Riding along the beaches of the Ter: the ideal bike route to escape the heat

We Girona residents often forget that, beyond the sea, right next to our home, we have a river teeming with life, especially after such a spectacular spring. We travel to Vilanna along the small road, crossing the orchards and meadows of Salt and Bescanó, and returning through the areas of Constantins, Sant Gregori, and Domeny. The journey takes us back to the summer season and back home in just an hour and a half.

We take the small track through the Santa Eugenia orchards and head to Bescanó, passing through Pilastra. We pass market gardeners busy watering and checking their crops, and we even come across a herd of Friesian cows, typical of the Girona region. The Salt meadows provide shelter from the sun until we reach the Aigües Braves Park, with a picnic and rest area increasingly frequented by locals.

A slight incline takes us to the edge of the road, still along the old section of the small track, and in no time we are in Bescanó. We follow the Ter canal that leads to the Monar irrigation channel until we cross it at the beginning of the Vilanna straight. Just before this, we will have passed one of the many 19th-century floodgates, in fairly poor condition, but which give a glimpse of the industrial past of this entire area.

To cross the Ter, we must first cross the canal and continue along the edge of Àrids and Graves Vilanna to a temporary footbridge, which we reach via a path. The company in question has created a safe crossing area, which, be careful, is used by many high-tonnage trucks.

As on the other bank of the Ter, all we have to do is follow a wide, fairly dusty, gravelly track to Sant Gregori. This is a point where, if you're riding a gravel bike, you can pick up a fair amount of speed, as it's not limited to 20 km/h, as is the case with the small bike lane.

The only steep climb is at the traffic lights to pass through the steepest part, which opens the doors to the Sant Gregori plain, where we'll return along the royal road to Domeny, where the bike lane now runs behind the Nestlé factory. Note that from the Nestlé, you can see the other side of the Ter, which we crossed an hour ago. The path is narrow and smells of coffee: the characteristic scent that we Girona residents know perfectly well.

Once we enter Girona, I recommend continuing along the royal road through the Domeny neighborhood along the Ter, a fairly unknown route until you reach Fontajau.

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