The 634 from the outskirts of the seaside village of Ribadesella to Ariondas is wide and smooth with sweeping bends pretty much all of the nine miles, and completely traffic free, at 7am.
Six days ago I went to visit the lake at Covadonga, but once too much traffic gets up there they barrier the road off, maybe we should do that with The Lake District? 😆 So the only way you can see it once the barriers are down is to go by paid coach. The friendly girl on the gate said if I got there before 8.30am I could go up on the bike, free of charge as well! When I was up in the mountains at La Raya it was too far to ride there so made a point of booking some accommodation not too far away to give it a second attempt.
It’s a 45 minute ride from here to the entrance so, to be on the safe side I got up just after 6am and was on the road by seven. I was looking forward to it but started to doubt things as I headed up the only road leading to the ‘check point’. Traffic was starting to build and I knew that all this wouldn’t be for just the monastery situated near the entrance. Knocking off a few overtakes ended up being a pointless exercise, and by the time I was about a mile away it was like Ambleside to Bowness on a Bank Holiday Monday. I got to the barriers to find them down at 7.45. The young man said that they closed them just after seven, but said I could come back at 9pm!
Having pondered my options, including setting off at 6am tomorrow, I decided that I won’t bother as the place will obviously be rammed and therefore diminish the whole appeal of the place. So we’ll have to do with an internet photo.
The plus side to just turning around and riding back meant that I will get some breakfast, which is only served from 8.30am, AND I can hopefully find my wallet, which like many things now, I seem to be misplacing. Back in my room I reverted to talking to myself yet again “Now don’t panic” I kept repeating as I searched through all my belongings whilst at the same time running images of the last 12 hours through my mind. I was right not to panic, isn’t funny that when you find what you lost everything fits into place and the memory comes flooding back? “Oh yeah, I remember now”!
Plan B
Not down in the mouth at all, especially after the elation of finding my wallet, I hatched Plan B. The same day I got turned away from the lake I was also turned away from El Capricho de Gaudi at Comillas, I’d arrived there last Saturday morning to be told to come back at 2pm, which I didn’t. So today I booked a ticket online, and when I arrived was greeted by a huge queue, many people being turned away, all except smart arse me, who had an ‘entry at anytime you like’ ticket!
But to get there, after the quickest of visits to Riba, I slogged along 30 miles of motorway, well to say slogged doesn’t really paint the right picture. It was in the low 20 degrees c, cloudless sky, traffic so scarce I could set the cruise control, with green to my right and blue to my left, I’d class it as one of my more endurable 30 miles of motorway travel.
After Gaudi I continued east to a village recommended by some people at breakfast and then returned via as much of the coastline as possible, making a point of stopping off at Poo Beach. I had my Google maps satnav being narrated into my helmet and chuckled when the voice said “In 500 metres turn right towards Poo”, Reg handled fine considering.
On the short section of motorway I did use on my return, I gunned it up the slip road and some insect hit my inner tinted visor immediately before my outer visor slammed shut due to the wind pressure. For a second I had this insect trapped in my helmet, but me having reactions just a little quicker than a sloth, I flicked the outer visor up before the critter came around and took revenge, or even if it was now deceased there’s no guarantee I couldn’t be stung, as my thumb will testify from undoing my boot laces five days ago and picking up a calling card from a dead stinger.
Tomorrow it’s supposed to be cracking the flags again so I’ll be going to Ribadesella for a while, and then have to start thinking about my onwards journey to hopefully Galicia.
The Biking Blog
Reg the Rocket
He’s a bit of a pepperami, and animal, uncouth and political correctness is not in his vocabulary!
He doesn’t care what people think, is a loud brash body building type who likes to flex his muscles at the slightest opportunity, fancies himself summat rotten and breaks wind every time he relaxes (I roll the throttle off). Many qualities I don’t actually like, if he was human, but as a motorbike I love him!
I can’t park him in a town or village anywhere near a window for fear of him gazing at the reflection of himself and doesn’t he just love it when people come up and stare!
But on these amazing roads he just laps them up, these corners are like his best friends, but I have to slap his wrists every now and then when he just wants to overtake everything in sight! And there’s the difference between us, I care what other motorists think of a biker from England, that image is important to me, he doesn’t give a toss, it’s his image which is important to him, or maybe we’re Jekyll and Hyde? 😬
Reg sounds like more fun than that boring old git you used to work with 😁
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What a day big bird great trip and stunning views and reg didn’t look to bad as well.
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Shame about the aborted lake visit, but we do have some of those at home 🙂
Reg looks stunning and sounds just like a certain Harley I used to know 😀
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Love your blogs Brian – highlight of the day – enjoy 😎🏍🏍🏍🛺
Thanks Marie, glad you like them!
Comillas looks interesting.
Check out the hassle you need to go through on the way back though to the UK. You need to get an antigen (not necessarily a PCR) test in Spain, and have another booked in the UK. You need a reference number from the UK one to complete your UK passenger locator form. The Spanish Antigen test needs to be taken 3 days before you leaving on the ferry. It’s a hassle. I can explain over the phone if it helps….you have my email!
🤦🏻♂️ I’ll be in touch thanks Gav! 👍🏼