Cycling Norte - Stages

[michelle grech]

Hi All
I'm planning to cycle del Norte from Irun to Santiago in May/June 2022 and have planned to do it in the following 15 stages. Could someone who has done it already give me some comments about my plan? Whether some stages are too long or too short? Or whether I should stop elsewhere? I've cycled the CF and Portuguese before and loved both. I try to stick to the walkers route as much as possible. The Buen Camino app seems perfect for highlighting non-cyclable parts. This time I will be opting for an Emountain Bike. Any recommendations are welcome. Thank you:

Stage	Partial	Total
Irún - Zarautz	49.5	49.5
Zarautz - Markina	48	97.5
Markina - Bilbao	57	154.5
Bilbao - Castro Urdiales	50.3	204.8
Castro Urdiales - Güemes	61.6	266.4
Güemes - Santillana del Mar	61.5	327.9
Santillana del Mar - Colombres	52	379.9
Colombres - Ribadesella	55.2	435.1
Ribadesella - Gijón	67.5	502.6
Gijón - Soto de Luiña	66.1	568.7
Soto de Luiña - La Caridad	69.6	638.3
La Caridad - Lourenzá	49.3	687.6
Lourenzá - Baamonde	65.3	752.9
Baamonde - Arzúa	63.6	816.5
Arzúa - Santiago de Compostela	39	855.5

 

[1deniseB]

Hi All
I'm planning to cycle del Norte from Irun to Santiago in May/June 2022 and have planned to do it in the following 15 stages. Could someone who has done it already give me some comments about my plan? Whether some stages are too long or too short? Or whether I should stop elsewhere? I've cycled the CF and Portuguese before and loved both. I try to stick to the walkers route as much as possible. The Buen Camino app seems perfect for highlighting non-cyclable parts. This time I will be opting for an Emountain Bike. Any recommendations are welcome. Thank you:

i am planning on riding in Sept. I would love to hear about your trip. Are you renting a bike when you get there? Road or Mtn bike? Will you make sleeping arrangements ahead of time or day of? Really looking forward to hear about your adventure!

 

[peregrino_tom]

Hi Michelle
I'm not a cyclist, but from my walking experience this looks OK.
You might want to play around with those final couple of stages to see if you can make it work so you stay at Sobrado dos Monxes. I found it to be a powerful experience. I was there some years back, before the recent refurbishment. It was bike-friendly then (plenty of room in the cloisters!) though I don't know about e-charging. In fact I'd be interested to hear your strategy for this - is its viability discussed/accepted in the cycling pilgrim community?
Cheers, tom
PS thought this pic of the overloaded little ferryboat at Pasajes de San Juan might whet yr appetite.. fortunately a calm crossing...

https://flic.kr/p/edQZGn

 

[michelle grech]

I am planning on cycling in Sept. I would love to hear about you

i am planning on riding in Sept. I would love to hear about your trip. Are you renting a bike when you get there? Road or Mtn bike? Will you make sleeping arrangements ahead of time or day of? Really looking forward to hear about your adventure!

Hi Denise. We are renting an e mountain bike this time. Did the Frances and the Portuguese on my mountain bike which I took with me from Malta. Quite a hassle to be honest, so this time we decided to rent an ebike and make things a bit easier on us. Def a mountain bike though as we like to stick to the walkers' route as much as possible. You will def hear about our trip as we usually do a write up about it to help future cyclists since there isn't as much info for cyclists as there is for walkers. I had done the same for my previous Caminos too. Hope all goes well.
Michelle

 

[michelle grech]

Thanks Tom. I will definitely look into staying here. The place does look amazing. Should be fine to increase my last leg to 60 Km into Santiago. I don't think it's a tough hilly ride.
Michelle

 

[Skinnybiker]

Also look at daily vertical ascents along the route. The Norte has many short steep ascents, some days there will be more climbing than others though with an eMTB you'll be able to power up the hills. Oh yes, and check up on battery charging along the way, it may not always be straight forward / easy. Enjoy

 

[JerryStroebele]

I love to walk the del Norte, despite the many narrow, rocky, muddy and steep descents. I would encourage you to avoid these as much as possible and use the designated bicyclete routes around these descending areas. Sometimes it is very difficult for a walking peregrino to get off the path and onto slippery rocks or into rough gorse, to get out of the way of bicycles, which have a tendency to descend at high speeds. And please make sure your bike has a loud bell and please use it. Gracias y Buen Camino

 

[Jim F.]

Hi Denise. We are renting an e mountain bike this time. Did the Frances and the Portuguese on my mountain bike which I took with me from Malta. Quite a hassle to be honest, so this time we decided to rent an ebike and make things a bit easier on us. Def a mountain bike though as we like to stick to the walkers' route as much as possible. You will def hear about our trip as we usually do a right up about it to help future cyclists since there isn't as much info for cyclists as there is for walkers. I had done the same for my previous Caminos too. Hope all goes well.
Michelle

Hi Michell, Can you share where are you renting the e-bike from? I will be starting the camino del norte (cdn) on June 03 on my mountain bike but my friend will have to use an e-bike this time. Are you aware of any variants needed when riding the cdn. on an e-bike? Thank you!
Jim

 

[Jim F.]

Hi All
I'm planning to cycle del Norte from Irun to Santiago in May/June 2022 and have planned to do it in the following 15 stages. Could someone who has done it already give me some comments about my plan? Whether some stages are too long or too short? Or whether I should stop elsewhere? I've cycled the CF and Portuguese before and loved both. I try to stick to the walkers route as much as possible. The Buen Camino app seems perfect for highlighting non-cyclable parts. This time I will be opting for an Emountain Bike. Any recommendations are welcome. Thank you:

Stage	Partial	Total
Irún - Zarautz	49.5	49.5
Zarautz - Markina	48	97.5
Markina - Bilbao	57	154.5
Bilbao - Castro Urdiales	50.3	204.8
Castro Urdiales - Güemes	61.6	266.4
Güemes - Santillana del Mar	61.5	327.9
Santillana del Mar - Colombres	52	379.9
Colombres - Ribadesella	55.2	435.1
Ribadesella - Gijón	67.5	502.6
Gijón - Soto de Luiña	66.1	568.7
Soto de Luiña - La Caridad	69.6	638.3
La Caridad - Lourenzá	49.3	687.6
Lourenzá - Baamonde	65.3	752.9
Baamonde - Arzúa	63.6	816.5
Arzúa - Santiago de Compostela	39	855.5

Hi, Michelle again. Even when I have not cycled del Norte yet, my past experience has taught me that my energy level is pretty low during the first 2 o 3 days of the Camino due to jet lag, so I agree with you to start slow. In addition, the first few stages until Bilbao are advertised as taff. Finally, San Sebastian has the most Michelin-starred restaurants in Spain and per square meter in the whole of Europe! So I shouldn't rush my stay in that beautiful city that is one of 5 must-see cities of that Camino!
Jim

 

[1deniseB]

Hi Michell, Can you share where are you renting the e-bike from? I will be starting the camino del norte (cdn) on June 03 on my mountain bike but my friend will have to use an e-bike this time. Are you aware of any variants needed when riding the cdn. on an e-bike? Thank you!
Jim

Can I ask, who you rented bikes from?

 

[Corned Beef]

Looking at your stages I can only see a couple where you might have a problem. Take the Lourenzá - Baamonde section where you are combining a 65k section with a 1300m climb. That may not be possible with your battery capacity, something you won't be able to judge until you've had a few days using the rented bike. Check the next section from Baamonde too.

It won't be much fun pushing a 22kg bike with 15kg panniers up the 10% slopes on that section.

With e-MTB's you are better to look at the height profile per section rather than the raw distance as you are at the mercy of battery capacity (unless you carry a spare one). You can look at the profile here.

Northern Way - Camino de Santiago - Full walk

This Camino starts in the chic seaside city of San Sebastián (Donosti in Basque), a real paradise for foodies: it is the city with the second highe... - 835.8 km, +16693 m. Bike ride in Irun, Euskadi

ridewithgps.com

Range Anxiety: Another thing to check with your e-MTB is the way the battery discharges. Some will take a while to show any drop in capacity and then fall away quite rapidly. You might think you have a charge to get you to the section end but don't. You'll only know after a few days riding the bike. You can judge your sections then - though they look OK bar two now.

 

[michelle grech]

Looking at your stages I can only see a couple where you might have a problem. Take the Lourenzá - Baamonde section where you are combining a 65k section with a 1300m climb. That may not be possible with your battery capacity, something you won't be able to judge until you've had a few days using the rented bike. Check the next section from Baamonde too.

It won't be much fun pushing a 22kg bike with 15kg panniers up the 10% slopes on that section.

With e-MTB's you are better to look at the height profile per section rather than the raw distance as you are at the mercy of battery capacity (unless you carry a spare one). You can look at the profile here.

Northern Way - Camino de Santiago - Full walk

This Camino starts in the chic seaside city of San Sebastián (Donosti in Basque), a real paradise for foodies: it is the city with the second highe... - 835.8 km, +16693 m. Bike ride in Irun, Euskadi

ridewithgps.com

Range Anxiety: Another thing to check with your e-MTB is the way the battery discharges. Some will take a while to show any drop in capacity and then fall away quite rapidly. You might think you have a charge to get you to the section end but don't. You'll only know after a few days riding the bike. You can judge your sections then - though they look OK bar two now.

Thanks for this. Exactly what I was after. Will have a look at the stages again but to be honest I did take the altitude into consideration and only combined more than 2 walking stages when they were marked as not difficult on the guides. Exactly why I did the first few stages quite short to enable us assess the bikes. Thanks so much for this.

 

[michelle grech]

Can I ask, who you rented bikes from?

We are booking with Bikeiberia. There is also Bicigrino who do rentals

 

[1deblackwell]

Hi All
I'm planning to cycle del Norte from Irun to Santiago in May/June 2022 and have planned to do it in the following 15 stages. Could someone who has done it already give me some comments about my plan? Whether some stages are too long or too short? Or whether I should stop elsewhere? I've cycled the CF and Portuguese before and loved both. I try to stick to the walkers route as much as possible. The Buen Camino app seems perfect for highlighting non-cyclable parts. This time I will be opting for an Emountain Bike. Any recommendations are welcome. Thank you:

Stage	Partial	Total
Irún - Zarautz	49.5	49.5
Zarautz - Markina	48	97.5
Markina - Bilbao	57	154.5
Bilbao - Castro Urdiales	50.3	204.8
Castro Urdiales - Güemes	61.6	266.4
Güemes - Santillana del Mar	61.5	327.9
Santillana del Mar - Colombres	52	379.9
Colombres - Ribadesella	55.2	435.1
Ribadesella - Gijón	67.5	502.6
Gijón - Soto de Luiña	66.1	568.7
Soto de Luiña - La Caridad	69.6	638.3
La Caridad - Lourenzá	49.3	687.6
Lourenzá - Baamonde	65.3	752.9
Baamonde - Arzúa	63.6	816.5
Arzúa - Santiago de Compostela	39	855.5

Your trip looks wonderful. I have an ebike here in hilly Washington and the drain on the battery is significant. I make it a point to keep it on the lowest less battery taxing setting but still get battery anxiety at about 60 miles. My specialized VADO allows me to put in my mileage range and will divy out energy to make sure I make my distance goal but at times it is like I am riding a 50 lb bike. Slow and heavy. I thought about buying another battery to carry for really long rides that are hilly but that comes with a hefty price. (600.00) Please post pictures I cannot wait to follow your travels.

 

[Josika]

Hi All
I'm planning to cycle del Norte from Irun to Santiago in May/June 2022 and have planned to do it in the following 15 stages. Could someone who has done it already give me some comments about my plan? Whether some stages are too long or too short? Or whether I should stop elsewhere? I've cycled the CF and Portuguese before and loved both. I try to stick to the walkers route as much as possible. The Buen Camino app seems perfect for highlighting non-cyclable parts. This time I will be opting for an Emountain Bike. Any recommendations are welcome. Thank you:

Stage	Partial	Total
Irún - Zarautz	49.5	49.5
Zarautz - Markina	48	97.5
Markina - Bilbao	57	154.5
Bilbao - Castro Urdiales	50.3	204.8
Castro Urdiales - Güemes	61.6	266.4
Güemes - Santillana del Mar	61.5	327.9
Santillana del Mar - Colombres	52	379.9
Colombres - Ribadesella	55.2	435.1
Ribadesella - Gijón	67.5	502.6
Gijón - Soto de Luiña	66.1	568.7
Soto de Luiña - La Caridad	69.6	638.3
La Caridad - Lourenzá	49.3	687.6
Lourenzá - Baamonde	65.3	752.9
Baamonde - Arzúa	63.6	816.5
Arzúa - Santiago de Compostela	39	855.5

On May 8, I will start my Camino del Norte from Santander on similar sections Santander - San Vicente de la Barquera - Ribadesella - Gijon - Cudillero - Luarca - Ribadeo - Abadin - Baamonde - Monastery of Sobrado - Santiago de Compostela. I would like to know if you include sights on your way, such as the Palacio de la Magdalena and the Centro Botin in Santander, or the Admission to El Capricho de Gaudí in Camillas. And which places of interest on this route should be visited. What have you planned?

 

[michelle grech]

On May 8, I will start my Camino del Norte from Santander on similar sections Santander - San Vicente de la Barquera - Ribadesella - Gijon - Cudillero - Luarca - Ribadeo - Abadin - Baamonde - Monastery of Sobrado - Santiago de Compostela. I would like to know if you include sights on your way, such as the Palacio de la Magdalena and the Centro Botin in Santander, or the Admission to El Capricho de Gaudí in Camillas. And which places of interest on this route should be visited. What have you planned?

Hi, to be honest that’s one thing I don’t plan much of. I leave that for the evenings on the Camino during dinner with a glass of wine when I check the next day’s route in detail included recommended places of interest! My only plan so far is the Guggenheim in Bilbao as it has been on my bucket list for a long time. Would be great if you send me some recommendations after your trip!

 

[michelle grech]

So we did this! Cycled this incredibly beautiful route on our rented ebikes. The Buen Camino app worked wonders in keeping us off the walkers route only when necessary. The battery lasted all day every day but we did work hard to keep it always on the lowest assistance required. I can’t even begin to express the beauty of the scenery through it all. All went according to plan. No problems with storing and charging bikes but we did make bookings beforehand and informed them of our requirements. We put a video together which I shall post in this thread. Anyone who wants any help with their planning please get in touch. This was my 3rd Camino and by far the most beautiful route and least crowded. I def recommend a side visit to Playa de Las Catedrales. We took a taxi from Lourenzá at 4pm after our day cycling was complete and according to the tide time. I have the taxi guy details for anyone who needs them. It is a hilly route so those using a normal bike be prepared and train hard.

Link:

 

[Corned Beef]

Great video, lovely scenery and looking forward to going back to that coast again. A couple of questions.

Looks like you were on the pilgrim trail for most of the journey. How much road did you have to do as the trail was too difficult.

Second question is about your backpacks. These tend to shift the centre of gravity when travelling. Was it a deliberate choice so you could have carry-on panniers on the flight(s)?

Bonus question. Any punctures or mechanical problems?

PS I recognise the bike, especially the pack on the handlebars. Surprisingly useful.

 

[michelle grech]

Great video, lovely scenery and looking forward to going back to that coast again. A couple of questions.

Looks like you were on the pilgrim trail for most of the journey. How much road did you have to do as the trail was too difficult.

Second question is about your backpacks. These tend to shift the centre of gravity when travelling. Was it a deliberate choice so you could have carry-on panniers on the flight(s)?

Bonus question. Any punctures or mechanical problems?

PS I recognise the bike, especially the pack on the handlebars. Surprisingly useful.

Thanks, glad you liked the video.

If you use the Buen Camino app you will see the green detours on the map. I would say we were off the walkers' route for 20% of the route. Still as beautiful though and did not mind that at all.

The panniers and back pack were both carried on the flight. We only kept the daily needs in the back pack and they were very light. They also served as our 'going out exploring after the ride' bags. We kept our wallets, passports etc there. They had no affect at all on our center of gravity.

Luckily no punctures. I did wear out the brakes though due to the very steep downhill parts. Luckily the rental company had thrown in a spare set which I got someone to replace in Sobrado which is very close to the end. Should have done it before really and avoided a lot of screeching.

Yes the handlebar bags came with the bikes. Very useful to have easy accessible items. I had to remove mine though as it kept interfering with my filming since I had the gopro on a chest mount. Luckily we had taken a bungee chord with us and we could strap it on the rack on top of the panniers. It also double up as a washing line in our hotel rooms

 

[Corned Beef]

I did wear out the brakes though due to the very steep downhill parts.

Thanks for the confirmation. I'll have a spare set of pads with me. Even with hydraulic brakes, these are heavy beasts that can be difficult to slow.

 

[Sailing Pilgrim]

So we did this! Cycled this incredibly beautiful route on our rented ebikes. The Buen Camino app worked wonders in keeping us off the walkers route only when necessary. The battery lasted all day every day but we did work hard to keep it always on the lowest assistance required. I can’t even begin to express the beauty of the scenery through it all. All went according to plan. No problems with storing and charging bikes but we did make bookings beforehand and informed them of our requirements. We put a video together which I shall post in this thread. Anyone who wants any help with their planning please get in touch. This was my 3rd Camino and by far the most beautiful route and least crowded. I def recommend a side visit to Playa de Las Catedrales. We took a taxi from Lourenzá at 4pm after our day cycling was complete and according to the tide time. I have the taxi guy details for anyone who needs them. It is a hilly route so those using a normal bike be prepared and train hard.

Link:

Woohoo, what a beautiful part of country. Thank you for sharing. My little folding bike and me on a beach or ferry, could be a religious experience.

 

[Paulster2003]

Hi, great pics!
Who did you rent your bikes from?
I am looking at Bicigrino.
Thanks
Paul

 

[michelle grech]

Hi, great pics!
Who did you rent your bikes from?
I am looking at Bicigrino.
Thanks
Paul

Hi Paul. We rented from Bikeiberia. No complaints. Bicigrino look like they’re well kitted out and their network might be better. More expensive too.

Regards
Michelle

 

[chansuresh]

Hi Michelle, Great Video! My wife and I watched it a couple of times last night and are very excited if we can make this happen for July 2023 (our 30th wedding anniversary trip). We will be joined by our youngest son (15) and due to time constraints we were thinking of starting in Bilbao and allowing up to 12 days. I live in California but work for a Spanish company, so I am familiar with this region from previous visits, but not the Camino. My wife is an occasional bicyclist and is a bit concerned about steep hills or riding in traffic. But all 3 of us are in very fit condition. I was going to turn to an agency to plan the full package (bike, stages, hotels, etc), but after seeing your post/video, I would really enjoy just renting the bicycle, and putting together our own plan/stops/stages. Would it be possible to private message to get some direct guidance? Thank you in anticipation, Suresh

 

[chansuresh]

Thanks for this. Exactly what I was after. Will have a look at the stages again but to be honest I did take the altitude into consideration and only combined more than 2 walking stages when they were marked as not difficult on the guides. Exactly why I did the first few stages quite short to enable us assess the bikes. Thanks so much for this.

Michelle, You posted your original plan. Can you please post your final stages as you did them, based on the feedback you got, and make any comments on things you would do different after your experience. Also it would be helpful to know your days in hours...typical start and end time, hours moving vs breaks. I'm taking my wife and 15 year old son who have not done long distance biking in july, I'm trying to make sure they will not struggle despite having e-mtb bikes. Thanks.

 

[Idahopilgrim]

So we did this! Cycled this incredibly beautiful route on our rented ebikes. The Buen Camino app worked wonders in keeping us off the walkers route only when necessary. The battery lasted all day every day but we did work hard to keep it always on the lowest assistance required. I can’t even begin to express the beauty of the scenery through it all. All went according to plan. No problems with storing and charging bikes but we did make bookings beforehand and informed them of our requirements. We put a video together which I shall post in this thread. Anyone who wants any help with their planning please get in touch. This was my 3rd Camino and by far the most beautiful route and least crowded. I def recommend a side visit to Playa de Las Catedrales. We took a taxi from Lourenzá at 4pm after our day cycling was complete and according to the tide time. I have the taxi guy details for anyone who needs them. It is a hilly route so those using a normal bike be prepared and train hard.

Link:

We have watched your you tube video many times. We are going to rent our bikes from bikeiberia. We are going back and forth if we wanted to rent e-bikes. The distance is not a problem on a regular bike but I am concerned about the hills. We have a year to train but they look steep and it looks like there are many hills. I know E-bikes are heavier. Was that ever a problem? How much did yours weigh and which e-bike did you go with? How did you store your bikes in hotels, pensions, Albergue at night or if you wanted to go on a hike, beach, dinner in town. We are going to make reservations ahead of time. any advice what to ask the place about bike storage? What worked best for you? Your video is inspiring. I appreciate all the time you took to make it. Thank you. Nysa

 

[michelle grech]

Hi Nysa, we had Giants which weighed about 24 kgs + panniers another 7 kgs. Weight was never a problem cause we were 2 so we helped each other when required and there were times we did…not that many but there were.

Regarding storage we always got confirmation that we could securely store the bikes and charge . All types of accommodation we had found a place for them. Sometimes in our room, garages, luggage storage, under the stairs, laundry room etc! Everyone was accommodating. Get a multi plug from a chinese shop as there were times when there was only one plug in the storage area. Once on the premises we trusted the bikes and had our hikes, dinners etc. never had a problem. During the day, we always stopped where we could park the bikes in close proximity to us.
It is a hilly route and I know fit people who did it and were miserable. After all it is a holiday and not an iron man challenge. That’s how we see it.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Not sure if you have my post mortem doc. Send me your email address if you want it as can’t seem to attach it here!!

Enjoy it.

Michelle

 

[Xali1970]

Looking at your stages I can only see a couple where you might have a problem. Take the Lourenzá - Baamonde section where you are combining a 65k section with a 1300m climb. That may not be possible with your battery capacity, something you won't be able to judge until you've had a few days using the rented bike. Check the next section from Baamonde too.

It won't be much fun pushing a 22kg bike with 15kg panniers up the 10% slopes on that section.

With e-MTB's you are better to look at the height profile per section rather than the raw distance as you are at the mercy of battery capacity (unless you carry a spare one). You can look at the profile here.

Northern Way - Camino de Santiago - Full walk

This Camino starts in the chic seaside city of San Sebastián (Donosti in Basque), a real paradise for foodies: it is the city with the second highe... - 835.8 km, +16693 m. Bike ride in Irun, Euskadi

ridewithgps.com

Range Anxiety: Another thing to check with your e-MTB is the way the battery discharges. Some will take a while to show any drop in capacity and then fall away quite rapidly. You might think you have a charge to get you to the section end but don't. You'll only know after a few days riding the bike. You can judge your sections then - though they look OK bar two now.

I'll confirm the range challenge.
With my ebike I just about made 100km with 1200m+ ascent using a dual battery (1125Wh) setup using the lowest assist mostly, 60km days in hilly situations would gobble up about 60% of the combined battery setup.
Depending on the battery capacity of your rental bikes (400Wh or 500Wh) if the stage you're aiming for has more than 1000m ascent I think it'll be a challenge to do more than 45-50km without a lunch-break top-up (there was a "heated" discussion about the "charge on a break" topic here : https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...ing-on-the-camino-contributing-to-cost.73593/).

 

[Corned Beef]

If you want to extend your range and make your journey that bit less "exciting" then check the tyre pressures each day. On a recent trip (VDLP/Sanabres) which has a mix of flat and climbs I was reminded about the effects of tyre pressures when I found some sections were harder than others. (I record my GPS). Slightly over inflating gave me extra distance.

The pumps that hire companies give you are usually poor, so check the tyres at a local garage or carry something like this.

Tiny E-Pump For Bike AS2

The tinest electric bike pump in the world. Weighs only 97g. A reusable CO2 inflator. Charge up in only 20 minutes. With a full charge, it can inflate two 700*25c tires from 0 to 80 psi, and has a maximum inflation pressure of 100 psi.

www.cycplus.com

 

[michelle grech]

I'll confirm the range challenge.
With my ebike I just about made 100km with 1200m+ ascent using a dual battery (1125Wh) setup using the lowest assist mostly, 60km days in hilly situations would gobble up about 60% of the combined battery setup.
Depending on the battery capacity of your rental bikes (400Wh or 500Wh) if the stage you're aiming for has more than 1000m ascent I think it'll be a challenge to do more than 45-50km without a lunch-break top-up (there was a "heated" discussion about the "charge on a break" topic here : https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...ing-on-the-camino-contributing-to-cost.73593/).

We had done this in May 2022 following this post. We never charged during the day only at night. We always pushed ourselves to use minimal assist plus a bit of competition who ends up with more battery charge left helps!!

 

[chinacat]

@michelle grech

Great video, thanks!

 

[Gigipete]

Thanks, glad you liked the video.

If you use the Buen Camino app you will see the green detours on the map. I would say we were off the walkers' route for 20% of the route. Still as beautiful though and did not mind that at all.

The panniers and back pack were both carried on the flight. We only kept the daily needs in the back pack and they were very light. They also served as our 'going out exploring after the ride' bags. We kept our wallets, passports etc there. They had no affect at all on our center of gravity.

Luckily no punctures. I did wear out the brakes though due to the very steep downhill parts. Luckily the rental company had thrown in a spare set which I got someone to replace in Sobrado which is very close to the end. Should have done it before really and avoided a lot of screeching.

Yes the handlebar bags came with the bikes. Very useful to have easy accessible items. I had to remove mine though as it kept interfering with my filming since I had the gopro on a chest mount. Luckily we had taken a bungee chord with us and we could strap it on the rack on top of the panniers. It also double up as a washing line in our hotel rooms

hi Michelle, your video is amazing and very inspirational. We are planning to cycle the Norte May/June 24. Were your brakes discs or traditional and also I have read some of the latter parts are, and I quote; "very, very hilly". We will be on standard mountain bikes. Will we be ok?. Thanks

 

[michelle grech]

Yes we had disc brakes. The first 3 stages are quite hilly. It really depends on how fit you are. Let’s put it this way I was very happy to be on an ebike this time!

 

[Castrailwlkr]

So we did this! Cycled this incredibly beautiful route on our rented ebikes. The Buen Camino app worked wonders in keeping us off the walkers route only when necessary. The battery lasted all day every day but we did work hard to keep it always on the lowest assistance required. I can’t even begin to express the beauty of the scenery through it all. All went according to plan. No problems with storing and charging bikes but we did make bookings beforehand and informed them of our requirements. We put a video together which I shall post in this thread. Anyone who wants any help with their planning please get in touch. This was my 3rd Camino and by far the most beautiful route and least crowded. I def recommend a side visit to Playa de Las Catedrales. We took a taxi from Lourenzá at 4pm after our day cycling was complete and according to the tide time. I have the taxi guy details for anyone who needs them. It is a hilly route so those using a normal bike be prepared and train hard.

Link:

Your video was great!! it got me excited about my planning for this in the coming year, end of May/beginning of June. I've done the Frances and Portuguese by foot and southern coast of Portugal by mountain bike. I am looking forward to the Norte. Where did you girls rent your bikes from? When I did the coast of Portugal I rented from a local bike shop and just rode it back.
Thanks! Cindy

 

[michelle grech]

Hi Cindy! Glad you liked the video. We rented from Bikeiberia who deliver at your first hotel and collect it from your last one. I’ve booked them again as doing the Primitivo in May/june so we might bump into each other The Norte is a great ride! I had compiled some notes. If you email me at michagrech@gmail.com I’ll forward you the document.

Michelle