We had some really great fun over our final few weeks in Andalucía (before we return in the autumn) – and never more so than with our final clients, Mark and Josie from Aldershot, who were with us for the last week before we headed out of Spain for the summer months in the Pyrenees and Alps!
As our first couple, we were looking forward to seeing how the holiday would work for them – it’s always great fun (and nearly always educational!) seeing the dynamics between couples on mountain biking holidays. Sometimes there’s sparks which fly as one half “encourages” the other with “helpful” comments on the trails. Sometimes they ride as if they don’t know each other, with one disappearing up/downhill (delete as appropriate) and leaving the other literally in their dust. Sometimes there’s tension. Sometimes there’s sickly-sweet lovie-doviness. Sometimes one is clearly more eager to be there than the other. Or sometimes the guide can start feeling like a bit of a gooseberry!! However, at most times there’s great balance – and Mark and Josie had this in spades, and were great fun to be around. As Josie’s self-described toyboy you might be forgiven for thinking that Mark needed to be kept in check....but Josie’s inner child escapes at every opportunity making for brilliantly entertaining days, whilst Mark takes on the role of responsible adult!! During the course of the 50 minute drive to the hotel from the airport I had decided I really liked them both, and that not only was a brilliant week in store, but that the foundations for a long friendship were already forming.
Mark’s a very handy guy uphill, so as we rolled out of the hotel on the first morning he was frustrated that he was feeling a bit off form – he doesn’t normally eat breakfast and reckoned that his system just couldn’t deal with having had something to eat first thing and then doing exercise. However, as we climbed high into the mountains behind the hotel in Cabra the weather started to really heat up, and this made the going very sticky indeed! Despite a forecast of a pleasant 23 degrees the temperature soared to a staggering 35 – making for a tough baptism into Spanish riding for the group. Mark was still feeling a bit sleepy from the previous day’s travelling, and at one point was near to snoozing off under a tree, and when I took a photo of him lying back and relaxing he insisted that we didn’t let anyone he knows hear about him chilling out rather than steaming up the climb...oops, sorry Mark! At least there’s no photographic evidence....oops! Fortunately, there’s only one proper (albeit it substantial) climb during this day’s riding – so as always we took it steady and we all made it to the top to enjoy some staggering views down to the hotel 900 metres below.
After descending the steep switchbacks from the mountaintop the heat became too much for Mark’s overheating extremities, so he climbed into a drinking trough to cool down before we hit the final descent to a tasty lunch – and everyone did really well down the very rocky descent, with no blots on anyone’s riding copybook to mention this week.
Day two was a lot cooler than the previous day’s biking – and with Cordoba’s climbs being a lot less demanding everyone was able to relax into the ride a little bit more without overheating. The trails here are really fast flowing, and Mark and I managed to get up some really grin-inducing speeds on “Cordo-Flow” – until Mark outbraked himself in a corner and had a close encounter with the undergrowth. No harm was done – and a lot of silly giggling ensued before getting back into the rythm – we’d challenge anyone not to have a huge grin on their face at the bottom of this long, swooping singletrack. It just urges you to keep going faster and faster; it’s naturally bermed turns and smooth, dusty surface make for true “flow”.
During a break Josie dropped a pile of flavoured nuts on the floor, and she and the spillage were immediately engulfed by dozens of huge ants. They couldn’t haul Josie off into the bushes, but we were amazed as all of the nuts were picked up by creatures a tenth their size and dragged off home.
After a quick break for an MBR-style photoshoot (I got a great pic of Josie looking professional, but somehow the only in-focus photo of Mark was of his bum – which Josie liked a lot) we reached the city centre for some well earned nosh and big beers in frozen glasses.
Day three turned out to be Josie’s favourite ride, as she loved the scenery and trails around the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in Granada. It’s not a long ride, but the views are amazing –and most people spend a lot of time taking photos and absorbing their surroundings before dropping back into the city for some relaxing tapas in a shady square in the historic heart of the city, where we all spent a while taking “arty” photos of bikes through our beer!!
Following a day of rest on Wednesday (which the guys used to explore the picturesque town of Castril near our second hotel) we headed out on Thursday for some of the most epic riding in Spain in the Sierra De Castril. When we undertake “big country” riding like this we set a very gentle pace and make sure no-one rushes – it is supposed to be a holiday after all – and with Spanish dinnertime not starting until 8.30 in the evening there’s no time pressure either. So after several photos stops (including playing on a log-ride halfway up the mountain) and a spot of lunch at the top at 1800m, we headed down the 11k descent to the van, stopping only for Mark to make a pinch puncture repair at one point.
As a reward for our efforts we headed into Castril and tucked into the ridiculously cheap food at our favourite watering hole – where you can get a really tasty handmade burger with all the trimmings for only 3 euros!
The final day saw us pedalling up into one of the most amazing places we’ve ever ridden – the Sierra de Cazorla seemed to be one of Mark’s highlights of the week. These are beautiful mountains, but they are tough to get up into – but the hard work is rewarded with an amazing final drop which we’ve started nicknaming “25/700” – as there are 25 fantastic switchbacks which drop you from the top of the mountain through thick pine forests to the stunning lake 700 metres below.
After a big, rewarding final lunch at the lakeside restaurant we looked back on the week whilst tucking into a great feast – including one of the local specialities – wild boar – which is incredibly tasty, and surprisingly quite unlike pork – it’s really rich and luxuriously flavoured.
Josie and Mark were brilliant company, and have promised they are going to be back for some more riding soon – and Josie even wrote a blog of her own which you can find here ! We’re really looking forward to seeing them again – they’ve also promised to bring some of their riding friends next time too!
Tags: 2010 Season, Spain, Trail Tapas
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