Girona, Catalonia

How many of you know where Girona is? Sounds Italian, right? Nope; it’s in Catalonia, in the northeast corner of what some consider Spain, and others consider an independent country. It’s not far from the Mediterranean coast, and just south of the border with France. And it was the location for many scenes from Game of Thrones, including the stairs of Sant Marti Sacosta.

Several fellow Rippers and I just spent 5 days bike riding the gravel trails and dirt roads of the region, using Girona as our base, on a tour with Trek Travel, a bicycle tour company affiliated with Trek Bikes. They run tours all over the world, for people of all cycling abilities, including Senior Rippers, and in many cases, e-bike riders (of which there were two on our tour).

I learned about the trip while listening to an episode of the Gravel Ride Podcast, hosted by Craig Dalton from the Bay Area. Girona has been on my bucket list for several years. It is a mecca for bicyclists in Europe. Many World Tour riders (the ones who race the Tour de France, among other grand tours) make Girona their off-season home for the climate and bike-friendliness of the region. It seems as though there is a beautiful bike shop on every block, riders everywhere, and bike friendly hotels, restaurants and bars aplenty. And what might even be the best aspect, the drivers are respectful of cyclists!

And as is typical of many bike towns, they take their coffee very seriously in Girona (and you know how important coffee is to this Ripper). Not just standalone cafes, of which there are countless, but most of the ubiquitous bike shops are more like fancy boutiques, with cafes offering delicious caffeinated beverages.

And the food! No matter how hard we tried to find a bad, or even mediocre meal (we didn’t try that hard), none were to be had. Famous for its Iberico ham, and its fresh seafood, including snails, mussels, prawns, octopus, anchovies and sardines, not to mention a wide variety of olives, there was something for everyone, and all at rock bottom prices. $18 bottles of local wine were terrific.

Although Girona is most famous for its road cycling, they also offer a seemingly endless variety of gravel roads and trails, ranging from smooth and easy, to technical and chunky. Our tour was gravel-centric, although each day’s ride begain with a winding ride through city streets to reach the gravel.

For those of you who are not familiar with “gravel riding”, the term refers to any riding that is not on paved roads, but is generally less technical than mountain biking. The bikes look like road bikes at first glance, but have much wider tires, and a geometry that is more upright (and thus more comfortable) than road bikes. And they often have multiple mounting points for bags, racks and bottles, for overnight and longer rides (called Bikepacking).

This trip was not a bikepacking trip. Trek Travel, the tour group, carried whatever items we might need during each day’s ride, including snacks, extra water, lunch and repair equipment. The guides and sag wagon were never far away, and each day offered a filling and tasty lunch in the middle of the ride. Our tour was a “hub and spoke” ride, not “point-to-point”, meaning we always returned to the same, lovely hotel each afternoon. So we only had to unpack once, which was a treat.

This tour was all about the Catalonian countryside. Gorgeous farm and ranch lands, forest roads, and mountain climbs and descents. Not to mention a ride to the Costa Brava, on the Mediterranean not far from Girona. The pictures in the following gallery were all taken by Samantha Weald, a professional photographer in Bend Oregon, and a fellow guest on our tour (we’re not called customers or clients!), and graced us with not only with her photographs, but her infectious smile and attitude. Check out Sam’s website here.

If you are a bike rider, and enjoy traveling with groups, I can’t recommend Spain and Trek Travel enough. Spain exceeded all of my lofty expectations, and Trek Travel did a wonderful job planning, organizing and executing the trip, including juggling a wide range of cycling abilities. The guides were terrific; helpful, warm, friendly, funny and fun to be with. And if you do, tell ’em Senior Ripper sent you!

Keep moving, stay safe, have fun!