Category: GR10 (Page 4 of 5)

We had a great dinner last night (preceded by a lovely cocktail each) and the best breakfast so far on our walk.  Everything fresh, lots of choice, and many things homemade.  

The GR10 heads south from Cauterets for a day, then east for a day, then back north for a day, finishing at Luz-Saint-Sauveur.  The two overnight stops on this section are in unmanned bothies, so you need to carry food and camping equipment.  As we are doing neither, our route therefore followed the old GR10 route, which is now classed as a “variant” but would take us directly to Luz-Saint-Sauveur.  

The day started with a climb, and would continue like that until the col at 1955m.  (We started at 920m).  The uphill was generally at a very gradual gradient, at which we seem to walk well, and we made good progress through the trees, onto the open hillside, and finally to the col, actually getting to the top faster than the quoted time in the guide book, and over an hour faster than on the sign posts (though we always seem to beat them).  We had a rest at the top and had a chocolate tourte (cake) each to celebrate.  The drop down into the valley first took us down the ski slopes, then down old farm tracks that cut the hairpin bends on the new road.  Again, the gradients were shallow which meant we kept up a good speed (though it means the zigzags are a lot longer).  We walked the final section down the road as the GR10 was heading back uphill, to keep you off what was a very quiet road.  Our accommodation is in a hotel in another(!) old spa village, with several hotels and a few houses.  Napoleon III and Eugenie stayed here for two months to take the waters in the 1850s.  After checking in we walked up the road to the Napoleon Bridge (designed by one of the Napoleons); it’s a bungee jumping site, but nobody jumped while we were there.  If I was trusting my life to someone, I’d like them to look professional, unlike the bunch of hippies that were running it! 

There was not much noise overnight so we had a good sleep.  Breakfast was basic: cereal with powdered milk, toast that comes in a packet, jam, and coffee.

Today was a downhill day to Cauterets.  We followed the GR10 most of the way, which cut across the graded track that led up to the refuge.  On the final crossing I made the mistake of choosing the GR10 path rather than the graded track, and we then saw people passing us as they walked at about double the speed we could achieve as we worked our way down through boulders.    We reached the tarred road and decided to walk the last few kilometres of descent into town on it as the path was very steep.  We found a bakery and treated ourselves to a large cake each.  It was only about midday, so we found a park opposite the hotel and ate our cakes and did the crossword.  Chris and Severine and their dog came past and we had a chat.  We checked in about 2pm and then visited the launderette just metres from the hotel.  While the washing was on we wandered around the town and stocked up on supplies.  We then visited another cake shop, then back to the hotel for a pre-dinner cocktail.  An excellent meal, washed down with a 50cl (half bottle??) of red.  I’ve include a photo of tonight’s bedroom to compare with last night……

Our accommodation last night was in a place called a “holiday camp”.  There were a few big buildings and a few tents in the field.  Our bedroom had a couple of bunk beds, but no one else.  There was a shared kitchen and an enormous common room.  We had our dinner in another building, seven of us, but probably tables for fifty.  The evening meal was very good: beetroot and feta cheese salad, followed by macaroni cheese, shepherd’s pie, and stuffed leeks, and chocolate and banana cake to finish.  There was fresh bread for breakfast with ham and coffee, so not as good as the previous evening meal.  It looks like a couple have bought the place and are gradually doing it up.  The walk took us through the village and then climbed up through the forest.  On the next section we lost all the height as we dropped down into the next valley.  There was then a long road walk up to the Lac d’Estaing.  There were lots of people who had driven up to the lake and were now walking around it on the flat path.  We didn’t get that pleasure as the GR10 headed upwards through the trees.  This was a steep section as we climbed up to the hanging valley.  Once there, and out of the trees, we could see the col that we had to reach at the far end of the valley.  This was a big, long climb, and it was warm.  We had several breaks on the way up, but finally made it to the top.  As we started the descent we were amazed at the number of people coming towards us and wondered how many would make it to the top.  We later discovered many had taken the ski bubble lift from Cauterets and therefore only had a short distance to climb.  (Another walker told us later that she had heard someone with a megaphone shouting out the number of minutes to the last bubble back down.)  We reached the hut in its fantastic setting on the lake with mountains all around.  Dinner was vegetable soup, followed by sausage stew with pasta, and brownies to finish.  The dormitory had twenty beds in it; our lower bunk was a double, screened off from the next occupant. 

Last night when we arrived in Gourette it was foggy and it was still foggy this morning.  We started walking after our reasonable breakfast (nectarine each and a boiled egg for Christine, ham and cheese for me, plus croissants and coffee) and made our way through the ski resort.  It’s one of those 1960s types, with lots of blocks of flats.  The path zig-zagged through the resort, then we were zig-zagging up the hillside, both of us wearing our rain jackets because of the fog and water dripping off the trees.  As we climbed higher the cloud gradually lifted and we could see Gourette below us, and Laruns far down in the valley.  We took our jackets off as the temperature increased, and finally reached the col after lots more zig-zagging up the hill.  We could see cloud coming up the valley so we swiftly dropped down into the next valley.  The drizzle was on our backs, so we didn’t bother with waterproofs.  We were soon down at the road.  The GR10 previously followed the road, but had been diverted down into the valley, then back up to road level about 5km further along as the road was deemed “dangerous”.  We had been monitoring the traffic on our descent and decided that there wasn’t enough to be concerned about so took the road.  You could see a long way along and up the road so it was easy to position ourselves safely for the few cars, cyclists, and motorbikes that came down.  There were two tunnels; the first about 200m long but with plenty of room for pedestrians and cars, and the second about 50m long.  We made rapid progress along the road, finally stopping for a rest where the GR10 came back up and crossed the road.  We had saved ourselves probably 200m of climbing and had had an easy walk on a good surface.  The sun was shining again and we had another short final climb before the long descent down to Arrens-Marsous.  We arrived early, about 2pm, but managed to get in to the gite and have a shower (and remove one tick on me).  The reviews of “The Salamander” give high praise for the food so we are looking forward to tonight’s meal!

The owner of the hotel said that the road was too dangerous to walk and there were lots of cars and motorcyclists zooming up the road in the morning so we, and a French couple, took the bus.  The first journey took us down to the valley town of Laruns.  On the way we passed through Eaux-Chaudes, with a huge spa hotel, which still seems to be open.  In Laruns we had an ice-cream and coffee and wandered around the market which filled the main square.  Cloud was starting to cover the hills as we got on the second bus.  The trip up to Gourette went through Eaux-Bonnes, another spa town.  There were some huge hotels (the size of the Ritz in London).  One sold in 2018 for only 10000 euros and is still abandoned.  The town had been developed in the 1860s with hotels, gardens, and a casino.  In the 1880s people started visiting to enjoy “discovering” the Pyrenees.  Then came skiing.  Post WWII the decline increased as no-one took spa treatments and a new ski resort was built higher up the mountain (Gourette).  We reached Gourette and our hotel was 50m from the bus stop.  We were excited to spot a laundromat, but found that all the machines were out of service.  We stocked up on water and snacks and are all set to start walking again after our day off.  

We bumped into Kevin in the supermarket.  He carries a tent, and had camped three hours walk into yesterday’s big stage, and then completed the walk to Gourette the next day.

We had an excellent dinner, then went to our bedroom and set the alarm for 5:45.  This was going to be a long day’s walk, with a significant climb.  And the forecast was for 30C….

We followed the path down into the village, then marched briskly along the old road.  The new road seems to be a major link between France and Spain.  The path then started to climb and we had good views of Fort Portalet, build to guard the border against Spain in 1842, but apparently famous for the political figures who were later imprisoned there.  We then started up the cliff walk.  This path was cut into the hillside to allow timber to be taken down to the river for transport to Bayonne and the rebuilding of the French navy.  The path was wide, but it was a sheer drop into the gorge below.  We finally got into the upper valley, and then had a very long climb up the next valley.  There were lots of wild irises in the lower part, and we finally got into the higher pastures with lots of cattle and horses.  A final push and we reached the Col d’Ayous.  There were great views back to the north and now into the next valley to the south.  The path down was not very good, probably due to the number of people who come up from the southern side.  We made it to the valley floor, and then had a long walk down the valley, through a beech forest, before reaching the tarred road.  There were dozens of people walking up the valley, all heading for the refuge, or to camp next to it.  We continued down the road, finally reaching Gabas and our accommodation.  There was a very good communal meal; us and two French couples whom we have seen for the past several days.

Tomorrow’s walk is even tougher than today, so we will either walk via the road, or do a mixture of bus and road walking, rather than following the GR10.

Leaving Lescun we dropped down 100m into the valley and then quickly started a climb back up the other side.  This was through forest on a mixture of tracks and paths, before flattening out in a hanging valley about 200m above the main valley.  We crossed the valley and then the main climb started.  We climbed about 600m up through the forest on steep paths, finally reaching the col where we stopped for a rest.  The descent into the next valley started down a grassy slope before going into the beech wood.  There was the usual mixture of steep descents and zigzagging paths.  We finally came out of the trees onto a hillside covered in bracken, where the temperature rocketed up.  This section had long zigzags going to and from across the hillside, with the occasional tree for shelter.  Every so often we crossed a stream where the temperature dropped significantly.  We reached our accommodation (shortly before the end of the stage) and sat in the garden until the owner arrived.

I nipped out of the refuge when we got up to take a photo of the sunrise with the clouds filling the valleys below.  Breakfast was the worst so far; slices of bread, butter, jam, and coffee.  The woman opposite added quick porridge to her hot chocolate.  Breakfast was at seven and we had to be out of the refuge by eight, so we were soon on our way.  The first part of the walk took us round and above various ski lifts, walking upwards and across the limestone plateau.  We then had a section through a narrow valley, slow going as there was lots of up and down over the limestone.  This finished at another ski run.  We finally left the ski area gradually working our way upwards while admiring all the wild flowers.  Again, it was slow going because of the terrain, but we could see the gap in the cliffs ahead that was our target.  We reached the climb (about 10m vertical) which had a couple of wires fixed for assistance.  I went up first, then came back down to take Christine’s rucksack.  We both scrambled to the top and had a rest while we watched other people making the climb.  The track on the other side led down below the cliffs to the valley below, then back up to the next col.  The view from the top showed mountains and cliffs stretching ahead, with a few patches of snow still lying.  The descent down into the valley was surprisingly good (the track was much better than those in the Alps).  The walk along the valley took us into beech woods, and we were accompanied by the sound of cow and sheep bells for the whole stretch.  We thought we would be heading gradually downwards, but there was quite a bit of uphill in the forest.  Another couple of kms and we reached the tarred road.  We followed it down the hill and then had a final section of stony path before reaching the fields and roads leading us into Lescun.  The village is very pretty and there are mountains circling the entire valley.  We treated ourselves to a late lunch and then did some washing.

We’ve met quite a few people travelling west-east on the GR10.  Some are going the whole route and others just part.  Quite a few are carrying tents which means they can go further on the short legs, or do sections where there is no accommodation available and we will instead do the “variant”.  We see the same faces during the day, or at the refuges in the evening.  We saw Keilan from Ireland for several days, but he is now a day or two ahead of us.  Tracey from Australia is having a rest day in Lescun so we will be ahead of her from tomorrow.  We’ve seen Andrew (Australia) and Kevin (Scotland) off and on.  All of them are walking the full route like us.  There’s a couple of groups of French people that we also see regularly, but they are stopping somewhere.  There’s also lots of day walkers that we see out, including many grandparents with grandchildren (usually towards the end of our day’s walk). 

Last night’s dinner was good, but the main course wasn’t very warm.  We met a couple who were walking east to west so were able to swap bits of advice.  We had a room to ourselves in the gite, which had just been opened in May, and was nicely fitted out.  Breakfast was good with nice fresh bread.  Following yesterday’s walk down through the mud, and overnight rain we decided to walk up the road.  The fog was on the tops as we started up what was a very quiet road.  A few cyclists passed us, and one or two cars.  As we neared the top we were above the trees, but in the cloud.  We reached the refuge just after midday and were allowed to check-in.  

The cloud/mist persisted all afternoon so we relaxed in the refuge.  Dinner was very good (and hot).  There seems to be a lot of people starting the GR10 from here tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see how they do!  The cloud finally lifted for a while after dinner, so I took a photo of the ski resort.  There’s nothing worse than a 60s ski resort in the summer.  Only a few photos today due to the conditions.

Last night the dinner was good, and we were the only two in our dormitory, so two wins.  Breakfast was nothing special; yoghurt, apple puree, bread, butter, marmalade, orange juice, and coffee.  We were up early as this was going to be a long stage.  It was; highlights included crossing the suspension bridge, lots of raptors flying above (and below) us, and great scenery.  Lowlights were the distance and the state of some of the route; stony, very muddy, narrow, and very long.  We also missed a turn on the descent, walking past it and then having to come uphill to rejoin the path.  The final section was uphill to our lodging; a van stopped in the middle of the road and the driver (farmer) insisted that we get in.  We put our bags in the back and we both squeezed in to the passenger seat, to be driven the final 200m to the gite.  The cloud was getting lower and lower, and it started raining just as we went in the door.  I’ve included all the photos from today to show what the route looked like.  Some look forward, others back.

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