Tour Northern Spain, Santander to Santander

[HobbesOnTour]

I'd echo @mudsticks - Northern Spain is wonderful for a bike tour for all sorts of reasons. New(ish) motorways take a lot of the traffic so you can find yourself on (almost) deserted main roads. Then there are back roads! Drivers are great! (Helmets compulsory, as far as I recall).

It is hilly, though, and the weather can be very hot and/or very wet or fantastically stormy depending on the time of year.

But the food!!! Oh the food!

As a part of a longer tour I meandered from A Coruña to San Sebastian and into France. I picked up a road map in Santiago and used that and the coast to navigate.
I was camping. I found most of the campsites to be very full and densely packed, but still very pleasant, often with excellent restaurants. And beach access.
(My shortest day was 15 km. I was in a campground, had a private beach practically to myself and a kindle. More out of habit than anything else, I packed up and rolled out. I gave myself a good chastisement until I came across another campground down the road😊).

I wasn't aware of it at the time but https://cycle.travel/ should create some good routes.

I'd imagine that with E-bikes you'll need to pay attention to charging them so that may require extra communication. (I'm assuming you've checked that transporting Ebikes is ok?) Outside of the bigger/touristy cities, don't expect too much English.

Some people don't like the Siesta thing, and some aren't happy that restaurants (or the better ones) don't open until late (by their standards). I never noticed either as a hardship.
Time is different in Northern Spain, things can seem slow but they are worth waiting for. I'd suggest not having a highly specific plan and allowing time each day for whatever the place presents you. It might be a second lunch when the aroma from a roadside restaurant is too good or it might be a coffee in a little village that will teach you more about the culture than a University course.

Just a word of warning: In a post Covid world there may still be limits on hospitality capacities - hotels restaurants etc.

Best of luck y buen viaje!

 

[Cafejohnny]

I'd echo @mudsticks - Northern Spain is wonderful for a bike tour for all sorts of reasons. New(ish) motorways take a lot of the traffic so you can find yourself on (almost) deserted main roads. Then there are back roads! Drivers are great! (Helmets compulsory, as far as I recall).

It is hilly, though, and the weather can be very hot and/or very wet or fantastically stormy depending on the time of year.

But the food!!! Oh the food!

As a part of a longer tour I meandered from A Coruña to San Sebastian and into France. I picked up a road map in Santiago and used that and the coast to navigate.
I was camping. I found most of the campsites to be very full and densely packed, but still very pleasant, often with excellent restaurants. And beach access.
(My shortest day was 15 km. I was in a campground, had a private beach practically to myself and a kindle. More out of habit than anything else, I packed up and rolled out. I gave myself a good chastisement until I came across another campground down the road😊).

I wasn't aware of it at the time but https://cycle.travel/ should create some good routes.

I'd imagine that with E-bikes you'll need to pay attention to charging them so that may require extra communication. (I'm assuming you've checked that transporting Ebikes is ok?) Outside of the bigger/touristy cities, don't expect too much English.

Some people don't like the Siesta thing, and some aren't happy that restaurants (or the better ones) don't open until late (by their standards). I never noticed either as a hardship.
Time is different in Northern Spain, things can seem slow but they are worth waiting for. I'd suggest not having a highly specific plan and allowing time each day for whatever the place presents you. It might be a second lunch when the aroma from a roadside restaurant is too good or it might be a coffee in a little village that will teach you more about the culture than a University course.

Just a word of warning: In a post Covid world there may still be limits on hospitality capacities - hotels restaurants etc.

Best of luck y buen viaje!

Many thanks for this. Lots of good stuff there. It looks like you can follow minor roads as we dont want to be on main roads if we can help it. Im assuming you can hug the coastline and stay away from main busy roads. Yes i think we can take our E Bikes on the Ferry but will double check. We would need to stay at places where we can charge the batteries yes. Thanks

 

[mudsticks]

I'd echo @mudsticks - Northern Spain is wonderful for a bike tour for all sorts of reasons. New(ish) motorways take a lot of the traffic so you can find yourself on (almost) deserted main roads. Then there are back roads! Drivers are great! (Helmets compulsory, as far as I recall).

It is hilly, though, and the weather can be very hot and/or very wet or fantastically stormy depending on the time of year.

But the food!!! Oh the food!

As a part of a longer tour I meandered from A Coruña to San Sebastian and into France. I picked up a road map in Santiago and used that and the coast to navigate.
I was camping. I found most of the campsites to be very full and densely packed, but still very pleasant, often with excellent restaurants. And beach access.
(My shortest day was 15 km. I was in a campground, had a private beach practically to myself and a kindle. More out of habit than anything else, I packed up and rolled out. I gave myself a good chastisement until I came across another campground down the road😊).

I wasn't aware of it at the time but https://cycle.travel/ should create some good routes.

I'd imagine that with E-bikes you'll need to pay attention to charging them so that may require extra communication. (I'm assuming you've checked that transporting Ebikes is ok?) Outside of the bigger/touristy cities, don't expect too much English.

Some people don't like the Siesta thing, and some aren't happy that restaurants (or the better ones) don't open until late (by their standards). I never noticed either as a hardship.
Time is different in Northern Spain, things can seem slow but they are worth waiting for. I'd suggest not having a highly specific plan and allowing time each day for whatever the place presents you. It might be a second lunch when the aroma from a roadside restaurant is too good or it might be a coffee in a little village that will teach you more about the culture than a University course.

Just a word of warning: In a post Covid world there may still be limits on hospitality capacities - hotels restaurants etc.

Best of luck y buen viaje!

Oh yes the food.. There's mid morning and mid afternoon stops for snacks, as well as lunch and dinner.

In fact the cycling is just a scenic way to pass the time, and work up an appetite between meals

The cheese.. 😊

Pretty sure I ended up heavier by the end of my trip.

But that's OK I usually drop quite a bit of weight in summer, so it was just putting in winter stores.

Even the food on the Santander ferry is very decent, so long as you get calm enough crossing to enjoy it. . .

 

[mudsticks]

Many thanks. Sounds great. Is there much off road that you can do on tracks or similar. Can’t seem to find any info like a C2C type map ?

Many thanks ian

This may give some inspiration - theres lots more online - i could dig out at some point.

tbh - i tend to use paper mapping and follow my nose on a whim - others here will have much more sophisticated techniques of route planning.

 

[mudsticks]

Many thanks for this. Lots of good stuff there. It looks like you can follow minor roads as we dont want to be on main roads if we can help it. Im assuming you can hug the coastline and stay away from main busy roads. Yes i think we can take our E Bikes on the Ferry but will double check. We would need to stay at places where we can charge the batteries yes. Thanks

You'll be fine taking ebikes on the ferry - i can see why not - you just board onto the car deck with all the other motorised (and batteried) transport.

Even the metalled roads are pretty quiet - and the drivers much more respectful than UK .

 

[Grant Fondo]

As others have said, a fabulous region to cycle in! Picos are spectacular but hard on the legs at times. I mixed train trips to see more, cycling up to Santiago de Compostella a real treat. Not the killer heat of the south either which is a big bonus

 

[Cafejohnny]

You'll be fine taking ebikes on the ferry - i can see why not - you just board onto the car deck with all the other motorised (and batteried) transport.

Even the metalled roads are pretty quiet - and the drivers much more respectful than UK .

Many thanks it all seems very achievable. Regards

 

[HobbesOnTour]

Many thanks for this. Lots of good stuff there. It looks like you can follow minor roads as we dont want to be on main roads if we can help it. Im assuming you can hug the coastline and stay away from main busy roads. Yes i think we can take our E Bikes on the Ferry but will double check. We would need to stay at places where we can charge the batteries yes. Thanks

Have a look at Biroto.eu - a collection of cycling routes all over Europe.

From recollection, it was (quiet) main roads mostly parallel to the coast - the smaller roads tended to run perpindicular to the coast. There is no reason to fear too much traffic on the bigger roads. They are also where you'll find food & drink between towns.
I have painful recollections of small coastal towns having savage climbs to get out of! Worth it though!

As for the E-bikes, I assume batteries can be removed for charging? If not, where you park the bike will be important. Similarly, overnight accommodation will need a storage space for bikes with power that is secure.
I'm not at all familiar with E-bikes but check compatibility with Spanish sockets or appropriate adapters. Carry a cable each to save time.
Do check any restrictions for Ebikes on ferries in advance (a lot of bike rules have changed due to Covid) and possibility of charging batteries on board? You might arrive in Spain with no charge!

It's not clear to me if you want to pick a route and follow it or if you have any places that you specifically want to visit. There's a vast amount of historical, cultural and religious places that if you had an interest could form the basis of a great route.

If you're not aware, CrazyGuyOnABike will have journals from that area. There's a great search tool that's worth getting familiar with and it's a great source of info and inspiration. No E bikes, though!

I think the biggest problem you'll have is trying to figure out where to go!

 

[Cafejohnny]

As others have said, a fabulous region to cycle in! Picos are spectacular but hard on the legs at times. I mixed train trips to see more, cycling up to Santiago de Compostella a real treat. Not the killer heat of the south either which is a big bonus

Thanks sounds great

 

[Cafejohnny]

Have a look at Biroto.eu - a collection of cycling routes all over Europe.

From recollection, it was (quiet) main roads mostly parallel to the coast - the smaller roads tended to run perpindicular to the coast. There is no reason to fear too much traffic on the bigger roads. They are also where you'll find food & drink between towns.
I have painful recollections of small coastal towns having savage climbs to get out of! Worth it though!

As for the E-bikes, I assume batteries can be removed for charging? If not, where you park the bike will be important. Similarly, overnight accommodation will need a storage space for bikes with power that is secure.
I'm not at all familiar with E-bikes but check compatibility with Spanish sockets or appropriate adapters. Carry a cable each to save time.
Do check any restrictions for Ebikes on ferries in advance (a lot of bike rules have changed due to Covid) and possibility of charging batteries on board? You might arrive in Spain with no charge!

It's not clear to me if you want to pick a route and follow it or if you have any places that you specifically want to visit. There's a vast amount of historical, cultural and religious places that if you had an interest could form the basis of a great route.

If you're not aware, CrazyGuyOnABike will have journals from that area. There's a great search tool that's worth getting familiar with and it's a great source of info and inspiration. No E bikes, though!

I think the biggest problem you'll have is trying to figure out where to go!

Thanks for this. I will have a look at the link. Yes the batteries come off to charge thanks. We dont have any route as such other than going west from Santander for a week and then train back

 

[Tripster]

Reading this with interest. Sounds fantastic. I hope you have an amazing trip and come back and post a report with pics
I have worked in A Coruna and will be in Barcelona twice this year, May-June and October-November. I keep planning to ride whilst there but never get round to it. Maybe this year ! I was working near the Zoncalon in Italy last year and missed riding dying up that too.
Hope you have a great time

 

[Dave Davenport]

We've ridden 'green Spain' quite a bit, probably our favourite place to tour, had ferries booked to do a couple of weeks last September but didn't go for some reason...
The old coast roads are generally very quiet, but hilly, actually there's not much of that part of Spain that's not. An easy route in/out of Santander is to get the passenger ferry across the bay, runs from next to where the car ferry docks, there's a nice campsite at Cabo Mayor.
I think someone 'mentioned' the food, yes it's great and very reasonably priced (as is the booze!). Couple of CGOAB journals I did a few years ago, we've been back a couple of times since but I never got round to writing it up.
A meander through northern Spain, by Dave Davenport (crazyguyonabike.com)
Santander to Caen, by Dave Davenport (crazyguyonabike.com)