Riding in the Pyrenees Mountains ranks near the top of many a motorcyclist’s bucket list. Spanning the border of France, Andorra, and Spain, the range stretches 310 miles from the Mediterranean coast to the Cantabrian Mountains. Within that expanse, meandering switchbacks and breathtaking vistas make the region a destination for nearly all touring riders.
Due to the noise emissions accompanying that two-wheeled tourism, not all Pyrenees communities appreciate the additional patronage, though. One such sector is Spain’s Natural Park of the High Pyrenees, and the Park has banned all internal combustion “motorcycles, quads, ATVs, and non-electric buggies all year round for noise protection reasons.”
The protected area is no small zone either, with nearly 80,000 hectares (197,684 acres) of land comprising the Natural Park of the High Pyrenees. The mandate may exclude motorcycles from local roads and trails, but the laws don’t place similar restrictions on noisy automobiles. That double standard forced Moto de Campo Sostenible, an advocacy group supported by the Spanish Motorcyclists’ Federation (RFME), to classify the closures as “unjustified discrimination.”
The organization contends that a lack of noise limitations imposed on drivers along with the arbitrary ban on motorcycles constitutes prejudice. For that reason, Moto de Campo Sostenible calls upon park management to establish noise thresholds that apply to all vehicles. That, in turn, would open a path for adherent motorcyclists to access the High Pyrenees Park while punishing non-compliant travelers.
It’s worth noting that the organization promotes sustainable and environmentally friendly off-roading for responsible enduro riders. Moto de Campo Sostenible expects much of its members as a result, and it expects the same consistency of land managers.
Still, the Park maintains that its studies aim to “better assess the importance of acoustic quality for the conservation of ecosystems and to understand how noise affects biodiversity.” While Natural Park of the High Pyrenees hasn’t abolished its exclusionary measures, Park Administration has promoted the installation of electric vehicle charging points near and around the region.
Riders can still tick off the Pyrenees Mountains from their bucket lists, but to do so, they may need to purchase/rent an electric motorcycle in the near future.
