Col de la Core on a sunny day

Today is our final day of training here in the lower Pyrenees.  Tomorrow we move further into the mountains and start to tick off our bucket list of famous climbs to do over the remaining 6 weeks.

The day was going to be warm with 20 degrees temperatures, a big change from earlier in the week.  The climb is 13.5km in length with an altitude at 1395 metres.  Our accommodation is around 400 metres so we will climb about 1000 metres and has an average of 6.6% grade.  

We gain elevation quickly on the narrow tiny road, just wide enough for one car, but luckily there is few. 

Before too long, I'm hot, the sun is beating down on my back and I pull over to remove my under layer. It is sparsely populated, cows with bells adorn the steep paddocks that drop off the side of the road,  the countryside is very green and gorgeous. 

I'm feeling good, as I make my way up the hill.  I don't know where the boys are behind me and I start to wonder if I am on the right road.  David is usually right on my tail.  I don't stop for photo's, choosing to keep my cadence smooth and steady.

At some point, the vegetation changes to a mixture of tall pine and birch trees and the canopy of shade is appreciated.  I squirt water down my back to stay cool.  Its interesting, in the shade of the canopy, there are these black slugs that make their way across the road, so you have to watch you don't run over them.  They're about the width of your hands and fat.  

Vehicles have obviously run over some so you are left with this huge pile of what looks like, snot. Yellowy greenish shiny muck, so best not to run over them on your bike.  Only in the shade though. While I continue to wonder where the boys are, I look up and see the road high above me, errrgh.....I have a way to go.  I see the high Pyrenees mountains now, snow covered but obviously melting in the heat, as at almost every corner there is a waterfall.  Water everywhere.  

Just when I'm starting to hurt, the back is screaming 'thats enough for now' I ride around a big sweeping bend and the vegetation is now more alpine, reminding me of Koscuiszko.  Trees have thinned out and it's more rocky.  I see the top and get a surge of adrenaline, pain disappears (funny that) and I feel good again.


Walkers, cyclist's and motorbikes at the top enjoying the wonderful sunshine, little breeze and fabulous views.  We can almost see in the distance, the border with Spain in the snow covered mountains. After a wonderful lunch of bread, ham and cheese, I go off to find a tree, they're scarce up here.  (I look up the spelling of scarce, not common or abundant, so you understand my dilemma?) 

The ride down the other side is wonderful, wide sweeping bends, smooth tarmac, very little traffic, through gorgeous little French villages.  This pruned avenue of trees was interesting, branches tied together with wire in the centre, not sure what they were, but they must provide a great canopy of shade in summer. We stop to grab a coffee to give us a little boost, as we are about to hit another climb, the Col de Portech.




This climb was tuff, hot, in the sun, up and over saddles on tiny back roads.  I look back now that I've had a long hot shower and a wonderful three course meal and say it was great, amazing even but at the time, it was pretty shit.  Shorter in length but much harder.  Definitely glad when the final saddle came into view.  Not as many people here, but the views were just a stunning. We were all tired by now, Bob was suffering from hamstring cramps, 75km's in and had about 15 to go.


We stick together and head down, the long flat road back to the accommodation was the hardest mentally.
That Fanta was gone in what felt like a second.  Great day.


















Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cycling into the Abyss

Image
Absolutely fantastic route today. We jump on the train for a 20 minute ride north, to Figures, our route starting point and head towards Port de la Selva and Roses, sitting on the edge of the Mediterrean sea, surrounded by the mountains of Cap de Creus National Park.   To get to the NP, we have a flat 20km ride through old villages and farmlands, the first livestock we have encountered on this trip, jersey cows and horses.  Lots of them, so it is quite unpleasant on the nose, I mean really, really smelly.  So fertile. Before long, we enter the NP and the road heads upwards.  Our climb to the top is 7km's long with an average of 6.1% and it's hot.  Jersey unzipped to keep the bod cooler, road surface is excellent with an even gradient, so rhythm is easily set. No traffic.  Before too long, we start seeing wonderful views, looking down onto the patchwork of farmlands, we have left behind. It's beautiful and amazing to see how far we have climbed. As we rise t...
Read more

Hello Girona and the 'Best Bike Shop' ever

Image
After an epic travel day, which started at 6am departing our apartment in the dark to board a bus to Alicante Airport, for a flight to Barcelona, then caught the fast train, to the city of Girona, arriving at 6pm.   It was a long day, travelling the length of the entire country as we have now planted ourselves near the border with France. We spent a week here in 2024 and loved the area so much, just had to return. But we are wiser this time, instead of being close to the old city, where the conjestion is horrendous, we are 100 metres from the Railway station, a 15 minute walk to the old city, but the big advantage is, access to routes is far easier, local cafe's are super cheap and I got a hair cut for 20 Euro, bargin. Biggest change, was the temperature and weather.  Cool and wet.  We woke to rain our first day so made the call to chill, sleep, stock up on supplies and visit the old town (and get wet). Rain predicted again so our first ride was intentionally kept short. ...
Read more

Fan bloody tastic route

Image
Clear sunshine greeted us this morning, so the route we chose yesterday is good to go. We have every intention to be out the door by 7.30am but Dave is always slow to get going.......... I'm biting at the bit. We have 104km to ride today, through lush forest, up gentle climbs to access our main climb of the day and a test of the legs, 24km in length with an average of 3% with a maximum of 7%, so not hard in terms of steepness, but its long. Before we hit the main climb though, the route is flowing up and down, through lush forest's, bushwalking sign posts dot the side of the road, as we spy large, limestone peaks in the near distance.  Temps are cool which makes for great riding.  The main climb begins just outside the little town of Angles, and it's stunning. The road runs alongside the thundering Tar river, full of rapids and waterfalls, old stone arched bridges through a narrow long gorge with dense forest on either side.  'Robin Hood' country, Dave says as we ri...
Read more