Amanda and Rhys continue making their way from Barcelona to Malaga, finding every obstacle possible and eating everything in sight. Catch-up: Day One ...
By amandawishart
Get the full story here:
https://singletrackworld.com/2023/09/spanish-bikepacking-diary-day-10/
This series is fantastic. I lovely the bare honesty. Although it’s reinforcing my opinion that bikepacking is not for me!
Well the story just keeps coming
I'm really enjoying this series, but, Hell's teeth, you really get put through the ringer! I have to admire your resilience; I would have jacked it in long before now.
This series has inspired me to buy a bikepacking rig, thanks 🙂
Looking forward to the next instalment.
Wringer, doh. Although it would still be pretty painful to be squeezed through a doorbell.
Loving the honest up and downs of your trip/story many thanks for sharing.
hope to one day do something like this myself.
this sounds so punishing, I admire the fortitude but can't help wonder why a little pootling couldn't be permitted en route too 🙂
Anyway, I check the route and it is the toughest planned day of the entire trip, mainly thanks to this ‘gem’ Rhys found:
By heck.
"What doesn't kill us makes us stronger", but we only usually say this when recalling the pain and problems way after the event.
Sounds like a very painful day in the saddle. Would you want to experience it again, absolutely "No". Will it help you on future tough days, absolutely "Yes". On a future bad cycling day you will be able to say "It's tough, but not as bad as that day in Spain and I did that!".
Great read Amanda, looking forward to Day 11, hope its titled Lazarus Rising 🙂
Hadn't noticed this series until today and have now binged the whole series...brilliant stuff and look forward to more
(I am wondering why you didn't also bin off the camping equipment too though)
Loving the brutal honesty of these articles, to counter the social media rose tinted bikepacking vids 9n social media.
Enjoying the series but reinforces that this type of cycling holiday is not for me (these days).
I've had one of those days in Spain, the first big climb was fine but the final long slow drag engendered a sense of humour failure. (For the avoidance of doubt I didn't have menstrual problems to cope with).
< 4 Yourkshiremen> I was lucky! </ 4 Yorkshiremen>
There is a Citreon 2CV in this photo
It took a few seconds to register, but eeek.
Absolutely echo the sentiments about the honesty in the series so far.
Enjoying the series but reinforces that this type of cycling holiday is not for me (these days).
Or just choose to do 60km a day with rest days and meandering to see the sights, not 120km + col de steepness head down and pedalling all day...
There's a lot of emphasis on how this was my first proper bikepacking trip, that's why it's full of mistakes in terms of kit and route planning. I think the diary gets nicer from here. The final days of the trip were glorious!
We used to have to plan our tours alot as we stayed in hotels and b&bs and traveled very light. We are also vegetarian and had to factor in evening meals.
We used to plan for 50 mile days but less if it involve lots of big climbs.
Thing still used to go wrong like steeper hills than we expected and finding the place you had booked to stay was not where you thought.
Other things that went wrong were waking up to 4 inches of snow and being blown off my bike by the wind three times in one day.
Some days you enjoy more in retrospect.
"Despiernacaballos" - "Breaks the legs off horses", so at least the locals agree it's a tough climb 🙂
(Or "Destroys a horse's legs" "Removes a horse's legs", something like that. Either way Dobbin won't be moving after climbing it...)