de la Barquera
- Picos de Europa - Oviedo - Cudillero - Ribadeo - Viveiro - Santiago de
la Compostela - Rias Baixas |
| |
| It's no wonder the
Basque country boasts one of the cycling world's all time greats. Miguel
Indurain had the perfect training ground in the Basque hills. Our hardest
climb to date on this trip was leaving San Sebastian on an unmarked,
concrete road, when serious hyperventilation was just not enough to beat
the incline. It's at times like this that the 10% or even the 20%
indicators are more than welcome... but it's when there's no sign,
that's when it's time for colourful language! |
 |
| |
|
Patxi says hello to everyone in Ireland! |
August in Spain -
is a must do, as every square inch on every camp
ground is occupied. All the better for us as local farmer, Patxi, invited
us to camp in his orchard in the shade of his fig and pear trees, on a bed
of wild mint with a panoramic view of the surrounding hamlets. That was,
of course, after he hosed us down with his irrigation pipe and supplied us
with tomatoes and onions freshly picked from his garden. ¡Qué bien se vive
en España! |
|
Basque artist, Agustín Ibarrola, has an interesting project in his
Enchanted Forest. He has turned the forest of Oma into his canvas
by painting directly on the trees. The individual works spread over
numerous trees at various distances into the forest, and so to view the
image the spectator has to stand at one specific spot. Ibarrola's aim is
to show that the countryside is not unvarying but can be transformed
through creativity. |
| |
|
Motorcyclists in the Bosque de Oma, Gernika |
 |
| |
|
Portion of Picasso's Guernika |
The town of
Gernika carries a sincere message of peace, reflecting its reduction
to flames during the Spanish Civil War. Picasso's controvercial
contribution to the Spanish pavillion in the Paris Expo of 1937 was
inspired by the horrifying news of the bombing and depicts scenes of
despair in a war torn city.
|
| |
|
| Our good friend,
Gabi, joined us from Freiburg, Germany for this leg of the trip.
She got a whole lot more than what she bargained for in the line of
mountains, but she mastered it all, not only with a brave face, but a
smiling one. Gabi's revamped bicycle and granny's winter knickers helped her
overcome all obstacles on the way! |
Gabi |
| |
|
 |
Frank Gehry's
Guggenheim museum makes Bilbao. Its dominant and spectacular location
on the ría, brings life and movement to an otherwise sleepy city. A
dynamic building of curves and textures, cylinders and forms, shadows and
reflections is a must see for anyone who has a chance to visit northern
Spain. |
| |
|
 |
 |
|
The Guggenheim
Museum, Bilbao |
| |
|
| The northern
camino route follows a magnificent coastline from the Basque country,
through Cantabria and Asturias, into Galicia. Rías or long sea inlets,
white sand beaches and rugged cliffs are of picture postcard material,
while the road meanders in and out of freshly scenting eucalypt and pine
forests. Here and there colourful fishing harbours are nestled in tiny
coves where squid, octopus and a great variety of seafood had the dubious
pleasure of landing right on our plates! |
Liencres, Cantabria |
| |
|
 |
 |
|
Cudillero,
Asturias |
| |
|
 |
 |
|
Luarca, Asturias |
Playa de Silencio, Asturias |
| |
|
| On an
a la carte Camino like ours, an attraction like the
Picos de
Europa is a detour not to be missed. Besides the spectacular scenery
and numerous gorges, Potes is home to the largest surviving piece of the
original cross on which Jesus was crucified. |
| |
 |
 |
|
La Garganta del Carés |
| |
| From
the coast our road brought us through a 22km gorge into the midst of the
mountains at Potes. Two high passes led into the León part of the national
park, where the scenery changed dramatically from rusts and yellows to
vibrant greens. Right in the centre, we hiked through another gorge - la
Garganta del Carés - where we met a lively 4 mountain-bike enthusiasts
from Madrid, equipped with GPS systems for their off-the-map escapades. On
hearing that we weren't tearing back for work on Monday... the word is
out... ¡Qué bien se vive en Suiza! |
| |
|
|
Los Madrileños |
|
|
 |
 |
|
You've got to be kidding! |
...He wasn't! |
|
|
|
Darina, Kurt and Gabi in the
Picos de Europa |
|
|
|
To emerge from the
Picos, the only way out... was up! Another two passes with yet another
fantastic gorge thrown in for good measure and we were in Asturias, a fertile land with distinctive Horreos or raised granaries, and
hearty bean casseroles, for that extra turbo boost. |
 |
| |
|
 |
Juan, from León,
was spotted outside the Oviedo Cathedral starting his maiden voyage on his
homemade reclining bike. |
| |
|
|
Asturians
are a proud and cheerful people who don't feel the need to fight for
independence or recognition. They are Spain. It was here that
Pelayo commenced the Reconquista of Spain and now with Alonso, they even
have the leader of the Formula One circus! There is a strong folkloric
tradition of dance and music here, with all generations participating in
the local festivities. |
 |
| |
 |
|
Traditional Asturian dance,
Cadavedo |
| |
|
|
All roads in
Galicia lead to Santiago but some are not as quiet as others, as the
locals seem to drive wildly there and back at least four times daily!
Balistic- in a word. We had to abandon the magnificent northern coast to
avoid becoming part of their fatal road statistics (one a day in Galicia alone). On the inland, mountainous route the cars are absent and it's like
riding through a still frame of a documentary about places where nothing
ever happens. The few locals we saw were in an expressionless trance,
possibly induced by over indulgence in cabbage and curly kale, the
hypnotic effect of the countless windmills or simply the lack of a car to
hurl down the road. |
| |
|
 |
 |
|
Traffic jam on the mountain road |
Local smoked cheeses/sausages |
| |
|
 |
 |
|
Playa de las Catedrales, Ribadeo,
Galicia |
| |
|
|
After 2740km on
the road, the spires of Santiago de
Compostela were within sight. We had a quiet picnic on a hill on
the outskirts of town as droves of pilgrims sped past in a mad rush to
their final destination, before heading back to their daily routines in
Barcelona, New York, Paris and Amsterdam. Since it's not the last stop for
us, we approached it with a whole lot more composure, pondering on all the
other Santiagos we may visit on this same trip. |
Santiago de Compostela |
| |
|
|
Castro de Baroña |
Now, as we check
out the Rías Baixas (coastal inlets) on the Atlantic Ocean en route
to Portugal, it's history all the way with remnants of celtic settlements
(castros), and neolithic burial grounds (dolmens) dotting the coastline.
We have also been following the coastal entrance St. James' body reputedly
took on it's arrival from Palestine. |
| |
|
 |
 |
|
Collection of cockles on the
beaches of Boiro, Galicia |
| |
|
|
The game of the
week is trying to put a smile on a Galician's face. After 5 days, Darina,
with her million dollar smile and musical Hola, is leading 2-1,
with Kurt disputing the first cheerful pedestrian's place of origin! |
| |
|
|
The days of the
mini skirt are sadly coming to an end! Yesterday, while innocently walking
through Vigo, (not a bike in sight), we were approached by a man handing
out flyers for his seafood restaurant. "Do you mind me asking you what
your sport is?" he enquired, looking at Darina's legs, "...because when I
see muscles like that, I think bicycle!" Darina is since in a state of
depression and is insisting on the flattest possible route from here to
Lisbon. You can count on Kurt's ability to misread the map, so he gets his
fun too!
The man, incidently, was none other than Italy's own
Giovanni
Battaglin;
5 times cycling world champion, numerous Giro d'Italia wins and countless
other victories, that he listed in his palmares. |
| |
|
 |
 |
A little plug for Battaglin's restaurant (to justify our dot com)
Restaurant Rías Gallegas, Vigo |
| |
|
Our six weeks in
Spain have been wonderful. The weather, scenery and food gelled into an
overall brilliant experience. Pity we're moving onto Portugal and South
America, as so many other places here appeal. Next time... |
|
| SWITZERLAND |
FRANCE |
SPAIN |
PORTUGAL |
|
|
HOME ABOUT US
ANDES TRIP
SHORT TRIPS CONTACT
LINKS
|
|