summer tour thoughts and advice

tugger

Good day...

As an inexperinced "tourist" (having done san fransisco to san diego last year) I am planning with a friend a tour next summer.

As a teacher I can only go in August basically.

We want to average 80 a day and are looking at going from london to barcalona but have read some peoples warnings about tempreture.

Does anyone have any suggestions from previous experience as to where to go at that time of year that covers a similar distance?

Regards
Nick

MichaelW

If you want cooler, go north. I did the North Sea route at a leisurely pace with camping gear. The temps are as variable as ours, expect mild warm days, some rain, perhaps a heatwave or not.
For more spectacular riding, the Pyrenees are good. People do the Raid route in 100hrs but there is much more to explore. It does get hot but the N side is cooler and wetter, more alpine than you might expect.
Northern Spain is also a possibility, basically a bigger, warmer version of Cornwall with better food. The mountains (Picos de Europas) are really pretty but similar to Pyrenees, expect hot/cool/dry/rain at any time.

HebdenBiker

Michael how long did it take you to do the North Sea route?

MichaelW

Took the Harwich/Hook of Holland ferry on July 21 and arrived in Bergen on Sept 20th.

It was solo, self-supporting, camping almost the whole way. I am no mile muncher and a fair amount of the route is on unsurfaced forest trails. I was pretty lucky with wind, only one day of heavy headswind.
You have to factor in quite a few rest days.

suffolk rider

I cycled near Barcelona the summer before last (August). It was very hot and humid and I would not recommend it, especially as it was mountainous and my bike was fully laden. I suppose if you carved up your day to start early, stop between say 1 and 4 and then continue, it might be OK. Alternatively, I am told Portugal is hot but dry at the same time of year, which should make it alot more pleasant.