Tour de France
et environs
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Part IV: The Pyrenees
Saturday August 5 to Sunday August 13
After entering Spain (along the Mediterranean coast) we turned to head along the Pyrenees, staying near to the French border (as we both speak French but not Spanish). Here Katharine climbs a hill soon after brief shower.
We had the good fortune to meet (and travel with) a number of other cycle tourists in the Pyrenees. Here I am with Mako (a Japanese cyclist) heading up a river valley towards Andorra.
Brendan (a British pilot on a 10-day cycle tour) celebrated his birthday while he was with us, so we indulged in an ice cream cake for the occasion.
Andorra is essentially built on the side of a mountain, over which one must pass in order to enter France. We were told that this is the highest pass in the Pyrenees.
The view descending from Andorra into France. The dots on the road are a long line (approximately 10 km) of cars backed up down the mountain, at or near a standstill. Apparently the cheap prices and absence of taxes in Andorra makes it the shopping destination of choice for this region, in spite of the hours in line it must take to get there.
Back in France we met Rafael, a police officer from Madrid, and travelled with him for almost a week.
The Grottes de Betharram, near Lourdes in the south of France, include 5 levels of caves, with some incredible caverns.
As Rafael wanted to show us more of his country, we headed back into Spain, crossing at the Porto de Larrau in a dense fog interspersed with rain.
Once back in Spain we visited Pamplona and headed to San Sebastian, on the Atlantic coast. Along with gorgeous beaches, we happened to be there during a week of celebrations which included nightly fireworks (see below, picture stolen from a post card), street performers, concerts etc.
| European bike tour - Index page
2. Annecy, Switzerland and N. Italy 3. Monaco, Cote d'Azur and Provence 4. The Pyrenees |
July 11 to 17 July 18 to 28 July 29 to Aug. 4 Aug. 5 to 13 Aug. 14 to Sept. 1 |