Our "King of the Mountains" series of trips continue to set the bar for Performance Bike Trips. In September our King of the Mountains trip focuses on the Cantabrian mountain stages of the Vuelta a Espana.

The Vuelta promises to be a thrilling race and with no less than 5 mountain-top finishes it will be one for the climbers.

The ANGLIRU is back....!!!

The dreaded Angliru - hated by the riders but loved by the spectators - is back in 2008. With maximum grades of 23.5% the Angliru will play a major part in deciding the outcome of the race and of course Thomson Bike Tours will be there to watch the action LIVE on the road-side.

The last time the Vuelta rode over the Angliru there were 100,000 spectators on the climb so expect a fantastic atmosphere on this fearsome climb!

Witness The Vuelta "LIVE"...

Join us and witness the TOP 2 Stages of the Vuelta a Espana:

• LIVE Viewing of the finish of Stage 13 on the Angliru
• LIVE Viewing of the finish of Stage 14 on the Fuentes de Invierno

And there's much more to our trip! We've prepared 8 days of spectacular riding in the Cordillera Cantabrica and Picos de Europa National Park.

Join Peter and our experienced ride leaders on the Angliru.... Lagos de Covadonga.... La Cobertoria.... Puerto de San Isidro....Puerto de San Glorio.... and many more famous Vuelta a Espana climbs!

Click here to view the complete list of famous climbs on this trip.

 

Top Support in the Industry...

Throughout the trip you can relax and enjoy the rides knowing that you have the best Support Team in the industry right behind you all the way!

 

Trip Highlights

• LIVE Viewing of the Finish of Stage 13 on the Angliru (max. grade = 23.5%!)
• LIVE Viewing of the Finish of Stage 14 on the Fuentes de Invierno
• Ride the Angliru and Fuentes de Invierno just hours before the pros!
• Ride the legendary Alto de la Cobertoria climb where Vinokourov and Valverde battled it out in the 2006 Vuelta.
• Ride the legendary Lagos de Covadonga climb.
• Over 40,000ft of climbing in 7 days!
• As always the top support in the industry!

Your Daily Rides

Day	Route Summary	Hotel Location & Category	Ride Distance (miles)	Elevation Gain (feet)
1	Cangas de Onis › Mirador del Fito › Cangas de Onis	Cangas 4-star	37	2,000
2	Cangas de Onis › Lagos de Covadonga › Cangas de Onis	Cangas 4-star	67	4,500
3	Cangas de Onis › Puerto del Ponton › Puerto de Panderruedas › Puerto de Pandetrave › Puerto de San Glorio › Potes	Potes 2-star	73	7,500
4	Potes › Puerto de Peidrasluengas › Collado de Ozalba › Collado de Hoz › Las Arenas	Las Arenas 3-star	77	7,000
5	Las Arenas › Cenera	Cenera 4-star	79	2,000
6	Cenera › La Cobertoria - El Angliru › Cenera	Cenera 4-star	75	8,500
7	Cenera › La Colladona › Puerto de San Isidro › Fuentes de Invierno › Cenera	Cenera 4-star	84	6,500
Total:			492	38,000
Daily Average:			70	5,429

 

Climb these Famous Cols

In just 1 week climb many of the legendary cols in the Picos de Europa! Here's the list of cols included in our itinerary (sorted by Difficulty Index).

Climb	Elev. Gain (feet)	Average Grade	Length (miles)	Profile (m/km)	Difficulty Index
El Angliru	4603	7.9%	11.0		198
Lagos de Covadonga	3465	7.4%	8.8		129
Alto de La Cobertoria	2920	8.1%	6.8		117
Puerto de San Isidro	3573	4.0%	16.8		81
Puerto de Pandetrave	2083	6.4%	6.2		72
Puerto de Piedrasluengas	3386	3.6%	18.0		63
Puerto del Ponton	2592	4.9%	9.9		60
Mirador del Fito	1677	5.4%	5.8		58
Collado de Hoz	1444	6.1%	4.5		57
La Colladona	1804	4.6%	7.4		57
Collada de Ozalba	1276	6.7%	3.6		54
Puerto de San Glorio	1275	4.3%	5.6		39
Puerto de Panderruedas	682	4.8%	2.7		35

What's Included

• 8 days / 7 nights fully accompanied trip
  
• All breakfasts
• All dinners
  
• 3 lunches
• Pick-up at Oviedo Airport
• Drop-off at Oviedo Airport
• All ground transportation
• All luggage transfer
• Services of our expert guides
• Support vehicles
• Thomson Bike Tours maps, cue sheets and elevation profiles

What's Not Included

• Airfare
• Travel and personal insurance
• Additional hotel expenses i.e. phone charges, mini-bar, gratuities

The Thomson Bike Tours Difference Your trip to Europe may be a once-in-a-lifetime experience and you deserve the best! Performance cyclists now rate Thomson Bike Tours as the premiere provider of performance trips to Europe. Here are a few details that set us aside from the rest: LESS VAN - MORE BIKE: NO Van Transfers between your hotels and the start/finish of the bike rides. Each day we ride from and back to the hotel. Our local knowledge, extensive planning and vast experience mean that you spend less time in a van and more time on the bike! Best-in-class Support & ride leaders: another key to our success! Sag van and ride leader for every 10 riders. Highest Staff to Customer Ratio: 1 staff member per 4 customers! LIVE Satellite TV coverage in English: our strategically placed mountain-top race vantage points have become the reference for the industry and the envy of the mountain! No-one else has LIVE Satellite TV coverage in English! THE THOMSON RIDES: over the years we've also gained a reputation for providing the best (and most challenging) rides. 25 years experience riding in the mountains of Europe counts! Choice of rides: shorter distance options are available on most days. Limited Hotel Changes: we've designed the trip so you stay 2 nights in the same hotel in Cangas de Onis, 1 night in Potes, 1 night in Las Arenas and 3 nights in Cenera.