A 17th century palace hosts our first hotel... |
Day 1
SUNDAY › Bienvenidos en Espana
Our
trip starts at Bilbao airport where our staff will be there
to welcome you before the short transfer to our hotel in Villacarriedo.
After lunch, orientation meeting and bike build-up we'll enjoy our first ride in Cantabria. A short climb up to San Martin precedes the beautiful ride along the Toranzo valley. From the Torranzo Valley we ride alongside the Rio Pas to Vega where we start the Puerto de Braguia climb. From the Braguia it's a short downhill ride all the way to the hotel.
|
|
35 miles
|
2,815 ft elev. gain |
|
Today's Major Climbs |
|
Climb
|
Elevation Gain
|
Average Grade |
Length |
Profile |
Difficulty
Index
|
Puerto de Braguia (south) |
1,132 ft |
5.8% |
3.7 miles |
|
44 |
|
| |
Climbing the spectacular Puerto de la Sia |
Day 2
MONDAY › Vuelta a Espana Favorites!
One of our Top 5 European rides and definitely one for the climbers! Today's ride includes 5 categorised climbs with a total of over 11,000ft elevation gain.
First up is the Alto El Caracol followed by a fantastic 25km descent before we tackle the Puerto de Alisas. Enjoy the beautiful views of the Atlantic Ocean far in the distance from the Alisas before setting off for our next climb, the 20km Puerto de la Sia. The Lunada is next with an absolutely spectacular descent before tackling the Caracol from the opposite side and the drop down to our hotel in Villacarriedo
RIDE SUMMARY:
|
83 miles
|
11,215 ft elev. gain |
|
Today's Major Climbs |
|
Climb
|
Elevation Gain
|
Average Grade |
Length |
Profile |
Difficulty
Index
|
Alto El Caracol (west side) |
1,946 ft |
5.6% |
6.7 miles |
|
65 |
Puerto de Alisas |
2,014 ft |
4.9% |
7.8 miles |
|
60 |
Puerto de La Sia |
3,556 ft |
5.2% |
13.4 miles |
|
99 |
Puerto de Lunada |
1,745 ft |
5.3% |
6.2 miles |
|
52 |
Alto El Caracol (east side) |
1,434 ft |
6.7% |
4.0 miles |
|
70 |
|
| |
Descending the Puerto de Palombera |
Day 3
TUESDAY › Puerto de Palombera
Today's ride takes us into the Saja Natural Park. On leaving the hotel we climb up the Puerto de Braguia from the opposite side. After the Braguia descent we take a single-track road which leads through San Pedro to the Puerto de la Matanela. Enjoy the rare 25km of flat along the Ebro reservoir...before the final climb of the day to the Puerto de Palombera.
From the Palombera there's a magnificent 25km descent with beautiful views of the Saja Natural Park - all the way down to the hotel!
RIDE SUMMARY:
|
68 miles
|
6,000 ft elev. gain |
|
Today's Major Climbs |
|
Climb
|
Elevation Gain
|
Average Grade |
Length |
Profile |
Difficulty
Index
|
Puerto de Braguia (north) |
1,608 ft |
6.2% |
4.9 miles |
|
57 |
Puerto de la Matanela |
2,313 ft |
4.1% |
10.8 miles |
 |
47 |
Puerto de Palombera |
1,060 ft |
5.4% |
3.7 miles |
|
45 |
|
| |
Incredible views from the Collado de Hoz
|
Day 4
WEDNESDAY › Spectacular Collado de Hoz!
Today's ride is just simply spectacular. From the hotel we're quickly onto the 8% grades of the first of 3 climbs. The Collado de Carmona is quickly followed by the Ozalba then the Collado de Hoz. The descent from the Collado de Hoz is just fantastic with superb views of the surrounding mountains.
Through the canyons and gorges of the La Hermida and we're soon on the climb to our hotel in Fuente De. The hotel is set in an incredible setting, surrounded by 2000ft rock walls. In the afternoon take the gondola to the top of the mountain for spectacular views of the Picos de Europa.
RIDE SUMMARY:
|
57 miles
|
7,470 ft elev. gain |
|
Today's Major Climbs |
|
Climb
|
Elevation Gain
|
Average Grade |
Length |
Profile |
Difficulty
Index
|
Collado de Carmona |
1,184 ft |
7.5% |
3.0 miles |
|
59 |
Collado de Ozalba |
1,276 ft |
6.7% |
3.6 miles |
|
55 |
Collado de Hoz |
1,444 ft |
6.1% |
4.5 miles |
|
57 |
Alto Fuente De |
2,549 ft |
3.2% |
14.9 miles |
|
57 |
|
| |
Picos de Europa surround the hotel in Fuente De |
Day 5
THURSDAY › Picos de Europa
Today we head into the Picos de Europa National Park - one of the remotest wildernesses in western Europe. The day starts off well with a 25km descent to Potes but what goes down must come up - and we're quickly onto the 25km climb to the Puerto San Glorio.
From the San Glorio we head into the Picos National Park on a traffic-free, single-track road. The Puerto de Panderuedas, at 90km, signals the start of the spectacular 50km descent to our hotel in Cangas de Onis. Enjoy!
RIDE SUMMARY:
|
89 miles
|
7,620 ft elev. gain |
|
Today's Major Climbs |
|
Climb
|
Elevation Gain
|
Average Grade |
Length |
Profile |
Difficulty
Index
|
Puerto de San Glorio |
4,193 ft |
4.8% |
16.6 miles |
|
98 |
Puerto de Pandetrave |
1,188 ft |
3.4% |
6.5 miles |
|
31 |
Puerto de Panderuedas |
1,739 ft |
5.7% |
5.8 miles |
|
75 |
|
| |
Lagos de Covadonga |
Day 6
FRIDAY › Lagos de Covadonga
Pray for good weather today as the climb up to Lagos de Covadonga is possibly one of the most spectacular climbs in Europe. From the summit you can view the Atlantic Ocean to the north, to the south there's a magnificent view of the rugged peaks that form the Picos de Europa.
For stronger riders there's an additional loop at the start of the ride that winds its way over the Alto del Torno and down to the Atlantic before climbing back over the Alto del Mazuco to the base of Covadonga.
RIDE SUMMARY:
|
81 miles
|
7,550 ft elev. gain |
|
Today's Major Climbs |
|
Climb
|
Elevation Gain
|
Average Grade |
Length |
Profile |
Difficulty
Index
|
Alto del Torno |
|
|
|
|
|
Alto del Mazuco |
1,453 ft |
6.2% |
4.5 miles |
|
67 |
Lagos de Covadonga |
3,465 ft |
7.4% |
8.8 miles |
|
129 |
|
| |
The 23.5% grades on the Angliru conquered... |
Day 7
SATURDAY (optional) › The ANGLIRU!
Day 7 is an optional day for those who want to test their climbing legs on the 23.5% slopes of the dreaded Angliru. The Angliru, along with the Zoncolan in Italy, is considered the toughest climb in the European Grand Tours.
We'll have a short van transfer to our hotel in Riospaso close to the Angliru. From Riospaso we follow the route of Stage 15 of the 2011 Vuelta a Espana over the Category 1 Alto El Cordal climb. The short descent from the Cordal takes us down to La Vega where the 13km assault on the Angliru begins. Fuerza!
If you decide not to ride the Angliru: transfer to Oviedo-Asturias Airport.
RIDE SUMMARY:
|
50 miles
|
8,475 ft elev. gain |
|
Today's Major Climbs |
|
Climb
|
Elevation Gain
|
Average Grade |
Length |
Profile |
Difficulty
Index
|
Alto El Cordal (south) |
1,693 ft |
9.6% |
3.4 miles |
|
90 |
Alto El Angliru |
4,100 ft |
9.9% |
7.8 miles |
|
193 |
Alto El Cordal (north) |
1,594 ft |
6.1% |
5.0 miles |
|
55 |
|
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Day 8
SUNDAY › Au revoir
End of our trip and final transfer to Oviedo-Asturias
airport. |
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