Two Wheel Blogs

Well, I´m still standing! I left Ripoll this morning and started climbing. 47 km and 1500 vertical metres of steady climbing later, I popped over the top of Toses Pass. What an absolutely, positively incredible day! I don´t think I have exerted myself that much in eleven years, since Brice and I cycled across the AltiPlano in Bolivia. We came home from that trip and within 3 days I was pregnant with Nathaniel. That slowed me down for a while.

I think I was ready, because the only major pain I felt was where my sunglasses were being pressed into the top of my ears by my helmet. We´ll see how I feel in the morning. I am sure my saddle will be a little sore when I get back on in the morning. I am thinkful for what I have learned about posture from Pilates, because it has really helped my stance.

The pass was a little bit like the San Juans, with a few stone castles thrown in to enhance the view. The peaks were capped with snow, and the creeks and rivers were running full. I kept thinking I was hearing music, but it turned out to be cows grazing with bells tied around their necks. Nice ambience. The wildflowers were incredible. Snapdragon in pink, white and yellow; red poppies, purple flax, lavender morning glories, yellow paintbrush, purple thistle, and about a hundred more that I couldn´t identify.

There were a ton of cyclists on the road. Not one single woman besides me. The road was quite well suited for cycling with the exception of the very fast and noisy crotch rockets. I have to say it does look like fun, cornering at high speed with one knee almost touching the ground. I definitely had to remember the fine art of cornering a fully loaded bicycle on the way down.

Puigcerda is a beautiful surprise. The buildings of the town are draped over a hill, the hardest climb of my day. The road to the city center spirals up steeply around and around the hill. That hurt! I found a great (albiet empty) hostel called Fonda Cerdanya in Puigcerda for €20, best price:value yet. (My €50 a day budget is working now that I am out of Barcelona!) I have a private room with a bathroom ensuite and a window overlooking the pedestrian alley. He stored my bicycle for free. It may be noisy later when this tired carcass heads for bed. There are no American tourists around anywhere and a word of English anywhere.

Tomorrow I will head along the border of Andorra (wonder what it did to rate status as its own tiny country here in the middle of the Pyrenees?!) and cross into France by late morning. Depending on the terrain, I am heading for St. Girons. I doubt I will make it that far. It looks like more mountainous terrain, although not as steep as today. I am hoping to find a bike shop here to get some advice on what to expect. Most of my route tomorrow is part of the 12th stage of the Tour de France, so it can´t be too ugly. Might kick my tail again... I´ll head for Ax-Les-Thermes, which looks lovely on Google Images.

My attempts to upload photos are not working from this slow computer. Maybe tomorrow...

Off to find some yummy tapas for dinner.