Overnight bike-packing trip
Three main things I worked out on this trip.
Why don’t more people do these routes when they are actually so close to Girona, the gravel was elite.
Why don’t I bike pack more often.
Daan can actually ride my pace, if he wants to.
There is something very nice about riding point to point. You have to complete the route, because that’s your finish. And there is something equally nice about trying to pack as light as possible and managing with the minimum that is bike-packing.
It’s my birthday on Monday (24th August) so this trip was somewhat aligned with that. A nice getaway, and aside from my birthday it feels like Daan and I have had a lot to celebrate with him becoming Belgium National Champion, keys to a new place to live in and generally everything feels quite balanced and enjoyable right now.
It can be hard sometimes to make a trip like this work amongst racing and our different training scheduled. So instead of putting too much pressure on ourselves to have a week-long vacation somewhere, we decided a nice over-night trip is as good as anything and it is nice to get further outside of Girona than a normal training route can take you.
That said, if you had a big endurance day, or you caught the train in the general direction before starting, a lot of these roads can be accessible.
Packing
Always challenging, but we watched the weather, and it’s Spanish summer. So already this reduced a lot of ‘bulk’ in what we chose to pack. Though be very careful making choices not to pack layers and wet weather gear especially if heading into mountains.
The bags I use are SkinGrowsBack - they are on the smaller side but I have a small frame and we are only doing an overnight trip. Multi-day may want larger bags.
Inside my bags
Shirt and skirt - for arrival.
Shoes - sandels - for arrival
Insta360 Go3s - for capturing content of course.
MTB inner tube /Co2 / electric pump / plugs
AirPods
Candy
226ers gels and travel pack High Fructose mix
Bathers
Tooth brush / travel paste / comb / earplugs
Travel sunscreen
Travel chamois butter
Groupset charger / 2032 batteries
USBC cord and adapter
Travel chain lube
Cash
Notes on packing
Travel packs - these mean you can ditch them for day 2, reducing weight.
Shoes and clothing are lightweight and I opted for a t-shirt incase it was cooler later.
We stayed at a spa hotel so bathers were necessary.
We didn’t pack enough food for both days, opting to buy food when we arrived, and stopping for lunch on our ride. We were aware of where towns and water points were and refilled before any major climbs in remote areas. This is important to know your surroundings.
Actually I forgot plugs, but Daan had them, and I punctured, so next time I would make sure to have more. But we could fix it and still had an inner tube.
We are travelling in a pair, so one charger, one adapter etc.
Kit - we wore one, and we immediately washed it for the next day to save weight. Bonus points if you book accommodation with a washing machine.
I was running a 44 chainring upfront / 10-48 in the back. 45 width tyres with moderate grip.
Accomodation
We stand at Hotel Blancafort Spa Hotel in La Garriga. A really nice hotel, supermarket nearby, a spa to relax after your long ride and restaurants all in walking distance. You could easily do two-nights here to relax more and make more use of the facilities.
Tip; book a massage ahead in advance, and make use of the spa if you want it when you arrive.
The route
For sure the most interesting part of this write up.
Day 1. Big day. GPX file. / Strava.
124km / 3,558m elv.
This day isn’t for the feint hearted, taking us nearly 7hrs of ride time. But you can make some shortcuts at the end if you like (via Canoves for example). This day is made up of 5 main climbs, with the longest being the 3rd and 4th. The hardest being the second last as well as the descent being the most technically challenging.
With this day in mind, I would suggest 50’s tyres at a minimum for long day comfort and puncture resistance. Bike-packing isn’t about race speed, it’s about enjoying the day and riding.
We stopped for lunch in Montseny, there are multiple options here. If you don’t stop here for lunch though it is your last main water point, so fill up here.
Day 2. Return trip. GPX file. / Strava.
123km / 2,173m elv.
We took 5hrs for this day. All really nice gravel, smooth and well kept surface. There was only one section I wished I had 50 tyres for, but it was a short hundred meters.
More short climbs than the day before, and rolling roads especially when you come close to the coast. A lot more water points and stop points than the day before.
Summary
Would I recommend? Yes.
