Following the train tracks by bike
An easy cycling route suitable for the whole family that gently traces the former railway lines going from Olot to Girona and then from the capital to the sea at Sant Feliu de Guíxols
This cycling route may be a total of 97 kilometres but at the same time is easy enough and can even be done with children if taken in stages. What's more, there are a number of accommodation options, including for families, along the way. The first section of the route goes from Olot to Girona, passing through the counties of Garrotxa, Pla de l'Estany and Gironès, as well as a dozen towns as it follows the courses of the rivers Fluvià, Brugent and Ter. The path itself not only slopes gently downhill, but is in good condition and well-signposted. The Ruta del Carrilet begins in Garrotxa's volcanic area and ends in Salt and Girona. In the meantime, the route passes by volcanoes, Hostoles castle, as well as towns like Anglès and Sant Feliu de Pallerols. As the route approaches Girona, it runs alongside the River Ter before ending in the city itself. The second part of the route follows the old narrow Girona-Sant Feliu train line, passing through two counties -Gironès and Baix Empordà- from the Ter river basin to the Ridaura valley via the Selva depression.
Old railway
What is so notable about the stretch of former railway line from Sant Feliu de Guíxols to Girona is how gentle and slight the route's ups and downs are as the path winds its way through the local area. The road surface is made of a sandy gravel that fits in with the surroundings, although there are also sections that pass through paved urban areas. On leaving Girona, the route first passes through the Selva depression, which is characterised by a mosaic landscape of fields and woods with, on clear days, panoramic views that take in everything from the eastern Pyrenees to Montseny, and include coastal features of the Serralada Transversal (Far, Sant Roc, Rocacorba). The final part of the route goes through the Ridaura valley, which divides the Cadiretes massif in the south from the massifs of Gavarres to smoothly and gently reach the sea at Sant Feliu de Guíxols.
