Pico's & Pyrenees 2023

[Count Steer]

I may be mixing up Argelès with Bagnères de Bigorre. Doh. Same area. Will have a rummage and see if I can find my maps etc. (Wasn't biking though. This was all 'Shank's Pony' stuff ).

[Trinity765]

Pau it is. There's a few motorcycle shops in Pau and would rather walk around them by the sounds of it.

Pau has a v old street circuit that it might be quite nice to have a bimble round, not sure how much is readily accessible under normal traffic rules though.

Are you staying at Argelès Gazoste? If you have a day off there you can get the cable car up the hill and play 'spot the marmot' Or ride up to the track to the refuge by the lake for a spot of lunch.

Staying in Laruns, on the town square. I have never been in a cable car so that's a great idea.

[Count Steer]

Pau has a v old street circuit that it might be quite nice to have a bimble round, not sure how much is readily accessible under normal traffic rules though.

Are you staying at Argelès Gazoste? If you have a day off there you can get the cable car up the hill and play 'spot the marmot' Or ride up to the track to the refuge by the lake for a spot of lunch.

Staying in Laruns, on the town square. I have never been in a cable car so that's a great idea.

As I thought I was mixing places up. The Telepherique du Pic du Midi de Bigorre goes from Midi de Bigorre (to the south of Bagnères) and goes up to the Observatoire du Pic du Midi (there's food up there too ). Down below the Observatoire is the Lac D'Oncel on the Col du Tourmalet Road (which has probably featured in the Tour). That would be an interesting ride but I think you'd have to ride up and back down as it stops below the Observatoire. The telepherique is quite a big thing, a bit like a minibus.

I really liked the French Basque area between Biarritz and Pau too. It's not as rugged as the central Pyrenees, the climate tends to be milder and a lot of it is very green. Food was good too.

Quite envious.

[Beancounter]

I've done some preliminary routing - ferry to hotel one, hotel one to hotel two, hotel two to hotel three and a couple of days out. I've bought a map book so the rest can be done on the fly. Here's all the routes together.

Off to see Triumph in a couple of hours to get my leaky fork seal sorted.

This looks to be quite epic! In a fortunate/unfortunate turn of events I'm heading to he Pyrenees at the start of July now too. A friend of a friend has organised the trip but one of the riders has had to drop because he's still recovering from surgery and I'm subbing in.

As I understand it, we have four nights in the Pyrenees, four nights in Catalunya and then four nights riding through to Caen via Toulouse and Limoges.

@Noggin Revolut - can I get in on that please?

[Noggin]

@Noggin Revolut - can I get in on that please?

Of course. You don't need to use the link - you can just sign up, but I think we both benefit if you use the 'recommendation' link!

Sign up with my link below: https://revolut.com/referral/?referral- ... JUL1-23-AR

Give that a try

I struggled with them to start, but have found it really handy in the last couple of years. And it connects to friends via phone numbers, so ded easy to balance out sorting a bill or similar


PS - just read more - lots of hoops to jump through to get the 'reward', so don't feel you have to! But the link will take you to Revolut anyway

[Bustaspoke]

Staying in Laruns, on the town square. I have never been in a cable car so that's a great idea.

If you're around Fuente De in the Picos there's a good cable car,I used it a few times.It's great when you get out at the top & go for a hike
https://fascinatingspain.com/place-to-v ... de-europa/

[Trinity765]

Staying in Laruns, on the town square. I have never been in a cable car so that's a great idea.

If you're around Fuente De in the Picos there's a good cable car,I used it a few times.It's great when you get out at the top & go for a hike
https://fascinatingspain.com/place-to-v ... de-europa/

Thank you

[Trinity765]

Well I have time to kill. Sitting at the meeting point, a stinky McDonald's 10 minutes from Portsmouth Ferry terminal. I have a horrible habit of being extremely punctual, I don't even mean to do it so was here at 4.55pm, 5 minutes early. Phoned my travelling companion who was at Cherwell services He talks Manc so I can hardly understand him but I understood as much as "all routes are f*****'. So rutt tutty tum tum tum. I spy with my little eye. .

The sign behind the bike says maximum wait 90 minutes so may wander soon.

[Trinity765]

10/10 for the Pico's roads. I am sure the views are nice but haven't had a chance to look yet The Spanish people are amazing as every single person I have seen has said "Hola". So friendly!

[Trinity765]

Yesterday my friend had a dodgy belly so I popped out for a few hours on my own. Not much to some but it's the first time I have been out on my own in Europe so it did my confidence good. I headed up into the mountains and did some steep single tracks, too steep to stop for photos. The engine got hot, I got hot and I had mild concern about petrol so I turned the engine off and coasted all the way down to the N-625 which is your typical canyon carving bike road (very nice).

Today we were up early and feeling fit but it's on and off rain and with sports tyres on we have been drinking dangerous amount of lovely Spanish coffee while watching cars grind their bumpers coming out of the junction opposite and shop windows being installed.

The plan was to do The Potes Triangle but that will have to wait until tomorrow.

[Noggin]

Yesterday my friend had a dodgy belly so I popped out for a few hours on my own. Not much to some but it's the first time I have been out on my own in Europe so it did my confidence good. I headed up into the mountains and did some steep single tracks, too steep to stop for photos. The engine got hot, I got hot and I had mild concern about petrol so I turned the engine off and coasted all the way down to the N-625 which is your typical canyon carving bike road (very nice).

Today we were up early and feeling fit but it's on and off rain and with sports tyres on we have been drinking dangerous amount of lovely Spanish coffee while watching cars grind their bumpers coming out of the junction opposite and shop windows being installed.

The plan was to do The Potes Triangle but that will have to wait until tomorrow.

Some awesome roads

And that photo makes me think of the ramp outside my place!! Anything faster than slow walking pace and virtually all cars clatter their bumpers - up and down!!

And lorries!! Always interesting to see a lorry reversing down as I know the guard below the tail gate is going to scrape!!

Keep on having fun

[slowhare]

The Picos is arguably the loveliest part of Spain (certainly the greenest) but the Pau entry to the Pyrenees is the flattest (and quite dull). The central pyrenees are the most challenging but that would take you out your way of the Picos. Anyway, I’m sure you’ll have a fantastic time, more than a little envious as i doubt i’ll be able to get away at all this year.

[Trinity765]

The sun is back out so heading out soon.

Off to Laruns tomorrow for a week. Guess where stage 5 of The Tour De France finishes on Wednesday Assuming of course that it goes ahead with the civil unrest

[Bustaspoke]

It's light rain around here this morning so motorycle maintenance day.
I was going to book the Newhaven Dieppe ferry for this sunday,but all those images of urban France getting a bit rioty put me off
Hoefully it's calm where you're heading

[Trinity765]

It's light rain around here this morning so motorycle maintenance day.
I was going to book the Newhaven Dieppe ferry for this sunday,but all those images of urban France getting a bit rioty put me off
Hoefully it's calm where you're heading

I wonder if the Bilbao ferry will be busier because of people leaving France that way.

[asmethurst99]

It's light rain around here this morning so motorycle maintenance day.
I was going to book the Newhaven Dieppe ferry for this sunday,but all those images of urban France getting a bit rioty put me off
Hoefully it's calm where you're heading

I wonder if the Bilbao ferry will be busier because of people leaving France that way.

Re France - just announced all public transport being halted from tonight - may have some knock on effect on roads .

[Trinity765]

Potes Triangle done and comes highly recommended. What a blast. It has to be one of the greatest routes in the world. It lacks fast sweeping bends, which I don't mind, but is instead full of technical tight bends and a few hairpins. Did it west to east.

I didn't crash but had one moment that only experience got me through. Towards the end of the N625 (travelling south) it opens up into a very fast, slightly down hill section and the tarmac changes to an orange colour. I went into the first right hander very wide and I don't know if I hit a bump or it was the camber but the bike had a hissy fit and start a wobbling and jiggling all over the place. If I had done anything other than keep relaxed and the power on I don't think the bike would have settled. If I was on a proper sports bike it may not have liked it but it would have settled a lot faster and for that reason it will have to be replaced. I checked everything, suspension and tyre pressure, all good. The orange tarmac was a nightmare. Very uneven and breaking up in places but luckily there wasn't a lot of it.

Off to the French Pyrenees tomorrow

[Trinity765]

Rode from Las Arenas, Pico's to Laruns, France on a mixture of roads. Pretty uneventful, just long.

We got a warm welcome in Laruns and have a lovely cottage next to the town square. The host left us some homemade cake that was still warm and a bottle of red. There is a local cheese maker opposite so I have planned a cheese fest on Tour de France day.

Only took one picture on a pass south of Santander. It looks wet but it was just a bit of low cloud.

[Trinity765]

I went out in search for food on foot this morning (which isn't hard in France). I found a boulangrie where I put my phone/wallet on a glass counter top, only there was no glass so my phone and cards fell into the cake cabinet much to the polite amusement of the staff and queue behind me.

Adjusted the rear preload on the Speed and took it over the mountain. Much happier with it so maybe it's a keeper with a little investment in some new rear shocks.

It's busy over the pass, like Llamberis on a sunny bank holiday. Long trains of cars following each other with a coach or two thrown in. I noticed that if the first one cuts a corner, they all follow the same line. Seen many cars on the wrong side of the road in corners so looking forward to going somewhere quieter tomorrow - probably east.

[Trinity765]

Just lost everything I just typed so here's the short version.

https://www.dangerousroads.org/europe/f ... -d918.html



Done