Day 12: Biarritz, France to Elgoibar, Spain. 76 miles. 3875 feet of climbing.

It doesn't get much bluer than the Atlantic Ocean in San Sebastián.  Just an eye-popping color!

And the Atlantic Ocean on our right shoulder much of the day.

What a beautiful day for riding!  The weather was perfect, with temperatures only rising to the upper 70's.  The sun was out. There was a light breeze.  And the Atlantic Ocean never looked more gorgeous.

One of the harbors around St. Jean de Luz as we were heading out of France.  

Everyone enjoyed having a rest day, but once on the bikes this morning, we all felt a bit tired in the legs.  It took a lot of concentration and focus to deal with the morning traffic through Biarritz, Anglet, and St. Jean de Luz before we entered Spain.

The Pyrenees in the background.  We would have a couple of climbs up some of the smaller mountains later in the day.

Leaving France.  There were Gendarmes inspecting cars
entering France.  

I was kind of surprised by the ease with which we entered Spain.  There were three armed Gendarmes  checking cars entering France but, from the Spanish side, no one seemed to care.  "Couldn't be buggered," as the Brits would say.  So here we are, slipping unnoticed into Spain.

We spend most of the day riding along the Atlantic Ocean coastline, weaving in and out of the towns along the way, including San Sebastián, Orio and Zarautz.

No similar governmental inspections taking place for anyone
entering Spain from the French side.

It's a holiday here in Spain as well so the roads, the beaches and the boardwalks were all crowded.  We did benefit greatly from dedicated bike paths through many of those Spanish beach towns.

Our only diversions from the ocean roads were two category climbs up into the mountains along the coast.  They were challenging and long climbs that went on for about two and three miles each, respectively, topping up at around 7 or 8% grades. The descents offered spectacular views back down into the villages and the ocean. The shot below was taken just after the crest from the 2nd climb.

For a long time, we were riding along an ocean road.  Twice, however, the roads took us back up into the mountains.  We had two very long climbs.  This is from the top of the 2nd climb of the day.  45 minutes earlier, we were down there along the coastline!

More shots of San Sebastián

Okay, one more for good measure.  We could have stopped every half mile to take another great shot.

Tonight I'll get a good night's sleep.  My legs earned it today!