Day 47: Angaka to Andorra (a river valley near Inclès)

Waking up in our cosy yurt, emerging to misty cloud, breakfasting and leaving origami birds for the yurt lady, making good progress on the plateau de Beille where the paths are cross country ski slopes in the winter, mountains of all shapes and sizes peaking out from the sea of clouds below, a raven perched on a post, etorki sarnies for first lunch, clambering over bouldery paths, up golden sandy coloured grass banks that were dotted with the red autumn foliage of myrtille bushes, heading up and along a crête that gave amazing views either side of jagged teethlike ridges and lakes and their wiggly inlets impossibly far below, choughs squawking as they flew by, vertigo related panicking from me when the path did stupid things and much reassurance from Gavin, heading down to the refuge de Ruhle where the cloudsea tide came in fully overhead shutting off all views, second lunch cooked by the sleepy gardien who had been napping -omelettes, mmm! - then out into the mist for a wee diversion off the GR10 to Andorra, passing two lakes but seeing nothing but cloud until we peaked over the Port to Andorra where a marmot yipped but stayed hidden and the sun shone down on a beautiful valley where the tent is pitched, a fire is lit and the sky glowed pink as it disappeared…
 

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Our golden Andorran valley

Before heading into Andorra we popped into the Refuge de Ruhle for a late lunch. We managed to procure some very tasty omelettes and wine once the gardien had woken up from his nap! At this point we were still uncertain about whether to bivouac near the refuge or press on to Andorra, but our decision was confirmed when the gardien told us that there was a snow warning in place for places over 2100m – which included the refuge itself. We could see from the map that it would be possible to descend much lower to wild camp in Andorra, and that's what we did. It was a very windy night, but no signs of snow whatsoever – and we kept ourselves warm in the evening with a wee campfire. If weather conditions are better and you're not interested in diverting off the GR10, it is possible to bivouac near the refuge.

The Vital Statistics:
Total hiking time: 8h45
Peak: 2400m
Total ascent: 1095m
Total descent: 880m

Day 23: Marmot hill to Gavarnie

 
Waking up to the unmistakeable squeak and yip! yap! of marmots and realising our tent was surrounded by marmot mounds (we had suspected as much!), watching them sunbathe and play and eat their breakfast and wrestle as we sipped coffee, setting off in the sunshine, admiring all the views that were obscured by yesterday's cloud including the huge glaciers on the back of Vignemale, kestrels hovering and choughs squawking above, more mountain mice scurrying about, even more marmots, vultures devouring a cow and squabbling with each other (very vicious), diverting off the GR10 to Gavarnie to check out the famous cirque which is seriously awesome, pizzas for lunch, and a lazy afternoon pitching our tent by a field of horses with an amazing view of the cirque...

One of the many marmots looking rathe regal by the thistles

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 We pitched our tent at La Bergerie, an ‘aire naturelle’ in Gavarnie which was cheap, had an excellent breakfast, clean sanitaires and absolutely amazing views of the Cirque de Gavarnie....

The cirque rocks glowed pinky orange as the sun set and the moon emerged from behind the rocks.

Vital statistics: 
Total hiking time: 5h30 
Peak: 1898m 
Total ascent: 113m 
Total descent: 652m

Day 17: Soussouéou to Gourette

Lingering in our beautiful valley in the morning sun, a kingfisher whizzing past whilst we sipped our coffee, a giant hawk moth drinking crocus nectar, flurries of blue butterflies, a mean looking snake skulking into the bushes, loud red crickets clattering around, hot sunshine and blue skies, lots of climbing, refreshing waterfalls, a patch of snow/glacier, the Pic du Midi d'Ossau peeking out behind us, pink granite mountains ahead, more marmots right before the last climb up the rocky path to the Hourquette d'Arre, our highest col so far (2465m), so many flowers growing in the rocks, thick cloud on the way down past the turquoise Lac d'Anglas on painfully rocky paths with hungry tummies, arriving in another ugly ski station but finding refuge in a yummy crêperie and a hotel. Time to get properly clean again...

 

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I have never seen so many butterflies dancing together in the sunshine as I saw that morning as we climbed up and out the valley of Soussouéou. .

magic fluttery swarms of delicate blue butterfflies

Heading down from remote places like this into another bleak ski station makes for a weird stilting clash of nature and civilization. No question which one we prefer....
 
That being said, the hotel we stayed at in Gourette, Le Glacier was super friendly, very cosy and did an outstanding breakfast.

The vital statistics:
Total time hiking: 6h05
Peak: 2444m
Total ascent: 1060m
Total descent: 1126m

Day 14: Valley above the bois du Braca d'Azuns to Borce via Lescun

Waking up in a sunfilled paradise valley, washing in a freezing mountain stream, wandering down through peaceful woods, kids getting donkey rides (I wanted one), coffees and epic views at a refuge, battling through sticky mud patches, emerging into sunny meadows, a giant cicada, cheese and chips & crème brulée & rosé in the quirky town of Lescun (good bunting and arty signs everywhere) up over the col de Barracq through woods and past angry patou dogs defending their flock of sheep, all the way down to Borce where we've pitched our tent at an awesome gîte where there is a veggie falafel van and much real ale for Gavin and an owl hooting us to sleep.

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The Refuge de l’Abérouat were more than happy to serve us huge bowls of coffee mid-morning. We sat and sipped them in the hot sun, marvelling at the incredible views of rocky mountains that could be seen from the terrace.

We managed to find an excellent vegetarian lunch at a very friendly restaurant in Lescun (the name of which completely escapes me now), despite there being nothing advertised on the menu. It’s always worth asking restaurants if they can prepare an “assiette vegetarian”, even in tiny villages. The usual response is a dramatic gasp, a series of “ooh la la!” exclamations, a look of horror and then a perfectly lovely sounding suggestion. Make sure to emphasize that vegetarian does not mean you eat fish, or indeed ham.

The gîte d’étape in Borce, Le Communal has gone down in legend in our cross-pyrennean hike. The staff were really friendly, they charged us just 2 euros to bivouac in their back garden, the bar featured an extensive range of beers and ales, the shop had a huge amount of useful supplies and was open the whole time the bar was so you could turn up late/early and still get food. The best bit was the Falafel van that was parked outside – it was, quite simply, one of the best veggie meals we ate for the whole two months. The guy even had a vegan burger on the menu! We had one of those and some falafel, with tasty potatoes chips drizzled in his homemade garlic mayo and it was seriously delicious. All made with local, homegrown produce and served with a smile. He was there for one month this year (2015) - if you’re luckily enough to catch the Falafelo man in his falafel van in the future, consider yourself a lucky hiker indeed...

The vital statistics:
Total hiking time:9h39
Peak: 1611m
Total ascent: 1909m
Total descent: 1806m
 

Day 10: Col de Bagargiak to Larrau (via Logibar).

Waking up above the clouds and climbing up to indescribably beautiful views of peaks poking up through a cloud ocean, stopping to stare for a while on a purple pink heather path as cowbells rang out amidst the peacefulness, descending onto the crête Ugatzé and following the contours round as the clouds retreated to reveal green forest covered valleys, the Pic d'Orhy appearing on our right, butterflies waking up and getting busy (lots of marbled whites & swallowtails & blues today), gauntlets of brambles and nettles, navigating squelchy mud patches, mountains beyond mountains ahead, lion bars for snacking, occasional delightful breezes and hardly any shade from the cursed yellowface, the sky filling with screeching red kites, a pair of cows licking each other, blue and purple thistles everywhere, steep stony paths down to Logibar for cold beers & ice cream then onwards/upwards/back on ourselves to the camping Ixtila...

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If ever you see me with a distant look in my eye, chances are I’ll be back somewhere in this moment, gazing in wonder at cloud visions.

I've looked at clouds from both sides now...

At Logibar we acquired much needed refreshments at the Auberge before heading off up a rather long twisting D road (with space to walk on the verge safely) towards Larrau to one of our other favourite campsites in the Pays Basque – Camping Ixtila. The pitches are flat and grassy and neatly divided up with high hedges. There are lots of shady spots, gorgeous flowers beds and hydrangea bushes, amazing views of the mountain ridge, clean sanitaires, free wifi, a room to sit in with an excellent array of books and vintage Pyrénées magazines and it is run by a lovely friendly couple who will also serve you tea, coffee and beer with a smile. All in all it makes for blissful happy camping.

The vital statistics:
Time hiking: 8h26
Peak: 1419m
Total ascent: 871m
Total descent: 1551m