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PYT2201 Tour of the Pyrenees

Friday, June 17, 2022 | Björn / Julia Marie Joy Hamm | Europe

Guided City Tour Barcelona

So here we are, in Castelldefels, and we can´t wait for the Tour of the Pyrenees to begin! But before we start the engies we want to discover the beautiful city of Barcelona! A place packed with historic stories to be told as well as a modern lifestyle, art, sport and design. Not to forget the great cuisine! Barcelona offeres you the best food from all over the world! But today, we will concentrate on some delicious tapas! All in all one day is not enough to get to know this wonderful city! But we do get a first impression! 

Let´s go! Will you join us on our tour?

After a lovely breakfast and a very entertaining train ride we arrive at our first stop: The Casa Batlló. You may guess who created this colorful yet mysterious building? Of course! It was no-one else than Antoni Gaudí! And this will not have been the last building we've seen from this genious architect.
While we continue walking and get to see the beautiful Placa de Catalunya, a local skate park, the library and the statue of Columbus, we do not only get to know Barcelona. Our Tourguide Julia is also getting taught some Swiss words. "Znüni" for example seems to be a very handy one. A Znüni is a second breakfast or Brunch in the late morning, early noon.
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Do we really need to leave at this station? A band just started to play and filled up the train with great happy vibes. But it will be worth it. One of Barcelonas biggest treasures is waiting for us!
Our last stop is the still unfinished and yet so impressive Sagrada Familia. The Masterpiece of Antoni Gaudí! He connects functionalism with artwork in a unique way! Especially the play with light and color caught my eye.
I am sure all three of us will keep the Sagrada Familia in mind for a while. But now its time to go back to the hotel, where the rest of our group has already arrived. The welcome briefing is about to begin.

Welcome Briefing and first dinner
Yes, we are all excited to get the keys for our bikes and start the engine. But be patient. To make sure we will enjoy a week full of adventures and without any circumstances there are a hand full of rules we´d like to introduce. Besides we hope to raise the joyful anticipation for the upcoming week with some more information about the regions and culture we will travel trough.
After a successful welcome briefing and a first look at the motorcycles we enjoy the first dinner at the Grand Hotel Don Jaime in Castelldefels. Who has been on an Edelweiss Trip before? which bikes do you ride at home? Where is everybody from? Luckily we have a whole week to answer all of these and many more questions!
If we are the kind of people who take pictures of their food?
Maybe... but we do it for you

Day 1: Castelldefels to Peramola

The first riding day is always full of excitement! Not only are the Pyrenees a new piece of earth for all of our guests, some also chose an unfamiliar rental bike and are curious to get on the road! And yesterday at the welcome briefing the tourguides Julia and Björn talked about all these well prepared curvy roads...

At the daily briefing we get to know the route of the day. First stop will be the historical monastery of Montserrat. For lunch we will visit a beautiful old castle. On our way to the motocycle museum a twisty little street is waiting for us, winding through the forrest. Jim will say later: "I will dream about that road!".

 

Getting briefed for the first riding day
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Which way around does it belong again?
Our group ready to head out
The famous Monserrat monastery
Riding with Jim is so much fun! Whenever we arrived at a new stop he has a great smile on his face! For the first part of the day he's our second rider. "I love to be second", he says! "It's great to follow the Tourguides riding line!"
A last photo stop of Montserrat, before we leave the impressive mountain behind us and continue our trip to Cardona!
A lot of happy faces after we arrived at the castle of Cardona for our lunch stop! Just a few more meters up we find the cafeteria with great local delights and a beautiful view!
When you order an ice coffee in Spain, this is what you get: A fresh espresso and a glass with some ice cubes. A perfect energizer for a hot day!
After a stunning ride through the forrest on a small and twisty road we arrive in the Museo de la Moto in Bassella. All the beautifully prepared bikes allow you a travel back in time. Yet we are happy about the invention of ABS, aren't we?
Our hotel in Peramola
A cool beer or paperwork? What would you prefer after a perfect day out on the roads?
Our day ends with a fantastic dinner! The only problem we have: We get to chose from four options, each starter, main course and desert. And let me tell you! They all sound tempting! The vegetables and cherries for dessert are from the hotels own garden! How awesome is that?

Day 2: Restday in Peramola

Rest days are great! You don´t have to pack your luggage in the morning, can sleep a little longer and enjoy a relaxed breakfast before you start the tour. We are looking forward to a great day! And we are more than happy to stay at Can Boix for two nights, because this hotel is just beautiful!

Our day starts with a great breakfast buffet. They offer homemade pastries, cherries from the garden, a big variety of local sausages and cheeses, homemade Joghurt and Curd and so much more! We especially love the fresh pressed orange and carrot juice.
Our Tourguide Björn is looking forward to lead the group today! So what are we up to?
A lovely round tour in the mountains. And yes, great curvy roads and beautiful views are included! The whole group joins the daily trip. Our second Tourguide, Julia, included.
Our first stop. A lovely viewing platform.
It's just lovely to take a break, enjoy the breeze and be in the moment.
From left to right:
American, American living in Czech Republic (x2), Swiss, German spending more time on the roads than back home (x2), Swiss living in Australia, German - wait, Bavarian, there's a difference.
Our next stop of the day:
Welcome at Col de Boixols, 1332m.
Selfie time...
This one turned out beautifully. Our dearest friends John and Victoria. It's their fifth tour with Edelweiss... well, actually their sixth... funny Storie. If you ever have the chance to meet these two lovely people, you should ask them to tell you the story of their first tour!
Meanwhile Mark and Jim are curious about the yellow flour which grows all over the mountain, adds a lovely color to the landscape and fills the air with this beautiful scent.
But be careful! It has sharp thorns!
Deos anyone know what it's name is?
Just give Jim a minute. He has a smart friend, called PictureThis.
A picture with pass sign is always a great memory.
The Col de Boixols is not only known for motorcycling. There are also plenty of bicyclists on their way up!
What a great combination of colors. The light blue sky, green Mountains, the red Ducati monster and our yellow sweeper vest!
So how do you like your bike, Mark?
Wow! No doubt this is an Italian bike. it's got such a strong temper. You have to handle it with care, like an Italian Lady! It took some time to get used to it, but it feels great!
In the early afternoon we arrive back at the hotel.
On our way we pass by golden cornfields. In combination with the mountains ahead, the blue sky and our second Italian Lady making holidays is Spain. Just amazing!
Back at the hotel we spend the afternoon at the pool. Well, most of us. Jürgen is going for a walk and ends up at the top of the mountain after an hour. The Can Boix hotel is a great place for hiking! We could stay for another week and would not get bored. But we also look forward to discover a new city tomorrow. Not only a new city, a new country to be concrete.
As the breakfast at Can Boix only starts at 8am (and that's still early for Spanish culture) and yet we want to leave on time for the ride, we do our daily briefing the evening before. Tomorrow we will leave Spain, visit the dwarf state Andorra and end up in Carcassonne, France. With 265km (165miles) it will be the longest riding day of our tour.
We do have some good students on this tour, studying the map wisely and copying the route.
In case the Tourguides get lost, I am sure everyone can help out
Last but not least. Our second dinner at Can Boix Hotel! This time we requested to sit outside with the lovely view down to the village. The staff took our request very serious and prepared a table for us with the best view for each one of us. It reminds a little of "the last supper". In our case luckily it's not. There are four more to come!

Day 3: Peramola to Carcassonne
The day starts again with the wonderful breakfast at Can Boix hotel. This was just the healthy beginning. Chocolate pastries followed soon.
I'd love to have a bench like this back at home...
... with the same spectacular view!
With 2407m the Port d´Eenvalira is the highest pass of the Pyrenees. Besides it is the highest pass in Europe which can be driven/ridden on all year long.
Anyone hungry? Yes we are. After a lovely ride up to Col de Pailhéres Björn surprises us with a great picnic up on 2000m. There is something magical about picnics. The view, the fresh air, the landscape makes the food taste even better!
The only question is... where should I start? With the fresh salad, the typical cheeses and ham or the paella. You can also do it like Julia and start with the chocolate and butter cookies
You know those children´s eyes on Christmas Eve when they see the presents? Give our gourmet Mark a pepper mill and you will get a similar reaction. He did not expect one at the picnic up in the mountains.
What a lovely picture of the group after our ride down from the picnic! And what a ride! Jim has seen more switchbacks within the last 20 minutes than for rest of his life. We are just wandering in which corner the car with the caravan got stuck, which startet right behind us.
Due to street work we get stuck in a little village for 40 minutes. We take it easy. The weather is great and we have some some to relax, meditate or exchange photos. Only Björn is missing, for a second picnic.
What a surprise! When we get to the hotel in Carcassonne suddenly our new Tourguide Colleague Helmut comes in the garage.
"We are here on holiday and saw a group of motorcyclist with the "IM" for Imst on their license plate and thought this could not be a coincidence..."
The world is a village.

Day 4: Around Carcassonne
The view today was very special, indeed.
After all those sunny days we get reminded that the weather has it's own opinion sometimes.
But after a little while the sun comes back out. The blue dress suits the sky the best.
The small town called Minerve
The Gorges du Brian
Yeah, that's the price we love after a successful day of riding!
Enjoy Jürgen!
On our very first day Jon and Victoria, who have already taking part on several Edelweiss Tours, said: "One thing for sure, you don't need to worry about loosing weight on an Edelweiss Tour". They were so right. The food here in Spain and France is just amazing. Today we went to a lovely Tapas Bar close to the hotel.
The castle at night.
From our hotel rooftop we have a lovely view! This stunning building is full of stories and myths.

Day 5: Carcassonne to Mollo
Have you ever been to Gorges de Galamus?
It's impressive!
Afterwards we are super hungry. These fresh baguette will help! And as always a great conversation with a group of people, who already turned into friends!

Hello little friend, are you staying in our Hotel in Mollo, too?
Lovely. We have a lot of stories to tell about our last week!

Day 6: Mollo to Castelldefels

Wait, it's our last day today? Where has the time gone? But no worries. There is one more great riding day waiting for us. Starting off with some beautiful small and twisty roads.
One of our highlights today: The coastal road Gl682. When you are totally lost in confusion if you should concentrate on the great curves or the beautiful view over the sea.
After a delicious last dinner we have some surprises for our new friends. First of all we want to congratulate Mark, who managed to ride more than 250km with a Ducati Monster without refueling. That deserves the "Edelweiss-Öko-Preis" (Edelweiss-eco-award)!
On our second rest-day-ride our dearest Jürgen was freezing so much he had to borrow Julia´s wind jacket (and was very flattered he would fit in a ladies S
To make sure he'll be warm in the future, he got a lovely long-sleeve. Including a unique hand drawn map of the tour of the Pyrenees.
Our new friend Jim was so excited whenever we got to ride switchbacks! "I saw more switchbacks in the last 20 minutes than the rest of my life", he said after the Port de Pailheres. Well no wonder, it´s hard to find any in the US. To make sure he won't miss them too much we prepared some switchbacks to go. An original combination from our third riding day, including the coordinates if he wants to come back one day.
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Helmut Wonisch
Thursday, June 9, 2022 at 07:16
Hallo ihr Lieben!
Gestern haben wir uns zufällig getroffen. Gerade als Ihr in Carcassonne eingetroffen seid. Was für ein Zufall. Wir haben uns gefreut und wünschen Euch noch eine wunderbare Zeit.
Glg Sandra u Helmut

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