Ruta en moto por la Selva Negra : Luxemburgo a Bourg D'Oueil

Steinen, Black Forest

I went to the Black Forest this September 2025 with some friends from Luxembourg.
It’s a trip we take every year, and we headed to a small hotel tucked away in the mountains, in a tiny village, Steinen, in the southern Black Forest.

Some of the friends I traveled with, Eric and Cuto, "working" while we grabbed a coffee at a stop.
!Check out the VELOSOLEX behind them, please.!, at a bar on the way to the Black Forest — *Some of the friends I traveled with, Eric and Cuto, “working” while we grabbed a coffee at a stop.*
!*Check out the VELOSOLEX behind them*, *please*.!

Let me talk a bit about the gear we bring on these trips.

First of all, 3 of the 4 of us were connected through Sena intercoms in our helmets. Traveling relatively close together, we could talk about stopping here or there, wait if someone fell behind, or just chat or stay quiet. Staying connected is essential in a group.

Marco, a good friend of mine, and me in the brown jacket, in a typical village on the way to the Black Forest, — *Marco and me passing through a Black Forest village*

Cuto and I rode with GPS units to follow the routes we wanted. We’ve moved on from the classic Garmins, and from phones on quad locks, to Apple/Android CarPlay setups. We were using a 7-inch Carpuride and a 6-inch Chigee AIO6, and it was the first trip where we tried them out.
There’s always some kind of connection hiccup at first, but once you get the hang of it, it’s fantastic.

Honestly, I was worried about my iPhone’s battery, but after 7 hours on the bike with Google Maps running and a few podcasts, I still had 40% left when we arrived; more than enough.

Walking through a Black Forest village, with its typical houses — *The typical Black Forest buildings, with people out eating and having coffee; very pleasant.*

We got cold during the trip, and it rained too; having the right gear is essential to actually enjoy the ride.
My friends, living in northern Europe, wore Rukka gear, which is genuinely excellent, some even with airbags. In my case, living in Spain, that kind of gear isn’t easy to find, so I rode with my Revit Echalon jacket and a Gerbing heated liner underneath, wired directly to the bike’s battery.

We spent the weekend at the Hotel Landmann, a place full of peace and quiet. Perfect for resting after hours on the road, with a few good beers.

The terrace of the Hotel Landmann, our destination in the Black Forest, where horses would come out to graze in the meadows in the afternoon. — *The hotel terrace, where horses would come out to the meadows in the afternoon.*

We spent a full day exploring the Black Forest, covering around 350 km. The route we picked had a more technical morning stretch, with 180-degree curves and narrow roads where, mid-turn, a car or another bike could suddenly appear.

The afternoon route was more relaxed, with fewer tight bends, letting us go a bit faster, though with more traffic; it rained a little too.

Mushrooms, something my friend Cuto was always on the lookout for, and found near the Hotel Landmann in the Black Forest — *Mushrooms, something Cuto was always hunting for.*

Bourg D’Oueil, French Pyrenees

a pair of UK riders I ran into at a gas station; they were on a 1250 GSA, with their sauces perfectly packed away in their panniers. You can't be better prepared, on the way to Bourg D'Oueil in the French Pyrenees — *I have to include this photo of a pair of UK riders I met at a gas station; they were on a 1250 GSA, with their sauces perfectly organized in their panniers. You really can’t be better prepared!*

After the Black Forest, once we said our goodbyes, I headed toward Spain. The night before, I’d spotted a hotel in Bourg D’Oueil, near Bagnères-de-Luchon, in the French Pyrenees. It looked wonderfully tucked away in a valley, which was enough to convince me to go.

Arriving in Bagnères-de-Luchon, I saw the sign for Bourg D’Oueil. A road of about 12 km, where I ended up following a local who took the curves like it was the hallway of his own house. He pulled over next to the hotel.

Is the hotel open? I asked him.
No idea, call and check, he said.
So even though everything was right next to everything else, he wasn’t sure … it was just a handful of residents.

In Bourg D'Oueil, with about 10 or 12 people, and a bunch of chickens making their way down the stairs, in the French Pyrenees, during ski season — *There were about 10 or 12 people, and a bunch of chickens making their way down the stairs*

When I got to the Le Sapin Fleuri hotel, I asked the owner if I was going to be the only one staying the night, since ski resorts tend to be empty otherwise; that didn’t sit too well with me. But the owner told me there were 6 Spanish cyclists and 2 French ones, so not to worry.
He mentioned the hotel was closing the next day, to reopen at the end of November.

The Le Sapin Fleuri hotel, in Bourg d'Oueil, in the French ski resort — *The hotel with π (my bike) perfectly parked*

The village’s name reversed; it’s a leftover sign of French farmers’ anger, where every agricultural village has its entrance sign flipped upside down while the exit sign stays properly placed

Nobody moves them anymore. Here's the story, and it turns out the farmers won't back down in Bourg d'Oueil — *Nobody moves them anymore.* **Here’s** *the full story*

A road led out of the village toward the Port de Balès, and of course, I had no choice but to ride it.

The views the next day, heading toward the Col de Peyresourde, were spectacular.
I passed through Bielsa and headed home.