Unpaved Pyrenees

Nine days from Barcelona to Bilbao with more than half the riding time off tarmac. The Pyrenees are crossed on forest tracks and mountain trails rather than on the pass roads most tours use, and the bikes are BMW adventure machines.

The first days ease into it. Roses comes by way of Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean, then Setcases through the Montseny natural park, then Andorra la Vella and El Pont de Suert. After that the character changes sharply, and the run to Panticosa is where the tour earns its name: steep forest tracks, rutted mountain trails, water crossings, and surfaces that turn wet and muddy for days after rain.

Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park follows, one of the oldest national parks in Spain and the most dramatic limestone country in the range. The route then works west past Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, the old pilgrim gateway on the French side, before finishing at Bilbao on the Atlantic coast. Going from one sea to the other across the whole chain is a satisfying line to have drawn.

Edelweiss include a choice of BMW GS or adventure model, eight nights in hotels rather than camps, a guide and a tour book. This is a one-way tour, flying into Barcelona and out of Bilbao, and flights are separate. The inclusions are not itemised in full on the operator’s page. Prices are per person for 2026. Genuine off-road experience is needed here rather than merely useful, and riders who want the Pyrenees without the dirt should look at the operator’s paved tour of the same range instead.