A short stay in Bilbao

 

Juliet & Phil Traveling Again - Summer 2023!

COVID kept us closer to California for awhile, but as we emerge, bike trails of Spain and Europe beckoned, and we heard the call. 

We picked northern Spain to start, both for its natural beauty and wildlife, but also for the renowned bicycling, including one of the toughest races anywhere: La Vuelta a Espana. If you don't know Phil's biking predilections, his nickname may help: "Gratuitous Hill Phil." Juliet, by contrast, loves to bike, but feels perfectly satisfied tackling country roads and rolling hills - though a steep now and then is becoming a more frequent part of her repertoire.

We've been in this region once before, in 2011 (oh heck - really that long ago???), and loved its main  city, Bilbao.  But even more the remarkable natural areas to the west - Asturias and Cantabria.  This northern region is called "Green Spain," with far more rain than the rest of the country (Asturias averages about 40 inches per year).  But it is also a landscape of towering limestone mountains - craggy peaks reaching to the sky - and verdant, rich forest woodlands that harbor tremendous biodiversity where not clearcut or replaced by monoculture eucalyptus stands (which tragically, has happened with government support).  

Note: with all of the photos, you can click to see a larger version. Please do!

Several of the country's largest national parks are here, and some of the highest concentrations of wildlife, including the Cantabrian bear, ibex, and wolves!  Yes! Northwest Spain actually has the densest wolf population in Europe! And there is a start of a "rewilding" movement in Spain, as across Europe, so there is hope for restoration of richer landscapes that will promote even more bird and wildlife diversity.

And a huge bonus was that Phil's hiking partner Hal, and Juliet's great friend Brigitte, were joining us here.

We started with a couple of days in Bilbao, which was remarkable for its street life.  On Saturday evening in particular, it seemed that everyone under 40 was out on the street drinking and eating with friends.

It's not just the streetside cafes and bars that were busy. Even the playgrounds were busy.

Of course the Guggenheim Museum is still a striking attraction on the edge of the river that runs through the middle of the city.

Arachnophobes might want to avoid the museum: there is quite an impressive spider next to it. 

 

There's also this interesting artwork not far from the hotel. I suppose it has many layers of symbolism, but it is also a monument that honors women who used to haul ships around the harbor via ropes, pretty much like this.

Juliet got a bit of exercise by running up and down the pedestrian stairway to one of the bridges.

Phil did a bike ride out in Basque Country.  He learned that the Basque name things by letting a cat walk on a keyboard. See?: 

One one of Phil's ride, he came across dozens of these 'deer crossing' signs that someone has modified by adding little wings:

One amusing thing: an accordion player set up outside our hotel and played for a few hours at a time each day. He wasn't bad...except that he only seemed to know three tunes. He played them over and over and over and over.  It was a bit much, but also kinda funny. (Click to play the video. Sound on, of course.)

After Bilbao we went west, to just outside the town of Arriondas, near the Picos de Europa.  We will post about that in our next post.