I was reminded of a sieve this morning.  The pure, smooth flour in the bowl beneath the impurities and lumps left in the sieve above.  This break has left our metaphorical bowls full of new, fun, enriching and refreshing experiences. It ended up being a completely different experience than planned due to some unexpected obstacles. They now seem so small and so few in comparison to what a beautiful journey unfolded .

We arrived in Gran Canaria on 20th Feb 2023 with bikes expectant for a 9 day journey on the Gran Gaunche route starting in Gran Canaria.

On the flight on the way over a chap showed us pictures of snowy freezing weather that was high up on the route we were going to take  in Gran Canaria. As we had packed for milder climes we quickly changed our plan. After one night at Katanka guesthouse we put the bikes together ( helped by 3yr old Tinto) and then made a plan to get on the next ferry to Lanzarote   It was a public holiday so the next ferry was a night one. 

A long wait ensued.  It seemed to set the theme of the holiday , muchos waiting!

After some therma rest on ferry action we landed at Arrecife, Lanzarote. A little bit jaded with not much sleep we started pedaling stopping at the nearest cafe, a glorious coffee and croissant was enjoyed.   Then expectantly we got going again excited for the biking adventure that lay ahead. We pedalled towards Orzola, battling a headwind but starting to enjoy being on the saddle,  little luggage and thoughts of work (last days in CAMHS WL just done) slowly evaporating.  22km in and everything changed, my pedal fell off and was not fixable. It was then a taxi back to Arrecife for some bike shop action, more waiting!

We taxied it to Orzola to catch the ferry to La Graciosa.   Back into bikepacking groove was short lived when everything changed again. 

After a special night camping under the stars on the most stunning beach, I fell off my bike after about 20minutes of cycling! A fat thumb ensued, impossible to cycle safely so we found a place to stay. Pension Enriquetta. £30 per night. We ended up staying for 6 nights! Each day we knocked on Enriquettas door , she laughingly each day took our payment as day by day we asked for another night's stay. 

Initially my fat thumb dictated the decision to stay on, then Roberto developed a very painful shoulder which thwarted plans to pedal on.

La Graciosa was an absolute paradise of a place to spend some days. The days merged into a glorious haze of  warmth, blazing sunshine, endless golden sandy beaches, swimming in sparkling clear turquoise waters , cycling round the island, walking up volcanic rocks to gasp at panoramic views.

Coffees, pastries from the bakery, sundowners on the bench at the harbour and delicious seafood meals each evening.

 

Ridiculously blessed we have been.   We enjoyed reading about meditation in dad's ' spiritual discplines' book.  Ample time to practice too especially wonderful to tune into the simple sounds of wave crashing as we entered into that peaceful space within.

3 days before we were due to fly home from Gran Canaria we made a rough plan for 2 more relaxed days in LaGraciosa.   We packed up so we could camp again on the beach that night. As we left Pension Enriquetta we met Samuel and Arian who were doing the GranGaunche route. They invited themselves for coffee with us. We exchanged bike packing stories and something about the energy that brought ( and the energy we had gained by a week of enforced rest) made us decide to hop on the ferry and start the journey back to Lanzarote by bike.

What a treat of 2 days unfolded: steep climbs, incredible views, the satisfying feeling of much pedalling and pushing ourselves physically, wonderful long descents with the wind on our back, sea swimming, an incredibly scenic campsot enabling a mesmerising sunset gazing experience and weaving pur way through stunning historic towns (Teguise and Haria were particularly pretty!).

One lost backpack, one fallout, one 5hour ferry ride and a last hop on the bikes back to Katanka guesthouse later and we had reached the last night of our trip. Burgers, beer and vino to celebrate a completely fantastic time ( we had made up again!).  Thank you Canaries we absolutely loved experiencing you!