Our project is already in danger of being crushed by the screening device at Munich Airport: Red alert! Not because of Hannes' long hair or the bike shorts he's already wearing. No, it's the knives and liquids in his rucksack that startle the officers out of their routine. Hannes swears he's never seen the knives before. Berny, on the other hand, almost bursts out laughing: A little joke from friend Andi, who can't come along this time because of his job and family ...
Surprisingly, we still reach Granada as planned. In the evening, we even have time for a glass of wine on the Placa Nueva. Jugglers and fire-eaters populate the square, the illuminated Alhambra shines above and somewhere behind it, in the black night, the Sierra Nevada towers. Spain's highest mountain range on the mainland - tomorrow morning we will tackle its crossing to Almeria.
The first climb in the morning hits us like a tonic: we climb 2300 metres in altitude in one go up to the Albergue Universitario. By the time we reach our first accommodation, the sun has already turned the sky a glowing red. An icy cold wind sweeps around the house up here, but a friendly landlord is waiting inside to serve us a three-course meal.
When we step out of the hut at dawn, the icy wind is still there and so is the rest of the climb. It's just under 1300 metres to the highest peak, the Mulhacén (3482 m). Unfortunately, we can't see the mountain. According to the map, it must be somewhere up there in the clouds. At some point, a hut appears in the grey rocky landscape: the Refugio La Caldera. It is unmanned, not a soul in sight. We decide to leave our luggage here, as the path seems to become increasingly difficult over the last 250 metres in altitude. We really have to push for the last few metres, but at least the clouds have now lifted:
Granada scurries like an anthill at the bottom. The entire Sierra Nevada stretches out in all directions - the view from the highest point on the Spanish mainland is overwhelming. It is only topped by the 1700 metre descent to Capileira, which we plunge into the next morning. The trail that winds its way through this rocky lunar landscape exceeds all our expectations. Bizarre rock formations fly past, small blue lakes flash like eyes out of this gravel desert and the trail never ends. Curve after curve, it sends us through this breathtaking landscape like pinballs. "Hey, guys, from now on there's a trail like this every day!" I can hardly believe it myself, but if our map is correct and the trail types are all marked in the same way, then we really have landed in singletrack paradise here. From Capileira and Busqistar, the GR 7 long-distance hiking trail leads us on to Trevelez. This mountain village is famous for its air-dried ham. We manage a quarter of a leg before rolling into our sleeping bags somewhere on the outskirts of the village. When I wake up, it's still dark, but my sleeping bag is all wet on the outside. It's raining! We just manage to escape to a nearby building shell before all our clothes are soaked through.
As we crank up to Juviles, it's not raining, but the cloudy sky almost sticks to the black volcanic rock of our gravel road - then it pours its wet freight over us. But it's only a few metres to the highest point. Behind it is another downhill trail that makes us forget the rain: a path with natural banked turns! Nothing slips, nothing gets dusty, the tyres grip the lush ground and we can let it go. Until the downswing in the small mountain village of Timar, where my tyres are knocked off their rims in the village square. Puncture. My colleagues raise their eyes to the sky in annoyance. My third flat tyre today. The spare inner tubes are used up and the rain is still dripping down on us in threads. "Sit in a bar, I'll do it." Once I've patched the tyre, I have to look for the others. There doesn't seem to be a bar here. I finally spot the bikes. They are leaning against a wall. I push open the wooden door and a man called Julio greets me in broken German. My mates are upstairs in the parlour. Would I like a malt coffee too? Despite the hospitality, we still have to continue through the curtain of rain to Cadier. Here we treat ourselves to a hotel bed and a roaring evening in "Lou Lou", where Hannes gets carried away with a drum solo at dawn. It takes a while in the morning before we really notice the trail ahead of us. It leads us along the south side of the Sierra to Nechite. Dream views of the valleys of the Alpujarres open up before us. The vegetation is much more lush here. Figs, pomegranates, almonds and grapes - the small snacks distract us a little from the impassable 1650 metre ascent to Chullo. Once we reach the top, thick fog and the setting sun rob us of the view. Hannes squints his eyes: "A biker up ahead!" It's a female biker from Almeria heading for a refuge. She shows us an abandoned copper mine on the map where we can spend the night.
Somewhat frozen, we slide down the steep path to Laujar de Andarax after an icy night. It turns out to be a dream trail that continues along the GR 142 to Almocita. Even another downpour can't curb our desire to play. It's only just before Illar that a completely sodden clay path does the trick. Unfortunately, we only reach the village by pushing on thick muddy plateau soles. No matter, a granny gives us some gun oil for our chains and so we still reach the beach in Almeria the next day.
Information about mountain biking in the Sierra Nevada
The route
The route from Granada to Almeria measures 350 kilometres and 10464 metres in altitude and can easily be completed in eight stages. However, as it mainly leads through high alpine terrain and long, tricky uphill and downhill trails are the order of the day, a good level of fitness and sporty riding technique are essential.
Arrival
Outward flight to Granada, return flight from Almeria. A return transfer to Granada is therefore not necessary. Total flight costs incl. bike: approx. 500 euros.
Best touring time
From mid-May to the end of June and from September to the end of October. However, there may still be snow fields in spring.
Maps
The topo map "Sierra Nevada", published by Penibetica at a scale of 1:40000, www.penibetica.com. The map is completely sufficient for orientation, there are only a few junctions where you could get lost anyway.
Guided tours
Guided tours with booked accommodation, catering and luggage transport across the Sierra Nevada are offered in May, June and September, October by:
Almeria Bike Tours, tel. 0034/950/317300, www.almeria-bike-tours.de,
Bike Alpin, Tel. 09176/99309, www.bikealpin.de,
Fahrtwind, Tel. 08032/8989, www.mtb-fahrtwind.de,
Powder Trails, Tel. 0179/1379265, www.powder-trails.de.
General info www.go-sierra-nevada.com
You can find the entire article about the Sierra Nevada as a PDF download below.
Further information about the tour and the organiser can be found at www.powdertrails.de
