Text: Max Draeger
Have you ever seen a video of the Trans Nomad? If you have a heart for enduro, you won't be able to get these images out of your head. In the clips, the trails wind endlessly through lonely high alpine worlds. Eagles and vultures circle in the sky and peer down at a small flock of bikers below. The film shows them threading their way along these trails one after the other, surfing seemingly effortlessly through a galaxy of rocks, scree and canyons. At the end of the film, you look into extremely happy faces and at a hut table on which mountains of tapas and red wine are being served. Of course, you simply switch off the film afterwards, envious, but these images left me no peace. So I switched the device back on: Where exactly is this Pico de Aneto...?
Would a trip through the Alps not have been adventurous enough?
The highest peak in the Pyrenees is almost exactly 16 hours by car from Innsbruck, as we now know. That didn't sound so dramatic when we were planning it, but once you're on the road, you sometimes wonder whether a bike trip within the Alps wouldn't have been adventurous enough. But Arturo is now waiting for us in Vielha, in the Spanish Val d'Aran. As a local, he knows the bike trails from the Trans Nomad videos, of course. The EWS and the Downhill World Cup have also made several stops in his area along the French-Spanish border. We should take at least a week, Arturo recommended. And preferably bring a shuttle vehicle so that we can experience as many trail spots as possible around the 3404 metre high glacier giant Pico de Aneto.
We greet Arturo for breakfast on our first morning in the Pyrenees, quite wrinkled from the long journey. He had already realised that we wouldn't be the fittest today. That's why he had planned an acclimatisation tour for today. We head towards Baqueira, a small ski resort nearby, which has a bike park-like facility in summer. The Freeride World Tour (FWT) has already taken place here several times. There are no lifts to help you uphill here, but there are shuttle vehicles that take most of the metres in altitude off your hands in this labyrinth of hollow paths, berms, tight bends and small jumps. For the extra good descents, however, we have to do it ourselves, and it's worth the effort. Any doubts as to whether this trip was worth the long journey to the Spanish mountains have already been dispelled.
In the afternoon, we are back in the car and head up the eastern flanks of the Pico de Aneto massif. While we nibble on sandwiches, an increasingly dusty-looking high mountain world flies past the window outside. Residual snow fields flash up. Then the Llauset reservoir, where the road ends. Arturo had announced that from here there were still 250 metres of altitude difference to our booked hut bed. But nobody would have thought that we would have to climb through huge boulders to get there. At some point, a steep path emerges, but it's not even passable with our fully packed rucksacks. We struggle for two hours, the daylight is threatening to run out - I can't remember a comparable scene in the Trans Nomad clips. But I do remember the picture of the futuristic-looking hut in the summit landscape. The only difference is that the Refugio Cap de Llauset, which is made entirely of metal, is now gleaming in the evening sun, not silver but bronze-coloured. Despite its cool aluminium skin, the hut welcomes us inside with a cosy wooden core. It smells of dinner - what a precision landing!
"Shit, Jens! Are you okay?!"
The blocked path from the hut requires full concentration the next morning. Despite this, his mate Jens gets stuck on the pedals, loses his balance and falls a good way down the embankment. But when the dust clears, Jens is already back on his feet. He carefully climbs up to us: fortunately no major injury. But his head and shoulder hurt. So he cancels the tour here and will drive the shuttle car with Livi over the next few days. We, on the other hand, continue towards the Llauset summit. Even more focussed now, of course. Then we soon have to shoulder the bikes on the steepest path. Two steps forwards, one step back. The loose mixture of gravel and sand is merciless and extremely draining at an altitude of almost 3000 metres. But not morale, because I have an inkling of what's waiting for us up there. And that's right: on the other side of the mountain, I have a sense of déjà vu: the lunar landscape from the video, with rocks and stones in all sizes, shapes and shades of grey. In reality, the whole thing seems even more gigantic. Only the eagle in the sky is missing. Perhaps it's sitting somewhere in its eyrie watching us as we try to find grip in the loose gravel track. In any case, braking is not a good idea. It's best to keep a highly focussed eye on the trail and take it easy. "And what an amazing landscape, isn't it?" asks Livi when she picks us up again at a chip shop in Cerler. We scare ourselves: Bollocks. Further down, we were so focussed on the trail that we didn't pay any attention to the scenery.
Arturo pulls up his knee pads in the car for the next trail of the day: "It's a little bit loose, some rocks and watch out for the tight corners," he tells us before plunging into the forest ahead of us. It's a trail that people in Spain rate with a "Cojonudo!", as we learn later over a sensational dinner in Benasque. Which loosely translated means something like: "Oida, it's awesome!"
But of course the flow trail trend did not pass the region by either. Arturo himself has taken the shovel to some of the mountain flanks. His favourite winds its way through a jungle-like tunnel. We would never have dreamed of such lush greenery on the south side of the Pyrenees. But the mountains west of the Aneto don't seem to lack rain. As we shuttle up to our next accommodation at the end of the flow trail day, the first fat drops are already bursting on the windscreen.
We are the only guests at the Refugio de Marradetas at an altitude of 2000 metres. This is probably the reason why the host serves us a veritable feast. We start with soup and a generous paella, followed by the finest meat and vegetables from the grill. Afterwards, we slowly drift off to sleep with a good bottle of red wine by the open fire. We don't even realise that disaster is brewing outside the door. Lightning flashes every second and the sound of thunder rips us from our dreams in the middle of the night. Rain drums on the roof and even drips from the ceiling in one place or another. We are lucky though, because at breakfast the landlord points to a makeshift hole in the brick wall. Only a few weeks ago, lightning had struck there...
In any case, our overnight thunderstorm has blown the heat out of the valleys. On the tours over the next few days we don't sweat, but have to deal with the cold, wind and light fresh snow. On the long stretches to Punta d'Armena and to the summit of Comodoto in the Ordesa National Park in particular, gusts of wind repeatedly try to knock us off our feet. Even the almost perfect enduro trail from Bielsa is only granted to us with a rain shower. But no matter. We go through with our programme. That's the advantage of a long journey: None of our group wants to miss a single centimetre of trail. Who knows when the next opportunity for such trails will be?
And that's why we insist on taking a look over the main ridge of the Pyrenees and experiencing a few trails on the French north side. Despite the drizzle, we meet the first hikers shortly after the border, but we have the enduro trails of Aragnouet to ourselves again. You can tell that wet weather is more to be expected here. No matter what level of difficulty we choose, all the trails here are easy to ride even in the wet. Even the deep black marked line through the fairytale forest of Saint-Lary-Soulan with its rock slabs, drops and giant ferns can be mastered with a little sensitivity on the brake lever. After the experiences of the last eight days, we could easily sign up for the next Trans-Nomad, I think aloud. But then Arturo opens his eyes: Oh right! He hadn't even shown us the trails for the next race. "They are top secret!"
Info Central Pyrenees
The precinct: The Pyrenees are 430 kilometres long, making them the second largest mountain range in Europe after the Alps. The border between France and Spain, two very mountain biker-friendly countries, runs along their main ridge. The freedom on the trails that you can discover here is correspondingly great. Especially in the central Pyrenees near Vielha, where the four-thousand-metre peaks tower above the national parks. In contrast to the touristy regions on the Mediterranean and Atlantic, here you will find lonely mountain worlds. Many trails had already fallen into disrepair, but have been dug up and made rideable again by an ambitious trail crew for a few years now. To enjoy these high mountain trails, however, you need a stable enduro riding technique (up to S3), as well as the strength and will to carry your bike uphill for 500 to 1000 metres.
Best time to travel: As in the Alps, you can also expect snow in the much more southerly Pyrenees until well into June. The climate on the Spanish side is generally more Mediterranean, drier and often very hot in the valleys in summer. However, changes in the weather can also sweep through the high mountains here in freezing temperatures. Locals then head for lower-lying and therefore usually less rainy trail areas, such as the Zona Zero near Ainsa.
Overnight stay: Accommodation is easy to find in the valley villages and along the tourist routes near the national parks. In the mountains, there are managed huts as well as self-catering huts. But those who have travelled all the way to the Pyrenees should not miss out on Spanish mountain hut food and the extreme hospitality.
Tours: You can find lots of tracks in the online tour portals. These include trail routes from the numerous freeride and enduro events in the region. However, in our experience, we would not have found some of the trails without a local guide. The trail markings are not without gaps and some trails only started after a trackless climb through large boulders.
Guided tours/camps: The Innsbruck-based tour operator Flat Sucks offers a round trip "The Trail Gate" to the most productive trails around the Pico de Aneto glacier massif. Price for a week including half board, shuttle service and guide: 2050 euros. Flight to Toulouse extra. Info and dates: flatsucks.at
Trans Nomad 2024: If you want to experience the spectacular enduro race in the heart of the Pyrenees for yourself - next date: 2-6 October 24, but beware: there are only 90 starting places!
For four days, you'll be riding on as yet unknown trails through the high mountain regions of Bielsa Trocs and Bal de Chistau. Despite the use of shuttles, pushing and carrying sections of up to 1000 metres in altitude are also on the programme. In total: 160 kilometres, 5000 metres of elevation gain and 10,000 metres of descent. Race sections: 4-5 per day. Entry fee: 1375 euros. Info: trans-nomad.com
Gitta Beimfohr
Editor
