The North East of Spain

There’s more to see here than just the Pyrenees… so much more

The BP-1101, with the Monserrat massif in the background. As close to heaven as you can get on two wheels

Our far-from circular lap of the Iberian peninsula brings us into Catalonia from the south. By this time, we’ve become almost blasé about the sight of another immaculate ribbon of traffic-free tarmac stretching out in front of us. That doesn’t last long when we get to Catalonia. We take the N-240 and C-128 to Flix and pick up some of the most scenic roads of the entire trip - the T-703 and 702 to Margalef and the beautiful but crazily twisty T-713 (“I’m getting dizzy,” moans Weeble when we stop). Just when I think the riding can’t get any better, we turn onto the road that has it all - the C-242. It’s utterly spectacular, with bends tight enough for me without being too fiddly for Weeble, set in the widest-screen landscape so far today.

At the top of the Albarca pass we turn off onto the T-700. This is another corner-heavy road, rising to Prades and then heading out into the woods. “It’s almost like the Black Forest when the trees close in,” notes Weeble. Our plan is to shoot the very twistiest section... But we find the road closed by a policeman and a guy with a radio. “We’re testing a rally car. It’ll be ten minutes,” they explain. Sure enough, a World Rally Car arrives, yanks the handbrake to turn, then disappears again. When we ride down the road, there’s rubber tracing his lines through half the corners and stones scattered over the rest. No pics here, then…

So we press on to Montserrat, which isn’t quite as close as I’d thought. The cross-country C-241 is pleasant enough, but it has a weak hand in the scenery stakes after what we’ve already ridden through. At Igualada we jump on the motorway for a couple of junctions, then head up and around the rock massif of Montserrat. It’s beautiful - the maddest scenery of the day. It’s also brilliant to ride. Despite being so close to bustling Barcelona, the roads are pretty much deserted. It’s as close to heaven as I can imagine getting. No wonder they built a monastery here. Sadly, it’s a long way from our overnight stop. We drop down to Manresa and pick up the C-25 which hurries into the Pyrenees. Tomorrow, it’s mountains...

Other motorcycle routes in North east Spain

38 SORT-ED

Start/finish Sort
Distance 220 miles
Riding time 6 hours
This route has everything: fast sweepers; tight hairpins; quiet roads; epic views… For a shorter version, stay on the C-13 from Tremp to La Pobla de Segur. 39 JACA ALL TRADES Start/finish Jaca Distance 205 miles Riding time 6 hours Some spectacular roads (and one rough one, for a few miles moutside Ansó) on both sides of the mountains. The route can be shortened on the motorway to Jaca from Sabiñánigo.
Route map, Download the GPX file

39 Jaca all trades

Start/finish Jaca
Distance 205 miles
Riding time 6 hours
Some spectacular roads (and one rough one, for a few miles outside Ansó on both sides of the mountains. The route can be shortened on the motorway to Jaca from Sabiñánigo.
Route map, Download the GPX file

40 TWO-CASTLE LOOP

Start/finish Sos del Rey Católico
Distance 170 miles
Riding time 4.5 hours
From the beautifully preserved medieval town of Sos del Rey Católico, it’s a short ride to Javier Castle. A longer run gets you to Loarre Castle. There are plenty of narrow roads to ride, so don’t spend too long prowling the battlements before getting back on the bike.
Route map, Download the GPX file

41 BARDENAS REALES

Start/finish Tauste
Distance 125 miles
Riding time 5.5 hours
Half of this route is on unpaved roads through the Bardenas Reales desert – ideal for adventure bikes; not recommended for road bikes (though it has been done). It returns to tarmac to head to a lunch stop, so take your own water and stop/drink regularly while riding in the Bardenas.
Route map, Download the GPX file

42 IGUALADA - DONE

Start/finish Igualada
Distance 165 miles
Riding time 5 hours
A laid-back ride from the foothills of the Montserrat massif to the foothills of the Pyrenees. Lovely flowing roads with hardly a trace of traffic.
Route map, Download the GPX file

Please note: This page contains the route files for The RiDE Guide to motorcycle touring in Spain and Portugal which came free with RiDE magazine in July 2018. These website page are not regularly updated, so please check all critical information before you travel. All route files are in .gpx format. Garmin and BMW users can download the main file, which contains all the routes and our recommended hotels as separate waypoints. TomTom users can download the individual routes and use the Tyre software to convert them. For many routes we also have Google Map links. However, as Google Maps will not plot routes over seasonally closed high Alpine passes (such as those in the Pyrenees) when they’re shut, these may not work for every route all year round.