01-04-17, 02:22 AM
(04-12-16, 06:30 PM)Hedgetrimmer link Wrote: Yeah Paul, was thinking ferry to Santander or Bilbao, maybe back through France; not decided on that bit yet. What time of year did you do it? I'd like to see the mountains still with some snow on them, but want to avoid summer heat and traffic, so hoping things might be ok from late April?
We went from Santander, out through the hills to Pamplona and on Jaca (some fantastic roads once away from the coastal industrial sprawl) for our first overnight stop - stayed at the Hotel Real). It was a lovely town and is right at the foot of the Pyrenees. Heading over the hills, the roads are spectacular, both wide and flowing and narrow and extremely twisty, with serious drop-offs at the side of the road (also riding under rock overhangs that you think will fall on your head). Heading towards Lourdes from Jaca takes you right through the heart of the ski areas (no snow when we there though, it was mid August). Our second night we stopped in Carcassonne - what a fabulous place - stayed at the Hotel Montmorency - what a place for perfect access to the walled city. Stayed there for a couple of nights, brilliant location, lovely atmosphere, they loved bikes/touring riders.
Then headed over to the Millau bridge - awesome roads there and fantastic roads around the area of the bridge, climbing up the valley sides - after a couple of hours riding around, going over the bridge 3 times (worth it) we eventually headed north and stayed up near Limoges before heading to Mont St Michel for a couple of days before getting a ferry back from Le Havre.
Great places, great roads, great scenery. We'll defo do it again some time.