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Epic Mountain Bike Holidays | Spain | Basque Country | Pyrenees

Uncategorized > Mountain Bike Tour on the Coast near Bilbao

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Stunning views all the way along the coast.
On Wednesday I was building a mountain bike trail in a misty forest. On Thursday I was on a mountain, high above the clouds, contemplating a long rocky descent. On Sunday we rode our bikes on perfect singletrack along the coast, near Bilbao, on a 52km epic route. What can I say, I love the Basque Country and surely it must be close to mountain bike heaven! Read on for more about Sunday’s route, or just to see the pictures of one of the most beautiful places in Spain.
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Leaving the city on singletrack! Great views and nice tops.
For 2012 we are offering a mountain bike holiday along the coast to Bilbao. Starting in Spain, right on the French border, we will ride our bikes all the way, sticking as close to the coast as possible. The holiday will be fully supported by Amaia and each day she will offer alternative activities for partners, or people who would like a break from mountain biking. Amaia will show us the culture, food and drink of this part of SpainĀ in that way that only a local person can. The holiday is almost ready, however we are still putting the final touches to the itinerary. I had mentioned this to a friend, Mark, from Bilbao and he offered to show me his local trails. It is these trails that will form part of the last day of our tour as we bike into Bibao itself.
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Singletrack with a view. And consequences. The view over the port of Bilbao.
Although it was sunny, it was cold for this part of SpainĀ and our usual pre ride rituals of coffee, banter and faffing were unusually short, desperate as we were to start spinning our legs and warm up a bit. As a warm up we took in a short loop around Mark’s house, tough climbs and some prepared DH courses. The route was nice but nothing spectacular, although I did manage to draw first blood with a slipped pedal over a drop. It was nice to warm up a bit but we were keen to get onto the meat of the ride. The coastal singletrack.
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Folded and layered rock formations.
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Hard to concentrate on the trails. Swoopy, bermy singletrack.
As soon as we hit the coast it was obvious we were in for some special mountain biking. Although we were still in the outskirts of the town there was nice, technical singletrack lining the cliffs. It was stunning and we were soon all sprinting along the singletrack, in between the numerous photo stops. If there was a downside it was the number of people but everyone was cool and jumped out of our way with a smile. The reason it was so busy was that it was a sunny Sunday and the time when people typically take a stroll before lunch.
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There’s beer in that there town. This felt a lot closer to the edge than it looks!
As we started getting a bit further away from town the number of people decreased sharply. The trails also seemed to open up and the descents, although short, had a magical flow. It was almost like a pump track with bermed corners, little doubles and drops and dips to be pumped. In short it was incredible riding. The climbs and descents were all short, around 100-200m in height and everything seemed to cry out to be attacked at one hundred percent effort.
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Climbing up from the lighthouse.
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Climbing (away from the van) in the evening light. Bob. Close to the edge.
As we made our way along the coast we passed a few little coastal towns. In one of these towns we stopped and got some food and topped up on coffee. Everyone was tired but wanted to push on further along the coast, so after food we set off once more. I’m glad that we did. Our climb started on concrete and then became singletrack, all possible on the bike but hard. Nobody made it up without a dab. It would have been worth the climb just for the view, however the descent from here was fantastic. It started off rocky and then became very rocky but fast and tough with plenty of little drops and jumps. A total contrast to what we had ridden so far and a hugely enjoyable one at that. Arriving at the bottom of the descent it was obviously that the sun was close to the horizon. We talked about whether to take the train back to the van but everyone was enjoying the trails and wanted to squeeze the last few miles of singletrack out of the day. And out of our legs!
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Getting dark.
Riding along the coast with the sun setting was special. I don’t think I can describe it any better than that. The views and the trails were just right. Short, sharp climbs followed by twisty, turny descents. At one point I hit one perfect little jump and flew right past the next bermed corner, laughing my head off. I think everyone had a moment like that. At some point we turned away from the coast and picked up a sinuous ribbon of singletrack winding into the forest. The sun had pretty much set by now. The trail was perfect but what sticks in my mind were all the men in the woods. It is a known area for gay men to cruise but these men were all older, reduced to hanging about in the woods for quick dalliances with unknown partners. I found it sad that they have to live their lives like this, unable to come out to friends and family. Still, despite my sadness I didn’t hang about and positively cranked the bike through the forest as fast as I dared; I didn’t need to be the fastest but definitely didn’t want to be the slowest! We popped out of the forest and all of a sudden our epic ride was over. Tired, happy, dust covered, bleeding, thirsty. I could go on but you probably know how we felt! It was another epic mountain bike ride, all the closer to perfection due to it’s contrast to the rest of the weeks riding.
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Is it dark yet?
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The sun setting on the coast.

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Established 2008, basqueMTB have been offering amazing mountain bike holidays across the Pyrenees, San Sebastian and Northern Spain. Dedicated shuttles, the most experienced guides and more than a decade of experience organising our award winning mountain bike holidays, come and visit us and see what all the fuss is about.

Email: doug@basquemtb.com
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