Pyrenees Bike & Climb
Crossing the Pyrenees from east to west by mountain bike, climbing its highest peaks along the way.
See it on the interactive map · Flyby videos
Chapters
- Argelès-sur-Mer to Refuge Cortalets · 12 pebbls
Argelès-sur-Mer to Refuge Cortalets
From the Mediterranean Sea to the first summit
Start at the Mediterranean Sea
8:30 in the morning and it is already 32 degrees… starting at the Mediterranean Sea in Argelès-sur-Mer.
Rehydration Pause
Locally produced products 24/7 - had to taste a coke alternative. And got offered two delicious apricots.
Lakeside stop
Had to stop and cool down. And next to me a Hoopoe 🙌
Amelia Camping
Too hot to cycle any further. Stopped here and paid the Forfait Randoneur - special tarif for hikers 9,90€/Night including WiFi and hot showers 🥵 would have loved to get some real cold water 😅
Water
Griffon vulture
I think it was a griffon vulture circling above me ;)
The Formentera Mining Station
The Formentera Mining Depot: Between 1900 and 1930, the Formentera Mining Depot was the heart of ore transport for the Batère mines. Here, the iron ore was collected, partially roasted, and loaded onto a narrow-gauge railway that transported it to the cable car and then down to Arles-sur-Tech in the valley. Today, only a few structures remain to remind us of this once important industrial center in the heart of the Pyrenees.
Batère Tower
The Tour de Batère was built around 1330 as part of a network of medieval signal towers. Fire and smoke signals allowed messages to be relayed across large parts of Roussillon, as far as Perpignan. Even today, the tower offers a breathtaking panoramic view of Mount Canigou and the Mediterranean Sea.
Water
Cows are grazing above. A welcome respite from the heat.
Batère Refuge
The Refuge de Batère is open during the season. Overnight stays are possible, and hot meals and hot and cold drinks are available (0.2l Schweppes €3.50).
They are friendly and refill your drinking water free of charge (even large quantities – I got 5 liters).
bivouac site
Bivouac site not far from the hut (Refuge de Batère). The drinking water fountain at the hut is turned off. You can refill your water bottle for free at the hut.
At the bivouac site itself, there's a small stream (on the valley side, about halfway across the site). Great for washing. There's a lot of goat dung above the stream.
COL of the Download
Col de la Descarga: This is where the ore sacks used to be collected. The name literally means "unloading pass." Until the 19th century, mules brought the ore from the higher-lying mines here. It was then redistributed and transported further.