Starting in the Mediterranean, the place of arrival and cradle of many civilizations, the first stage does not have a very high elevation gain, although there will be much more uphill than downhill.
a very high difference in altitude, although there will be much more uphill than downhill, not in vain the stage ends in the middle of the Pyrenees, having to climb from sea level to almost 1,000 meters above sea level.
stage ends in the heart of the Pyrenees, having to climb from sea level to almost 1,000 meters above sea level.
altitude.
Expressly for this first stage we are looking for a start without too many complications in order to begin to
start to get the tone of what will be this great adventure, because from the next day will have to face stages that will begin to put
will face stages that will begin to test the physical and mental endurance of the daring explorers of the Pyrenees.
explorers of the Pyrenees. So, this first stage consists of a transition between the beautiful flat terrain and then slightly undulating
the beautiful flat and then slightly undulating terrain of the Alt Empordá and Garrotxa regions and the first mountain foothills.
mountainous foothills.
We leave the coast and the Mediterranean culture following a very rolling terrain and, although the profile is always a bit upwards, we do not
is always a little upwards, it is not until about km 70 that really begins to climb with decision and constancy, to reach
with decision and constancy, to reach about 1100 meters of altitude before descending a little to Camprodon, a beautiful iconic village
Camprodon, a beautiful iconic town in the Girona Pyrenees.

Choosing when possible the small roads less frequented by motorized traffic, the greatest adversity
the greatest adversity of the stage may be the unfavorable slope because we start at sea level and we end at almost 1000 meters altitude
level of the sea and we finish at almost 1000 meters of altitude giving the sensation that we spend the whole route going up.
and also having to endure humidity and temperatures often very high throughout most of the stage.
and temperatures along most of the route. It is advisable to pay attention not to ride out of rhythm, initially too fast due to its easy
too fast initially, due to its easy start with a fairly flat profile, as this can lead to a waste of energy that is needed for the
energy expenditure that is needed for the hard last part of the stage, because there is a large part of the positive slope to overcome.
of the positive difference in altitude to overcome.
And do not forget to keep the maximum attention throughout the route, because it is a holiday that many users go out by car, motorbike or even by car.
car, motorcycle or even bicycle and you will be riding on roads sometimes important, wide and fast, and sometimes
and fast roads, and other times by secondary roads and sometimes very narrow,
slower but equally frequented on this day.

In this second stage, which runs through what could be considered the first line of Pyrenean mountains or pre-Pyrenees, the first serious test must be passed in the form of a short but very
Pyrenees or the pre-Pyrenees, the first serious test must be overcome in the form of a short but very explosive pass, characterized by ramps that
characterized by ramps that seem insurmountable, and that adds up to about 1000 meters of positive vertical
positive elevation gain, crowning at more than 1700 meters.
The distance and elevation gain of the stage are already approaching what is the tonic of the whole Pyrenean crossing,
with a daily average distance of about 130 km and a positive elevation gain of about 2600 meters.
After a favorable start from Camprodon where we lose about 250 meters of altitude -attention to the possible cold being early in the morning
possible cold being early in the morning – a first climb following a very twisty road serves to get in temperature and operating
to get into temperature and operating conditions, before facing the hard mountain pass mentioned above.
mentioned above. After it, there are still a couple of cols to overcome, of less intrinsic difficulty
intrinsic difficulty but that can be hard because of the accumulated fatigue at this second part of the stage.
of the stage.
If anything, as a reward for the effort, a long descent says goodbye to the stage with beautiful views of the adjoining mountains
and approaching a more northern latitude, to reach La Seu d’Urgell, host city of the end of the second stage.
the end of the second stage.

Possible queen stage of TRANSPYR BACKROADS 2025, which could exceed 3000 meters of cumulative positive elevation gain.
the route combines well-known and lesser-used mountain passes, as well as roads of very different widths and road
roads of very different widths and road surfaces, with a high finish for the first time in TRANSPYR BACKROADS 2025.
for the first time in TRANSPYR BACKROADS.
Always above 600 meters, in the transition to the west, the stage starts with a long pass, very hard at the beginning and then with a
very hard at the beginning and then more friendly, culminating at more than 1700 meters of altitude, to descend to the Pallars and then to
descending to the Pallars and linking up with a more unknown but equally interesting area, either by the same
the same layout of the road, or by the natural environment that surrounds us.
Again a wide road of good road surface approaches us, northwest direction, towards the final part of the day, having to still overcome a small
the final part of the day, still having to overcome a small but attractive and unknown pass, for after the last descent that enters the
descent that takes us into the Alta Ribagorça, we pass the village of Pont de Suert to face the
the final stage in the form of ascent to the beautiful Pla de l’Ermita in Taüll, the final point of this very complete stage.

This stage is characterized by a route that heads south, looking for secondary roads,
unknown and mostly little traveled, to overcome the mountain ranges that separate the starting and finishing
and arrival locations, and with more accumulated negative slope -lower- than positive.
It is worth mentioning the early morning start at an altitude of more than 1600 meters, and a long descent,
which should be taken into account in terms of cycling clothing to be considered.
With a mostly arid and unpopulated environment, the selection of the route honors the backroads denomination of this adventure.
backroads of this cycling adventure, in reference to unknown, little used and sometimes remote roads.
sometimes even remote roads.
Although the climbs are not very difficult in terms of accumulated elevation gain or elevation gain values
the slopes, maximum caution should be taken with regard to the possible heat and the sensation of suffocation from
and the sensation of suffocation from the middle of the stage onwards, as these are routes that run mostly on exposed trails.
exposed routes, without shade, in this dry environment mentioned above.
previously mentioned.
A bucolic last part passing through some small typical village of Sobrarbe precedes the arrival to Ainsa, our final town.
Ainsa, our end-of-stage town in the heart of the Aragon Pyrenees.

Second stage with majority presence of small inland roads, this time the route runs clearly more to the north than in the previous stage.
clearly runs further north than in the previous stage, hovering almost all the way above 750 meters of altitude.
above 750 meters of altitude.
And although the cumulative elevation gain is not very high, nor is the maximum altitude reached, the profile in the form of an endless mountain range may
the profile in the form of an endless mountain range can be very leg-breaking and will test the endurance of the cyclists, who will be rewarded with an
cyclists, rewarded with a clearly Pyrenean environment and with bucolic enclaves of great beauty.
beauty.
After leaving Ainsa behind, the route will initially run northwards along a major road until it turns westwards
west, seeking to move forward using and linking the roads that connect the small villages of the northern Sobrarbe
the small villages of the northern Sobrarbe, almost reaching the border of the Ordesa National Park.
After a long descent, the second long climb of the day takes us to the Alto Gállego region,
from where we turn south and following the course of the Gállego river, we continue avoiding as much as possible
avoid as much as possible to step on the higher roads, following our route through a combination of small and quiet parallel
parallel roads until we reach Jaca.

Probably the longest stage of TRANSPYR BACKROADS 2025, it is not, however, the one that has the highest
the greatest cumulative positive elevation gain. It is what in the big tours could be considered a mid-mountain stage, where
a mid-mountain stage where, moving all the time between approximately 800 and 1300 meters, without much difference between
of altitude, without much difference in altitude, the difficulty is that there is hardly any respite,
being always in a continuous slide, with an accessible but endless slope.
Otherwise, the stage is characterized by the change to the Pyrenees of Navarra, going to a climate and natural environment more
more of an Atlantic climate and natural environment, green, humid, combining wide meadows with lush deciduous forests.
deciduous forests.
Leaving Jaca with a first part mostly on small roads and in a rather arid environment, you will soon have to overcome
arid environment, you soon have to overcome two small passes until, following the Veral river upstream, you can clearly see the spectacular change in the landscape,
you can clearly see the spectacular change from the Aragon Pyrenees to the Navarre Pyrenees. The pleasant
The pleasant road, narrow and inside the beech forest, heads north, changes to the west and enters the region of Navarra.
Community of Navarra.
At this point there is still half a stage to cover, all of it surrounded by this typical natural and cultural landscape of Navarre, crossing some bends and
cultural landscape of Navarre, crossing some bucolic villages with their typical farmhouses and narrow streets. A very pleasant
distract us from the continuous ups and downs that must still be overcome, to reach the beautiful village of Burguete, classic
the beautiful village of Burguete, a classic pilgrim enclave next to the neighboring Roncesvalles.

An emotional last leg of TRANSPYR BACKROADS 2025, with everyone having in mind the view of the Atlantic Ocean.
of the Atlantic Ocean.
With almost a thousand meters more of accumulated descent than ascent, the scenery and the places through which the stage passes are simply fantastic.
the stage are simply fantastic and from the middle of the stage, if we are lucky with the weather, we could see the Atlantic Ocean.
weather, the Atlantic Ocean could be seen at some point.
Without underestimating the challenge of any stage in TRANSPYR BACKROADS, the accessible cumulative positive elevation gain, the predominant
the predominance of downhills, and the relative difficulty of the passes to overcome,
the ideal situation to enjoy the end of this unparalleled cycling adventure … … as long as the weather allows it.
the weather is unpredictable and with a higher probability of rain than in the other parts of the Pyrenees.
other parts of the Pyrenees.
From Burguete, after losing some altitude initially, the stage reaches a first height following small roads of open spaces, where it is usually
small roads of open spaces, where cattle are usually found grazing freely.
After a very long descent that takes us into the French state, two passes are linked without great difficulties, the first one crowning
the first one crowning at 670 meters of altitude with a wonderful descent, and the second one crowning at only 600 meters.
second one crowning at only 600 meters.
It follows a new passage through the French Basque Pyrenees crossing some emblematic villages.
In fact, the scattered hamlets of stone houses and green landscapes accompany us at all times and finally, after crossing the
finally, after crossing the Bidasoa river, we enter the Basque Country and we reach our final destination of Irun
Irun, enjoying the unrepeatable emotional moment of having reached the other end of the Pyrenees.