Friday night, last train to Birmingham and then National Express bus to Stansted and early flight to Lourdes arriving Saturday morning. After a bus to Lourdes to stock up on food and fuel it was another two buses to get to Gavarnie in the afternoon.
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| Cirque de Gavarnie |
My knee had been playing up after the Ridgeway the weekend before so I just did a short walk to the Cirque de Gavarnie after pitching my tent in the campsite. The walk was good despite the clouds covering the top two thirds of the Cirque to Gavarnie but my knees felt fine.
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| Food supplies |
Sunday morning I packed up and got going and I really felt the weight of my pack as I started the first ascent. There was low cloud but as I passed Refuge des Espuguettes the cloud disappeared and became rather hot. After the refuge I took the turn off and after a tiring ascent I made it to the summit of the 2801m peak Pimene and was rewarded with amazing views of the Cirque de Gavarnie and many mountains around.
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| Views from Pimene |
I descended then continued on the Pyrenean Haute Route (PHR) back into cloud and upto my the col, Horquette d'Alans (2430m). After the col there was the long descent into the valley below and it was very hot and I had to take regular breaks due to the heat and the heavy pack.
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| Back up the valley |
At the bottom of the valley was a resevoir and after crossing the dam had a long winding descent into the next valley on a tarmac track which led to a road. Instead of staying at the refuge in Heas I carried on up the PHR to a basic cabane called L'Aguilla where I stayed the night, sharing with a French walker.
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| The cabane |
Monday morning I packed up and started up the PHR in first light and up the long uphill to the col Horquette de Heas which was an exciting col at 2608m. It was a cloudless sunny day so I had great views all day. It was the nabout 300m down before going back up and over Horquette de Chermentas (2439m).
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| Horquette de Heas |
It was then down and a right following the PHR along less obvious paths but had no problems using the Cicerone guidebook and map to navigate. I followed the trail across rougher but more exciting terrain to Refuge Barroude where I ate luch looking over the icy lake Lacs de Barroude.
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| Lacs de Barroude |
After lunch it was upto the col Port de Barroude where I deceided went off route to a couple of peaks, Pico de Barrosa (2674m) and Pic de Puerto Viejo (2742m), both with great views. After the summits it was back down to the col and down into Spain with a long descent which went into a wooded valley which led to the main road and a boring 5km walk into the village of Parzan.
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| Wooded valley before Parzan |
I had something to eat in Parzan from cafe and bought a couple of things from a supermarket and then headed back up the road before turning onto a dirt trail which issthe PHR/GR11 trail. After a few kilometeres I pitched my tent in a fairly rubbish spot by a stream on very hard and slightly stoney ground.
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| The dodgy pitch |
Tuesday morning I carried on further up the tarck which was a long steady ascent and as it got higher the scenary got better. The trail turned off onto rougher and steeper path and then came to a col, Paso de los Caballas (2326m).
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| Lago di Urdiceto |
I turned off the trail to Lago de Urdiceto and contemplated climbing Punta Suelza but decided to turn back and climb Pico de Las Tres Bogas. There was a climb to another col and then a scramble along a rocky ridge to the summit at 2592m.
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| Pico de Las Tres Bogas |
I then descended back the same way and back over Paso de los Caballos and then a very long descent with a brief uphill over a small col, Collado de las Collas before eventually getting to the bottom of the valley. In Viados I discovered that the campsite had closed so I had to climb upto Refugio de Viados (1760m) where I just managed to get one of the last remaining beds for the night and at 7 Euros a bargain. From the refuge I enjoyed the incredible views of the west face of the Mount Posets.
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| Posets from the refugio |
Wednesday morning, after reading aweather report which didn't read to well for the next couple of days so I decided that instead of following the PHR I would follow the GR11. I head off at first light and came to where 3 streams meet (2080m) where the PHR and GR11 split.
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| The next valley from Puerto Gistain |
I followed the GR11 to the col Puerto de Gistain (2572m), it was still quite early and so by the time I was down the other side and at the Refugio Estos it wasn't even time for lunch, so I had a coke and coffee at the refuge instead. I carried on down the GR11 and decided to take a more scenic path that runs parallel to the GR11 and so I enjoyed lunch with a great view back up the valley.
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| View back up the valley |
The path rejoing the GR11 where it was another dirst track and I followed this down to the Benasque valley. I then followed the GR11up another dirt track on an uphill section into the Vallibierna valley. I I stopped briefly at a cabane and had a soup and then carried on a bit further where I spotted a good place to pitch the tent amongst some trees
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| Soup break |
Thursday is where I made a poor decision and tried to attempt Aneto from its southern side. I didn't set off early enough and after coming to the unstaffed Refugio de Coronas I turned off on the uphill path to a small lake Thonet de Coronas and from there followed the red marks indicating the way upto the higher lakes which are surrounded by a few peaks including the highest Aneto.
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| Ascending over Thonet de Coronas |
The red marks split off in two directions I wrongly went left but it wasn't too obvious. After the spots dissappeared I spetn a long time hopping over boulders and trying to avoid glaciers. By the time I got back on track I decided not to try and get to the col before the summit, so I headed back down the way I came.
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| Icy conditions below the peaks of Aneto |
By the time I got back down to the valley and the GR11 it was 4pm. I decided to carry on along the GR11 and the gradual ascent upto the beautiful Lagos de Vallibierna where the water was so clear and still.
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| Lagos de Vallibierna |
After skirting round the lake it was up the Coll de Vallibierna ( 2710m) where the weather turned and I had to put the waterproof jacket on for the first time.
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| Coll de Vallibierna |
On the descent the thunder started so I descended quickly and when I could see lightning I ran to a nearby under construction refugio where I sheltered in the concrete shell. After an hour the storm cleared and I decided rather than stay in the leaking refuge I would walk upto Lago de Cap de Llauset where I pitched the tent.
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| Lago de Cap de Llauset |
Friday morning I decided I didn't have enough time to continue along the GR11 to Hospital Vielha and then over the Coll Mulleres so after a brief walk up to the top of Coll de Rio Beuno (2520m), I traced my steps back over Coll Vallibierna and then back down the GR11 through the valley all the way to the Benesque valley.
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| Bsck down the Valle de Ballerbierna |
I stopped at a campsite to eat lunch and dry my socks out in the sun as they had got wet from the evening before. After an hours break I headed up the valley towards Hospital de Benasque and the walk slowly climbed up and was a lot longer than I had expected. After passing one ugly hotel I finally came to the posh looking hotel at Hospital de Benasque where I bought a can of Fanta and then headed further up the valley.
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| Path to Hospital de Bensque |
It was getting near time to stop and camp, but I carried on uphill towards Portillon de Benasque, hoping there would be somewhere to camp before the col. After a steeper uphill section I was happy when I found there we're a few good flat spots to camp a hundred or so metres below the col. So I pitched up with great views of the Maledeta massif in the background.
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| Tent with the Maladeta massif in the background |
Saturday, my last walking day. It was another nice morning and I thought I would have a look at going over the col Port dera Picada but when I got there I could see that there looked like a good way up the mountain, Pic Sauvegarde next to Portillon de Benasque where I had just came from. So I back tracked and went up towards the col and then turned off and up my final peak, Pic Sauvegarde at 2738m, which had amazing views with mountains in every direction as far as the eye could see.
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| Views from Pic de Sauvegarde |
After enjoying the views I headed down and over the final col Portillon de Benasque into France. The col was a cool little gap between the rocks with a steep downhill to the lake Boums du Port and the Refuge Venasque where I enjoyed another coke and stocked up on some well needed water as I had ran out a couple of hours before.
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| Boums du Port |
It was then a long winding descent to the Hospice d'France where at a bar I had a beer before heading along a very long boring tarmac road until coming to Bagneres-de-Luchon. After having another beer and a lasagne in a bar, I caught the train to Toulouse where I would fly back to Birmingham the next day.
