A WINTER IN ANDALUSIA - South of Spain on an adventure motorcycle

Adventure motorcycle travel is an exciting way of exploring any country. You're not limited to what roads you can take. Be it navigating a maze of city streets, hitting miles on rural gravel, hitting the twisties, climbing mountain passes, relaxing on beautiful coastal escapes, or getting your heart pumping off the beaten path and get the taste of the land. Sometimes literally. But what is limited on these travels is time and compromises need to be made. Some must-see places never seen and must-ride roads never ridden. This winter me and my family decided to embark on an adventure. To spend the winter somewhere warm. The south of Spain fit the bill perfectly. And of course the bike came along. I must admit I had very little knowledge about Spain, let alone Andalusia. It used to be some faraway dry and flat land that we only hear about in summer when another heat wave hits or where all the tourists go to lie on the beach and sip sangrias. I couldn't be more wrong. Let's dig in. Andalusia is rugged and features landscapes with some peaks well over 3000 meters, technically making it the second highest mountain range in Europe after the Alps. You heard it right, they're even higher than the Pyrenees and contain the highest peak in the whole Iberian Peninsula, the Mulhacen summit in Sierra Nevada National Park. However, the mountains of Sierra Nevada are somewhat dull, without any dramatic features. For those, you need to go further west, where Sierras de Tejeda, Almejara y Aljama almost touch the sea. These mountains feature countless trails, mostly reserved for hiking, but those that are open for other traffic, oh boy. The A4050, also known as Carretera de la Cabra or Mountain Goat Road, is one of the most scenic rides in these parts. Lots of bends keep you entertained and those tire sidewalls well warmed up. Nowadays, with the fast highway between Granada and the coast, this road is almost in disuse and therefore ideal for motorcyclists. Just need to watch out for the rare oncoming traffic. When tarmac is enough, the same Sierras offer equally epic gravel options. Almost all of them lead next to steep drop-offs, feature surprise washouts, loose stones and tight corners. All that should keep anyone on their toes. so taking viewpoint breaks is a must. When the gravel starts to get boring too, there's always the option of more technical terrain. And with that in Spain, I mean rocks. Lots of rocks. Mostly at steep angles with only one way of getting through, by committing and trusting your bike. Slope is not an option here, the rocks will just roll away under you and you'll be stuck in a spicy spot. It did mean a fair amount of workout, however. But the views those harder trails took me to are worth every drop of sweat. And the icing on the cake was literally ice. Winter in the south of Spain is by no means cold, but give it some vertical distance and there you go, feels like home. Trust me, I'm from the north, I've seen snow, but I couldn't resist the urge to ride the white stuff. There's something special about the ability to go from summer to winter in an hour. West of Malaga, by several sierras that compare to those east, are much more lush and green. With thick pine forests, river crossings, and fun off-road sections following the Transuro Trail. The trail network I built my adventures around before venturing into unknown and exploring on my own. While west of Malaga, it would be a miss not to explore also the mountains around Ronda. Lots of fast and twisty tarmac sections, sandwiched between rugged but not very high mountains. Expect lots of fellow motorcyclists wishing by. Rideable gravel in these parts wasn't very easy to find, but when found, lots of hairpin action and sliding around was done. I couldn't possibly count all the different mountains I got to ride, but one is clear, and Elusha has got some elevation. If you see a road on a map that leads to a peak, a ridge, or a wind turbine park, just take it. As long as it's open, it will be worth it. Besides mountains, Elusha has got some deserts, even two of them. One being the popular Tabernas Desert, with its spaghetti western film sets and touristy attractions. But due to the questionable legality of riding off-road there, I can only recommend looking deeper into the interior, where the Gorofi Desert presents itself in full glory. This used to be a lake teeming with life, but when the water drained some hundred thousand years ago, it left evidence of millions of years of activity, etched into the rocks and ground. Erosion is one of the main features of the landscape in this region, which has created spectacular badlands, so named because of their dry, ravine-like nature. Speaking of drained water, there are many rivers in Andalusia. But there's a catch, most of them are dry year-round and filled with water only after heavy rainstorms. Rest of the time they turn into roads, used by farmers to access their avocado and orange plantations. At times there's an odd water crossing, or more challenging obstacles in form of cascades, or loose pebble sections that require the same techniques as riding soft sand. All these spectacular landscapes, be it mountains, deserts or off-road sections, are connected by vast rolling hills with Andalusia's most abundant crop, olive tree. The province of Cheyenne alone produces more olive oil annually than the whole of Italy. Line after line, olive groves mixed with almond groves stretch as far as the eye can see, with rideable farming roads piercing straight through them. Having a base camp means almost all of the riding was done as day trips. Without heavy baggage to haul around, the trails were much more fun. However, there were times when I went on two or three day trips to reach deeper pockets of Andalusia. And camping was one of the options, although it's not an easy one, because wild camping is technically not allowed. Mostly, that meant hiding in the bushes, but there were times of pure joy of sleeping with a view. Andalusia would be incomplete without its charming mountain villages that preserve the region's rich cultural heritage. One of the province's most remarkable features is its pueblos blancos, or white villages, that lie scattered across the hills of Andalusia. They are a symbol of the region, with their narrow alleyways, steep climbs, and town squares. One of these villages, Comares, we called home for a whole month. It's situated on top of a hill with 360 views of the surrounding mountains, and it's one of the highest villages in Andalusia. Getting to and from the village alone proved to be an exercise. With twisties being fun and all, it also meant getting from one place to another took way more time than the distance would make you feel. Hence, a month in the mountaintop village was perfectly enough. For the rest of the winter, we moved all the way down to the coastal town of Nerja, a much bigger place, but still with its own charm, especially in off-season. But the best feature being the fast access to everything. An hour to Grenada or Malaga, Mediterranean, a short walk down the road, mountains and canyons for both hiking and riding just around the corner. I almost forgot the coast, Costa del Sol, the always sunny beaches. Couldn't care less. But there are exceptions. Between Tarifa and Gibraltar, there's a rocky trans-euro trail section with the views of Africa across the strait. Then skip everything between Gibraltar and Malaga, or even further east if countless golf clubs, resorts and flat beaches is not your thing. The excitement picks up again near Nerja and stretches almost all the way to Almeria, with epic rugged coast best experienced via the old twisty coastal road. Absolutely do not take the highway here. And even if the beach time for you, like it's for me, is not something to write home about, do check out some of the secluded pebble beaches hidden away between the cliffs. What can I say? Andalusia had it all, and then some. The whole winter project was totally worth it. Besides the Andalusian adventures, I managed to do a trip to Portugal and Morocco, which will be a whole another story. And on my way back, even ride the whole of eastern Spain tent. And the trails of Pyrenees, again, separate stories coming in the future. However, there is one drawback. After such a long and varied adventure in a foreign land, going for a ride back home doesn't seem such an exciting thing to do anymore. You have been warned.