Looking forward....

Next week the clocks go forward as we head into Spring - at bloody last! This winter has felt interminably long. But for once we won't dwell on the weather here - this is a time to look forward....to plan the biking year....

The first trip of 2013 comes in just a couple of months time. For this, we (me and biking pal Scouse Steve) will head south - to France and Spain. So I thought I'd use this piece to outline what we plan on getting up to (if nothing else it will make me feel better!).

We are calling the trip "Sea to Sea", because it is just that. From the trip over the Channel to Calais we will head south, down through France to the Mediterranean. Once there, we turn right, head through the Pyrenees, and eventually up to Santander on the Bay of Biscay for the boat home. Actually, that's "Sea to Sea....to Sea"....! Regular readers may remember me waxing lyrical on past trips about French "D" roads, and one in particular - the D940. The D940 is a truly fantastic route and one of my favourite roads ever. And given that it stretches down through France, it is this that we will use as the centrepoint of the French leg. So let's have a look at the trip in a bit more detail....

Day 1: On arrival in Calais, we pick up the D940 and do the first part of it, perhaps down along the coast to Boulogne or Le Touquet. After that, we take a dual carriageway which will drop us down past Rouen. After that we have some free flowing country roads, with the first days' destination being Blois - some 6 ½ hours (280 miles or so) riding time from Calais. With the journey down to Folkestone and then the Tunnel crossing, this will constitute a pretty full first day.  

Day 2: The next morning it will take us a couple of hours to ride to Le Chatre, where we pick up the D940 again. After a quick pit stop, we will then set off for Rodez, which is 177 miles of the glorious D940 due south. A total ride of 7 ½  hours and 307 miles.

Day 3: After leaving Rodez the next morning, we track south west over the mountains towards Millau where we will see or go over the famous viaduct. It looks pretty special....

Millau Viaduct

After Millau we continue south towards the Mediterranean Sea - some 150 miles (3 hours) away - where we will stop for lunch. Mais Oiu!

After lunch we set off to go up and over the first half of the Pyrenees, which will be another 3 hours (120 miles or so) arriving in La Seu D’Urgell - which looks like a rather smashing little mountain town in Northern Spain.

La Seu D’Urgell

Day 4: The next day we track along some fantastic roads to Pamplona, which is 250 miles away - basically following the mountains parallel to the border. The route is showing as 6 hours so plenty of opportunity for pit stops en route. Then overnight in Pamplona.

Day 5: The next morning we have a refreshing 150 mile blat to the boat at Santander, through the wonderful Picos de Europa mountain range.

Picos de Europa

Day 6: Relaxing on the 24-hour crossing back to Portsmouth. I think we'll need it!

This trip is a lot of riding in a short space of time. It's going to be pretty full on - but with limited leave available from our respective workplaces and not wishing to stretch too far the permissions of those left behind at home, we've crammed as much as we can into the time we have available. With a week on a beach in the Canaries before that, suddenly the prospects for 2013 are looking up.

It's going to be a great trip - I'm getting a semi just thinking about It!