| The Basque Country, sitting partly in north-west | | | | unparalleled. Sandy singletrack along the sea-cliffs and |
| Spain and partly in south-west France, plays host to | | | | steep technical switchbacks in a big mountain setting |
| an incongruous mix of visitors; everyone, from | | | | are within a fifteen minute drive of each other. The |
| surfers, drawn by the promise of one of the worlds | | | | riding in the region can be tailored to riders of any |
| best surfing spots, to wealthy Spanish and French | | | | level, from near beginners to professional racers, but |
| seeking the pleasant climate, great beaches and | | | | it's not all about the riding, it would be a shame not |
| sophisticated cities, make their way here. | | | | to rent a surfboard and sample some of the local |
| The country is undeniably beautiful, with it's lush | | | | breaks after a hard day on the bike, similarly it would |
| green mountains, almost crossing the long sandy | | | | be rude not to take in some of the local pintxos, |
| beaches and dipping their toes in the clean blue | | | | (Basque tapas), and Sidre, (local cider), in one of San |
| Atlantic. It's these mountains which have, throughout | | | | Sebastian's bars. |
| history, ringed the Basque Country and kept it | | | | The Basque Country is well served by transport links, |
| separated from the rest of the Europe, thus keeping | | | | with major airports at Bilbao and Biarritz for those of |
| it's culture, language and,to some extent, genetics, | | | | you who choose to fly, ferry terminals at Bilbao or |
| distinct. It is also these mountains that are starting to | | | | Santander with regular ferries from the UK and also |
| attract mountain bikers to the region, keen to seek | | | | the TGV line from Paris to Biarritz which takes just |
| out somewhere new to ride. | | | | over four hours. |
| During the Spanish civil war, Franco is rumored to | | | | The best times to visit the Basque Country depend |
| have banned bikes in the Basque country and it's | | | | entirely on what brings you here. For experienced |
| easy to see why that could be true; bikes can get to | | | | surfers, the later part of the year brings the big |
| places that would be impossible for a jeep or even a | | | | swells, so from September onwards would be a |
| horse, and are fast enough to get into hidden valleys | | | | great time. For those of you who intend to lie on the |
| too far from civilization to be accessible on foot, this | | | | beach, the hottest weather is from mid June through |
| would undoubtedly be a serious advantage to the | | | | to August. For the rest the climate is very pleasant |
| Basque guerrilla troops. It's also what makes the | | | | from March until October, certainly a great |
| mountain biking great. | | | | temperature for active sports like mountain biking |
| The meeting of the Pyrenees, Basque mountains and | | | | without being oppressively hot like other areas in |
| the long ridges along the coast, mean that the | | | | Spain. Winter can be very wet and cold though so it's |
| variety of the mountain biking in the region is | | | | probably best to avoid that time if you can. |