June 3, 2022
Pals and a Pro
We have cycled south, west, north and east from Girona and today we set out to the northeast to re-visit the historic hill town, Pals. In 2016, we rode through this region and although we stopped for a short look, the memories of Pals have stayed with me. We mapped out a loop route that included both the Els Àngels climb and Pals where we planned to stop for lunch.
The daytime temps are heating up so after an early breakfast, we scooted out of Girona and headed for the hills. Els Àngels starts just a couple of k's south of town when we exit off a roundabout that funnels most of the traffic onto a major highway to Barcelona. At that point, we have the place to ourselves and the toodling begins. It's my happy place.
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This was a repeat ride up Els Àngels so we didn't take any photos. We were in a for small treat when we reached the summit, however. We had been passed in the last km or so by Rohan Dennis who happens to be a two time world time trial champion. I had stopped to wipe the sweat from my eyes when I heard the whirr of tires as he whizzed past me on the uphill. He was standing, tires whizzing, as he passed David a little further up the hill. When we arrived at the summit he was taking a break by the Els Àngels sign and we were both ready for a break as well.
Rohan is from Adelaide and holds two UCI World Championship time trial titles, four Australian National time trial titles and has won several stages in the Grand Tours (you can read more here on wiki). He is training out of Girona at the moment and is heading to the Tour de Suisse in another week or so. That will be a warmup for the Tour de France. We hung out with him for a good 15 minutes and chatted about cycling, life in general and our connection with Ryder Hesjedal. Rohan was a team mate of Ryder's, but not the year that Ryder won the Giro d'Italia. He said he had seen us on the road the day we went to Lake Banyoles. He is a super nice, hard working father of two little ones and one very talented cyclist. He knows what it takes to win. What a pleasure it was to have those few precious minutes with him. We wished him well for the Tour de Suisse and plunged over the summit to enjoy the 10 km glide down the hill.
There is something about the physique of a pro cyclist that tells you they are a pro! It has to do with the body fat: it's very low. And the other giveaway is that they seem to slice through the air as though it's not there. Today, I counted 5 by the time we returned home.
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We cruised past Monells where we had stopped for coffee a couple of days ago, and carried on in the direction of Pals. En route, we cycled through Bisbal d'Emporda, a ceramics town. We passed briefly through Vulpellic, where they've decided to leave the ancient cobbled stones of their streets untouched. Which is to say, they are difficult to navigate on foot or by bike. We exitted via a dirt path and look what I found! A beautiful veggie garden. I had tomato envy, seeing the french weave bamboo poles that would be dripping with vines and juicy red orbs in another 10-12 weeks. The potatoes weren't bad either!
I have wanted to visit Peratellada ever since I saw it on the map just so I can say the name again. As I crested the short hill approaching Peratellada, I pulled an abrupt right turn and did a quick stop on entry as its streets were also cobbled. But this was different and called for more exploration. I think the photos do a better job of explaining why.
The structures of this fortified medieval town were built from stone carved from the moat which still encircles parts of it.
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What's interesting is how they built onto the sandstone foundation and gouged out what today make decent seats or benches in that foundation. In fact, the name Peratellada means 'carved stone'. The purpose of these cutouts is not apparent.
The street in the next photo was particularly interesting. The ruts worn into the sandstone hint of a cart of some sort transporting goods back and forth many centuries ago. They have found traces in the restoration that date Peratellada back to the Bronze Age.
We left Peratellada in search of Pals. The countryside is covered in wheat fields separated by roads and paths of various types. The major highway there was out of the question, simply because it looked like there were atleast two good options and besides, who wants to ride on a highway?
We gave it our best shot, but after the third attempt this is all we could come up with: dirt path with no promise of greatness.
That's Pals in the distance. It was hot, the lunch hour was slipping away and we deemed it not worth the sweat and effort to go to Pals, seen to the far left in the photo below.
I had spotted a restaurant in Peratellada, so we did an about face and rode back for lunch.
On the ride back to Girona we passed through yet another beautiful small town, St. Marti Vell. It led to a quiet road and looked as though it would allow us to avoid riding on a busy road, but it came with a price. We started up the hill behind town and soon found ourselves riding up a very steep pitch. David's GPS read it as 19.6%. It's becoming a bad habit of mine to find these silly hills when we really just want to get home and David, bless his heart, follows.
Getting in and out of Girona to the north is a bit of a mess. Lots of train track and highways squeeze into a narrow valley and leave few (none) options for cyclists. It's not for the 'fraid of traffic bikers. We rode like hell and came out the other end in one piece!
We went for burgera (spanish for burgers...LOL) at what has become our favourite cafe in Girona, Hors Categorie. They are starting to recognize us and smile and wave every time we show up.
Elevation gain: 15,267 metres.
Today's ride: 82 km (51 miles)
Total: 1,021 km (634 miles)
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2 years ago
2 years ago
2 years ago
What these guys do in the Grand Tours is so incredible. It is all too easy to lose touch with the fact that they are regular people doing something extraordinary.
We loved it when we could sit on the couch for 3 weeks and watch the Tour. Sadly, we only get snippets now.
2 years ago
2 years ago