The reality in the Val d'Aran is mostly different: The Val d'Aran is the only Spanish Pyrenean valley that extends into France and receives generous rainfall from the nearby Atlantic Ocean. Dense forest and a black forest green landscape are the result. But then we will at least come across the romantic little villages in abundance, I am sure of that. But the further we drive into the deeply incised valley, the bigger the houses become. Ski resort architecture from the 1970s. The concreted-over townscape of many villages in the Val d'Aran is the dark side of the great fame of the nearby Baqueira-Beret ski resort. The family of the discredited Spanish king regularly spends their winter vacations here. My romantic dream is over. Welcome to reality, the cheap liquor and tobacco stores, because the Val d'Aran is also a shopping paradise for French shopping tourists.
We set off early the next morning on our first long tour. Pep, who runs the local bike agency "Pedals del Mundo", recommended this tour to us. And Sergej, his buddy, has the day off and wanted to go biking anyway - he comes with us. We quickly find biker friends here. As today's tour is very long, we take the public bus with our bikes to the Port de la Bonaigua at an altitude of 2070 meters. We ride past a few places that could all compete with the infamous French retort ski stations for the winner of the ugliest design.
From the pass, we look into an enchanting other world: the deep, narrow Val d'Aran is wide and flooded with light up here and you realize how far south we are. The vegetation is sun-dried and the glaciers of the 3404-metre-high Anetos glisten in the background. However, we are still not quite in paradise: first we have to descend some 16 kilometers of tarred road. When we reach the beautiful village of Son after this speeding passage, on which mountain bikers rarely feel comfortable, we not only believe we are in paradise, we are: because now we have around 60 kilometers of mostly easy, but also partly challenging tours ahead of us, which lead us through a uniquely beautiful landscape: Dense, jungle-like fir forests alternate with herb-scented meadow turns that lead us into crooked quarry stone villages with rich floral decorations through colorful autumn gardens.
Over crooked, stone-walled bridges and along the deep, gorge-like La Noguerra Palaresa river, we overcome a long, sightseeing-like ascent, which we break off at the church of the almost derelict little pass village of Montgarri for a long rest. The landlord welcomes us with a smile and serves up various specialties of the house alongside his excellent alpine cheese. After the first bite, Montgarri is already one of my personal top ten places in Europe. We struggle to stop the innkeeper from treating us to another round of beer or even red wine, as we still have a lot to do... And we are glad that we have resisted the alcoholic temptations, as we have another 8 kilometers of tough climbing ahead of us. The scenic high valley widens into a plateau at the ski area parking lot. In addition to thousands of parking spaces, you will find pure nature, almost wild herds of horses and vintage car freaks changing their engine oil up here. Before we finally reach the highest point of our tour after almost 70 kilometers, however, it takes a few more tough kilometers. Our newly acquired biker friend Sergeij has left us in the meantime because he had to go to work and we are too slow for him. But of course he gave us a tip for a particularly good descent to Vielha, the small capital of the Val d'Arans.
As we set off on the descent in the evening light, a paradise for mountain bikers opens up before us. The setting sun bathes the huge Val d'Aran in a golden-red light, but the more than 15-kilometre descent is a delight at any time of day. After this tour, we are convinced that we have found one of Europe's biking paradises. The fact that our paradise also has high-rise buildings hardly bothers us anymore.
Over the next few days, we explore many more tours in the Val d'Aran and get to know local bikers who show us their best tours and most beautiful descents: We whizz down bike-park-like freeride trails, wind our way through wildly romantic mountain villages and eat tapas in excellent bars until we can hardly ride any more.
More photos from the tours of the first few days
But by far the most exciting and varied is our last tour
An outstanding cross-country trail leads through some very exposed rock face passages along a crazy steep slope: the steep slopes drop almost vertically over 700 m into the Valerties Valley, in which the small river meanders. Although the trail is not too difficult, there is no room for riding errors here. And so we follow the derelict route of an abandoned mine with the utmost concentration. We drive through narrow, rock-cut tunnels several times with our heads down.
Then a downhill of superlatives begins: steeply downhill through rough terrain. The last few kilometers lead through a steep, dark mountain forest. This must be what bear country looks like, I think to myself. The paths we follow look as if they haven't been used for decades and some of them are so overgrown that we have to cut across country to the next section of path. Relieved and at the same time a little disappointed that the bear meeting didn't work out, we roll into the small village of Arties.
And then we meet him after all: Ursos Arctos! An adult brown bear lolls bored in a pond. The only thing separating us is a sturdy wire fence, because this Pyrenean bear lives as a sad enclosure bear in the middle of tourist accommodation in an enclosure that is too small. Let's hope that his free relatives fare better in the remote and deserted expanses of the national park. Caged bears and high-rise buildings notwithstanding: the Pyrenees are a wild natural paradise of superlatives. Hundreds of majestic, huge griffon vultures circle above our heads during our tours. With a wingspan of almost three meters, they are the true kings of the Pyrenees.
Photos: Stefan Neuhauser | Text: Tobias Kurzeder
More photos to browse in the Gallary
Useful travel information Val d'Aran
In the Val d'Aran, which translates as the valley of valleys, the Garona has its source and flows into the Atlantic as the Goronne near Bordeaux. The climate is more humid and less hot than in the central Pyrenees: the vegetation is correspondingly lush. However, as soon as you cross the main Pyrenean ridge, as on our tours, the landscape changes and the lush green gives way to various shades of brown and red. The best time of year is late spring, early summer in June and from the end of August to October. But even in the height of summer, there are plenty of mainly shady hiking opportunities.Vielha and the other villages of the Val d'AranAround 8,000 people live permanently in the Val d'Aran. The main town is Vielha with almost 4,000 inhabitants and thousands of vacation apartments. If you are looking for a romantic mountain vacation, Vielha is the place for you! However, if you want to experience the flair, great gastronomy and nightlife of Spain after an eventful bike tour, the town offers a colorful and varied range of activities. Despite its architecture, Vielha exudes endearing charm thanks to its friendly, fun-loving inhabitants.
The prices are very moderate due to the abundance of beds on offer: the price-performance ratio is very attractive. Food and drinkThere are many good and inexpensive restaurants and tapas bars. The evening and nightlife is surprisingly colorful for a place of this size and the atmosphere is typically Spanish, almost Mediterranean. Bike info & special offersThe reputable bike service agency Pedals del Mundo or "Pedals de Foc" offers a 4 to 5-day complete program: the 220-kilometre-long and around 5800-metre-high circumnavigation of the national park - the "Pedals de Foc" (burning pedals). The Pedals de Foc can be recommended to bikers for whom the scenic experience is more important than continuous racy single trails. Our tour no. 1 is a section of this circuit. We recommend the very popular tour, which is undertaken without a guide, but where the overnight stays are booked in advance, partly because of the magnificent scenery and also because of the great overnight locations. Contact:Pedales del Mundowww.pedalsdefoc.com Shuttle cabs can also be organized via Pedals de Foc to take bikers to the tour starting points at very reasonable prices. From July to the beginning of September, a chairlift opens in the ski area to transport mountain bikes.
