Spain (all)

Vom 20. bis 28. Februar umrundeten wir die Insel Teneriffa und weil es uns so gut gefiel, radelten wir für ein paar weitere Tage auf der Nachbarinsel La Gomera! Wir erlebten abwechslungsreiche Landschaften, viele schweißtreibende Kilometer berauf, das relaxte Leben einer Hippie-Kommune am Strand und ein Intermezzo mit Lance Armstrong. Diese und viele andere Impressionen sind in unserem Kanaren-Reisebericht nachzulesen...

Nach einigen Recherchen standen zwei mögliche Ziele fest: Mallorca oder die Kanaren. Favorit unter den kanarischen Inseln war Teneriffa. Sie ist größte Insel und bietet die tolle Auffahrt zum 4000 Meter hohem Teide, Spaniens höchstem Berg.

I'm at one of those grave intellectual impasses that have been known to bring even greater minds than my own to a standstill. I have an orphan sock. Trivia, you say. Ha! I think not.

The cause of this problem is surely the work of that Slovakian KGB Agent, foolishly disguised as a laundress in Svolen. She stole it, I'm sure. Probably for a DNA sample to impress her superiors in Bratislava. They've been following my every move since the kustoms agent in Warsaw asked me the purpose of my visit to Poland. When I answered ``vacation'' the disbelief on his face gave him away. What, doesn't anyone go to Poland on vacation?

But back to the real problem, the orphan sock. The purists among cycle tourists would say, ``Throw it away, it's excess baggage. And while you're at it, cut three inches off that over-long toothbrush handle.'' But the Calvinist in me says, ``Save it. It's a good sock, nearly new.'' I've already reduced the weight of my baggage by losing its mate. Maybe I'll lose another and be back to even and lighter still.

Web personal en la que comparto mis experiencias en el uso de la bicicleta y la información sobre viajes de cicloturismo que tengo o preparo. Consejos para el uso tanto como medio de transporte habitual como medio de disfrute ocasional.

La Asociación VIA VICENTIUS VALENTIAE está recuperando el CAMINO DE SAN VICENTE MARTIR, un camino histórico de Huesca a Valencia para senderistas y ciclistas que rememora los pasos del santo, cuando en el siglo IV fue apresado en Zaragoza junto al Obispo Valero por los soldados romanos enviados por el Cónsul Daciano y trasladado a Valencia para sufrir martirio ante la negativa a renunciar a su fe. Así la difusión del conocimiento de este hecho provocó en los siglos siguientes una corriente de peregrinaciones desde toda Europa hasta Valencia para visitar los restos del mártir en San Vicente de la Roqueta, convirtiéndose este fenómeno en algo muy anterior a las peregrinaciones medievales a Santiago de Compostela.

Un viaje en bicicleta siguiendo los paises que rodean el mar mediterraneo, hasta turquia, y paso de georgia y azerbayan saltando el mar caspio a kajhastan y desde alli hasta los juegos olimpicos de pekin 08, atravesando uzbekistan, kyrsjystan y china desde el oeste hacia el este, un viaje de 6 meses de duracion que acaba de comenzar y se puede seguir en la pagina web www.carabancheltobeijing08.com un viaje en solitario recorriendo la antigua ruta de la seda y como fin unos juegos olimpicos, que viento nos empuje en nuestras pedaladas!

This is a brief description of our tandem tour in Andalousia(Spain). We did cycle for nine days, visisted the main cities (Seville, Granada, Cordoba) and combined bicycle with train.

Here is a trip that takes me to places I have dreamed about for 35 years. Mountains, Glaciers, Volcanoes and Easter Island.

Now includes my 2007 tour of Australia.

In 2007 I and the tourmate of mine, Peter Riskó planned cycling in the Pyrenees. The tourist version of the RAID PYRENEEN seemed to be ideal for us. It is 790 kms long, has ca. 18000m heightdifference with 28 cols and we had 10 days for it. Before starting the Raid Pyreneen, we spent 4-5 days in the Pyrenees, in Andorra and visited such climbs as Port Cabus (2300 m), Port d'Envalira (2408 m) and enjoyed the Tour de France feeling. We had fantastic memories at Cirque Gavernie and then in the valley of Cirque Troumouse, where we saw waterfals, and small clouds coming up from the bottom of the valley not much before sunset. I enjoyed very much the legendary climbs of the Pyrenees as the hard (11% for 4 kms) Col du Marie Blanque, Col d'Aubisque, Col du Tourmalet... which we waited very much. With a little bit clouds around us the surroundings of the col was so fantastic which made the Col du Tourmalet one of the most memorable col for me through my 15 years bicycling.

The second half of the Raid went through lower mountains, but we had Col de Mente and Portet d'Aspet, Port de Pailheres as legends. It was a good feeling, that we cycled where famous bicycleracers climbed a few decades before us. Our last day was memorable again with the beautiful Col de Garavel, the mediterranean Col du Palomere with the sight for the sea and the last 20kms along the sea through a few tourist village.

Planète D. is our volunteering and filming world tour on the tandem bike. It’s that simple.

We cycle.
We film, edit and share videos.
We volunteer for NGOs.

A six-day tour through the hills and plains of southern Spain. 544km cycled, stopping over in Antequera, Castro del Rio, Fuencaliente, Ciudad Real and Toledo.

This tour was a baptism of heat and hills through the olive groves north of Malaga, giving way to cooler weather, stunning landscapes and beautiful plains as we neared Madrid.

My first tour without a firm objective. I knew I wanted to start from my front door and meet up with my family somewhere in the Ardèche. Barcelona seemed like a reasonable intermediate destination, but the rest was pretty much à la carte.

The resulting -less thorough than usual- planning was noticeable, as the route featured more major roads than I would normally prefer, and even turned around and bit me on the day two when I needed a train to complete the second half of the route.

However, there were still plenty of opportunities to bask in the quality of the French road network and many pleasant surprises, as towns I had given scant regard while planning the route turned out to be fantastic places to visit.

Euskal Herriko itzulia / The tour around the basque country / La vuelta al País Vasco / Le tour au Pays Basque

Read about my adventures by bicycle around the world,taking in Europe, the Near East, India, South East Asia, Australasia, and the USA on Route 66.

For something a little less ambitious, I have prepared details of a three-week tour of the beautiful landscapes of central Portugal.

Or if you prefer a central base and some day rides, read about my routes on the Spanish island of Mallorca - a cyclist's paradise, with warm weather, flat hinterland, stunning mountain climbs, and huge ice-creams!

Starting in the south-east UK we took the ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao, travelling south west across Spain towards Portugal. We wanted to find out whether we wanted to live in Portugal - after staying there for a month, the answer turned out to be no, but we had a great trip all the same, encountering beautiful mountain scenery in northern Spain and challenging hills (and drivers!) in the Portuguese Douro region.

The page contains travelogues and pictures from a number of bike trips across Europe, Ontario (Canada) as well as Kansai and Kanto regions of Japan. The trip across European continent has entries written from the road and together with photos it provides the description of the trip day by day. The trips across Japan give a lot of information about local areas (places to camp, onsens, roads, what to see, etc.) as well as many photos. There is also some general information on cycling, wild camping and hiking in Japan. Hope it will help.

A 9 day circular tour from Ávila (train to/from Madrid) on quiet roads through great scenery.

From Ávila, a long day westwards put us to within easy reach of the natural park of Las Butecas - Sierra de Francia, with some great cycling. Interesting mountain villages such as Mogarraz and La Alberca were followed by a climb over the Peña de Francia and a long descent to the delightful historic town of Ciudad Rodrigo.

Heading south from Ciudad Rodrigo got us to our primary objectives, the Sierra de Gata and Las Hurdes areas of northern Extremadura. The journey westwards took us along the northern boundary of the Sierra de Gredos before returning to Ávila.

Late December, we left cold Holland to cycle in the sunny south of Spain. We made a tour through the Alpujarras, around the famous Sierra Nevada and along the Costa Tropical. You can see some pictures and our comments.

Rond oud & nieuw 2006 - 2007 fietsten we een week in het zonnige zuiden van Spanje. Vanuit Granáda fietsten we naar de Alpujarras, rond de Sierra Nevada en vervolgens richting en langs de Costa Tropical naar Málaga. In bijna 500 kilometer zagen we bergen, sneeuw, sinaasappelbomen, olijfbomen, cactussen, half-woestijn, bos, zee, strand en vooral: véél zon!

We're Andrew & Friedel Grant - two Canadians who, after living in the UK for 6 years, have set off to travel the world by bicycle. We had no previous bike touring experience when we began, having really only gotten into cycling at the start of 2006, and when we say we ``got into cycling'' that means short commutes to work along flat cycle paths and the odd day trip, that usually ended up at the pub. We're still not quite certain how that translated into the situation where Friedel said ``hey, let's bike around the world'' and Andrew said ``sure, why not''. The first leg of our tour was in Canada, then through Europe to Morocco. We will keep cycling around the world; hopefully next towards eastern Europe and the Middle East.

I enjoyed a marvellous bike trip from Alicante (South Spain) back to Switzerland. Three high points I wanted to visit. First; the country of ``Don Quijote'' in Castilla y Mancha. Second; ``El Escorial'' west of Madrid. Third; ``the bridge over the river Tarn'' in South France, build of the English star architect Norman Forster. I avoided busy roads as much as possible and enjoyed the quiet side streets, especial along the Pyrenees.

Bike Tours: Travelogues, photos, maps and tips about long distance bike traveling in Greece, Turkey, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Slovenia, France, Spain; Mexico, Canada; South America and others.

Reiseberichte und Reisefotografie von Radtouren in Europa (Italien, Griechenland, Spanien, Mallorca, Frankreich, Tschechien, Slovenien etc.), Kanada, Mexiko, Südamerika und viele mehr. Lass dich inspirieren!

Solo biking trip still in progress from a 31 year old woman ex-software engineer. Started April 8th, 2006 in Lisbon, headed East towards Istanbul. Currently in Dresden, Germany, over 5000 kms pedalled so far, across most of continental Europe.

Mi aventura personal. Viaje a Santiago de Compostela en Bicicleta de montaña. Mayo de 2006. Consejos, recorrido en fotos, lista de material necesario, etapas...

Cycling from St Jean Pied Du Port to Santiago de Compostella. Slowly.

A 30,000 kilometer cycling adventure through Africa traversing 30 countries. Tales from the saddle, photos of the people we encounter and places we pass plus detailed information on our bikes and gear.

I am hanging around the Cathedral for two hours, just to see the people passing by. Half of the passengers are locals, the others are pilgrims for Santiago. The pilgrims are full of stories about physical endurance, injuries, loneliness, spirituality, will power, faith, love and hope. A young girl thinks of giving up. An old man tells that he has slept on a churchyard because there were no normal facilities anymore. A special experience is meeting an old man who has a tremendous charisma; the man is constantly radiating from a seemingly enormous reservoir of stimulating energy. If it is actually possible to reach enlightenment in the way that Buddhists describe, then this man must have reached that stage.

Account of an eight week cycle journey through east, west, north, central & south Spain.

We have cycled many kilometres trough Europe. On our first trip we cycled from Holland to Sweden. After Sweden we cycled trouhg Great Britain. And we cycled further trough Holland, Belgium, France, Spain and ended our tour 6000 km later in Faro (Portugal).

On our next trip we are going to cycle from Heraklion, Crete to Holland. This trip starts 14 April 2006. More info on our site. In the future we will expend our tours outside Europe.

The Route:

Americas: Venezuela, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina
Atlantic Traverse: Azores Islands [Portugal]
Europe: Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Turkey
The Middle East: Iran
Central Asia: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Pakistan, India
South East Asia: Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia
Australasia: Australia

Welcome to the Brink Expedition!

Imagine attempting a global traverse that would take you 50,000 kilometres through some of the most difficult terrain and extreme weather on the planet, all the time attempting to use only human power and the natural elements.

Starting deep in the heart of Amazonian South America the Brink Expedition will encounter unforgiving Patagonian winds, snowed over Himalayan Mountain passes, monsoons on the sub-continent and the oppressive heat of Australia's Red Centre.

So while the clock ticks, the seasons will turn, making this a full-throttled Race Against the Elements!

This tour includes scenic detours around Greek islands, the Peloponnese, and proceeds through Italy, Austria, and Germany. This site also has tours in the USA: Colorado, Wyoming, Montana; and in Portugal and Spain.

Lost and confused in Sevilla - the Western Pueblos Blancos - a place of great national touristic interest (the Costa del Sol) - the ride to the rock (Gibraltar) - the un-Sevillianized side of the the mountains (the Eastern Pueblo Blancos) - a meeting with another cyclist - the endurance challenges of Granada - Eating out Iberian style - Coke cans and the art of bicycle repair - the skirt of the mountains (the Alpujarra road) - the cycle tourist as caveman - more.

From Avila, great cycling on the northern slopes of the Sierra de Gredos leads into the dramatic north east corner of Extremadura via Candelario. Good climbs over the Puerto de Honduras and through Piornal follow before travelling southwards towards the beautiful town of Trujillo. East over the hills to Guadalupe completes a rich Extremaduran experience followed by an interesting return to Madrid that includes a trip along the via Verde de la Jara.

The mountains of the Sierra de Gredos lie to the north west of Madrid and regularly feature in la Vuelta - the Tour of Spain. As well as providing the opportunity to tackle some interesting climbs on quiet roads, travelling west through the Sierra de Gredos leads to the fascinating area of northern Extremadura. The return to Madrid contoured the slopes of the hills to the south of the river Tajo, through some very quiet roads, eventually leading to Toledo and Madrid.

The mountains of the Sierra de Gudar and El Maestrazgo lie due north of Valencia. Maestrazgo spans the boundary between Aragon and Valencia. It is one of the most sparsely populated areas of Spain, rich in historic detail and with a fine network of roads that link the ancient villages. Returning to Valencia from the west, via the Sierra de Javalambre, provides access to some quite different but equally impressive roads and scenery.

This webpage is intended to provide information for cycle tourists who may be considering tours in the countries I've visited. For more information, journals and pictures leave a message in my guestbook or send me an email.

`` Yes, it's hot. But we've seen worse haven't we my friend. There was that day east of Warnambol when the chip seal melted and the chips stuck to the tires. A few revolutions later we had flats front and rear. So we pushed for a mile seeking shade to repair the punctures. And the flies Ah! And there was that time in Zamorah. Ah! But not now.''

It began as a crazy idea whilst on holiday in France back in 2003 and within a couple of weeks had turned into a serious plan. Now after two years preparation and a couple of false starts we're finally off.

The plan is to ride from our home in Chesham to the south coast city of Portsmouth where we can catch a boat to Bilbao on the north coast of Spain. Then we'll cross France to the Black Forest in Germany where we can pick up the famous Danube cycle path which we plan to follow to east to Vienna. After that we want to spend a couple of months in the Alps before heading south for a lap of Italy. The final leg of the tour will see us cross France again to the Pyrenees before we head south to Spain where we plan to follow the coast round to Portugal and back into Northern Spain where we can catch the boat back to England.

27 days of cycling throughout the Pyrenées and Cantabria (start and finish in Lourdes). On 27 days I cycled 4474 km (165,7 km/day); 83551m (3095m/day) (height meters) and visited ca. 241 cols. (Only counting the 24 full cycling days, I did 4131,5 km (172,1 km/day) and 77108m (3213m/day).) The longest day was 274,5 km from Esterri d'Aneu in Spain to Lourdes (via Mourenx). Max height meters on one day was 4270m. Got a gold classification in the l'Etape du Tour race (the day after cycling 274,5 km) on a half-decent time around 6h30mins (ca. 2 hours slower than the Tour de France winner this year). Steepest was the famous Angliru climb in Asturia (26%). Lots of facts, but some nice photos and stories.

Pictorial personal diary, equipment list, and route guide for a 4.5 month cycle trip, Boston, England to Gibraltar.

We are 2 18 year old students. We made a tour across Europe from Holland to Sweden and Great Britain. After this we took the boat to Holland and set off to the south of Portugal.

In the spring (2006) we are going to make a trip from Anataly Turkey to Holland.

This journal describes the tour of the Pyrenees from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean in Aug/Sept of 2005. We criss-crossed the French-Spanish border a few times. It includes several passes that have been part of the the Tour de France in 2005 and years past. It includes a link to a more complete set of photographs.