2 MID-LIFE CYCLISTS IN A MOTORHOME: July 2019

Driving through the Pyrenees

Barcelona

3rd July. We spent the first two days of July just relaxing and enjoying our new environment. We did a short ride in to Granollers yesterday which involved two short but steep hills which was enough in the extreme heat. We also checked out the location of the station as today we had planned a day in Barcelona. We have never stopped to explore the city before because of the reputation of it being unsafe to leave a motorhome unattended so it was nice to be staying in a location where we could get the train in to the city and enjoy a full day there. The train tickets were only €3.50 each way and took a little over 30 minutes.

Montjuic Castle

Although there is a very good network of trams and the hop on/ hop off buses we ignored these and instead walked the length and breadth of the city on foot heading first to the Castle de Montjuïc near the marina so that we could climb the steps before it became too hot. We then explored the Gothic Quarter and walked Las Ramblas up to the Plaça de Catalunya. We found a great little restaurant so that we could rest our feet and enjoy the menu del dia. We always try to find the places frequented by locals as this is usually a sign of good food and good value and this place didn't disappoint. The meal included a drink so I opted for a vino tinto (red wine) and got a shock when I was given a whole carafe to myself.

La Sagrada Familia

It's not often I leave any drink but on this occasion I sensibly settled for 2 glasses with my meal and left the rest as we still had a lot of exploring to do. Using our tourist map we visited all the main sites in Barcelona and saved the Basilica de la Sagrada Familia until last. It really is an amazing sight and the whole area around it was packed with thousands of tourists. I managed to get some really nice photos before we called it a day and headed back to the station. We had really enjoyed the city but it was so hot that we were looking forward to getting back and having a swim to cool off.

5th July. After our hectic day in Barcelona we opted for a quiet day yesterday. We collected some fruit from the trees and then I made some lemon curd using the enormous fresh lemons we had just picked and the lovely fresh eggs that the chickens were laying. Glynn was pottering in the garden as he likes to be busy and is always looking for things to do. He decided to sweep the pathways and hose them down where the chickens had left their mess but unfortunately the chickens were following him around so as fast as he was clearing up the mess they were leaving fresh poo on the paths which I found hilarious.

Barcelona Balconies

Having chickens is not a good option for someone with OCD. It was still extremely hot every day, hitting around 40° so we did some route planning as we needed to be heading to the coast where it would be cooler hopefully. Today the owners came back from their holiday so it was time for us to move on. We had really enjoyed the house-sit and they were a really lovely family. We could now add experience of taking care of chickens to our profile and hopefully look forward to some more interesting house-sits further afield. We headed to a dairy farm near Girona that had created a small camperstop on their land and chilled for the rest of the day as it was too hot to cycle.

7th July. Yesterday we drove to Bellcaire d'Empordà to a lovely camperstop we had stayed at before. They had added a small dipping pool since we had last stayed there which was going to be very welcome in this heat. It was a great location for cycling as it wasn't too hilly so we got the bikes out and did a lovely 35km loop. It was much cooler now we were nearer the coast and was only 32°. Today we decided to venture out again and did a bigger 46km loop that took us close to the coast on the way back and the lovely sea breeze. We spent the rest of the afternoon cooling off in the pool and then watched the highlights of the first stage of the Tour de France. It was going to be an interesting race with poor Chris Froome out of the equation after his serious crash so Geriant Thomas would no doubt be hoping for his second yellow jersey win.

Céret

8th July. This morning we crossed the border back in to France and headed to a lovely little municipal campsite at Céret. It had become very muggy and there was forecast of a storm which would hopefully clear the air. We enjoyed a lovely 5 mile walk to the supermarket for some groceries and then spent the rest of the day relaxing inside as the much needed rain finally arrived.

10th July. As the rain continued throughout yesterday making it impossible to get the bikes out we decided to move on and enjoyed a beautiful scenic ride through the Pyrenees to a lovely campsite at Artigat. Today normal sunshine had been restored but without the excessive heat we had been experiencing in Spain so we decided to cycle to Pamiers. As we were now just outside of the Pyrenees the terrain was more gently undulating than mountainous so it was a very pleasant and scenic 50km ride.

Donkeys near Artigat

Whereas I'm a sucker for a cow photo Glynn has a soft spot for donkeys so when we cycled past a field full of them he couldn't resist stopping to get his photo taken. Pamiers had little to interest us so after the requisite coffee break we cycled back. There was a rather nice swimming pool awaiting us back at the campsite and we had the highlights of second stage of the Tour de France to watch on TV.

11th July. This morning we cycled to Le Fossat to get some shopping taking the scenic route through a lovely little village called Carla Bayle. It was so pretty that once we'd done the shopping and taken it home we set off on the bikes again and headed back to the village. It was a much hillier route than the day before with a couple of real short but steep climbs. The village itself was on a hill so that also involved a very steep climb as we reached the centre. The beauty of its lofty position meant that it offered fantastic views over the surrounding countryside and it looked down on a lovely lake and fields of sunflowers.

Lake near Carla-Bayle

After exploring the very pretty centre we headed towards the lake but as it meant a very steep descent down to the shore we opted instead to admire the views from the main road before cycling past the fields of sunflowers and heading back to relax for the afternoon.

13th July. After a lazy day yesterday we decided to cycle to Le Mas d'Azil today. It's a lovely area that we were familiar with as we had stayed there to watch a stage of the Tour de France back in 2014. The route took us back in to the Pyrenees national park which by default meant hills!!

Entrance to the cave at Le Mas d'Azil

We did a long sweeping descent at one point with a gradient of 11° briefly so I wasn't particularly looking forward to the return ride. At Le Mas d'Azil the road climbs gently up through the village and then leads to a prehistoric cave, La Grotte du Mas d'Azil. Part of the cave forms an impressive tunnel where the river Arize has cut a path through it. The main road from the village shadows the River Arize as it passes through it. As we cycled through the cave it suddenly felt very cold and it was hard to see in the dark but the tunnel is only 500 metres long so we were soon out the other side and back in to sunshine. The cave has an incredible history showing remains of human usage dating back over 30,000 years and is classed as one of the major sites within the Pyrenees. There are immense cavities that you can explore but as we hadn't got bike locks with us we settled for admiring the inside of the tunnel and the lovely views from outside.

Le Mas d'Azil

It is only €9 to access the caves and the museum so I guess we'll have to return another year with our bike locks. After a coffee stop we headed back to tackle the really long steep climb that was between us and our campsite and much to my delight I made it (just) without having to stop. Definitely time to chill and watch the days stage of the TDF.

14th July. A day of celebrations for several reasons. Lewis Hamilton won the Grand Prix, England won the Cricket World Cup and it was Bastille day in France so after a lovely scenic 35km ride around the area we enjoyed an evening of campsite entertainment and a lovely firework display.

Aire at Objat

16th July. After leaving the lovely campsite at Artigat yesterday we were now parked up on a nice little Aire at Objat which had pleasant widely spaced pitches and all the facilities needed for €7.75 a night. Bargain!! This morning we set off on the bikes to explore the area but only managed a 33km ride as many of the roads in the area were in shocking condition with dangerous potholes and uneven surfaces. This meant we had to cycle much slower and keep our eye on the road all the time which took some enjoyment out of the ride. It was a shame as I think the area has some nice cycling routes so hopefully the local council there has plans to resurface some of the roads soon!!

17th July. Today we drove to La Roche aux Moines. It was a lovely old French house that was being run as a B&B by an English couple. We found out about them through the Mind My House site and they had invited us to stop for a night to introduce ourselves as we hope to be able to help them out in the future when they need someone to mind the house while they are in England.

Sunflowers in France

They had a French guest staying who was a very keen cyclist so we enjoyed watching the highlights of the TDF together whilst conversing in our best franglaise!! With the Frenchman Alaphillipe still holding the yellow jersey he was delighted and convinced it was going to be a French win this year (as it turned out Alaphillipe did well and held on to the yellow jersey for another 8 days until he finally got knocked off the top spot just 2 stages from the end by our very own Egan Bernal for Team Ineos who went on to be the first Colombian to win the title). The evening was spent enjoying a lovely meal together sitting round their large kitchen table and chatting in a mixture of French and English and learning all about each other.

19th July. After a mammoth drive yesterday we were able to board the Eurotunnel today and finish our journey home. As always it had been a fantastic trip. We are going to be very busy over the summer as we have a carpenter booked to fit new internal doors and lay flooring so we need to get motivated and finish decorating the lounge and hallway. We have booked on a lovely 5 night rally away in the motorhome in the New Forest in 3 weeks time with Motorhome Fun Club and as Jan and Paul are also members they are joining us. Hopefully we'll be able to do some great cycling as it's such a beautiful area and we also plan on doing a day trip to the Isle of Wight. We have all our friends and family to catch up with too so lots to look forward to before we get ready to leave again at the end of September.