September 25, 2022
El Pont de Suert to Bososst
Today was arduous, but oh so worthwhile.
The weather has changed; now that we are in the mountains it was 7C at 9am so we procrastinated leaving our warm apartment. We pulled out at 10 and warmed up quite quickly climbing in the sunshine.
The ride was 28 km up to the tunnel entrance, on the N230 which was busy enough for a Sunday. Part way up we started encountering cycle racers coming the other way, with police escort and numbered jerseys, flying along. Among the crowd of spectators lining the street in Vellhella, about half way up, someone noticed us lumbering in the opposite direction then the racers but started clapping, the idea grew and we rode through town cheered on by applause and shouts of Bravo! Almost felt like a star.
We went through 3 or 4 short tunnels (200m), which were not long enough to change my glasses from dark to clear lenses, but my rear- view mirror is attached to my sunglasses so when I took them off I couldn't see what was coming behind. Tunnels amplify noises, so cars coming behind were very loud. At the darkest part of the second tunnel, there was this horrifying roar, it sounded like a jet plane was taking off behind me but I didn't dare turn my head to look back. I actually pulled over and stopped at which point a huge truck zoomed past. The first full sized truck to pass us all day and it had to be in a tunnel!
Eventually we had climbed the 28km and 780m to the entrance of the tunnel. The electric signs instructed cyclists to do something, it was only in Catalan but Google translate helped us figure out to notify SOS before entering, so we found the call post and the man turned on the yellow flashing lights letting traffic know that cyclists were in the tunnel. Good thing we had put on more coats and pants as it was cold and we were moving fast. I had little sense of depth in the tunnel, but it must have been downhill as we zoomed along in the highest gears. There was only one narrow lane for downhill traffic without space to pass so we pulled over to let cars and busses go by. The experience was an intense rush of riding full speed in the cold, surreal light of the underground and watching for cars (I had changed to clear lenses and had my mirror) coming behind. Suddenly there was light at the end of the tunnel and we were through. We stopped, took a few deep breaths and said we were glad to have had the experience, but hope we won't have anything like that again for a long time.
Although we had come out further down, we were now in another valley with much more wintery weather. It had been 8C inside the tunnel and my Garmin temperature reading never got over 11C for the rest of the way down. We passed through Vielha, a real ski resort looking town with its many slate-roofed, multi-story condo buildings. I was so cold I was expecting it to start snowing at any moment.
It was another 13km down to Bososst where our hotel welcomed us, before long I was soaking in a hot bath and then napping in a warm bed. We surfaced for a delicious dinner here in the hotel and will be early to bed. Amazing how being cold drains one's energy. Tomorrow we will be sure to have more warm layers on the top of the bags to put on for the downhill ride to Luchon.
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2 years ago
2 years ago
Today's ride: 52 km (32 miles)
Total: 678 km (421 miles)
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