June 2016
Second week in June finally arrives, the annual foreign trip highlight for the last eleven years of three motorcycling buddies, previous destinations include France (becoming very expensive), Germany (superb however a long trek to the Southern states of Bavaria, Franken and Thuringa) and Czech Republic (outstanding but the 800 mile 2 day trek in pouring rain would test the resolve of any normal motorcyclist).
So as advancing years have softened the resolve of at least two of the party, the last three years have seen Spain as the favoured destination starting with the Basque region, a highlight being superb accomadation in a converted farm building, next year the foothills of the Pyrenees and a trip into Barcelona, then last year the best journey yet 8 days in Catabria, Asturias and the Pecos de Europa, fabulous roads, great people and unforgettable food and drink.
Following our theme of the ‘unknown Spain’ this year’s destination was the province of Aragon in central and Eastern Spain with overnight stops enroute and return in Rioja province.
The travelling trio all now live to the south of Doncaster and comprise of the author Ken a 67 year old retired jack of all trades riding a 2003 Suzuki DL1000 which over the winter I had treated to a full service, the Jon Sykes clutch basket conversion and a K&N air filter , the navigator John a 64 year old retired police officer on his tried and tested 2005 Yamaha TDM 900 and the still ably employed Tim a 56 year old engineer on his 2012 Triumph Tiger 800, all riders carried their luggage in a top box complimented by a tank bag and commented that every year we carry less as we realise what is essential and what is not.
The 235 mile journey to Brittanny Ferries for the 11:30 a.m. ferry to Bilbao commenced at 5:30 a.m. and we arrived in good spirits at 10:00 a.m. meeting a party of 6 bike enthusiasts from Leeds who had arrived rather earlier having left at midnight!
On our first visit to Spain we had elected to ride down through France finding it expensive in fuel costs, tolls and hotels, even though we have a massive advantage in that both John and Tim speak excellent French, so even at approximately £300 per head the 24 hour crossing is cost effective and ten times more relaxing if a shade boring.
The crossing itself belied the reputation of the Bay of Biscay being as calm as could be believed and the hours passed by in the excellent company of fellow motorcyclists sharing a beer or two, we had a four berth inside cabin between three of us which gave just enough room not to get too congested or claustrophobic.
On arrival at Bilbao we stuck to the original plan of using motorways as little as practical, our first stop for refreshment was an excellent truck stop three quarters of an hour from the port, eat your hearts out UK truckers this is a different world, the food would not disgrace a so called quality English restaurant. Journeying on to Vitoria Gasteiz, the N240 was a delight twisting and turning up the mountains and down into the valleys, the road surface as with the vast majority of the Spanish highways was immaculate.
Leaving the Basque country we joined the N232 which took us into the provinces of Navarra and Rioja, the countryside is a plethora of vineyards, orchards and yet to be planted plots of land. Arriving for our first nights rest in Spain we checked in at the excellent Hotel los Palacios in Alfaro having covered 150 miles since leaving Bilbao, the town was somewhat mundane by Spanish standard but we were compensated by excellent food and wine at the hotel, an excellent nights sleep and petrol at the equivalent of ninety pence a litre.
The following day dawned with clear blue skies; temperature approaching and soon to rise into the thirties, our journey was 180 miles to the main stay of the tour the village of Albarracin in Aragon widely reputed to be the prettiest village in Spain.
John’s excellent navigation saw us traverse a non motorway route of incredible contrasts, tight mountain roads with serious concentration required, fast flowing roads through the seemingly endless desert like landscape which reminded me of many a western film based around Nevada or New Mexico.
Late afternoon saw us arrive in Albarracin which lived up to the hype, narrow streets with houses of solid stone construction growing wider as they ascended, thus keeping the streets cool under an unrelenting sun. Our base for the next five nights was the excellent ‘Hostal Los Palacios’ clean, quiet and well located, parking had been reserved for us in the village residents car park spaces less than fifty metres from the hostal, which was a big plus as no unauthorized traffic is allowed into the village, we were even given the code so we could raise the barrier.
The following five days passed in no time at all as we enjoyed superb food and drink in many bars and restaurants, exploring the towns including Cuenca, famous for its hanging houses and Teruel immortalised by the legend of the lovers and its delicious ham. I would add at this point Tim and John are the wanderers whilst I am a confirmed leisurely drinker and people watcher.
Roads of the Sierra De Albarracin were challenging in places with only a small guardrail preventing a plunge into oblivion, the tiger 800 looked to be the ideal tool for the area with Tim looking very much at home swinging through the hairpins. It was at this point I realised that the rear tyre on the V Strom, a Continental Road Attack 2 had squared off badly and should have been replaced prior to the journey. I compensated by using the superior low down power of the motor and putting up with the odd movement from the rear.
Approaching Teruel we passed through endless cherry groves which were being harvested, no machinery just good old fashioned manual labour and creaking tractors and trailers, to the north we found ourselves in land that looked to be the remnants of massive quarries, many of the villages looked to be deserted, the common thread was the total lack of other road users, although we did come across a Swiss rider on an aged Kawasaki GTR1000 taking a backroads journey to Valencia and also spoke with an English couple travelling by motorhome who enthused about a solo rider they encountered whose sleeping arrangements consisted of slinging his hammock between any available trees and nodding off for the night. Not my style but each to his own.
The one night that was not pre-booked was the last night in Spain, however using the free wi-fi at the hostal a suitable hotel in Logron the capital of Rioja was selected and our lovely host duly made the booking for us.
