Trip through France and Spain Sept 13

davnjud

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A few thoughts and memories to share.... a bit of a ramble I am afraid but hopefully of interest to those who like myself are just getting started on this type of malarky....

My first trip outside UK on a bike since 1979 when a mate and I took our 500/4's to Italy. Self confessed born again biker 4 years ago and this is my second go at a GS having done 17k on a 2010 GS, 14k on a 2011 Pan and recently purchased a 2013 GSA TB. Just me and the Missus.


Route - D1 Cumbria to Portsmouth - Brittany Ferry Bretagne to St Malo -D2 St Malo to Saumar - D3 Bikers rest Treignac - D4-6 Duras near Bordeaux - D7 Duras to Millau - D8-9 Carcassonne - D10 Bagneres de Lucon, Pyreness -D11 Argeles Gazost D12 cross pyrenees via Saint Pierre to Sol de Rey. D13 Bilbau D14 Brittany Cap Finistiere to Portmouth D15 Cumbria.

I spent ages planning the routes using Tyre and loading into BMW Sat Nav which was really helpful in allowing me to relax and enjoy the ride although we had several adventures which Judith found less than amusing having to turn round in tiny steep roads.

I found this route which was 2300 road miles ok but there some days where it became more enduring than enjoying but overall I am glad to have seen a decent chunk of France, the Pyrenees and bit of of Spain. We were tied to making hotels that I had pre booked and in future I think I would like the flexibility to match riding to weather and the degree of interest in sticking around somewhere and would really like to have a go at camping though unsuprisingly Judith is less keen. The hotels were great with a really warm welcome every where, good facilities, decent breakfasts and no problems with parking. Everything researched through Trip advisor beforehand and booked through booking.com with no nasty suprises. The ferries were fine with comfy cabins, smooth crossings and great sense of holiday feeling from the deck as you land and set off.

The riding was epic. Mile after mile of smooth empty D road with terrific views and bends. I found I was naturally more cautious on unknown roads, two up and fully loaded and happy to tootle along in the sunshine at 55mph whereas I would have probably being doing 70 mph in the Uk. At the end of a long day at the beginning of the holiday I was taken by suprise by a very steep up hill U turn, didn't get down into first quick enough and it stalled mid turn and chucked us off at walking pace. No damage to us or bike ( GSA crash bar and panniers are so good for this) but I was worried about the Pyrenees passes coming up. Anyway it all went fine and we must have done 30 similar turns by the end of the trip up hill and down and all under control at a comfortable pace. The old maxim to keep looking through the turn really does the trick. I am certain that I was much more confident on the GSA than I would have been on the Pan thanks to its relatively light weight, wide bars and manoeuvrability.

So many good things to say about GSA. Fantastic tank range meant just one fill up in the course of each day when we saw a convenient hyper market and you're set. With a Sargent low seat I never got numb bum or back pain despite spending 7-9 hours on the go with just a few breaks. I sold the Pan because it was making a lower back problem worse and I am fairly convinced that the riding position and gentle motion of the GSA may actually have been therapeutic since my early morning twinges faded away. The low seat was very confidence inspiring and stopping starting using the left foot down method worked fine even through a nerve jangling rain soaked 20 mile crawl along the M25 (great to be home - not !)

Following a tip from someone on here we used the right hand inner pannier bag as a day bag on top of the rh pannier. This is really secure, can be unclipped and reclipped once the adjusters are set in seconds and if you need to get into the pannier below it just comes off with the lid. a handy armrest for the pillion too - Yep I liked it.

The ESA was also useful and coped well with the substantial extra weight. Great to be able to dial out the preload when I needed to nip off to get some petrol solo and we even used the offroad setting for an outrageously bad A road in Spain that was liked a tarmac ploughed field and gently bobbed along in relative comfort.

I have had the engine remapped by Hilltop and found it wonderfully smooth for tootling along in 50 km limits in 4th gear and always with enough performance for the rare need to overtake on the deserted roads. I just loved gunning up the very steep passes in third gear with a feeling of meaty power under control, zipping past the admirable cyclists but so much more 'in the movie' than the cage dwellers gazing out of their Ac boxes.

We averaged 52.3mpg over the 2300 miles though it went as high as 54.5 after the first 1400 miles before the mountains and final motorway dashes. My oil consumption has been a problem averaging 1l /1200 miles over the first 2k with this bike but after switching to mineral it seems to be settling down to 1l per 2500 or so. Definitely on an improving trend and I am much happier filling it up at £4 a litre versus £15 a litre for the 15- 50 Synthetic. Mind you having to check the oil and top it up everyday from a couple of litre bottles I was carrying was not the best advert for a long distance tourer. Apart from the oil spanner I did not touch the tool box all trip - total reliability. It all feels like a pretty well made and sorted bike to me.

My only failure was the headset of my interphone f4 which meant after 10 days my wife could hear me but not vice versa - and that is the honest truth ! I had spent the days before the trip nervously waiting for Chainspeed to return replacement units since my 2011 units wouldn't pair with the sat nav which they did with a superb approach to customer service. Ironically I switched off the sat nav audio because it was too intrusive and gave useless directions to join a street name as opposed to road number. Having used Tom rider previously I am bound to say that I think it is better than the free Garmin based unit I got with my GSA.

It was tough to get the riding gear sorted. One day the temperature range we experienced went from 30 degrees in a hot sunny valley to 7degrees at the top of the Saint Pierre. It was the really hot weather before we left Uk and at the last minute I bought an HG mesh summer jacket which was absolutely brilliant in 35 degrees. As soon as it gets down to less than 20 you need to put on a wind cheater but this combination was also fine. Naughty naughty but I couldn't face tramping around in motorcycling trousers so I wore jeans/boots throughout and was very comfortable on and off the bike.

So overall a fantastic trip on a fantastic bike and I look forward to many more. A few pics to get the feeling.....( first one is view from Col Aubisque, second sheer posery and on the third note the ferry sticker still attached 30 miles later when we stopped in Dinard for breakfast.....)





 
Sounds like you had a good trip... It’s good to do something different, eh?
I’ve come to the conclusion that booking somewhere the night before is the answer.. most places have wi-fi these days, and you can set a target for just how you feel at the time (providing you take a netbook, of course).
GSA, what a great bike.. perfect for your kind of trip. Don’t know about the ESA though, I always travel solo. The best mod I ever did was Wilbers shocks, set up to my weight, with full luggage.. it just felt a whole class above the standard BMW setup.
Considering you were 2-up, 52.3mpg is pretty good, I usually average 55 solo. I’ve heard from a couple of riders now, the Hilltop re-mapping is a worthwhile investment... I must consider that.
That’s a great sheepy photo.
Good write-up, start planning the next one... northern Spain is where it’s at :thumb
 
Nice report.:thumb Sounds like the first of many then?:beerjug:
 
Those steep uphill hairpins in Alps / Pyrenees catch us all out at first:D

First one I encountered was on an FJR 1300 fully loaded with pillion at the end of a 400 mile ride, certainly woke me up:eek:

The more you do them the easier they get, thats what I tell the SO and why we`re looking at Dolomites for 2014 just to keep in practice;);)
 
thanks for the kind comments - having retired at 55 from teaching this summer I have got plenty of ideas for other trips - Alps, Picos, Morocco , Norway, trans USA are all on the list.....:thumb2
 
Nice report, and pleased you enjoyed the Pyrénées, as they are on our doorstep we spent many days just riding them, and never seem to get tired of them in all seasons. I agree you can have 30C at the bottom and less than 10C over the cols. thank goodness for heated grips!!
Off to Morocco in October on the GS, looking forward to it.
Will
 
I too have just come back from a blast around France/Spain taking in a little of the Pyrenees and Route Napoleon.

We did Hull/Zeebrugge then headed south avoiding m.ways towards Biarritz, but decided to stop in Pamplona, took 3 days riding. Across Spain/France to Narbonne then up to Millau and the Route Napoleon back to Bruges for chocolate/beer and then the ferry.

Many one here say this is pointless without photos, but the numpty I am lost my camera on day 1:mad:

Shhh don't tell anyone, but think the Pyrenees are better than the Alps, less traffic.
 


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