PM 'The Spanish Biker' - Simon, he is the font of all knowledge for this area.
Ha ha Dermott - I ought to start asking a commission fee from you!
I've lived here in the Pyrenees for nineteen years and had my cottage her ten years before that, when we came here more or less every May for our holidays.
The only certainties in the Pyrenees are: a) it's bloody cold in winter and bloody hot in summer and b) whatever is happening weather-wise in Spain (or rather the southern side as part of Spain, the Val d'Aran - see below - is on the northern side) is highly likely to be different in France - for better or worse!
So, May. It happens but fresh snow is
extremely rare and melts within a day. After a heavy winter some smaller pass over into France, e.g. Laureu, will not have been ploughed by the French, they just leave it for the snow to melt on its own. Whereas the main routes are clear that same day that it snows all through the winter, hence Simon W's observation about Saint Pere de Martin, which is the next pass east from Larreu.
As other people have mentioned, in Spain the weather is subject to extreme phenomena such as torrential - and I really mean torrential, e.g. 120 mm of rain (that's nearly four inches!) in an
hour, but, like thunderstorms and hail these are very local and short lived.
In France the summer weather is subject to storms too but much less often and not so dramatic. But what you do get over there is persistent bad weather, drizzle, etc, and especially fog that builds up in the wee wee hours and can take all morning to clear. That's one reason why my favoured way to ride the Pyrenees is to ride back and forth over the tops taking advantage of whatever weather there is but always - OK almost always - staying the night in Spain.
I do this for several reasons, not least because I speak the language(s) - don't bother with Basque! - and the French don't or won't speak Spanish despite living less than an hour there and doing their weekly shopping here as it's cheaper!
The other reason, apart from it being cheaper, is that your days are longer due to the Spanish working day, i.e. you won't get your evening meal until after 21.00 and can still order up to 11.00 ... hence hotel checks-in times are similarly laid back. The Spanish don't really 'do' breakfast either, just chuck down a quick coffee and a bit of cake or brad and get on with their day, say from 07.00 - 08.00 then have a 'real' break from 09.00 onwards, this when you can ride for an hour or so in the cool morning air, them stop for substantial breakfast - and mean
really substantial, like oxtail stew or how about pig's tripe and chickpeas in a spicy sauce - one of my favourites! - as well as the usual fry-ups,
bocadillos, etc.
Thus sustained you can take advantage of a phenomenon that is common to both sides, the long lunch break, when you will have the roads pretty much to yourself - in Spain this runs from 13.00 - 16.00 but in both countries be careful the 12.00 - 13.00 nutty hour when everyone is preparing, picking up the kids, dashing home from the shops, work, etc. when in the small towns riding is actually dangerous - the only time IMHO ...
Regarding Andorra, yes, it's a s***hole - I go there about three times a year and can't wait to get out again. But you have to go a big detour to the south and east to avoid it and the best roads from there will take you towards the Med. - the road down to Foix is horrible - so you may be better heading to Vielha (the 'capital' of the Vall d'Aran that I mentions above). It may look like the N-260 between La Se d'Ugell and Puigcerda neatly avoids Andorra, and it does, but it's a horrible stretch of road whilst the alternatives, e.g. from Ripoll, are fantastic - note if you do take this option the French D-118 down to Axat is the one to got for!
So, if you stop for your last night in Spain at El Pont de Suerte you can either take the N-230 and the Vielha tunnel as an easy option - although the road is boring and rather congested with trucks - or have the option of going over the Port de la Bonaigüa pass, which is one of the best in Spain although in May it could be subject to bad weather - hence the N-230 option.
You coud also stay at La Pobla de Segur, getting there via Tremp on the fabulous C1311 - which just happens to be my road into town ...
- and keep your options open, i.e. if the weather looks bad for the Bonaigüa pass head back to the N-230 on the N-260 - see below - on one its better bits, also riding it before it gets 'busy' - this section is very narrow and is used by camper vans and quite a few trucks as the day wears on ...
Finally, phew, consider basing yourselves for a night or two and riding around without luggage rather than making a linear trip a la RIDE routes - with all due respect to Simon W (who has indeed said his route are a compromise) there is much much, more to the Pyrenees than the N-260!
Enjoy
Simon
One last thing, use booking.com rather than TripAdviser or air BnB. The reviews are better and in the case of AirBnB as of this year you might find your accommodation sealed off by the local police ...
