Picos de Europa

We hadn't foreseen or planned to cross these mountains, but after following the coast in western direction it is the only way to get to Portugal. And because of its name and the fact that already the map promised it to be one of the better parts of our journey we left the Costa Verde and took a more inland route.

sunny Sunday along the AS-114

The first day in the Picos the Europa we followed a road in western direction, parallel to the coast but a 20-50 km more south. It was a nice sunny Sunday and the road was small, winding and not too much going up and down. A good preparation and training for the next coming day. We ended in Cangas de Onis, a nice old town where the camping should be open, but it was closed, so we settled in a very nice hotel. Not a bad choice after all. Local drink is cider, where the trick is to poor it in your glass with at least one meter between bottle and glass.

Next morning we were up early. This would be the real day of crossing these Picos. It consisted of a steady climb from 90 meters to 1280 meters of altitude. Only one thing to do, get on your bikes, put it in low gear and start cycling. We started off in the morning twilight and at first made some good steady progress. Again, nice little road and not too much traffic. After one hour, we got our surprise of the day: the local cattle market. Clearly the event people had waited for a long time. They came from far with their cows in the back of little trucks. And you could feel the tension. Profit or loss was determined today.

following the river real Picos

But we had to go on. The road got steeper and the canyon got narrower. We followed the river upstream through the gorge. The sound of all the waterfalls echoing against the walls of rock. Here and there a small bridge. Sometimes some beautiful sights over the mountain range. But continuously climbing and climbing. Hour after hour. The fact that you have perfect bikes and super low gears doesn't help. The muscles will have to do it.

After 20 km a short break for coffee and after 45 a longer one for lunch. Then only 12 more kilometers to go to the top. But in those 12 a rise of another 600 meters. That really hurts! Just go on and go on. Finally after so many bends the highest point is suddenly there. It always comes when you don't expect it. Time for a pause and a drink.

still much to do finally the top

The descent down is always nice. But in this case there was a small snag. A little below the top there is a new artificial lake for white electricity. Which means that the town of Riaño we were aiming for was suddenly 5 km further away. The whole town was moved and rebuilt. And for us, roads rounding a lake are not going downhill anymore. The result was a bit more cycling to do, when you don't expect it. And that is tough. But the hotel was nice and the Spanish champagne good and cheap, so we easily finished two bottles of it to celebrate our crossing of the Picos the Europa.