Purely Picos. Part 3: Nipping across the north side | Motorcycle touring in the Picos de Europa

[@thewoodster8607]

Thanks very much for filming, editing and posting this series. Very professionally done and a great reference for trip planning. I was there in May but some of your 'dead end' trips look great and I will put them on the schedule for next May. You do higher mileage than we do but you appear to do the same as us and try and find interesting places to go and see. Thanks again bud.

[@o75uk]

The Woodster thank you for taking the time to comment and your feedback. Great to hear. The beautiful thing about ’dead-end’ trips is that you experience great roads both ways! Love ’em!

[@johnmcnamara8417]

Amazing series so far , episode 3 is stunning . Thanks again for all your hard work .

[@o75uk]

John Mcnamara Hi John, I really appreciate your comment. Thank you. I fill with satisfaction knowing the hours filming and editing is enjoyed by so many. Gotta crack on with part four!

[@johnmcnamara8417]

@@o75uk You have set a very high standard so far , can't wait too see episode 4 .

[@stimgaze]

Amazing, thanks. Will be bookmarking...

[@o75uk]

If you go, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

[@robertmcdougall8409]

What amazing footage ,one of the best i have viewed so far.... I was there in 2013 and your trip has made me want to get back there and take in the stunning scenery once again, thank you.

[@o75uk]

Hey Robert. You are very welcome. Thanks for taking the time to comment and for a fantastic feedback too. If it can whet appetites, even for a second time for others, then my work here is done! :)

[@glennglenn101]

I loved the AS114 on a blade, lots of fast sweeping bends, on the way to Ribadesella via Cangas de Onis, loved Ribadesella too.

[@o75uk]

The Picos de Europa is a motorcyclists dream.

[@russellpugh617]

absolutely fantastic.. not only great footage but also a big thank you for sharing the map & subsequent details, really is appreciated! On the 2020 bucket list !

[@o75uk]

WOW. Thank you so much Russell. I certainly wasn't expecting comments like this. So glad to hear you're enjoying them. Part four going out tomorrow evening so be sure to tune in.

[@c9a]

Little information about the places visited. Legend tells that Covadonga is the place where the Christians started the "reconquista" fighting back the Moors to conquer land back. That is as far as they reached. The road you couldn't drive up to takes you to Lagos de Covadonga, an extremely beautiful national Park that has restricted access to protect it from over touristic population and degradation. Well done for that. Tresviso is the most remote village in Cantabria and until "recently" it was only accessible by foot via Hermida. You missed the best and strongest blue cheese there is. Ever. Beautiful trip and well documented. Big thumbs up for you sir.

[@o75uk]

Hi c9a - thank you for your time to comment. I really appreciate offering more info on some of the places which I wasn't aware of. I missed the strongest blue cheese! Argh! There's a good reason to go back right there. Thank you. While there is so much more we could include, for many it's about riding among one of the most beautiful places on earth. We'd rather signpost then leave to others to source the wealth of info available on the tinternet if they wish to know more. I can see your thumbs from here. Thank you!

[@Banditmanuk]

So many great roads in the Picos, the 621 is right up there as one of the best I've ridden

[@o75uk]

Have to agree! Quite a special road. The CA-1 has staggering scenery and the CA-894 is quite spectacular too. Three of my favourites, all for different reasons and all could be done in a day!

[@TwoFourCharlie007]

What an absolute blast! Great footage and commentary! Thank you, I thought I knew the Picos quite well.. I’ve learnt even more now

[@o75uk]

Thank you Paul. Just trying to do my bit to help. And when you go, you'll see more that we weren't able to cover.

[@paullee6663]

A cracking series of video's mate, and I'm looking forward to the rest in the series! Already booked for next year, which will be my third consecutive visit. (never been abroad on the bike before!) I've visited or stayed at most of your destinations apart from the locations in your first video to the East of the region, and may well look at those next year. I stayed at both Cavadonga and Dodres. I intend to do 'The Lakes' next year at Cavadonga (weather permitting) The weather was poor when I was there, and apparently it is at a higher altitude than Cavadonga. By the way, it's not just bikes, cars are banned too...unless they have reason for access. I never got to Tresviso .... I stopped at Sostres. How far does that 'broken up road' extend beyond Sostres? My old Honda, doesn't take kindly to those sort of roads! Some awesome views on the way to Treviso! Just a 'heads up' I saw that van on your side of the road, that happens quite a bit from what I've seen, and I had a ' very close call' heading out of Cain de Valdeon when a car left me a 2' gap to squeeze through while on my side of the road....I think my mirror clipped the rock face! Thankfully I was doing about 20mph! Sub from me :-) You should visit the Bear Statue again when you are next there, it looks so much better with no cloud! Maybe you should head West next time? Santiago? Finisterra? Portugal even?

[@o75uk]

WOW Paul. Thanks for taking the time to comment. Appreciated, bud! You are so going to love it out there on two wheels. The Covadonga Lakes' access is by bus only. We were hugely disappointed as very little information can be found before we arrived. Revisiting the footage, there is a sign that buses operation between 0830-2100 (if I recall correctly) so I suppose, you could squeeze a sneaky one on your bike at around 0730. It's just hugely popular so this is a way to ensure the roads aren't overcrowded. While it makes sense, you need more time if you really need to visit them - something we didn't really have. The road beyond Sotres is a bit hit and miss as you rise over the summit but pretty good there after. It's just a section but I have a feeling, as workers were putting drainage in at the time of our visiting, the road could be resurfaced soon. Ah, on coming traffic - to be expected. Further motorcycle training certainly helped but you can't really help situations you can't see as I experienced in part one! That said, I did try and do a three-car overtake but didn't see a right hand bend before I committed (silly error and I really thanked my Brembo brakes for doing its job really well). I'll bear in mind the bear again! Amazing scenery which literally took my breath away. Overall, I will definitely go back but just a case of when. I would like to explore elsewhere, but where, I don't know just yet but my goodness, the Picos is going to be a tough one to beat. Thank you for your subscription - it'll be great to have you along for the ride. #spreadtheword

[@waltbarbour207]

Giving me some new ideas for this years trip, stayed in Sotres (quite a steep twisty road up there) for two nights last year but never went to Tresviso. I believe you can get to the lakes early in the morning, either that or you just have to go by bus. Need to look into it more.

[@o75uk]

HI Walt. Thanks for your comment. Hindsight is a wonderful thing; if I knew then what I know now, I would have headed somewhere else. To reach the lakes you need to be there before 7.30am. That said, Tresviso is amazing. Fill your tank up before you head up there for an enjoyable lunch. It'll be a relaxed half-day affair. Enjoy.

[@TwoFourCharlie007]

What a shame you couldn’t visit Covadonga lakes, we were lucky 3 years ago, got to ride up to the lakes, tried last year with our friends but seems to be closed to the public unless you take the bus...., it’s deffo worth going up though, but even better in the fog on two wheels!😬

[@o75uk]

Yes. I think #covadonga should apply a fee for motorcyclists as it would save carrying all your gear on the bus. Put us off going back. I think they could be missing a trick with many visiting motorcyclists.

[@ktmtravels3727]

It's maybe been said already but I think before 8am you can ride up. Not sure if that's currently the case🤔

[@TwoFourCharlie007]

@@ktmtravels3727 yes, that’s correct, I’ve found out since…

[@ktmtravels3727]

Thanks for that👍, looking forward to getting back to Spain, biking Nirvana😆

[@p1lts1]

Love the vids. Where do you source your music?

[@o75uk]

PILTS Thank you! Means a lot. Music is under licence from AudioJungle.

[@p1lts1]

@@o75uk BlueTreeAudio??

[@o75uk]

Very similar. Is there a particular track you like?

[@p1lts1]

@@o75uk The one that starts at approx. 3:50 is great

[@o75uk]

@@p1lts1 audiojungle.net/item/ambient-uplifting-kit/24768111