Distance: 62.8 km
Ride time: 4:41:14
Average: 13.4 km/h
Max speed: 51.1 km/h
Total: 54445 km
After saying goodbye to Rafa and his wonderful family I left Granada with mixed feelings. I hope it doesn’t take another 6 years before I’m back again.
There exist a couple of options when it comes to leaving Granada by bike. The thing they all have in common is that climbing is involved. We choose the scenic route through the Sierra de Huetor and were soon on some of the steepest slopes I can remember since South America.
Feeling nicely energized by the great days in Granada we made it up to 1400 meters where the temperature was more moderate – apparently it gets cold up here in the winter. For now we were continuing on a dirt road through the mountains. I thought I had ridden my last dirt road of the trip in Africa, but now there was more to come.
After cycling through the national park we were forced to continue on a highway. I checked the GPS again and again, but for 10 kilometers there was no alternative. A big sign proclaimed that cycling was prohibited, but a police car we met on the way didn’t seem to care.
After the hard climb in the beginning of the day we now enjoyed a nice gradual downhill towards Gaudix – a random Andalusian mountain village. What a difference from being at the coast a couple of days ago.
Things are cheaper in deep Andalusia and we found a hostel for the night, enjoying the comfort of a shower and a real bed. I’m sure there will soon enough be more Spanish camping.
I guess there’s no choice but to take the motorway, if there’s no alternative. As for the climb, it certainly looked quite decent. 🙂