Country: Spain

Language: Spanish

Currency: Euro

Year: 2013

Distance: ~5,000 km

Route and Map: Madrid, Spain > Miranda Do Duoro, Portugal > Vila Real > Gijón, Spain > Picos De Europa > Santander > Curcuito De Navarra > Pamplona > Castejon de Sos > Andorra > Barcelona > Valencia > Almeria > Jerez > Seville > Huelva > Lisbon, Portugal > Madrid, Spain

Ride on: Right Side

Metric System: Speed in km/h and Fuel in litres.

Machines: BMW Adventure 1200 GS

I have ridden various motorcycles in more than 60 countries now. But this road trip from 2013 holds a special place in my heart. I took the BMW Adventure 1200 GS. It is perfect for a road trip like this but I pushed the boundaries of adventure as we rode it on multiple racetracks around Spain. So, here’s a pictologue of 5000 km solo around Spain, Portugal and Andorra on a BMW Adventure 1200 GS.

A big thanks to our long-time supporter, Castrol POWER1 for making this roadtrip possible. Throughout the roadtrip, our motorcycle performed flawlessly thanks to Castrol POWER1. From racetracks to backroads and from coasts to hills, it did not matter what changed; riding style, riding conditions, and terrain, Castrol POWER1 ensured that our Big Beemer dealt with everything as fluidly as possible.

The BMW Adventure 1200 stands ready and handsome with the countries’ fags that I have already covered so far on various motorcycles.

E for Española!

The tank bag is a very important part of the equipment as it hosts my cameras for easy access.

The Garmin Zumo GPS worked just fine across the three countries of Spain, Portugal and Andorra.

There are some very beautiful villages in Spain and Portugal. This is Vila Flor in Portugal. Portuguese influence in architecture can be seen in Goa, India as well.

This is Gijon in Spain, located on the coast, this town boasts the largest number of baker shops per capita in the country.

The Picos De Europa is a range of mountain peaks which are 20 km inland from the northern coast of Spain. They are perhaps named such since they are believed to be the first sight of ships arriving from Europe arriving from the Americas. They also contain some of the world’s deepest caves. Riding is a delight here though finding accommodation can be a little hard as I found out. All the hotels were deserted when I did the ride (in late October), therefore I took the direct route to Santander from here on the highway.

Toy-like houses en route Santander near Picos de Europa.

Santander, Spain.

Riding towards Andorra.

Spain has many racing tracks, some of which are international standards and host MotoGP like Valencia and Jerez. While riding from Santander towards Andorra I came across a track – the Circuito De Navarra, which is currently being labelled as Spain’s newest and closest circuit. The total length of the circuit is 3.933 Km which can be divided into tracks of 2.7 km and 1.3 km, to hold events at the same time. The main straight is of 800 meters. Even though I arrived pretty late into the day, the circuit management was understanding enough to allow me to have the track for 30 minutes – all for myself! It is located in a stunning rustic location with an awesome highway approaching it from both sides. I did manage to get my knee down on the Adventure here! Riding a bike like the Adventure in leathers has its benefits, at least in the track-surplus country of Spain!

Further westwards I rode towards Barcelona, where I paid a customary visit to the Catalunya Circuit near Barcelona. But before that, I rode through the country of Andorra, which is a landlocked country with an area of 468 sq km. Its capital, Andorra La Vella, is the highest capital of Europe with an elevation of 3356 feet. The people of Andorra have the 7th highest human life expectancy in the world – 82 years at birth. Directly above are a couple of photos of the Sagrada Familia Cathedral which has been under construction since 1882.

The Pyrenees mountain range, which is older than the Alps, forms a natural border between Spain and France. The country of Andorra is also in the Pyrenees.

Going downwards from Barcelona, I hit another city with an international track – Valencia. It was a Sunday and I was pleasantly surprised to know that there was a walk in trackday. I was the odd man out with the most inappropriate motorcycle possible. The other guys must have got a lot more practice than they asked for avoiding the huge BMW around the corners. In 40 Euros, it was more than a bargain riding a track where greats like Rossi battle. From Valencia, I rode down towards Malaga and the Sierra Nevada mountains, which literally mean Snowy Range. It contains the highest point of continental Spain, the Mulhacen at 3478 meters (11,411 feet). The Sierra Nevada range appeared to be brown and rustic at this time of the year, a little bit like moonscape. You can find a lot of windmills here as well!

The sunsets in Spain are surreally orange, even from the highways. I can only imagine what they would look like in a postcard landscape.

Through the Sierra Nevada, I rode to the city of Jerez to pay homage to the Jerez circuit where one of the most famous MotoGP battles were fought between Rossi and Gibernau.

Lisbon Aquarium at nighttime.

Padrao dos Descobrimentos in Lisbon.

The Jeronimos Monastery in Lisbon.

This was a huge tattoo wall in Lisbon. The trip finished after a little over 5,000 km back in Madrid. The BMW Advent ure performed quite well in all the conditions. However, the last few days of the trip were marred by heavy torrential rains.

Finally, here are some more images from this memorable road trip of ours!