66km / 4 hours 29 min / 936m gain

A beautiful route through forests, fields, and mountains.

The gravel was super chunky, with huge rocks, so many of the climbs and descents were very slow. I had to carry my bike to a few places, and I had one long water crossing where the water was deep enough that my shoes went under when pedaling.

I’ve got a rest day today, and tomorrow is my last day of the trip. I will cross from Spain into France at the highest point of the ride!

51km / 3 hours 23 min / 923m gain

Today was beautiful!

It was also a big climbing day again, although a little easier because it was a road. Yesterday was much harder because the climb was full of rocks and loose dirt (which made the intense gradients harder). I was tired today so I definitely stopped to take water breaks and catch my breath.

Today was my 3rd biggest climb ever (633m)!

I ended my day in Olot, Spain. I am looking forward to exploring it!

60km / 4 hours 4 min / 1,077m gain

Today was beautiful: from wine fields to pine forest-covered mountains!

It was also the first real climb of the trip… up and up and up and up. It was officially the 2nd biggest climb I’ve ever done on my bike. It had big, chunky gravel, and I did pretty well until the last 10%. To make it, I had to stop a few times in that last 10%. The backside was not fun as it was so chunky that I had to go heavy on my brakes and couldn’t flow down.

I also almost got hurt really badly as a Mercedes Sprinter delivery van was coming around a blind corner on a tiny one-lane road at the bottom of the mountain (really more like 70% of one lane). I had to hit my brakes massively 3 times into a controlled side skid to miss hitting it or going off the other side and a 15 to 20-foot drop-off. I hit my brakes maybe three times, side skidded almost to losing control, straightened, and pumped them again. I made the gap between the van and drop-off, so all is good. The driver didn’t even stop moving, which was quite crazy. I kinda wish I had that on camera, and I am happy I replaced my tires before this trip.

Tomorrow I’ve got another mountain to climb (are these mountains? I am not sure. What is a mountain versus a big hill?). I dumped some food weight out of my bags to help; I was silly and bought a big glass jar of peanut butter I am not eating.

Catalonia is painfully beautiful; I want to return and do many more rides! I am glad we will soon live so close to this area :).

My climb today was roughly ~20km and 600m+ of elevation gain (~2,000 feet). I think it took me ~2 hours.

Notes

• 15% of gradients are painful even in the lowest gear.
• I am looking forward to my new bike and doing more mountain climbs!!!

68km / 3 hours 49 min / 1,025m gain

Awesome gravel ride!

That ride had some of the most amazing downhill gravel runs I’ve ever been on. It had huge berms to get a little air and super wavy loose gravel to keep you focused on your line. It had huge descents and massive fun.

Everything is green and back into rolling hills or whatever is between mountains and hills. There was some decent climbing today, but nothing too intense in terms of gradient. I hit a few spots where I had to bike hike where the path was washed out with 1—to 2-foot erosion drops.

A few days ago, when the gravel was so rough, my bottle holder cracked; part of the metal just gave up. It was easy to replace, and it has lasted four years of good use. For now, I applied some field medicine with triage tape, and it is trucking right along.

Notes for future self:

• Bringing an additional pair of light shoes is a game changer. I love going on walks around cities and into nature. I need to find a good lightweight shoe that would work better than what I have for hiking. It is especially great when my bike shoes are soaked.
• For my next trip, I want to aim for 5 days of riding for every 7 days. I think that balance is a little more sane. Doing 4 days of riding and 1 day of rest has been awesome, but still a little much for how much training I got. It results in 8 days of riding and 2 days of rest, which is still too much.
• For my next ride, I could maybe do a history ride where I follow key Cathar locations or a specific Ancient Rome journey. Then, I can plan more rest days in key spots with museums, etc. (and time it to be there on days they are open).

53km / 2 hours 47 min / 353m gain

It was an easier day compared to some of the previous rides. But today, I felt like I was moving like mud, as I was physically worn out after the longer rides of the last few days. I am looking forward to my rest day.

I was a little sad to leave town, as Lleida looks so cool; it even has a sunken river park like Valencia. I hope to be back in this area for biking in the future and plan to check out this city in more detail.

I can see the mountains approaching on my left! I’ve got some big climbs coming :)!!!

70km / 3 hours 51 min / 673m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 4 hours 44 min and 590m gained)

I was surprised by how good I felt this morning.

I didn’t have any food this morning as I ate my emergency rations last night. Luckily, this area is way more populated, and I stopped in a fair-sized town for an early lunch snack, a loaf of bakery bread, and this delicious pastry with nuts and fruit.

The trail was wild today; sometimes, it was fantastic road/gravel, and other times, it felt like a cattle trail that was only used once a year. I had to carry my bike over a few streams and map out a few weird issues. It was a fun day! I am super lucky the path wasn’t rainy, as it would have been sloppy mud and required me to divert to the road.

At times, there were beautiful canyons, and at times, it felt like a post-apocalyptic scene from Fallout 2. Once again, I saw about 50 rabbits (I also saw 2 yellow/green giant lizards yesterday).

And the day ended in Catalonia!

I went out to my first proper lunch at a restaurant in a while (in a lot of very small towns). I had the daily menu to start an amazing garbanzo bean/cod fresh citrus salad, followed by pork knuckle in orange sauce, and then flan with whipped creme. So good!

I am pretty tired after the long rides the last few days, so after lunch, I went to the grocery store for some rations and then to my hotel room. I didn’t feel like walking around today.

Tomorrow I have an easy ride and then a rest day at an Airbnb.

It is nice to be at the point in my ride where my brain is just utterly silent.

89km / 4 hours 27 min / 508m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 6 hours 26 min and 430m gained)

Today was a long day as I couldn’t find a closer hotel.

It was full of wide-open skies and a good ride. It is nice when you hit the point in your ride where all the chatter in your mind dies away, and it is just quiet. I don’t think I thought, but 2 or 3 things for the entire ride. I got started a bit earlier than usual to try to outrun some of the high heat.

Yesterday, the gravel was super bumpy, and I didn’t realize how much until I got on my bike this morning as my but is pretty bruised. Today didn’t help; the first 40km were constant huge bumps, which really hurt. The last 40km were smoothish dirt, so that was much better. I am going to be in pain tomorrow. I need to get a professional bike fitting once we are in Bordeaux as I am not sure if my seat is right and if this pain is normal. It might be hitting me in the wrong place, and I need a more narrow one (perhaps an even harder one than I have).

I am staying in a nice Casaa with a big kitchen. I just devoured a giant bowl of pasta and am about to catch up on some Shepherd work.

70km / 3 hours 24 min / 116m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 4 hours 26 min and 65km and 70m gained)

I am back on gravel!

The trail was dry, and no problems with mud (knock on wood). For most of today, I followed the Imperial Canal or Aragon. There was one tricky part where I didn’t realize I had to go on a restricted canal bridge, and for a second, I thought I was about to do a very wet river crossing (picture below).

At this lower elevation, it feels like I am getting more into a desert area. I’ll try to get on the road very early tomorrow with the sun/heat (plus, I have a very long ride tomorrow due to hotel locations).

I ended the day in Zaragoza (one of the biggest cities in Spain) and walked around the city center. I had some authentic Chinese food for lunch and tried to find some waterproof biking gloves (no such luck).

The owners of the last hotel said I was lucky as the wind was super low. There are probably 5,000+ giant windmills in this area. I wonder if that luck will last!

62km / 2 hours 46 min / 489m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 2 hours 3 min and 4370m gained (road estimate and I did some extra exploring around a castle area))

I stuck with the road route as the trails were too muddy.

Today was fun until the last 13km, as those were on a state highway. It was intense since it was Monday, and traffic was back (great drivers, but the speed limit is 90km). I am hoping to try trails again after my rest day.

I went up a huge mountain and then descended ~700m. The mountains were excellent and covered in forests. It is nice to be out of the mountains as it is much warmer down here in the plains.

On the way down, I stopped at a castle and explored it. It turns out the entire town (Trasmoz) is excommunicated due to witch stuff (although probably just the Catholic church were jerks over water rights long ago). The town seems pretty awesome as they made the entire castle a witch museum and have a yearly prize for the person in the village who displays the most witch spirit. Mountain people.

The first two pictures are of the sky last night and are beautiful.

49km / 2 hours 25 min / 482m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 1 hour 41 min and 410m gained (assuming road bike, I guess))

I took an easy road route today. I didn’t trust the gravel/path route as it seemed too muddy (and there was no rail route today). It was overcast and cold. The sun pipped through occasionally, but otherwise, it was pretty cloudy. I left a little early to make it before some storms hit.

There were some really cool defensive fortifications from where the Muslim/Christian lines were at one point. There were bike trails to get to them, but I skipped it today due to mud and incoming thunderstorms.

I might try to get back on the trail tomorrow…

61km / 3 hours 3 min / 287m gain

(For my reference: Komoot had no estimate as I had to make up some new routes “live”.))

Today was one of the most beautiful gravel rides I’ve ever done. I wish it had been 100+ km.

It was cold but mostly sunny, and there was no rain (luckily). I wore my rain jacket most of the day for warmth. It is still very wet on the trails, but since this is a rail trail conversion, I knew it would likely be dry (which it was).

It started in beautiful pine forests and just opened up into incredible scenery. I hope to come back and ride more trails in this region. This is part of a route that goes to Sagunto (next door to Valencia).

Notes:

• I surprised a deer… they are so fast.
• I saw a fox, I think. It was huge, though. I don’t know if they have Coyotes around here. It ran like a fox.
• I should have brought a hat.
• I had hoped that the town would have some open shops, but they are all closed on Saturday (I need some waterproof gloves).

Soria is a really cool town. I can’t imagine having this as your daily ride (plus all the others). I hope to bring Lindsey here eventually.

59km / 2 hours 50 min / 742m gain

(For my reference: Komoot had no estimate as I had to make up some new routes “live”.))

Today was cold and overcast but pretty. I stuck with my road route today as it is still wet, and I didn’t head into the muddy trails. Lots of pine forests and really pretty.

I ran into a big group of ~20 Americans riding the El Cid route (which I did part of today). I talked to them for a bit next to an old church. They are ending their ride in Valencia, so I gave them many recommendations. They were on road bikes, and I guess a big van carried all their gear.

I did a fair bit of climbing today, but nothing too crazy. I went to an amazing canyon, but unfortunately, that is when it started raining. It poured icy rain for the next 1.5 hours just as I descended the mountain pass. I just pedaled as hard as I could to stay warm. I should have brought my waterproof socks/gloves. I got soaked apart from my rain jacket. It was getting close to having to pull over and find shelter while I put socks on my hands along with bags, but luckily, the rain let up for the last 8km, and it got warmer as I descended. Bad packing choices, Past-Ben!

Even with the rain, it is so great to be outside for big chunks of time. Love it!

Notes

• The tape/wrap on my handlebars is a big plus for vibration reduction. I need to get a professional wrap, as I suck at it, though.
• If I ever think I am doing road routes, I need to pack my lights with the strobe light effect to ensure cars see me on both sides (check if my Garmin lights do that). I saw this on some bikes today, and it was super effective.
• I should have packed waterproof gloves and socks like I did for Italy. I also need my warm pants for after the ride as many of these hotels/houses have already turned off the boilers. Plus it is cold in the mountains.
• I heard the weirdest bobcat / mountain lion like cry coming from the mountain where I stopped. It was freaky.

51km / 2 hours 23 min / 507m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 1 hour 44 min and 400m gain (assuming road bike speeds, I guess))

It was a very easy ride today.

It rained last night, so I decided to stay on the road today (which is a much faster ride). I don’t want to deal with the mud, and I don’t have a spare belt in case this one breaks. There were few cars since I was in the middle of nowhere and on back country roads. I kept my jacket on all day because of the icy wind with this cold front.

I am staying in a small village, so I biked another 5k to find a gas station grocery store to stock up on food. I managed to find a car wash and cleaned up my bike.

I am taking Thursday off, so hopefully, things will dry up. However, the weather doesn’t make that look likely, and Friday is currently forecast for rain. We shall see.

What else?

• I randomly stopped at this Church, which was very pretty with many relics…
• I think I saw a fox, but it could have been a cat (its legs went piter pater, though).

63km / 4 hours 13 min / 461m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 4 hours 59 min and 420m gain (without mud))

Today was intense!

Last night, I slept like a baby. I was overlooking the Douro River, and the hotel was comfy. It drizzled for the entire evening. I had super intense dreams.

Unfortunately, the rain created some mud, which was like super glue due to this region and made for some very intense moments today.

I had to stop and scrape mud from the bike several times, and my back wheel slid out a few times (luckily, I caught myself). My belt came off 3 or 4 times, which has never happened. I think the mud and small stones were putting pressure on it.

Then my belt broke just 4km from my end stop.

I think the mud and pebbles got between the belt and gear, which had too much pressure and snapped. It has been on my bike for around 4 years and lasted far longer than it was supposed to (I think they are rated for 10,000km, and I’ve done more than 2.5x that).

I carry a spare belt with me, just in case. I need to clear the mud better for future mud sessions and walk the bike if the stones are getting between the gears and belt.

I tried to put on the belt out in a field, but I’d never done it before and couldn’t figure it out. I decided it was better to walk and roll to the endpoint and do it there. About 2km from that point, it started raining on me, lol!

I reached the little rural apartment and found a faint 4g signal for some YouTube tutorials. I didn’t realize the frame came apart to get the belt in the right area. Seven screws later, it is fixed!

I am worried that I stripped one of the little screws, though (a problem for future Ben). I also no longer have a spare belt, which might be a problem for future Ben. Why can’t we make better screws that don’t strip so easily?

What else?

• I surprised a pretty big deer.
• Some little quail birds ran along the path.
• I had so much mud flinging up by the wheels that it went in my nose, mouth, ear, and eye.
• So many beautiful views and wine fields today.
• So quiet out here… my mind feels relaxed.
• My energy levels were finally at 100% today, even if my butt is sore.

I stopped in Guzman, Spain, tonight!

It is so tiny that there are no grocery stores or food options. I only have carrots and nuts, so I wandered in case I missed something. I stumbled upon an artisan store that told me to ring the doorbell, and I did!

A lovely man and his wife came out to open it up for me. He is Portuguese and from Porto (close to where I live). He runs a restaurant in the next village and is a Sommelier. Next thing I know, he is having me try some delicious vermouth he brews and a glass of local port-style wine he makes (and his wife gave me two amazing cookies).

He told me that the town is famous because of a book and showed me the book. I kept thinking Guzman sounded familiar, and I realized I had seen the book in several Shepherd articles and maybe the NYT a while back about this famous cheese from here. The book is called The Telling Room (bought on my Kindle).

I walked out of the beautiful artisan store with a bottle of local wine,  two packages of the famous cheese, local sheep pate, and local jam. Plus his wife was kind enough to offer to drop me off some bread later today after she gets back from the store, so kind!

Great stop! The cheese and wine are so good!!!

46km / 2 hours 35 min / 101m gain

(For my reference: Komoot estimated 3 hours 11 min and 100m gain)

It was an easy ride today; I got an early start, so it was much cooler. The route was as fantastic as yesterday. I did have one spot where the path disappeared, but I found a detour a few blocks away.