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Recommendations?
[url= http://www.aquickrelease.com/ ]AQR[/url] are excellent - based in Luchon.
Considering the same thing as we're off in the campervan this summer (June) and I'm taking the bike.
I'm only looking for a day here and there but I'm considering being based in Luchon, Ainsa and Hondarribia/San Sebastian during the trip.
So I'll be getting in touch with AQR, Basque MTB and I've heard Ainsa has great way-marked trails.
I can highly recommend Basque MTB. I went there in may last year and have booked to go back again this year.
Part of their Back Country Tour and Winter Tour takes in the best of the trails around Ainsa...
I'm sure Doug will be along soon to make sure you make the right choice !
Ainsa is awesome. That is all.
http://singletrackworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/editors-choice-barneys-picks-for-the-year/
Mind you, so is the Basque country:
http://singletrackworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/nukeproof-launch-2014-two-days-in-a-basque-country/
Another vote for AQR here (although slightly biased as they're good mates).
I had a great week with AQR a few years back... I loved the riding, the guiding is excellent, (if slightly big groups) and the setup in luchon is really good but I'd not go back personally, it's not what I look for in a holiday. YMMV- but the lack of uplift (not even van uplift most days) meant a lot of time spent climbing. I don't [i]mind[/i] climbing, I just don't want to spend my holiday doing it. And the knock on effect was much less descending- some of it was absolutely superb, all of it was good, but I did more in a day at Pila than a week in Luchon. (I did use the superbagneres lifts on the rest day)
None of this is a criticism at all, if that's what you're after then they'd be hard to beat.
Highly recommend Basquemtb, genuine guys, work really hard to ensure everyone gets the most out of their holiday, very accommodating, excellent trails and the region is one of the very best I've visited. Trip with them last year and heading back out in April
Another recommendation for Basque-MTB, they really are very, very good.
It's been said before, but worth mentioning again that Ainsa is stunning, but gets very hot in June.
Singletrack Safari guide in Andorra, good mix of natural trails with a couple of bike parks nearby.
Another vote for AQR in Luchon, they're excellent.
Thanks a lot for the recommendations guys!
OP. The Pyrenees is a pretty big place and Andorra is very different to the French side which is very different to the Spanish side which is very different from east to west! Time of year is critical.
If you look at our 3 trips they are all timed to get the best out of the climates. Ainsa in July, August and early September isn´t going to be fun but the Basque Coast should be great. The locals don´t ride the marked Zona Zero stuff in summer but stay high and go early. Of course you could get a cool day or cool week so might be OK.
In Ainsa, Zona Zero there are loads of marked trails. They offer a map and the marking is meant to be up there with the best in the world. We don´t ride the trails the way that they´re marked because we have constant support from the uplift van which gives us loads more options and lets us ride point-points as well. Often the local riders will join us if there´s spaces in the van because we can do trails in a way that they can´t. If you go for a week then you can definitely find trails to ride and have a great time. Just remember that you will do plenty of climbing, the climbing is tough, and that the marked trails are a fairly small area which is the bullseye of a dartboard of amazing riding!
Our Backcountry tour is 6 days of riding with 1 or 1.5 in the zona zero area. Our new Winter Enduro trip is 6 days of riding with 3 in the zona zero area.
The Basque Coast is different. There aren´t way marked trails. Or at least ones that aren´t just a waste of time. There you need a guide. They know where the trails are because they´ve spent all winter looking after them and digging! (Typing with blistered fingers from a day digging!)
I hope that helps a bit. Basically Ainsa is great. We won´t guide there in summer but it is worth a trip without us, especially since we don´t have many spaces left this year. Just watch the weather and maybe get some practice pedalling before you go!
Doug, when I get 5 mins I'll drop you an e-mail.
KoB a shorter answer this time... Cool!
Doug, Will a hardtail XC 29er and a rider with a good skill level and fitness level get a good weeks training over there with you or is it aimed more at enduro. (Been MTBing for over 25 years so can throw it about a bit and usually keep with most enduro riders downhill)
Cheers
Hey KK´sF, we have had a few 29´er hardtails out. It´s not what I would use if I had the choice but decent wheels etc. Our trips are generally aimed at enduro type riding with uplift assistance to let us get more down than up but there´s still pedalling and it´s definitely not a DH holiday in any shape or form.
Kkf - thegingerone and I survived one of Doug's trips on 1x10 29er hardtails (Yeti + Solaris) - we didn't die!
Check out Ian and Ang at Altitude Adventure at the Eastern end of the Pyrenees.