Cycling in the Pyrenees

Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Natural Park

All too often the road seems more like a highway. As I travel across countries, trying to see as much as possible, sometimes it’s the detail that gets lost.

On trains, you see the landscapes blur past…

On buses, it’s always the quickest way between cities – not necessarily the most scenic…

And planes… well, I don’t think I need to describe how little you see on them.

So it was a nice change to spend a morning exploring the countryside of northern Spain on the back of an electric bicycle. Along the quiet laneways, past the fields and through the small little villages that spot the area.

The Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Natural Park has an ominous name but it’s as calm as anywhere could be. The gentle hum of the bike’s electric motor and the whishing of the turning wheels capture perfectly the Pyrenees region of Catalonia.

It’s quiet and peaceful but not in a way that should be mistaken for inactivity. There’s always something happening.

I loved the scenes along these roads, little moments of country life captured in frames. I thought I would share some of them with you, to try to give you a sense of the region. Here are my favourite photographs:

Time Travel Turtle was a guest of the Costa Brava Pirineu de Girona tourism board but the opinions, over-written descriptions and bad jokes are his own.