Guide to Cycling Rocacorba, Girona

20 km from Girona on a nondescript road in the outskirts of the town of Banyoles, overlooking the sparkling blue lake is the mountain of Puigsou, also known as the climb of Rocacorba. Once a well-kept secret amongst those in the know and only fully paved in 2006 it is now arguably one of the most infamous climbs in the Girona area and one of the first places people head to when visiting the city on two wheels.

Rocacorba Cycling Climb History

Like many of the climbs in Girona the popularity of Rocacorba comes not from its association with huge grand tours and TV coverage but from a slowly built up reputation amongst the professionals who live and have lived here, perhaps none quite so much as David Millar, who founded the Velo Club Rocacorba. As the number of riders in Girona both amateur and professional continues to expand the so-called ‘secrets’ of the area become less so and Rocacorba is no exception.

The fact that the proverbial cat is well and truly out of the bag with regards to Rocacorba is no surprise, the location itself carries enough of an appeal. Banyoles is worth riding to in itself, simply to soak in the beauty of the lake and surrounding area. In addition to its location, part of Rocacorba’s appeal is the challenge of the climb itself, there are few climbs in the area that begin to match it for the gradient and length. When you take the full 14 km into account the average gradient of 5.6% is laughably deceptive and hides the brutal reality of slopes of up to 15% for long periods. However, take the climb as 10 km, starting from the stone bridge over the Matamors river, cutting out the flatter bottom section and the average gradient is a far less forgiving 7%.

Rocacorba Cycling Guide on You Tube

Read on or watch our Rocacorba YouTube video here:

Rocacorba Road Cycling Climb Profile

Lets talk about the shape and profile of Rocacorba.  On the Strava segment it climbs 740 meters over 9.8 km at an average gradient of 8.4 %  While that sounds pretty good on paper, it isn’t a consistent gradient all the way up. One of the most challenging parts of the climb is the constant changes in gradients, making it difficult to find a nice rhythm.

The first few kms are nice and steady, the road is shaded and follows the course of a river. Then the first of three tough sections kick in. The first two are around 4 km long each and the last one is 1.5 kms. The road is small and the tarmac is not in the best condition, it’s a climb that forces you out of the saddle to keep moving. In summer it’s like an oven and important to start the climb with two full bottles.

The road ends at a metal gate, there’s space to pull over, a sign to take your photo at and a jump point for hang gliders. The view at the top is great – you can see out to the coast on a clear day and down to Banyoles Lake too. 

Getting down requires special caution. It’s a dangerous descent that people regularly crash on.

Road KOM / QOM

Strava Segment: https://www.strava.com/segments/616746 The KOM is 26:20 and the QOM belongs to World Tour Pro and local who lives at the base of the climb. She is the only woman to break the 30 min mark at 29:16.

How to Cycle to Rocacorba

You’ll see a few ways to get to the base of the climb online.  There’s a really quick but less scenic way to get there when people want to use it as part of their training.  But, if you want a quieter and more scenic way to get there are a few alternatives. 

1. My favourite way is via the backroads to Banyoles via Medinya, you still have to ride a few kms on the N-11 but it’s on a section with a wide hard shoulder. There’s also a new bike path on hard packed gravel which some road cyclist with wider tyres may be ok on.
2. For a bigger day on the bike you can loop it in with other popular climbs in the area like Els Àngles or Mare de Deu del Mont.
3. For a huge day out come and join us at our annual summer 3 Peaks Challenge, we ride Els Àngels, Mare de Deu del Mont and Rocacorba in one ride!

Here’s the link to download the classic Banyoles Lake & Rocacorba loop: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/50433954

Best Time to Climb Rocacorba

When the roads are perfectly dry! And not in the heat of summer. When the road is wet it’s extremely dangerous and is best avoided completely.  With an altitude of 1,000 m the climb does not get snowy in winter, but can be icy, so the best time to climb is on a dry day in Spring or Autumn.

Rocacorba Gravel Alternative

If you’re feeling more adventurous and like REALLY steep grades there is a lesser known gravel route up Rocacorba. 

To get to the gravel climb, ride out of Girona to the village of Canet d’Adri. After the village of Adri take a right turn onto the Cami de Biert and climb to the base of the track up. The climb is 5 km, with a tough average gradient of 10% and altitude gain of 500 m. The track climbs through the forest and max gradients can get up to 23%. The corners on the switchbacks are concrete which helps with traction. Join the road climb with 1.5 km to go. 

Gravel KOM / QOM

Here’s the Strava Segment for the gravel climb: https://www.strava.com/segments/13227628 The current records are 24:15 KOM / 30:05 QOM

Coffee Stops On the Rocacorba Ride

With a lakeside town of Banyoles not too far away, grabbling a post-climb coffee or cake is a great way to “refuel”.  My favorite place to stop in Banyoles is Banys Vells, the bar on the lake! It’s also really nice to pop to Banyoles town square where there are some great coffee places!

Thanks to Bike Office Espana, Tomas Montes @arriere_du_peleton, Rocacorba Food Truck & Sergi Mas de Xaxars @de_xaxars for the fabulous photos.

Want to take on Rocacorba yourself?

No cycling trip to Girona is complete without an ascent of Rocacorba. To experience the challenge of Rocacorba yourself why not sign up to our Classic Climbs of Girona tour or simply hire a bike and book a local guide to show you the way.