In search of the best places to practice bicycle touring we take you to the Canary Islands. Fuerteventura stands as an ideal tourist destination to get lost on wheels. A unique landscape in the world found in our country. We show you why your next cycling trip should be to the Canary Islands.
Fuerteventura, cycling destination in the Canary Islands
The national landscapes are well known. Warm in the Mediterranean, dry in the interior of the peninsula and the green of the northern forests. Sometimes, one of the most spectacular is forgotten: the Canarian landscape. This archipelago has a unique climate and orography on the planet.
Its volcanic origin has turned the islands into rocky deserts, with black sand and slopes marked by dormant volcanoes. Fuerteventura, like its companions, shows a relentless erosion by the passage of millions of years, which makes it an island of desolate appearance.
Close to the Sahara, with no recent eruptions and vast deserts of stone and sand, the second largest island of the Canaries is a spectacular place to get lost in. And if it’s on a bicycle, even better. With incredible routes and unique opportunities, Fuerteventura has to be your next cycling destination outside the Iberian Peninsula.
Tracks of Fuerteventura, the best way to know the island
Starting in the capital and running from north to south, this great cycling route ensures that no corner of the island is left unvisited. Almost 300 kilometers of route with a cumulative elevation gain of 4820 meters is no easy feat, but neither will it be a cycling route that will push you to the limit.
Its maximum ascent height only reaches 600 meters and the demand during all the stages is not excessive. It is recommended to have an intermediate level of physical and cycling skills. A beautiful cycling experience in Fuerteventura in which anyone can participate.
There are three different options to complete Fuerteventura Tracks. For those who live in a hurry and want to finish the route as soon as possible, the route can be done in five stages. The one recommended by Trackstour is the six-day tour: the perfect middle ground between demanding and cyclotourism. Finally, there is also the possibility to do it a la carte: think about the itinerary, where you want to go and what you would like to visit and the experts will arrange the island to your liking. You are in charge of your own journey.
Tracks of Fuerteventura: varied routes through a natural paradise
Physical and technical conditions are as important as the number of days you are going to invest in your trip. Once you have decided how much time you are going to spend cycling in Fuerteventura, you need to know what you are going to face on your tour around the island.
This mixture of culture, good gastronomy, mountains and desert must be covered on a mountain bike well adapted to the dry and rocky terrain, the most common on the island. most of the route is on trails, so you will have to be prepared for nature trails. Tracks and asphalt complete the rest of the natural circuit of Tracks de Fuerteventura.
Once the terrain has been analyzed, the climate is important. The good weather in the Canary Islands means that you can go whenever you want, although in July and August it is usually windier than usual. Apart from the cycling equipment, the swimsuit is a must: you cannot leave Fuerteventura without swimming at one of its wonderful beaches.
An island with an infinity of resources and hundreds of kilometers to enjoy on your bike. Fuerteventura has to be on your list of cycling destinations. And Tracks de Fuerteventura is the best way to tour the island.
Maxi Biela, Tracks de Fuerteventura: A lover of the island who knows everything you need
What started as a hobby has become his job. Maxi left his previous job, locked up for hours in an office, for a new project full of adrenaline and sport. Cycling, one of his passions, went from being his weekend activity to his everyday job.
Passionate about sport and nature, Maxi created VulcanBike and, for some time now, has been a member of Trackstour, organizing and managing these famous stage trips in Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and La Graciosa. The episodic tours in the Canary Islands are based on Trackstour, and almost no one knows better than Maxi how to go around the archipelago giving the pedals.
What was it like to change jobs in search of more passion?
I was labeled crazy, especially in my family. In my previous job I was bored: everything was predictable, I knew what was going to happen the next day. I didn’t like it, I had no reason to keep doing it. So I changed everything for the bicycle and for the creation of these stage tours.
A passionate nature lover who makes it his job…
I am always outdoors and I love nature, both biking and hiking. My favorite thing is running in the mountains, but I also love cycling. This is the sport that I like, the one that is done outdoors and in the mountains: I always say that if sport was only going to the gym, I would not move and I would have a big belly. Being physically strong allows me to reach all corners and maintain my adventurous mode.
That adventurous tone is what keeps Tracks.
That’s right. Discovering things, getting to know places and traveling, also by bicycle. I have transferred my previous experience in other trips to this business model. Adapt big trips to a super trip in small places like Lanzarote or Fuerteventura.
We do not like the model of long excursions and return to the hotel. We want people to spend a lot of time on the routes, change accommodations and meet the people who live on the islands. Soak up the way of life of the archipelago. We organize trips, not excursions.
What is the best thing about the Tracks of the Canary Islands?
The good weather and the number of sites to discover. To know the corners that are not usually shown in the guidebooks and to know everything about the islands. Also, if done in full, getting to know the people and soaking in the culture of the different islands. It is a very fun adventure.
What do you need to know about Fuerteventura as a cycling destination?
This is the big surprise. Fuerteventura is even drier than Lanzarote, it is an extension of the Sahara. I have been falling in love with it as I have been making it and many customers tell us that they like Fuerteventura even more than Lanzarote. We have realized that it has something that makes it different: you have the feeling that the world has ended, because of its desolation, you don’t even know where you are. It is a very difficult thing to find in our world.
The ocean pounding on empty beaches and the eternal desert… People are hallucinating. Compared to what you see on the mainland, it’s something very different. A contrast between the volcanoes and the usual green of Spain. It’s a completely different place from anything you might find out there.
