Heaven’s Peak 1250m

Heaven’s Peak would be the translation for Pico del Cielo o Alto del Cielo, and the truth is once you get to the top it is Heavenly but getting there can be quite hellish. Firstly having to wake up at 6.30am on a cold Sunday morning was very difficult and I had to think of the great day that lay ahead to get me out of bed. When we left Granada it was -2.5Cº but just a few hours later and about 100km south to Maro, Nerja the temperature was 14ºC and the sun was shinning promising a very awesome day for some all terrain MTB.
Some of the best fun is while we are unloading the bikes, preparing them to make sure they are in tip top condition for the ride ahead, commenting on any new purchases in material and talking over what the next few hours will have in store for us.

The first 6 or 7 km is on a loose gravel road and is all uphill with very few areas to catch your breath and took us about 2hrs. Unfortunately during this part there are no nice views and since the terrain is so loose you really have to bear down on the bike, getting a monster leg and lower back work out. Finally after starting from almost sea level we arrive at the start of the trail, about 1000m. After a little pushing through very loose terrain we enter onto a rough, rocky and narrow single track. For the next, almost 1.5hrs, we ride or push our bike climbing slowly higher and higher over rocks and rutted ground all the while taking note of the difficultness and technicality of the terrain for the ride down.

After a total of 3.5hrs we arrive at the look out at about 1275m with breathtaking views of the mediterranean sea below and the white coastal villages to our east and west. Here we stop to take in the views, eat to replenish our energy sources and the very brave and tough push and ride ahead to the peak at 1450m. A few of us stay back relaxing, talking about how one goes about fixing the spanish economy and enjoying the warmth of the sun in good company. Almost an hour later and 175m higher the other group arrives at the top to begin their descent and we decide to begin ours as I personally like to take my time going down.

The ride down is intense and my legs are shaking from the strenous ride up and don`t seem to want to take the weight of my body as I hover back off my seat as far away from the handlebars as possible to make sure I don`t do a ¨superman¨ (or woman in my case) while riding over boulders and deep rock steps. The trail zig zags back and forth and on one side there is always the possibility of be thrown off the trail and down hill to my death (okay so maybe that is a little extreme) or maybe just a few broken bones which is something I desperately try to avoid.


In a few spots where a scary curve is combined with a huge rock and rutted ground I have to get off my bike and pass on foot. Later we will hear screams of sheer pleasure as the more radical and experienced riders behind us pass that same spot.

As I arrive back at the start of the single track my arms feel like they are on fire and my pointer finger is throbbing from all the breaking going on but I am back on the gravel road with no broken bones. HURRAY. The rest of the group arrive minutes later chattering loudly about how awesome and physically straining the descent was. Until I started mountain biking I never knew that downhill riding could be so tough, most times even more so than the uphill riding.

I am pleased with myself as this is my second time riding this same trail and this time I actually rode my bike 90% of the time downhill instead of pushing it over the more difficult areas. But I know it is not yet time for the victory dance as we still have another long and tough descent on another single track. We quickly re-trace our steps about 2km til we pick up the trail which descends down towards the beach. Again this is a very narrow track, with some big drops, very rutted ground (due to the recent rain falls in the area) but the added difficulty is the dense vegetation made up of prickly bushes and hedges which seem to reach out and grab the handlebars or snag on the brakes trying to damper your flow. We pass some foreigners hiking up the trail and let them pass and they are full of smiles and bewilderment, wondering how we can actually bike this trail (I sometimes am thinking the same). This part of the ride is longer but not as intense as the first downhill track but nonetheless exhilirating and fun and although the weariness from all the strenous biking is starting to set in I am enjoying every minute of it.

Finally we leave the vegetation behind to a more broken and loose terrain with some quick switch backs and again I am sweating from the emotion and the nervousness that is evoked but I see the gravel road ahead and know that the end is near. Just at the end I loose control and nearly crash but I am quickly back on my bike and in seconds with the group who are eager to get back to the parking lot and on to the nearest bar to have our celebratory beers. Ten minutes later we are back at the cars and finally I can do my victory dance. It was an incredible ride and when it is all over I am so happy to be back in one piece!!!.

A quick change into dry clothes and we cross the street to the nearest bar to have our well deserved beers, food and talk about the ride. The bar is strange and seems to cater to tourists who visit the nearby Nerja caves. Downstairs in the basement on the way to the bathrooms there is a sanctuary to Jesus Christ and as the timer kicks on the lights shine on the statue and I laugh to myself in disbelief while thinking that this whole day was about getting closer to ¨Heaven¨ when right here in this dingy, dark bar someone else is also trying to get closer to heaven. ---


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