Cycling Spain ….

The Good

·         For much of our first 60klm day cycling, the riding conditions and views were superb, and the weather perfect.

·         The food – paella, fiduela, delicious tapas varieties (most of which we can recognise in Spanish/Catalan now, sort of), fresh grilled squid, octopus, sooooo many cheeses (queso), café con leche, croissants…Menu del dia – the 3 course menu of the day for around 7-15 Euros from most reputable (and non-reputable) restaurants… With special mention to:

·         The cheeses – Spain does a mean goat cheese, and it’s often served gratinated with honey on fresh salad with dried fruit. I’ve eaten about 12+ types of cheeses every day for weeks now, and it’s all so very good.

·         The wine. It’s too good, it’s also cheap and we’ve done our bit for tourism by consuming in abundance.

·         JB – he has not been mad at me once yet even though I’ve obviously slowed us down. A lot. He doesn’t even get mad (yet) when I panic about cars, pedestrians, hills, where the next food is etc.

·         The beaches:  Costa Brava is superb – all craggy rock faces and cliffs and blue ocean and big skies and crazy ancient church looking buildings, all under the Mediterranean sun.  No hot nude euros yet, but we’re hoping.

·         We’re getting tanned!

·         The people are all ultra friendly, ultra stylish…and extremely tolerant of our crappy Spanish, or my habit of just walking into a shop/café/restaurant and standing there in silence as I realise too late I don’t know the Spanish version of what I need to ask.

·         Our Cyclone trailers. They rock. They’re packed with 25kgs of our crap and we’ve lugged them through airports, along roads, up and down stairs, up and down kerbs, through sand and mud and they are still going strong.

·         Although JB fell off once, I’ve nearly stacked it countless times, both of us have rolled our trailers a few times, and we’ve spent many hours chasing the path or dragging the trailers through sand and up and down stairs we’ve luckily suffered no injuries or major losses yet.

The Bad

·         The hills. Cycling upwards, ever upwards, over 10klms low gradient incline (today) while dragging 40+kg (50+kg for JB) of bike, trailer and packs inside a very narrow shoulder on the edge of a long drop on a busy 4 lane highway -  while cars, motorcycles, buses and trucks whizz past – usually smirking. Today we ascended constantly for about 3-4 hours. Slowly. My knees were so angry.

·         The hills – flying downwards at a staggeringly fast 27.7klms/hour (to some this isn’t fast at all, but it feels so fast to me I wanted to throw up for most of the descents) while same trucks etc screeched past and Jamie patiently coasts along ahead at about half the speed he would like to descend at. 

·         The hills are even worse for me as I have never ridden on hills before, ever, and I sort of thought the whole cycling gig would be us coasting along (perpetually downhill) on narrow cobbled roads between smiling and waving Spaniards (or Italians, or French people), fromageries, cafes and shoe shops having 99% off sales.

·         I now look like someone who eats 12+ cheeses and two three course meals a day, after a criossant or two for brekkie – sadly three days of cycling have not yet given me the ass of a Brazilian supermodel. WTF? I’m not any taller yet either.

·         JB – for laughing at me after I  innocently cycled right into a vintage car rally where I then got my trailer stuck on the curb facing into the cars, to the horror/disgust of the policemen who were angrily blowing their whistles at me (I could tell they were cross, so I ignored them) and to the amusement of the old men strolling by who were laughing too much to help me.

·         Proudly telling my sister we’d arrived at Tossa Del Mar, 120klms out of Barcelona – only to have her laugh at me for only being 120klms out of Barcelona. After a few more days of us cycling she ‘may do a day trip via train to visit’ from when she gets back to Barcelona…whatever Egg!

·         Our campsite at Blanes – for 20 Euros we got a patch of hard dirt. No toilet paper in the toilets. No hot water (!). No internet. Our one camp power point didn’t even work. Bastards.

·         Having no hot water. Freezing cold splash shower after cycling all day = insufficient and unsatisfying.  BASTARDS.

The Ugly

·         Cycling pants – they are horrendous and uncomfortable (like a nappy) and the padding makes my fromaged-up posterior even more prominent. Jb is very cute in his which makes it even worse.

·         To vaseline or not? To knicker or not under the bike pants? How helmet-y will my hair be today? These are the dilemmas a lady on a bike faces daily.. JB goes for no knickers, with vas. I’m experimenting on the knickers front. No vaseline as yet. Ugly.

·         We rode past a gorgeous little child in a car, who put his hand out the window towards us, all excited. JB was ahead and high-fived him. I approached and his little hand was out, all hopeful and excited. As he was on my right, I had to just give him apologetic face, remembering what happened last time I took ol’ righty off the job…

 

Finally, after a month of City hopping and gorging on food and life, the cycling begins.

We had purchased our iron steeds from a bicycle shop in Barcelona and we stepped astride our Focus Whistlers. Laden with bike trailers and panniers we were carrying over 40kg each.

We used the fantastic bicycle network in Barcelona to wend our way to the old port and then, keeping the Mediterranean to our right, started up the coast.  There was a fabulous series of promenades and paths for the first 15km out of Barcelona.  We stopped for a late breakfast and coffee at Badalona, where we watched two dogs cavorting in a beachside park.

We continued on up the coast keeping to the beach paths and quieter roads.  There was an awkward part where the beach path petered out and we had to push our bikes through sand then through an underpass to get under the highway.  Then we had to carry the bikes and trailers up a flight of stairs on the other side of the highway.  That signalled lunch time!  We dined on the lunch menu at a passable seafood restaurant (including an edifying white wine) in Premia de Mar.

The afternoon's riding became more difficult.  Cassy's refusal to ride on six lane highways (how could she possibly refuse!) meant we forced our way through some narrow foot paths to negotiate a mountain pass.  And inevitably there was another stair well at the end, although at least we were carrying everything downstairs.

We had planned to camp in Arenys de Mar but we checked out a few campsites there and in the next town, Canet de Mar. They were all closed.  So we found a fabulous hostel in Canet de Mar.  I am writing this blog sitting on the balcony looking down the main street to the Mediterranean.

 We covered 55kms on our first day - more than we had planned due to the closed campsites.  Cassy was tremendous on her first day of touring - she did not complain once about the hills or the pace.  She did murmur a bit about the dodgy lunch though.  And I was bursting with excitement that the cycling adventure had finally begun!

We took our bikes with us to Kununurra over New Year's.  After spending a year cycling around Derby, the conditions in Kununurra are a delightful relief. 

There is a cycle path that runs the length of the main road from the town centre to the Ord River diversion dam.   The trip is about 5 kilometres and the day we rode there was a light rain, little wind and it was not too hot.   So we had cycled 10 kilometres by the time we arrived back in town.

We then headed around the eastern side of the lake then back into town again before heading up Kelly's Knob to the lookout just outside of town.   A hill! I excitedly took off to the summit not having the feeling of gravity working against me for over 12 months.  Cassy caught up and then we dismounted our metal steeds and took in the view from the lookout.

We then headed back to our hotel finishing with 25 kilometres under our belt.  In hindsight, we should have extended our ride to include Mirima National Park about 5 kilometres out of town.  However, we decided to save it for later in our holiday and, due to the damage we did on New Year's Eve, never quite made it. 

The full 35 kilometre ride around Kununurra taking in the diversion dam, Kelly's Knob and Mirima would be an ideal ride.  For the more adventurous, it is a 106 kilometre round trip from Kununurra to Lake Argyle and back.  This would be a perfect mix of hills and flats through the most spectacular country in the Kimberley, the only downside being the ever present threat of bogans in utes.   I would also suggest an overnight trip making use of the campsite at Lake Argle.

Downhill, Wind Behind

J

From the delightful little book "Don'ts For Husbands" which my Dad gave me for Christmas.  Cassy got "Don'ts for Wives"

P.48
"Don't think that you have of necessity done with walking or cycling tours now you are married, as you can't leave your wife and go away with you old chum.  Why not take her?  ... if she cycles, you will think less of the miles you cover than the charming villages you investigate, you will not need a better chum than she can be."

P.49
"Don't say it is no fun to go out with your wife because she can't "scorch".  It will do you no harm to ride more slowly that usual, and your company will give her a great deal of pleasure.  Her "going slow" is one of the secrets of her chances of longer life.   Take her with you, and you will avoid that overtaxing of the arteries which leads to premature old age."

Sound advice my friends.

J

The best thing about riding in Derby is that it is flat.  Real flat.

The worst five things about riding in Derby are the flies, the aging roads, the lack of understanding from local drivers, the packs of roving dogs biting at your ankles and the heat.  The next worst five things about riding in Derby are the mosquitos, the puddles, the mud, the humidity and the wandering drunks. 

There are three rides around Derby.  And all of them are out of town.

THE WHARF
The first ride is to the wharf.  It is a 7km round trip, not nearly enough to even get warmed up.  So you have to combine it with a ride to Dinner Camp, then through snob hill out the back of town and then back down the main street to the wharf again.  Despite traversing the entire town of Derby the closest you come to a rise is the slight gradient up to the water tower.  If you want to combine the ride with some hill work you have to go at low tide and ride up and down the boat ramp.

There are two routes to the wharf. 

The wharf road has a sealed shoulder for about three quarters of the way back.  There is night lighting.  Expect the odd ute or four wheel drive to close in rapidly from behind and decide that a metre doesn't matter on the way past.  

The pedestrian path to the wharf is part mud, part gravel, part sand, part footbridge.  It is completely impassable in the wet and completely dark after sundown. 

The best thing about the wharf ride is the wharf.  It is the most beautiful scene in Derby and a ride passing the wharf at sunset brings its own rewards.

Rating : - Flat Tyre

OUT OF DERBY VIA THE GIBB RIVER ROAD
The only other way out of town you would want to take your bicycle is the Gibb River Road.  You can take the Highway out of town towards Broome but the threat of regular 50 metre long road trains is enough to turn off even the most daredevil cyclist.

The Gibb River Road is 700km, most of it unsealed, so you aren't going to cover it all in a day ride from Derby.  It is a challenging off road ride for the committed.  Once a year the Police organise the Gibb River Ride which is a supported ride for mountain bike teams.   Check out Gibb River Challenge

The Gibb River Road is a one lane sealed carriageway for 100kms out of Derby and we have covered the first 40kms of the road.  It is uneventful to say the least.  There are no towns, buildings, vistas, rivers or lakes to look at.  The road is largely flat until the 20km mark when the road turns up slightly and then keeps going up at the same gradient for about 20kms.  Because it's Derby, the fact there is a gradient is a little exciting. 

On one of our GRR rides Cassy broke her arm.  You should ask her about it.

Usually the road is fairly deserted and you can ride for 20kms without seeing another vehicle.  The road is only one vehicle wide and because other vehicles are few and far between we tend to ride two abreast and take up most of the road.   On one ride a ute came driving up behind Cassy and I at the speed limit which is 110 kmh.  They didn't slow down or beep their horn and we were forced to scatter either side of the road in the few seconds we had before they roared between us.  Scary times.

Rating: - Flat Tyre

THE MUD FLATS
During the dry season, when there hasn't been rain or a king tide for at least a fortnight you can ride out of town on the mudflats.  The best ride is past Dinner Camp, past the airport and then on towards the lagoon.  Rumour has it that you can ride as for as the 20km lagoon which is a beatiful setting, but we never found it.

Not much to report about the ride.  If the mudflats are dry and firm then a mountain bike will cruise along without sticking.  But any hint of dampness and you will feel the pull of the mud.

Obviously there are no hills on the mudflats.

Be sure to wear insect repellant as the sandflies and mosquitos are deadly at dawn, dusk and most of the rest of the day around the mangroves.  And make sure you are back by dark because that is when the king brown snakes come out and the bogans like to race drunk around the mudflats in their utes.

The best thing about this ride is that it is not the other two rides in Derby.  And the sunsets are beautiful.  But you get that on the wharf ride anyway!

Rating: - No Seat

In this blog we will review riding conditions on some of the rides we have undertaken.

We will review the rides from the perspective of an experienced rider looking to "scorch" with their "chums" as well as from the perspective of the more dignified cyclist.

We will rate the rides on the following scale from the fabulous rides to the forgettable.

No chain (as in, the riding is so majestic that it feels like you don't have a chain)
Downhill, wind behind
Flat and friendly
Rolling hills
Flat tyre
No seat