Motorcycling in Spain & Portugal 2018 – part 1

I returned last week from another wonderful solo trip, this time travelling in Spain and Portugal.

I was last there in September last year when my wife and I started off with some time in the Picos de Europa.

After the Picos we headed to Galicia, then worked our way down into Portugal before travelling further into Spain.

Even though I have travelled widely in Europe on my bikes it’s fair to say the Picos were something of a revelation to me last year.

When deciding where to travel for this trip, starting of in the Picos seemed to make sense and I’m so glad I went back there.

There’s always different views

I know there are different views on travelling. Some folk like the comfort and security of having a fixed itinerary and all accommodation booked in advance. Others like the idea of travelling without a plan.

Some folk are concerned because they think it’s either difficult or you might get shafted on prices

In my experience travelling without a plan has never been a problem. I have travelled that way all over Europe.

I had to shift the dates of my trip and was travelling in the ‘busy holiday season’ but didn’t expect there to be difficulties with booking accommodation.

Other than an advance booking for somewhere to stay on my first night I had no firm or fixed plans, just a broad outline idea of the general direction I might travel.

No problems finding accomodation

I’m relaxed when travelling on my own, I’ve never had a problem in finding places to stay. As well as looking forward to new roads and places as my trip unfolded, I was looking forward to doing this trip on the bike I had traded my Kawasaki Z1000SX for last year – my BMW RnineT.

I  reckoned it would probably be an absolutely ideal bike for the roads I hoped to ride.

In later parts of this Blog posts I’ll write about how the bike was, what it was like with the warm weather though Iberia and also about some of the terrific accommodation that I stayed at. This will include my night at the goat farm!

Heading for Santander

I had taken the Brittany Ferries sailing down from Portsmouth down to Santander, to be honest it hadn’t been my first choice of route as I had originally booked to travel on the quicker crossing from Plymouth (to Santander).

Difficult family circumstances (that I wrote about here) meant that right at the last minute I had to cancel my original bookings and reschedule dates and crossings.

The heat wave across Europe meant I arrived in Portsmouth in glorious sunshine and more importantly dry.

There have been far too many occasions when I have arrived at a ferry port soaking wet.  Last years solo trip to eastern Europe had seen me ride from Manchester to Hull in torrential rain. Arriving at a ferry port dry was a welcome change.

Delayed

Unfortunately the ferry was late leaving Portsmouth and late arriving into Santander. The sailing was routine and the journey made less boring by chatting with a great couple (Pat and Angie) I had met on the quay side. We passed away a few hours chatting during the sailing. Pat and Angie were on a very decent Hayabusa and were headed for Murcia in southern Spain.

Very quiet on the ferry

Just like every other time I have done the Santander or Bilbao route the bikers were in the ‘bottom’ of the boat and were last off when we arrived.

Arriving into Santander and emerging from the bowels of the ship, the sky looked dark and with the potential for rain.

The nature of it’s location means that Santander can seem to have its own micro climate often at odds with the weather a few miles away.

Any which way, once out of the port it was a routine journey to my overnight stay at the Hostal Monte Rio.

I knew I would be relatively late arriving into Spain. Because of this I had booked a place some  60 or so miles away, that would leave me set for the Picos the following day. It did rain, but not for too long although it left the roads damp.

My accommodation was good. Once parked up, checked in and showered I sat out until around midnight enjoying a couple of beers. Along with the beers was an interesting selection of cheeses – only one of which I  couldn’t eat. It actually looked and smelt rancid and was way too strong for me

Riding in the Picos

Day two saw me heading off into the Picos.

I had decided to stay at the next place for a couple of nights as there were a few roads I wanted to make time to do.

I booked into a place called Tiera de la Reina in Boca de Huérgano. It was an ideal location as it’s on the Potes – Riano road.

Once across the mountains the weather was perfect and it remained so for the rest of my trip.

The accommodation for my second and third nights wasn’t too far away, but I didn’t go there directly.

Having been in the Picos before I had a few ideas of where I wanted to go. I headed on past the hotel towards La Robla, Villanueva de la Tercia and Las Salas before looping back to where I would stay.

DCIM100GOPRO

Potes to Riano

I would guess most bikers who have spent time in the Picos will know the road that runs from Potes to Riano. If you’re headed that way it’s a road that really must be done.

Day three was an easy and relaxed day. I had decided on a route that would take me on a 180 mile loop.  First out to Besande, then Otero de Guardo, Trollo and Ventanilla. Eventually this looping back to my hotel.

When in the Picos you don’t have to spend much time route planning to come up with great routes.

An exceptional day

I had an exceptional day. Good roads, stunning scenery and with no plans to be anywhere I could really make the most of the day.

Although my trip had started well and lived up to expectations.  I hadn’t planned for a cracked phone screen and a cracked front tooth. Both of which would prove to be a little bit of an annoyance for the remainder of the trip.

Click here to go to article to changes on road speeds in Spain

Click here to go to Part Two

Click here to go to Part Three

Please feel free to leave comments/thoughts