June 4, 2022
Olot by Bici Bus
North and east of Girona lies the Olot volcanic field (also known as the Garrotxa volcanic field). Olot, the town, lies in the midst of this volcanic region near the foothills of the Pyrenees and it's about 60km from Girona. The last eruptions happened 11,500 years ago and left behind about 20 cinder cones. Today, these are blanketed in dense forests of oak, beech and pine and full of recreational opportunities in the form of hiking, walking and mountain biking or the new sport, gravel biking.
You can actually ride to Olot on the cycle network from Girona, however it makes for a long ride there and back, so today we got creative. We had finished breakfast and were considering another ride to Lake Banyoles when I remembered that there is a 'bici-bus' that operates on Saturday and Sunday. They transport bikes and riders to Olot in one hour. A quick google search revealed that the bus was leaving the bus station in 30 minutes. Yikes!
We dashed to our room and went into over drive to get ready. No time to buy tickets, we decided to head straight for the station and buy the tickets on the bus. If it was meant to be, it would all work out. And it did.
The bus was late so it bought us some time to find the underground un-marked bus station and to buy the tickets online while we waited for the bici bus. There were already a dozen mountain bikers waiting when we arrived. They were headed to the trails in and among the cinder cones and would take the bus home at the end of the day. The fare was only 8.45 euro per person, including the bike.
The trailer held a lot of bikes so we knew we would make the bus. Once the bikes were secured we were off to Olot in a very modern mid-sized coach, operated by the public transit system.
As we approached Olot we began to recognize the scenery and the roads we had cycled on in 2016 when we passed through on our way to Besalu.
Our bikes were last of the bunch to be loaded, so they were first to be unloaded. We were off and riding at about noon, when the temperauture was already in the high twenties. We had chosen to ride east across the hills to Lake Banyoles and then return to Girona on the route we had ridden about a week ago. We didn't have time to enjoy Olot, but first impressions are that it certainly warrants a stay.
It soon dawned on me that since we had been dropped off at a high elevation, we would enjoy a sigificant drop in elevation today. And so, any hills we cycled were rewarded with extra dividends. I love it when a plan works!
As we got further away from Olot, the traffic subsided. Once again, the drivers appear to observe speed limits and keep the 1.5 meter distance from cyclists. In reality, they hold back until they are 100% certain there are no oncoming cars in view, then they switch lanes to pass us. The cars are quite small and they really play it safe! Which is awesome for bikers.
The ride to Lake Banyoles was shaped like a serpent with three humps: up, then down, and repeat. The cycling was magnificent, passing through dense forests interspersed with farms and green meadows. There are many parks and walking trails in this region and they were being well used today, Saturday.
We cruised down to Lake Banyoles and stopped for a lunch (salads) and drinks.
The first half of the ride from Lake Banyoles to Girona winds through forests and fields of wheat. The views were outstanding. I had been thinking that I sort of missed the goats of Mallorca and that there weren't any wild animals to speak of in this area. Shortly after that, we came upon a very large wild boar laying lifeless on the side of the road. There were fresh skid marks on the road which suggested it had been hit hit by a car fairly recently and had met its demise. It was very sad to see and it reminded me that there actually is wildlife in the forests and fields, just not what I was expecting.
The rest of the ride home was not so interesting, consisting of highways with wide shoulders. Fortunately, the traffic was extremely light which made it fairly easy sledding but it was still a bit of a grind at the end of the day.
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We had booked a restaurant for dinner at 8pm this evening. This was a bit of a celebration dinner for a successful hub and spoke tour. Eight pm is a late dinner hour for us so we strolled a bit and stopped for a pre-dinner Sangria on the Ramblas.
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The restaurant we chose for dinner was the one that served us paella on the food tour. The ordering system is a little different than usual. They have a large offering of very fresh seafood and this is where you select your dinner before being seated. We chose mussels, scallops, butter clams and prawns and then ordered two types of paella.
After a few minutes the seafood started arriving at our table, one plate at a time. It was simply prepared with parsley, olive oil and a little seasoning and it was oh, so delicious.
Over the years we have seen paella being sold in markets in the south of France from huge paella pans, but we haven't actually tried it. I had the impression it was a somewhat heavy meal so shied away from it. I've learned that is not the case in a well made paella. The rice in the local paella is grown near Pals and it is famous as a paella rice. When cooked properly it is not sticky nor is it dry. The broth is a seafood broth lending a nice flavour to the dish. I will bring some Pals rice home with me to see if I can make a decent paella with our west coast seafood.
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Girona's restaurants were hopping by the time we finished our dinner. This is when the Spanish get down to some serious eating. Restaurants were packed if they were open and there are a lot of them. In the Independence Square alone I counted almost 35 restaurants! The quality of food is very good, no matter which one you choose.
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Elevation gain: 15,916 metres.
Today's ride: 64 km (40 miles)
Total: 1,085 km (674 miles)
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