A sudden and striking realisation takes root in my mind as I am riding along. I am no longer fully appreciating the beauty of the glittering glacial lakes that I pass. As the thousands of colours all bleed into one, I find myself riding along in a bit of a daze. Maybe my mind is too full to take in any more. I think it is time to head home and so I hatch a plan...
After the second lap of San Sebastián, I leave the golden beaches behind and head inland, southwards, to Pamplona. The major A-road sweeps its way above a forested valleys towards a seemingly impenetrable wall of limestone. A small notch in these high walls is the only way rivers, roads, railways or utilities can penetrate this natural barrier, crammed through with millimetres to spare.
Leaving behind Pamplona's parched flatlands, a hint of green tinges the landscape and there's a growing anticipation of very big mountains up ahead. The wonderful winding N240 has been replaced in parts by the modern mundane A-21. From this I can see the curvy lakeside section of the N240 between Yesa and Puente la Reina de Jaca tantalisingly close, but yet so frustratingly far. I eventually find the way to join the N240 which snakes through wide valleys and beautiful secluded villages.
A gateway to the western valleys of the Aragonese Pyrenees, Jaca is where I join a legendary biking road, along which I put my plan into action. The N260 runs through the foothills of the Pyrenees to Aínsa. Somehow I lose the route after Aínsa and decide to use my TomTom, hoping to find a simple way to Andorra. I mindlessly following the map-in-a-box over narrow, winding mountain passes, all the while wondering if the technology know where it is taking me!
Somewhere in the middle of nowhere I cross the border back into Catalonia. The Pyrenees in Catalonia encompass some awesomely beautiful mountains and valleys. It also takes me back towards the start point of my lap of the Iberian peninsula.
Eventually I rejoin the N260 en-route towards La Seu d'Urgell, with the Pyrenees climbing northwards towards Andorra, and the craggy pre-Pyrenees range of the Serra del Cadí rising steep and high along the southern flank. The lively town of La Seu d'Urgell is Spain's gateway to Andorra, 10km to the north and the end point of my story. From here I will race across France back home...
After the second lap of San Sebastián, I leave the golden beaches behind and head inland, southwards, to Pamplona. The major A-road sweeps its way above a forested valleys towards a seemingly impenetrable wall of limestone. A small notch in these high walls is the only way rivers, roads, railways or utilities can penetrate this natural barrier, crammed through with millimetres to spare.
Leaving behind Pamplona's parched flatlands, a hint of green tinges the landscape and there's a growing anticipation of very big mountains up ahead. The wonderful winding N240 has been replaced in parts by the modern mundane A-21. From this I can see the curvy lakeside section of the N240 between Yesa and Puente la Reina de Jaca tantalisingly close, but yet so frustratingly far. I eventually find the way to join the N240 which snakes through wide valleys and beautiful secluded villages.
A gateway to the western valleys of the Aragonese Pyrenees, Jaca is where I join a legendary biking road, along which I put my plan into action. The N260 runs through the foothills of the Pyrenees to Aínsa. Somehow I lose the route after Aínsa and decide to use my TomTom, hoping to find a simple way to Andorra. I mindlessly following the map-in-a-box over narrow, winding mountain passes, all the while wondering if the technology know where it is taking me!
Somewhere in the middle of nowhere I cross the border back into Catalonia. The Pyrenees in Catalonia encompass some awesomely beautiful mountains and valleys. It also takes me back towards the start point of my lap of the Iberian peninsula.
Eventually I rejoin the N260 en-route towards La Seu d'Urgell, with the Pyrenees climbing northwards towards Andorra, and the craggy pre-Pyrenees range of the Serra del Cadí rising steep and high along the southern flank. The lively town of La Seu d'Urgell is Spain's gateway to Andorra, 10km to the north and the end point of my story. From here I will race across France back home...
