Oh my gody guys and girls. I am beyond hyped right now, two days into riding the Pyrenees west to east.
I started my pyrenees route yesterday from St. Jean de Luz on the atlantic coast. I thought road cycling was popular in spain, but here in this french town - and i'm trying to be accurate here - i saw about a hundred roadies riding out into the mountains this morning. Crazy.
It is a beautiful sunny saturday, i feel like it's the first really warm day while i am cycling on this trip, it's 25° - which was basically the temperature i expected all along. The route for the day would take me over two smaller passes, but starting from sea level it's still a lot to climb. First pass is the Puerto de Oxtondo, it's not very spectacular and has some traffic, totally forgot about motorbikers. On the way to the pass i cross into spain, the downhill is sweet and at some point i turn east to climb up the Izpegiko or Col d'Ispeguy, a border pass after which i'll be back on the french side of the basque country. That one is much nicer, hardly any traffic. A guy touring with a cargo bike comes zipping down as i climb up, waving happily. On top of the pass is a bar, i have a drink, then sit on the grass to eat a banana and some cookies and enjoy the view. There's horses around and one cute baby horse comes up to me, i pet it a bit and it keeps demanding more. It starts to nibble on my tshirt. I try to hush it away, it's been hanging around for a while. Then it starts to nibble on my forkbag. Eventually it lets go of my stuff and licks the cylinders of a motorbike. Horses i guess.
About to descend the Izpegiko
Downhill is gorgeous and i roll into St Jean Pied de Port, a major starting town for the camino crowd. I check in on the municipal campsite, whole bunch of cycle tourers there (hikers too), i assume most of them are doing the camino too. I go into town to eat at a bar and befriend an american guy, we decide to share a table, he was also waiting for a free table. He is going to start walking the camino the next day.
Back in my tent i plan my route for the next day, as i have already went off the track i had originally planned.
I start right in time to when the carrefour supermarket opens, i buy food for 2 and a half days because it seems like i won't pass anything really. Turns out i just had the food type poi's disabled in my navigation app.
It is going to be 17° and cloudy today, but the wind isn't cold so it feels kinda good. I'll be heading into the Irati forest. As i'm riding towards my first climb there's a sign that says col d'iraty 17 km at 5.7 %. That sounds alright. My plan is to ride only about two thirds of it, then go onto what looks like a hiking track, then do a little river crossing onto a mountainbike route. A sign comes up 17.5 km to the col, next 500m will average 11%. I guess that'll only make the rest a bit milder. But it turns out the whole climb isn't very even and i started a climb that will average almost 10% for the next 9km. If i had had a look at the grades yesterday evening, i'm sure i'd have found a different route. The climb is really moody and cloudy, but i still enjoy it, there's a whole lot of vultures dipping in and out of the clouds, which looks amazing, very calm climb too, just a few roadies and a couple RVs.
Climbing up the Burdinkurutxetako
The climb has some kind of pre-pass, it goes by the snappy name "Burdinkurutxetako", it is basically where the steep section ends and i will turn onto the hiking track. It is super beautiful forest, i ride along the creek. There comes a section that looked like hike-a-bike, but i am able to "ride" down, walking speed and one foot on the ground kinda. Then i am at the river crossing. I gues this is the first actual river crossing i did. Water is above knee high in parts. There are diagonal rocky furrows in parts that look super sketchy, all the rocks are covored with algae too. I find a spot with hardly any furrows, do a test walk to the other side. It's pretty damn slippery and the current kinda strong. I decide to carry over bags and bike seperately. I bring two bags at once, i think having one hand free could be helpful. Last i bring over the bike, which is way easier.
About to cross. There is a big toad hidden in this picture, i guess it's really hard to find, whoever finds it will get an upvote
I don't know if the it was the right call to cross the river 7 times (incl. test walk) or if i should have just gone with the complete bike. Maybe the current would have been worse with the bags, but it felt really stable with the bike as an extra post. While i'm fooling around with my crap by the river, the sun comes out. On the other side of the river is a picnic table and i eat some waffles and try to let my sandals dry. River crossing was also a border crossing, i am back on the spanish side now.
Then i get onto the mtb track, which is really a gravel road. It gets cloudy again, and i ride a climb way into the clouds, then a real fun downhill out of the clouds, then climb back into the clouds again. On top of the climb is a hikers bar, open on the weekend. I drink a coke on the terrasse, which should have a fantastic view but it's all in the clouds. The plan is to go like some 20km more, but fiddling around with my phone i see that there's a refugio just 2km further up a road. It is a bit early, but the sun breaks through the clouds again, i can see into the mountains and think that would be real sweet. The clouds move real fast, i get a view for 20 seconds and then it's all just fog again. And then a view again. I order two beers at the bar, one of them to go, some crisps and another bottle of water. The bar closes at 6, i ride up up to the refugio and get a glimpse of really great views and i start to get super fucking high on my trip. Cycle touring is the best.
The refugio is again a bit shoddy, but i place a chair outside of it, sheltered from the wind and eat some crisps, drink the other beer, watch birds of preyg, enjoy the view and start writing a post for lemmy.
Chilling at the refugio
At 8 o'clock i am covered in clouds, the wind picks up and it gets cold, but in the refugio it's warm, someone has made a fire here today, the warmth comes from the fireplace. I cook some pasta, then some tea, have a look outside but it's still all clouds.
I am sending this the day after, there was no connection in the refugio. Morning was still all clouds, but i descended out of them already. On the descend i remembered what i wanted to buy last week at Decathlon in Pamplona: Gloves.
![](https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/43b5983d-7cec-45fb-9efe-517f67d53326.jpeg)
I wake up to rain, but it stops and i get to start with a dry tent. Will be the last pass of the popular pass chain, the col de peyresourde. I sit down in a cafe for breakfast and then buy a map of pyrenees midi. I was envious of the south tirolians map. I really like having a map, i had been thinking of buying a pyrenees map before, but it would have been three maps to cover it all so i didn't.
The climb is calm, even though it's the weekend, but there are some motor bike gangs, they all are coming towards me though, they obviously start their pass chain from here. The pass has a sweet col cafe. 12 crêpes for 7€, haha. Deal. Also two sweet dogs up here, client dogs.
A super nice downhill, there's paragliders around. I roll into Bagnères-de-Luchon, nice little town. I sit down at a cafe by the market square. It starts raining again. My app says it's gonna rain all day. I chat with a guy about the weather, the best pizzeria in town and other important topics. Really liking the vibe of the people here, very relaxed on this saturday. I check in on "camping des thermes", 8€, usb charging station, super nice hostesse. And as i have set up my tent i make friends with one of the campsites cats. That was so amazing. I just hang out and get to sleep late.
I sleep long and levae the campsite around eleven, head back to the market place cafe and then start heading over to spain again via the col du portillon. Pretty steep, i did not expect that, but it's short and calm for a sunday. Not much view on the climb, mostly in trees, but on the downhill are some nice panoramas. In Bossòst i eat sone tortilla and think abou my options. Weather app says drizzle all day, but it's not drizzeling, just cloudy. I was feeling lazy today, but i wonder if i should still make another big climb to over 2000m, there'd be a refugio there which looks located really good.
I ride the main road towards Arrós, go into a hotel restaurant to buy some water and drink a coke. I chat with the receptionist about the weather, it looks like it's not going too bad and the clouds seem hanging quite high. So i will do the climb. I walk through the lobby super cool with my shades on and run into a glass door as i try to exit, haha. My glasses pinch my nose and i'm bleeding. The receptionist gives me some ice and paper, all worried about my wellbeing. I sit on the terrasse of the hotel until the bleeding stops, which takes annoyingly long. On the way out i take extra care to not run into the door again.
Right from the hotel the climb starts. Small asphalt road but it gets really steep. I really need to start checking the grades more. Although all the steep climbs were really worth it too. At some point i turn onto smooth gravel and then turn onto a chunky gravel road that should take me up to the refugio. I get those lonely vibes again, there's nobody around. I get all calm and just look into the moody mountains as i keep climbing up.
At some point i make it to the peek of the climb, there is even a small patch of snow that i ride throu, it has narrow snow free tracks that i can pass though. There is some sun coming through a bit on the other side, looks amazing. On the descend i pass a bunch of horses standing criss cross ob the road. They freak me out, just standing there all static. But they don't attempt to kick me, phew. Bit further down i get blown away by the views and it is just a km away from the refugio.
I see the refugio and get super excited, this is the jackpot. I ride a single track with loads of horse and cow shit to the refugio, but it is locked. Fuck. I look around the hills for a nice camp spot but it's just cow shit and mud really. I look on the map and see that there's another refugio about 10km away. It has a description on osm, so surely that one would work. But it adds another good climb, i'll descend and then go back up to almost 1900m. Fuck it, let's do it.
Climb is chunky gravel and really tough. On the last bit i would be led onto the main road but i decide to just push my bike the last km up some single track instead. I am done with cycling for the day. It's already getting dark and cloud dust sets in.
Refugio feels cold and shoddy, it has a bunk bed without mattresses but i rather sleep on the floor. I turn my phone camera in selfie mode, my nose looks terrible but it's just blood smear from wearing sunglasses. Just a tiny cut. I'm cooking some pasta and a sound freaks me out, either a bat or a bird must be living in this refugio. Wing flapping sounds. I later see that it's a bird, does a whole lot of flapping in the chimney, i guess it's also freaked out. I like having the bird around better than bats. I thankfully can sleep without interruption, hope the bird as well.
In the morning the refugio seems a lot more friendly and appealing, sun comes through the window. As i am snoozing the bird starts flying around inside the refugio. I don't know why it won't leave through the chimney, that must be what it always does since the door was closed. Maybe my bike is in the way or it's too scared to come close to me. I get up and open the door for the bird and it flies out. I leave the door open and cook coffee after coffee, writing this diary, sunshine and blue skies outside. The bird comes flying through the chimney again and leaving through the door. I will leave it's home in a minute.
Route
*edit: i had a search through "birds of the pyrenees", it was an alpine sparrow. I had seen these already on top of the tourmalet pass.
Just some more pics of the last days without all the blabla
Route up to yesterday
On top of the last climb of the pyrenees section yesterday evening. Going to roll down 40km to perpignan when i get up, maybe hit the coast. Need to make a plan for where to go next, got nothing yet.
Camping Municipal in La Bastide just below the Coll costs 4€ (+ each 5 min of hot shower 1€), cheapest site i've been to.
Route
I saw your cat pic yesterday and I just thought that your air mat may be damaged.
But from your refugio post today I think that it is fine ;-)
I was actually thinking it's still early, i am on a campsite, i'll be able to fix it, i need this cat in my tent right now :)
Guess i got lucky all around there.