Camino del Cid (Burgos to Tortosa in mtb)

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Traducción Automática al Castellano
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Bike time!
Santi and I have been preparing a trip of few days with ours mountain bike and panniers. The addiction to mountain biking continues!

With the Camino del Cid as a base paths, that goes from Burgos to Valencia by a variant ending in Catalonia.
We design the trip with some routes that we have found in Wikiloc and looking for some possible ways with Google Earth. We had several alternatives into ours GPS. We did a search for accommodation prior to the villages where we intend to sleep, although we have not booked any. We carry a tent and sleeping bag if we want to camp.

We went to Burgos by bus from Tarragona stopping at Zaragoza (44 € cycling). Trains (Renfe) not support bikes on trains Intercity or trains Alvia. The only trains that support bikes are the train-hotel but arrive at Burgos at 3 in the morning!

At Burgos we stayed with Roberto (doing Couchsurfing!)

After leaving the bikes at his place, we go to visit the city with him. From the Cathedral, we walked to the ruins of the Castle to admire the view of the city.

Roberto tells a little story about Burgos ... and continue touring the city until lunchtime. We eat tapas and wine. Strong start From the tapas to the Bar El Patillas, a tavern socio-cultural mythic. After some beers and leave our voice singing loquillo andl and hits from 80’s to 90’s ... El Roberto ens explica una mica d'història sobre Burgos...i continuem recorrent la ciutat fins l’hora de menjar alguna cosa. Anem de tapas i vi. Comencem forts

De les tapes cap al Bar El Patillas, una taberna socio-cultural mitíca. Desprès d’uns quintos i deixar-nos la veu cantant Loquillo i èxits del 80 - 90...

At Burgos we will have to comeback to see the Museo de la Evolución Humana . We didn’t have enough time.

Stage 1 - Burgos - Salas de los Infantes. (65km i 744m.+)

Breakfast at Cathedral Square with the cloudy sky. We have all the bicycle full to start making our way!

We stard heading to Cortes with a track till almost the monastery San Pedro de Cardeña. Today the route is mostly very good track.
We pass Revilla del Campo, Quintanalara, Torrelara, Vega de Lara i Campolara. In Campolara we meet the forest ranger of the Sierra of demand, and after a little chat shows a place to drink some "Xispes" (Coca Cola in our biker lenguage).

Till Villaespasa we go on the local road to catch a track there. We pass Jaramillo Quemado, Barbadillo del Mercado and we arrive at La Revilla, where we drink some local cider. We deserve it. A few more kilometers left to reach Salas de los Infantes.

We have time and we look all the accommodations. Wins the Hostal Las Nubes . Bed and breakfast € 40 both.

We visit the Dinosaur Museum of the town to have dinner and sleep!

Stage 1 - Salas de los Infantes - El Burgo de Osma. (71,9km i 717m. +)

Breakfast, and we going to buy in the shops of the town to prepare sandwiches and start pedaling ...
We reach Hacinas and we climb to the viewpoint next to the church.

We pass Castrillo de la Reina and we stopped at Moncalvillo. Appeared to have been agreed all the residents living around the square to showed up all toghether. Grateful to see a town with people in the streets!
We continue on through Rebanera and Hontoria del Pinar. We stopped for lunch under a pine that we find on the way ... and we stretch a little.

The weather today is sunny and hot ... Track within a macro-out factory doors (Norma), and take the road that goes through Arganza to the start of precious Natural Park del Cañon del Rio Lobos.

Map Cañon Rio Lobos

At Ucero we do some "xispes" and continue. Valdelinares and Sotos del Burgo until the walled town of Burgo de Osma.
Today we also do Couchsurfing ... Sarah (a girl from Ainsa who works in the Town) she welcomes us to her home and shows us the town.
Even we were tired after a good shower we take a walk, eat tapas and also drink some ...

Great experience! We hope to see Sara in Tarragona!

Stage 3 - El Burgo de Osma - Medinaceli. (88km y 882m. +)

Today it is hard to get up ...
The stage is long and we have to put in motion. Breakfast in a bar on the way out of Town. We have already say goodbye to Sara.
We pedal to La Olmeda to Gormaz, and watch the spectacular fortification of Gormaz.

Leaving Gormaz go in a rocky downhill on the way to Recuerda (easy to remember, right? in spanish recuerda means remember). I spin both wheels and Santi another! Great! hehe
We fix them as good as we can ... There are three spins in each wheel!

From Recuerda we go to Cabezo Grande and then to Berlanga del Duero where we stopped for lunch in the town square. Santi spin the other wheel ... Spin day

It is very hot and we have to start moving ... stage is long and can not allowing us more distractions.

Track to Bordecodex a small town to fix another spin of Santi, we discover the amazing water source that give us some extra lives .... we put half of our bodies in the cold water!

We leave Bordecodex to start climbing up and up. The landscape changes completely. A few “xispes” in Baraona and from there the route follows a road through villages like Romanillos de Medinaceli, Yelo and Miño de Medinaceli, Medinaceli. It is nice because the sun is beginning to fall and the colors are warm ...  

In Medinaceli we decided that the first accommodation we've seen is very good and we've deserve it. Hostal Cerámica. Bed and breakfast € 60 the two of us.

Tour of the town, dinner and to sleep

Stage 4 - Medinaceli - Molina de Aragón. (94km. y 1286m. de desnivell)

We got up very early ... stage is long and we not want to go against the clock. We eat what they have left prepared for breackfast. I've repair a spin before start pedaling. We went down to the station Medinaceli. And my weel seems to be not repaired .... Good thing we got up early. At Salinas de Medinaceli we find a nice village fountain perfect to repair spins!. From there we took a trail that goes up the road to find Zaragoza-Madrid Ave (fast train) and through Arbujuelo .

To reach Layna we take the secondary road from where we get to meet the N-211, cross the road to continue secondary. In Luzón we eat more breakfast and continue to Ciruelos del Pinar and Cobeta.
From there we took a trail that leads along the river to Ermita de la Virgen Montesinos, where we get to Torremocha del Pinar.

To track down through pine forests holdings to meet the Rio Gallo, who keep following the Poyo de la Peña.

We drink some “xispes” at Santuario de Nuestra Sra. de la Hoz.

The last section to Aragón Molina we do it on a secondary road.
We decided to stay in the San Francisco. € 50 to sleep two people.
Relax, go out for a walk around the village and have dinner.

Stage 5 - Molina de Aragón - Montalban. (111km. y 973m +)

Today we left the Camino del Cid (that goes till Valencia), we turn towards Tortosa.
We have breakfast hoping to fins open a bicycle repair shop. We have to buy cameras and patches. I Buy cameras with a gel (anti-spins).
We bought food for some sandwiches during the day and start pedaling.

Until Yunta we take a secondary road (no cars) and from there we take a track to Odon, where we eat a half sandwich.

There is considerable movement around the church square ... Till Bello on a road overlooking of the Laguna de Gallocanta.

The sun and heat tight, we drink some “xispes” before retaking the track that leads to the road that goes through the Collado de Santa Barbara and down to Calamocha. Rested with “xispes” and chatting with the locals, who would advise us on what route we take. We are not sure we can go on all the route that we made with google-earth ... We follow the path through a secondary road to Navarrete del Rio, Barrachina, Godos, Torrecilla Rebollar of Villanueva del Rebollar and Vivel del Rio Martin, where we take the N-211 to Montalban.

111km ... with saddle ... ufffff ...
After asking for accommodations, Cibertel Bar are offering rooms for € 20 per person. It is the Castle Square and we like it. We had dinner and take a walk around the town ... we are dead ....
We open maps to find roads or tracks for tomorrow .... In Calamocha they have advised us to continue on the N-211 ...

Stage 6 - Montalbán - Tortosa. (170 Km y 1466m. +)

We get up early, we eat what we have.
The N-211 goes to Castel de Cabra and the Puerto de las Travesias, and begins a descent with strong uphils. We go throught Gargallo, La Mata de los Olmos and Alcorisa.

At Alcorisa we buy supplies and repair a spin ... I put the camera that have gel. The N-211 to follow the Calanda, after asking for some options, we follow the paved road leading to Castelserás.
We go to find the stard point of the Via Verde. Ffrom Val de Zafran to Valjunquera we take theroad through Torrecilla Alcañiz.
The old train station is four kilometers out village ... We get there and eat a sandwich. We’ve done 78km .... We decide what we are going to do. It would be more logical to go to a town of Els Ports and stay the night there, but we want to go to Santa Tecla in Tarragona (City party week) !

Via Verda La Val de Zafràn

We started to make the greenway ... is great!
The slope is so small that you don’t know if you go up or downhill ... So we go fast.

Once we reach Cretas, we join the Via Verda Terra Alta and when we pass Pinell de Brai the Via Verda Baix Ebre.

Via Verda Terra Alta and Via Verda Baix Ebre

The views are spectacular views of the port, we are going well ... But the last train to Tarragona we do not know if we can make it ...

We notice the kilometers we have carried all the day, it’s not normal! In Jesus we see that we cannot catch up, there are 8 km and 10 minutes left. We begin to think that we should stay in the Ports, would have been a good choice ... But a group of friends on WhatsApp we see that Manuel is coming from Murcia to the festivities of Santa Tecla! We call him and Bingo! He is coming by himselft and he can take us and the bikes in the car! We arrived in Tortosa and tapas while we await Manel! Our Savior!

And road till Tarragona!


Some Photos
2012-09-Ruta del Cid variant Modejar en BTT (ESP) https://photos.app.goo.gl/zdfTBuD91KTVSqiw5