Will be in touch
- Dan

Congrats on the certification, welcome to the club

If I was heading from Bilbao to Montory and I was in the area for the first time I’d say this route (https://goo.gl/maps/Q0XLx) would be a good one. It’s a long day but well worth it. For the first two thirds it’s a bit of motorway then some good curvy N roads where you’d want to push along and get a good 200km under your wheels before you enter the real mountain roads. Once you get up around the border and after Saint-Jean-Pied-de_Port the roads are amazing, but they are narrow and your average speed will drop right down to about 30-40kmph. Maybe even a bit less if you keep stoping for photos so I’d recommend an early start to the day and aim to have lunch in Saint-Jean before heading towards Port Larrau then curve into Spain again crossing back into France via the last port – the brilliant Col de Pierre St. Martin which drops you down into Montory.

I’ll be in Montory myself on the 24th, give me a shout if your there and we’ll have a beer..

Enjoy,

Denis

I am now a certified European tourer – typing this from clammy Bilbao!

My way points so far have been:
Cushendall – Roscommon – Rosslare
Cherbourg – Le Mont Saint-Michel – Saint Malo
Saint Malo – Vannes – Saint Nazaire
St Nazaire – La Rochelle – Cognac
Cognac – Bordeaux
Bordeax – Biarritz – Bilbao

I had originally planned on going from Bordeaux to Montory but I have a mate in Bilbao so popped down to see him.
Rolling out of here in the morning and wondering do you recommend a route to get onto the Pyrenees from this side rather than Bordeaux.

Thanks in advance – Dan

Here is an excellent route for you https://goo.gl/maps/AY5EC

From Lourdes head south to visit Col de Tentes, Cirque de Gavarnie and Cirque de Troumouse, all 3 are dead ends but certainly Gavarine is worth a visit but requires a little walking,, Troumouse is an unmissable experience – check out my YouTube video https://youtu.be/-fnWXuHRgCY and do a google photo search for Cirque de Gavarnie. From there it’s a short hop to the epic Col du Tourmalet then cross over into Spain at Port de Bielsa then aim to spend a night in a romantic setting at the beautiful fortified Huesca town of Aínsa. There is a friendly little Irish-ish pub in the old part of town that sells a fair pint of Guinness and there are a couple of lovely restaurants in the town square in a magnificent setting, trust me, your wife will love this spot if you splash out on one of the better hotels in the old town. Head south and take a walk-a-bout in the Moorish section in the town of Graus (look for Plaza Mayor and the Basílica de la Virgen de la Peña) before heading west on the brilliant A-1605, keep an eye out for signs for the 9th century Monastery of Santa María de Obarra, see http://www.roadtrooper.com/2012-pyrenees-motorbike-tour-day-1/

From here there are some class biking roads north and east, aim to spend a night in or around Sort before Olot if you have the time to relax and enjoy the sights, there’s lots to see inc interesting old Spanish villages along the way. This route can easily be done in 2 days, but it’s best done in 3 if you’ve got a pillion and fancy a bit of sight seeing along with the magic bike roads for a top class experience that should have the wife wanting more next year

All the best
D

I was hoping you could help me put together the Pyrenees part of the trip (loosely).

So I have Pamplona > Montory > Lourdes… What would be the most epic route from Lourdes to Olot? From Olot I should be able to put together a route myself.

Sorry for being a burden!
Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Daoibh

Dan

Sounds like you have a very good plan for yourself. Keeping your options open and fluid, with nothing set in stone is definitely the way to go for this trip. With your better half on the back there really is no way to tell how long she will physically and mentally be able to on a big trip like this. The key to a successful first trip like this is flexibility and good communication between you both. It will be your duty to make sure your wife is happy and not just saying “I’m fine” to keep you happy when in reality she is not. I’d also offer for you to pencil in the option to spend one or maybe two days off the bike or at least a few half days so the whole experience does not begin to feel like hard work or worse – an endurance test half way through the 2nd week. Off the coast you should not have a problem finding hotels, around 5pm is a good time but dont leave it too late. Remember as well, if your staying in one of the hotel networks like Logis you can use them to book ahead for you. For example if you find yourself in a Logis on a Tuesday night in Nantes they will be happy to organise a room for you in another Logis in the Bordeaux area if that the direction you want to go, sometimes you can get a fairly good reduction this way, it keeps you flexible and takes the worry or hassel out of messing around looking for a place to stay.

You have listed off many fantastic places to visit, including Lourdes. I’m not religious but even for me I found Lourdes absolutely facinating. However, if it were me I’d certainly give Paris a miss. It’s far better to fly there for a weekend or something if you fancy a visit. Your chances of an accident explode exponentially in the traffic of big cities, as for me I flatly refuse to lead a tour group through Paris, I prefer to avoid it like the plague in any circumstance. I’d also be very uncomfortable taking responsibility for a pillion under those conditions – strange city, heavy traffic, different road rules etc.

Barcelona might be a little “stressful” also, the traffic in and around the city is mental and aggressive with the road system, motorways, ring roads etc confusing. You will also find plenty of Guardia Civil hunting to hand out fines for any infraction to the road rules – which seem to change on a regular basis. Barcelona is a brilliant city, and I love it, but again I’d not want to take responsibility for a pillion simply because the chances of an accident become too high for me to take that risk. For me the risk outways the pay-off. If you do go into Barcelona make certain both your bike and possessions are in a very safe place, the crime rate there explodes in summer months and the local mafias will have a nice shiny bike like yours off the street, re-reg’d or strippped and on a container ship to Albania in 20 mins flat.

The roads all along the north of Spain are pure magic, it’s hard to beat the area when it comes to beautiful, smooth, easy to ride roads and value for money. I’d certainly recommend going along the Pyrenees towards the Med as far as the town of Olot which is a bit north and west of Girona then head back into France from there. To me Barcelona, like Paris is best seen on foot or public transport, and with so many cheap flights in and out of there I’d not be using up valuable motorbike days playing Russian roulette with bonkers traffic if you catch my drift.

I wish I had the time for a trip like this this year, I’m sure your going to have a blast..

Cheers
Denis.

Thanks for your reply – I didn’t want to reply back until I had booked – which I have!
So I have booked Rosslare-Cherbourg from June 7th-24th.
Myself and Herself have looked a little at things to do. We aren’t going to spend a whole lot of time in the saddle each day as we make our way down the West coast…

Everything is very variable as we are total touring Virgins and would appreciate any and all advice.

Mon 8th – Visit Mont St. Michel then travel to either Nantes or La Rochelle
Tue 9th – Travel to Bordeaux & possibly visit Royan &/or Cognac
Wed 10 – Explore around Bordeaux and maybe hit a few touristy seaside towns
Thur 11th – Travel to San Sebastien stopping in Biarritz possibly on the way

Now here is where it all gets sketchy.
Fri 12th – Possibly spend night in Pamplona
Sat 13 – Pamplona? to Montory
Sun 14th – Montory to Broto
Mon 15th – Broto to Saint-Beat

Being from where we’re from we were thinking of stopping in Lourdes (I know!) then riding down to Barcalona, couple of nights in that area… Up to Carcassone via Perpignon. Then maybe up to Nimes & Pont du Gard.

As I say our boat back is the 24th, we want to see as much as possible. We could do Paris this time on the way up or leave it for another visit… Maybe we should avoid Paris and delve further into Spain?

Anyway, your advice is greatly appreciated. None of our schedules will be fixed, if we really like an area we might stay an extra night. I’m gonna try to get hotels in each town on the fly.

If I find a spare AC/DC ticket you’ll be the first to know!!

Cheers,
Dan

First off, if traveling in June I’d not be worried about snow in the Alps, and the risk of hitting ice would be extremely low. The roads will have been cleared for the most part by the end of the 1st week of June, but as you know it’s getting harder to predict the weather these days. There is a good chance the highest Alpine passes will be closed – anything above 2700 meters, but I’d lay a fairly safe bet 95% of ‘em will be open, and all should be open by the 2nd or 3rd week of June. 2013 was exceptionally bad in June across southern Europe, last year was lovely and fingers crossed we will be in for a good summer this year too.

I should also say the Pyrenees have their fair share of steep hairpins too, but the Sprint GT is well suited to handle them, keep the revs up and your eyes where you want to go and you’ll get the hang of them in no time. Along with the likes of the 1200RT/Pan your bikes frame/chassis & suspension is designed for a pillion unlike most bikes. So apart from needing a few extra revs there’s little difference in handling on hairpins with or without a pillion – eh, as long as she ‘aint doing a jig back there.. I had let a fear of steep hairpins get into my head a few years back and I’ve met many a lad over the last few years, both riders and pillions, with the same condition. But I assure you it’s all in the head, don’t let it sink in as it’s a bugger to shake off. If it’s an issue for either you or your pillion get yourself off to an empty car park and practice slow speed tight turns and circles before you shoot off. There may be less steep hairpins in the Pyrenees, but I assure you they are there, especially in the Basque area where they have some really beauties

Would be happy to help fill in the gaps.
How many days do you have to play with, 1 week, 2, the whole month?? Let me know and I’ll send you a few route options.

Any spare tickets for the AC/DC concert?

Denis

It’s a shame this one was a wash out – it’s pretty close to what I would like to follow as you are attacking it from the right direction.
Myself and my Fiancee are planning a tour for June (we have to be back in Ireland for AC/DC on July 1st).

We had planned on doing the Alps route you have, but after reading some of your replies to people I am being steered towards the Pyrenees. Because; She is inexperienced and I want her to have a good time, we are going in June and I don’t want to hit icy Alpine passes/closed roads, we are riding a Sprint GT 1050 and the Pyrenees looks to have fewer very sharp/steep corners.

I want to get the boats booked next week (cabins are selling out already) and was hoping you could help me get timeframes right in my head.

Day 1 – Roscoff to Bordeaux
Day 2 – Bordeaux to Montory
Day 3 – Montory to Broto
Day 4 – Broto to Saint-Beat

It’s after this that I am struggling. I have a loose idea of being in Barcalona, then make my way back to Roscoff/Cherbourg catch a boat and then back to the Green Glens of Antrim.

I’ve read you Virgin’s guide etc and I am hoping to do the Wild Atlantic Way from Malin to Galway as a warm up at Easter… If you could help fill in some gaps though I’ll get the boats booked. Thanks in advance and go raibh maith agat on the excellent website/photos/videos.

Thanks,
Dan