Day 121: Gernika-Lumo (Cycle/Drive)
The weather forecast predicted zero percent chance of rain. The reality was that it one-handed percent did!
When I set off at about 9.30am it was overcast and, as I climbed towards to Alises (674 metres), I cycled into fog.
And here is a photo of that "tribute to cycling":
And a "hairpin bend with tree, in the fog"!
And, finally at the pass:
It was at this point that I reconsidered what to do next. My considered options were:
- stick with the original plan, which had two more climbs and supposedly scenic views!
- return to the van; or
- ride a modified route.
Option three is the one I chose.
This modified route had me descending about 8 kilometres down to Arredondo, which was fog free. Where this (presumably) child made sign exists:
From there, rather than climb back up the main road I'd just descended, I decided to take an alternate route that rejoined the main road shortly before the pass.
Obviously I didn't know what I was letting myself in for. Having descended a little further the climbing started: gently at first!
However, I soon started to encounter steeper ramps in the range of 14% to 19%. Clearly I would have preferred less severe gradients but, at least these weren't too extreme! Well, eventually the ramps increased beyond 20%. In particular, on one section, the Garmin (navigational aid) was reporting a gradient of 28.9%!
Oh yes, and light rain had started!
Should you ever choose to cycle today's route, my advice would be to stick to the main road! Indeed I was quite pleased to rejoin it with only 3.5 kilometres to go to the pass, and gradients less than about 7%: In other words, easy going!
From the pass it was mostly downhill back to the van.
Finally, I have moved to Gernika hoping to cycle a famous Basque climb. However, although tomorrow's weather forcast for the Gernika area was looking just about ok this morning, the latest forecast isn't looking quite so good. So it will have to be a rain check in the morning!
- Distance driven: 79 miles
- Distance cycled: 54 kilometres
- Weather:-
- General conditions: Overcast, fog, overcast, rain, fog, rain, overcast .... rinse and repeat!
- Temperature: 12°C when I set off, 10°C at the summit (for both visits) about 12.5°C when I returned to the van.
- Wind (Beaufort): Light to gentle breeze.
- Location: Google Maps
Today's modified route: