Adventure in the Pyrenees - Part 6 - Paradore Sos del Rey Católico

 Ainsa to Sos del Rey Católico

While researching for Thursdays route I came across the Hotel Parador Sos del Rey Católico recommended in a book by motorcycle traveller Duncan Gough. Also I found a great little route in another book 'Motorcycles Routes of Western Europe' by Toby Ballantine starting from Ainsa along the 'Valle de Hecho' passing very close to the same Parador I had booked two rooms for the night. After a good breakfast and early 8am start we followed the N-260 west then took the 260a at Fiscal for a wonderful cool twisty ride up in to the mountains before stopping for a 'banana break' on the descent in the sleepy town of Gavin. By now we had learned our lesson and packed sufficient sustenance in the form of bananas and bags of nuts to ensure we would last a long day without fading toward the end.

In the city of Jaca we discovered the A-1205 road was blocked and realised I had lost Rob behind as I followed the most obvious alternative road off a roundabout so decided to return back to lookout for him. Thankfully he'd taken the same road so we reviewed our next options over the intercom. I killed some waypoints and continued along the N-240 before the Navigator led us up a lane to get back on the original 1205 route toward the waypoint after a small village. Next came a slightly wrong turn along very rutty gravelly farm track, at first I found it quite daunting so switched the GS bike mode to Enduro to soften the suspension and calm the throttle and soon started to feel more comfortable standing up on the pegs and started to have a little fun on the loose stuff. 

My decision to leave the top heavy 6kg top-box at home for this trip in favour of a lighter roll bag strapped to the tail had already made the bikes handling lighter and easier, so by now it was paying real dividends as the lane became even more choppy. At one point in a muddy rut the bike was 'zigging' while I went 'zagging' and I nearly lost it completely. I relaxed my grip on the bars to let the bike go where it wanted to, and kept my hips in line to get the bike back under my control again. Rob was doing better than I. Although a 17 inch wheel on the Tiger wasn't ideal, his experience riding around the farm in his younger days plus the Africa Twin day he'd been on last year made light work of it for him I think. All we had to do was keep our distance to avoid flying gravel and stones and at times reached a good speed. 

Eventually the track came to a dead end at a field of crops so we took a short break before turning the bikes around and retracing back the way we came. I was getting more confident now, steering while stood up pushing down on the pegs and keeping the weight over the front wheel, however, as we gingerly travelled along this forested ridge next to a narrow stream three huge raptors flew by from the right, so close to my head I nearly lost all control. Each bird had a huge wingspan and later after some research I'm now fairly sure they were 'Spanish Imperial Eagles'. Their wingspan must have been over 5 feet and I was so shocked I sat back down on the seat shut the throttle off and watched as they gracefully disappeared into the woods to my left. I did wonder if 'Gandalf' had summoned those Eagles to carry us back up the lonely mountain! Near the farmhouse we soon found the HUV-V-2102 (H for Huesca) leading us out at a gentle pace along the sublime 'Valle de Hecho' following along the ridge before parking near the church/chapel in the quiet little town of Hecho (Echo). At the end of a narrow cobbled street between old stone buildings we found a tiny cafe serving food. We both went for the excellent chicken sandwich and ice-cream to follow, sat outside in our shorts calming down after all of that unplanned off-road excitement. We both agreed it had been a fun morning with the added bonus of a perfect lunch stop too!

Mid-afternoon we briefly crossed into the region of Navarre diverting onto the the NA-137 passing through a huge gorge opening into a wide plain with sweeping bends, and then all of a sudden onto a washboard potholed road I remembered from Duncan Gough's description in his book. We then passed through dry arid plains before taking the incredibly twisty and bumpy forested road that went on for miles before winding up into Sos del ray Católico to our Parador hotel for the night. I'm sure I lost some tooth fillings on that road as we crossed back into Aragon again. 

A luxury stay tonight I thought as we parked the bikes right near the entrance by ornate flower pots. Well worth the extra cost this Parador described as: "A classic Aragonese manor house. It is within the town walls, which has been declared a Historic-Artistic Site. Its large windows offer you spectacular views of the mountains surrounding the town." By now after riding in the late afternoon heat and sweating cobs unloading the panniers all I could think of was; did my room have working air-con? Thankfully it did so after a cool shower and hour or so relaxing in the luxury room looking out at the fantastic view I met up with Rob an hour before our dinner reservation for a wander.

After a walk up hill in to the town through the narrow streets I seemed to lose my bearings and almost got lost after passing the cathedral but with Rob's help soon made our dining experience in the hotel restaurant on time. Tonight we would be amongst quite a few fellow Brits drinking beers on the terrace before being seated inside near the window. Rob went for the Thistle soup and I had the Iberian ham croquettes to start. We both enjoyed the Cod au Gratin with a glass of wine to reflect on a wonderful day tackling a good mix of terrain, us both having a lot of fun along the way.