Heading up France’s Atlantic coast, we continued cycling through endless pine forests, and rode by the foot of Europe’s highest sand dune. But the highlight of this leg of our trip was a campsite in the forest, just a stones throw from the dunes. There were no other people in sight as we strolled along the beach. Falling asleep, all we could hear were the waves and the wind in the pines.

Rocky coastlines, pristine beaches, and one of Europe’s biggest forests were the backdrops for our route as we cycled up the French coast. We’ve left the bigger cities behind, for a series of laid-back beach towns. We’re a little bit ahead of the spring tourist rush, so things are pretty quiet - unless you’re looking to book a hotel room on a Saturday night. 

We’ve reached the northern edge of Spain. In one big day we biked over the Pyrenees mountains. Narrow valleys on the way up sheltered us from the wind. we passed by snow-capped peaks, followed by a wonderfully fast descent through emerald-green pastures inhabited by wooly sheep. From there, we cruised along a riverbank into France, and to the gloriously blue Atlantic Ocean. 

We’ve left Castilla y León, and are now biking across the vineyard-covered hills of La Rioja and Navarra, Spain. We’ve entered Basque Country, where cycling is even more popular than in greater Spain (if that’s possible). Surrounded by beautiful mountains, we’ve had two great days of riding through wide open landscapes and lovely small towns. The Camino de Santiago is still with us, and the number of pilgrims that we pass each day continues to grow.

On 9-10 March 2019 we biked across the remaining mountains of the Cordillera Central, and descended onto the high plateau of Castilla y León. The contrast in terrain, scenery, land use and architecture between the ring of mountains and the plateau was striking.

We’re now cycling through Extremadura, the west-central part of Spain that has long been under-appreciated by the rest of the world. Spring is arriving, and fruit trees are starting to flower. A celebration seems appropriate. In our case, that’s turned out to be Carnaval.

The southern coastal region of Portugal is known as the Algarve. With more than a hundred beaches, it attracts tourists from all over the world. We biked eastward along the coast for three days. Along the way, Portugal continued to challenge us physically while offering incredible scenery and the chance to immerse ourselves in the mix of old and new.

The five days of biking from Lisbon to Portugal’s southwestern corner was not expected to be too challenging. With the exception of one mountain park, with a climb through a pass that is only 625 ft high, the terrain would be fairly manageable with low, rolling hills. But nothing was exactly as it seemed, and Portugal threw us a few curve balls.