In my ongoing work of updating my older posts I come to this one. These are the travel experiences that brought fun times to my family and me. Some as this one brings even more memories, nostalgia sets in, this is one of our vacation runs to my beloved Las Majadas, Castilla La Mancha ,and kingdom of Spain. Well all good things ends quickly and the time is never enough. Our family vacation in Spain is over and we headed home to our Morbihan Breton house in Pluvigner. Therefore, here is my take on from Las Majadas to Pluvigner, and back, memories forever !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I
We spent two glorious weeks in Spain. It was special because the boys are now old enough to undertand everything, and we went by places that first my dear late mom Gladys took me, and then came alone, and then came with girlfriend and then my dear late wife Martine, and my dad Elio lucky still with me, and with the boys younger,and now young men. All begins to sink in now, the roots are important! This was part of our trip going down and would like to add to this memorable post.
We left the tunnel under the Pyrénées and follow the road N330 towards Jaca and then Huesca on the A23 which here is the N330 passing the viaduc of Monrépos and mountain of same name; right into a smaller tunnel . We passed by the lake this is Monrépos lake reservoir on the other side of the tunnel. We hit the road hard until the outskirst of Zaragoza where from the A23 we took the beltway Z40 direction the airport of Zaragoza and Madrid. We continue on this A23 direction Teruel/Cariñena wine country. This is already on the road A1512 off the A23, and you see the mountains of Albarracin. Follow up on the road DE 9111 mountain route we pass by the mountain town of Calomarde which is at 1584 meters high. By here we pass by a statue in metal call the guia del cobo, Sierra de Albarracin at the birth of the river Tajo on the CU901 road, until we finally saw the panel for Cuenca/Tragecete on the CU2119 heading our home base. Glorious mountains of the Serrania de Cuenca that can go to almost 1900 meters high, and the panel signaling Las Majadas 24 kms or about 12 miles!! You will see from the road high up and the mountain then the town down under just arriving to final home base. We left early by 7am or 7h in our family car, the big tough Ford. We did not make hotel reservation as this will be a lingering long trip full of memories of my Spain. If had time we would stop and if not I am still good on the road to do it all the way, and I did! And we came back following year, and onwards!
We rented a rural house in Las Majadas (casa Pitu-see post) in the Serrania de Cuenca mountains at about 36 kms to
Cuenca where we descended several times. Now we came down early and we saw a nice spectacle on the road down the mountains; we have seen goats, wild pigs, cerfs, and cows on the side. This time there were two cows right on the road blocking our access!!! So how to get them to move lol!!! When I klaxon they just look at me like we are here and you wait ::) finally after some minutes that seems like an eternity one of the cows moved to the edge of the road and we were able to pass by the other one that just stood there on the road looking at us wow!!! It was very funny could be worse…. We move on.
I wanted one last memory for our family in Spain, and decided not to go back the same way we came by the Col du Portalet (see post). This time we headed first to Guadalajara , passing by one special town of Calatayud (see post). This is the town I stopped with my then girlfriend for gas and something to eat at the next door restaurant/hotel that had a wedding going on ! appropiate it seems. We sat in the middle of the restaurant with the wedding party on one side and always remembered by us. This time the hotel restaurant was abandoned and just the Repsol gas station was there. We decided to gas/petrol just in town at the Cepsa gas station but we stopped by the old just for the memories and another story to our boys.
At the end of town ,we link up with the A2 direction Zaragoza that we bypass on the beltway road Z40. We took the A23 direction Huesca where we link up with the N330 direction Jaca passing by Sabiñanigo. We continue on the N330 direction France and the Somport pass tunnel. This was memorable too as when I first started traveling by car between Spain and France there was no tunnel but had to go on first gear with a VW Golf up the Pyrénées mountains over the Col de Somport mountain. Here passing Castiello de Jaca, and then Vilanua ,a great memory as we stayed at the Faus Hutte mountain hotel here, that the owners came out to cook for us late night! It went thru a name change to Lacasa, and then Albergue Villanúa. We remember arriving very late like 10PM or 22h and the hotel owners opens up the restaurant to give us something to eat and stayed for the night before continuing on to France !!! Memories never to forget!!!
Further on, we passed by the winter stations of Canfranc and Candanchu before arriving at the Col du Somport (1632 meters high). You can still do this route, but we have done it and were eager to get back home quicker. So instead ,we took the modern Somport tunnel. You have two lanes road in the tunnel that is 8 602 meters long with 2 848 meters in France and 5 754 meters in Spain. Once we came out in the French side ,you are on the N134 road direction Pau. However, first town you see is Urdos, where it was the customs border before the EU and you were check sometimes and sometimes not. Now, of course you are not check at all, and you won’t even notice the customs house. The N134 takes you direction Oloron-Sainte-Marie and then towards Pau. Here by Orthez we took the A65 direction Langon. However, we heard on the radio t hat t here was traffic jams at the Bordeaux beltway N230/A630 so we change gears. Alone the Garonne river we took the D10 to Langoiran to hook up with the D20 road passing Creon and onwards to Libourne. We came across on the D670 to Saint-André-de-Cubzac hooking up again with the A10 direction Saintes. We continue on the A10 to just past Niort where we hook up with the A83 direction Nantes. This later road hook ups with the N844 and then the N165 direction Vannes and home taking the D768 road. Easy ride and no traffic, minimum tolls as we like it.
This is our family summer vacation to Castilla La Mancha !!! We came by car and left by car, the best way to travel!!! We took an extra day at no charge from our wonderful hosts in Casa Pitu (see post) in Las Majadas, in the Serrania de Cuenca at 1400 meters high in the mountains of Castilla La Mancha. Leaving on a Sunday at 6h53 (6:53 am). We decided this time been a Sunday and wanting to start the week at home before the work routine began to do this run paying tolls; something we rarely do but… time was of the essence.
We came back not listening to the GPS as I have done quite a bit of travel in my beloved Spain. Leaving by the A40 direction Madrid after coming down from the mountain into Cuenca. Shortly, I cut off into the N420 of Guadalajara on the N320 and Teruel on the N420. So I took Teruel. We drove into the outskirts of the town and then headed towards Zaragoza on the A23 taken the beltway Z-40 to continue on the A23 direction Huesca, then Jaca on the N330 getting under the Pyrénées mountain by the Somport tunnel at 1050 meters high! (the days of going over is done but great views now you can go around the station of Canfranc). We passed by Fuentes de Jiloca passing by the Church Nuestra Señora de la Asuncion or Our Lady of the Assomption. Once on the French side the road becomes the N134 and you past Urdos (before EU this was the custom house for border crossing !). The Somport tunnel is 8 602 meters long with 2 848 in France and 5 754 in Spain. There was big construction on roads going on all over, and I expect that by my next trip many will be change, the A23 is trying to reach directly here on a expressway….! Hoping for better times to travel!
Once in my belle France we headed for Pau on the N134 passing by Jurançon and taken the D802 around Pau towards the D817 following panels for the A64/A65 autoroutes. We connect on the A65 direction Bordeaux/Mont de Marsan on this toll road we paid 23,20€ in tolls! Passing Bazas again we headed on the A62 direction Bordeaux but fearing the always traffic jams of the beltway of Bordeaux we got off at Langon on the D672 passing by Saint-Macaire and Le Pian sur Garonne, see Church Notre Dame passing onwards direction Sauveterre de Guyanne to connect with the D670 and passing by beautiful wine country and nice architecture along the way!! We pass again by wonderful wine country of many chateaux and heading on the D670 to Saint-Jean-de-Blaignac crossing the river Dordogne! Continuing on we pass just outside the medieval and rich wines of Saint Emilion then passing Libourne and crossing the river Dordogne again! Continuing on the Fronsac vinyards direction Saint-André-de-Cubzac on the D670 to connect with the A10 direction Paris for free! Passing nearby Saintes and bear into the A83 direction Nantes! On this A83 paid 29,30€ tolls yikes! At Nantes got into the beltway N844 to connect with the N165 direction Vannes and home sweet home!!!
The wines are great Pomerol, Saint Emilion, Fronsac , gorgeous terrain and vinyards; great ride!!! The anecdote of the return trip is the huge thunder and hail storm we had passing Langon, it was so hard we fell the car was been shot at with bullets of hail; concern we stop by a house subdivision to take cover and waited about 20 minutes before it was passed over, to continue our journey. This is definitively the biggest storm we have come across in Europe on the road. It made our trip slower and paying tolls not well spent; reaching home by 23h30 or 11:30 pm Sunday! We are up and ready , however , already lol !!! We went by car, the best way to travel if possible ; leaving early from home by 6h40 (6:40 am) we were out on the road. We took the trip into two parts; one was the one to go without paying tolls into our night hotel for rest and a break on the long sideways roads trip. First, we took the trip from home to Pau, where we stayed at the same hotel we had stayed in our previous visits to the area, this is the Ibis Budget hotel by blvd de l’Aviation. Simple and nice for a night stopover just at the entrance to the city center/downtown of Pau.
There is an Auchan hypermarket at a bit over a km from it and just what you need to get some groceries snack food for the night and next day’s trip. The trip lasted on about 678 kms for 10h35 of duration. If with tolls you can do it in about 7h35…. but we always try to avoid tolls. It takes you by the Nantes airport area that I am very familiar with on the D201 into the N844; from getting around here on the D137 direction La Rochelle, there are briefs roading on the D763 and D1173 which are basically the same road direction La Rochelle and then around Niort; you get back into La Rochelle on the N237 and later connecting on the A837 direction Rochefort nord before getting back on the D137 direction Saintes, La Rochelle, Rochefort Niort etc; you go into Saintes and continue direction Bordeaux, Pons, Jonzac. We continue on the D137 until going thru Saint-André-de-Cubzac on the D1510 to connect here briefly with the A10 and getting off the exit A62 to Toulouse, Pau getting off in the exit 1,1 for Langon, Pau and getting into the D1113 direction Pau, etc. Go into Barsac, Langon always direction Pau , here get into the D524 and go into Bazas, getting out on the D932 but quickly taken left on the D934 to go into Villeneuve-de-Marsan out of it get on the D824 direction Pau. Go into Aire-sur-l’Adour and continue on the D2 always direction Pau; go thru Auriac on the D834 and follow direction Pau into the boulevard Olof Palme and get on the direction Toulouse, Tarbes, Lourdes. Get into Pau along this beltway that is the D834 direction Pau Centre on the D943 to our hotel and on bld de la paix you can go on into old town Pau. As you can see you are able to passed by many pretty towns and we love it this way. The next day we took off again without paying tolls on familiar roads into the Pyrénées mountains. Before we got there we had our breakfast in our usual place now at Bielle, the boulangerie Laloubére facing the mountains where pastry, coffee and orange juice cost 2,30€! (see post).
Taking the inner beltway of the D817 by Bizanos and Mazéres-Lezons into the D802 direction Zaragoza (signs in French says Saragosse) passing great wine country of Jurançon and Gan along the N134, follow Laruns on the D934 into the mountains looking for the col du Portalet mountain pass wonderful views real driving pleasure and into Spain on the N260 to Huesca to take the N330 into the wonderful road A23 to Zaragoza here take the beltway of the city, the Z-40 direction Madrid but get off on exit 28A to Teruel/Cariñera ; and then exit 176 into the N211 direction Montalban/Caminreal/Alcaniz. Near the town of Caminoreal take left on the N234 ,and near Monreal del Campo continue on avenue de Madrid still on the N211 passing by nice Molina de Aragon (gas/petrol station here) to connect with the CM210 that becomes the CM 2106 into the Serrania de Cuenca mountains and our home at Las Majadas!
The Castilla la Mancha regional tourist office on the National park of serrania de Cuenca, where the town of Las Majadas is located :https://www.turismocastillalamancha.es/naturaleza/parque-natural-serrania-de-cuenca-57472/descripcion/
The Cuenca province tourist office on Las Majadas :https://visitacuenca.es/es/content/descubre-naturaleza/callejones-de-las-majadas
The Castilla La Mancha regional tourist office on Las Majadas: http://en.www.turismocastillalamancha.es/patrimonio/las-majadas-69831/
The Guia Repsol of Spain on Las Majadas (Michelin of Spain): https://www.guiarepsol.com/es/fichas/localidad/las-majadas-3966/
Now a weekend is approaching and already thinking of coming back, its glories in the Serrania de Cuenca, worth the trip indeed. Again, hope you enjoy this post on from Las Majadas to Pluvigner,and back, memories forever !!! as I.
And remember, happy travels , good health, and many cheers to all !!!
