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I'm planning a trip at Easter in France and Spain, firstly we are heading Ainsa and then we are staying just north of Biarritz. I know Ainsa but for Biarritz I can see some mountain biking on Trailforks around Siegnosse and the nearest mountain biking on the FCC-VTT pages is at an the Valle d'osseu and a place called Hostens but they are both at least an hour drive away.
I don't want to head into the Pyrenees perfectly happy doing blue level xc riding as it will be a mixed ability group just somewhere to use the bikes whilst we have them with us.
Call Doug @ BasqueMTB to see if you can get a couple of days with him from Hondarribia which is right in the French border.
There's plenty to go at from easy pootle to quite exciting...
I've holidayed round there (St Jean de Luz, Sare, Ascain, San Sebastian) a few times, focus on surfing but taking mtbs. The iPhiGenie app is a gamechanges, like OS maps but cheaper, as is the spanish equivalent - worth getting both if you head that way. Has marked hiking/cycling routes
I don’t want to head into the Pyrenees perfectly happy doing blue level xc riding as it will be a mixed ability group just somewhere to use the bikes whilst we have them with us.
The Pyrenese are actually pretty gentle round there, lake district sort of size. I've got this
https://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/2344008209/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i0
...which has a few not too far away routes, but really that's a starting point as you'll see most tracks that are worth it get ridden, like in the lakes. Last summer I mainly explored round LaRune. Trails round Col de St Ignace (all on the map) would give some nearby short gentle loops.
I'm actually regretting not having booked there again having overspent on somewhere near Nice...
Thanks, I'm aware of Doug, this is more a few hours pootle with my wife and kids whilst we have the bikes rather than spending the day doing full-on guided rides, we'll be doing more of that in Ainsa. We holiday in the area quite often but usually with road bikes, I know Hondarribia and that is a good call, I've often thought about riding those hills when we've been on the beach at Hendaye. It's strange Trailforks is really extensive in Spain but in France its really poor.
I spend a lot of time on our last trip to the area on a road bike around LaRune from Bayonne as I much preferred having lunch in the cafes in the villages on the Spanish side. I'll check out the app thanks for the tip. Much like you, we'll be kayaking, bodyboarding and SUP boarding in the second week but I fancied a couple of days on the bike.
I much preferred having lunch in the cafes in the villages on the Spanish side.
Ah - the €10 3-course specials... Superb.
It’s strange Trailforks is really extensive in Spain but in France its really poor.
Strava's okay on the French side for routes/segments.
Couple years ago a friend got married in Urrugne so I packed my suit, my tent and my bike and flew over for it. Managed to get three asecents of La Rhune in whilst there including one on the morning of the wedding!
From the top of La Rhune (mountain) down to Moanttobaita (small village) via the GR10 (trail) is a great ride! There is a train, I don't know if you're allowed bikes on it, to the top. Otherwsie I cycled up on a pretty nice gradiant gravel road mostly on the spanish side, I started at Olhette. You'll find that on the Geoportail website