Lekeitio to Bilboa - bicycles, boats and trains - oh my!

We are now back in Bilbao after 2 great weeks riding in NW Spain. Of course after all this fun and never slowing down for almost a full month it has finally caught up with me. I am ending my adventure with a head cold that I came down with during the last few days. However, it has not deterred me from having fun and riding the last miles.

This morning we took time to award Sergio, our van and other tour guide with an official Trilogy Bicycle Club Jersey. Thanks Sergio for all you did for the group and your always present smile. Special thanks for hauling all of our bags and always having them at our hotels when we arrived.

 

Today we left Lekeitio after what had to be the best breakfast so far in the most charming of accommodations of the trip,

As we were leaving it began to rain and then we started climbing right from the get-go. There were a few challenges, but our legs have gotten so much stronger that everything was achievable for the first climb of the day...and then we saw this sign for the second climb.

The second climb is almost a wall according to the profile - this sign was at the bottom of the hill.

REALLY? Remember when these signs are posted, they are just an average for the upcoming hill. We saw the Garmin display lots of 10's - 12's but we all made it up this 2-3 km climb. What was really great is that several of us stayed at the top cheering everyone as they reached this particular summit. Some did it riding and a few got there walking part of the way. It was one long climb, but we all made it and it was definitely a group effort!

We have had some wonderful folks on this journey and sharing and encouraging each other made it all so much more manageable. We ascended a total of over 1,000 feet within the first 10 miles. We also had a killer 12% descent, yep still in the rain.

The beginning of this ride was really one of the most challenging and the rain and cold just added a new dynamic.

 

This last day had multiple options and we chose the least strenuous due to weather, overall fatigue and a general desire to get home safely. We did ride about 30km with the two good climbs described above - to shorten the day Simon organized a boat ride across the mouth of an estuary which otherwise would have been a 30km ride on not great roads.

It was a beautiful boat trip, but some of us did not ride at all. But no matter what each of us chose to do was good as it was quite cold and we had already come so far together.

Those of us who did go on the boat from across the sea found the ride to be quite beautiful but a bit cold. Here's Ken in his cool duds in what I think was the photo opportunity of the day. Handsome outfit Ken!

Once we were off the boat and warming up over a cup of coffee several of us opted to take the final leg of our journey by train into Bilbao.

I will write a final entry soon, maybe on my train ride tomorrow to Barcelona. But for tonight I end with a great big thank you to all of you have read about my adventures that I have posted on this blog. I have appreciated your comments on the blog, Facebook or through email. I am ready for home and excited to reunite with my most wonderful and supportive husband And I am looking forward to the luxury of a washing machine!

Cheers from Espana! And thank you Simon and Sergio of Iberocycle for a most excellent adventure. I would highly recommend his company for both guided and self-guided tours.

 

 

 

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