Day 13. Olot to Girona

This day's ride turned out to be more difficult in reality than it did on paper. The reason was the rain of the previous night made the sandy surface fairly soft, requiring more effort for pedalling.

Cool and lush

We awoke to clearing showers although it remained cool and cloudy for most of the day. We had breakfast at the hotel and then set off on the road until we could link up with the via verde. There was an American couple also riding the via verde who had arrived after me at Can Blanc. They set off first but in a "hare and tortise" effort we met them again a few times because of their inferior navigation. We used the footpath alongside a fairly busy road for a while, then turned down a quiet country lane. Almost immediately we were passed by a bunch of roadies out for a morning spin and I had to resist the temptation to sit on... oh well.

Onto the via verde which zigzagged through some small residential areas, almost certainly not the original rail route. Finally after a short sharp climb we were on the rail trail proper and the slow climb of a few kilometers to the saddle between one river valley and the next. This route passed through cuttings mostly, with glimpses of the rich farmland below.

A rolling Ortlieb advertisement

We regrouped at the top of Col de Bas and then it was downhill and flat thereafter. The secenery was lovely, a mix of farms and forest, but there was light drizzle and it was cool riding. We stopped at Sant Feliu de Pallerols for a warming cup of coffee and then continued. The cool weather and the heavy surface were taking a toll on strength and enthusiasm and it was fairly regular short stops thereafter.

The impressive entrance into Angles

At Salt the via verde transformed into various in-town cycle routes and we more or less followed our nose, riding on the road until we were back at the Girona Cycle Centre. It is hard to get lost with the Cathedral standing on the hill above the old city anyway.

We had some reviving beverages and returned the bikes. We bumped into Chloe Hosking again. Julie asked here if she knew where there was a laundromat and she said no, but then volunteered her washing machine in an act of real generosity! Having handed over the bikes it was up the hill to the apartment, this time of course without having to lug the bags up the stairs! We got cleaned up and walked back down the hill for a drink and then dinner.

The eight travellers all dined together: this was the last night where we would all be in the same place at the same time, so we enjoyed dinner at Artusi and said our thanks and farewells. The food was good although the portion size a little unpredictable: some wanted a light dish and got a mountain, others vice versa... it certainly didn't depend on price.

Day 12. Ripoll to Olot

Wow what different riding compared to Los Ojos Negros!

Decrepit, but with a solar panel on the roof

Cow with bell

We breakfasted at the hotel and set out under coolish partly sunny skies. The first part of the ride was from Ripoll to Sant Joan de les Abadesses, about ten kilometers of slightly uphill riding through mostly farmland.

We saw donkeys, cattle and sheep and saw lots of farm workers and other users of the path, mostly on foot. This alpine region looks like parts of northern Italy or even Switzerland.



The surface was quite different to Los Ojos Negros also. For large sections it was sandy and not bound together. So a smooth ride but more rolling resistance than we had experienced down south.

At  Sant Joan de les Abadesses the route moves off the rail trail (which continues on for another ten kilometers). We initially had to do some casting about to find the route down to the centre of town, over the quaint angular footbridge and then along the main street for one hundred metres or so to the turnoff. There we stopped at a bar for coffees and to use los servicios before tacking the next segment.

Footbridge on the route in Olot

A local dianthus on the side of the road

This segment is a quiet secondary road that winds up and up to the pass at Col de Santigosa. As we climbed higher we rode into the cloud so it was quite cool and pleasant for climbing. Even when you couldn't see far the sound of clanking bells on the sheep and cattle told you that farms were just off the edge of the road.

Along the way I stopped to snack on red currants and blackberries. The blackberries were not as good as the ones down south. We saw a couple of other cyclists and only very few cars on this road. None of the climb was steep but it didn't let up so most were glad for a break at the pass.

As experienced by some

As it actually is

Then it was downhill on slightly slippery road still in the cloud. You wouldn't call it rain but we still got wet. At a fork in the road we regrouped and had to remove Christine's chain guard which was preventing the front derailleur from moving onto the big ring. So the demon descender didn't get to set any new speed records :-(

The road kept on dropping and there was a lovely fast section almost into Olot. We managed to make the correct turn and joined the dedicated cycle route though town, although we soon left it to continue down the main street to find some lunch. This ended up surprisingly well! We found a nice looking restaurant, run by an Indian family that served mostly Spanish food. The menu del dia was fabulous, with many lovely choices. For first course I chose the potato blinis which were stuffed with a slice of morcella. Sensational! I think all eight of us were happy with the outcome. There was one token Indian dish on the menu (a chicken curry) but we talked to the waiter who was quite happy to be using English and he said they tone it down a lot for Spanish tastes.

We then rode out through town to Hotel Can Blanc which was down a quiet road with a very agritourismo feel, including a large restaurant, La Deu with nice grounds next door, which we used for dinner. This must be a popular destination for Barcelona residents to go for weekends. We checked in, and after the usual cyclist preoccupations (showers, washing and beer) we spend a relaxing afternoon. There were a couple of light showers in the afternoon and while we were having dinner it rained quite heavily, but luckily it let up for us to get back to the hotel about 200m away.

Our Trip

If you stumble on this blog and and wondering what it is about...

In September 2012 I have organised a group of eight to  do some cycle touring in Spain, using the "vias verdes", or rail trails as we know them in Australia. This blog is set up as a shared day by day account of the trip. It is a team blog so that each of the members can recount their experiences and upload photos.

If you would like more information about the trip, especially the planning, route and logistics, head over to the planning wiki where this is all described.