Day 50: Resting in Ax-les-thermes

 

A day of eating, buying thermals for cold mountain nights and thermal spa-ing. And more pizza of course.

 ***

The Thermal spa at Ax-les-Thermes, Les Bains du Couloubret is second to none! It was 15 euros for two hours and worth every centime. There were so many different pools and areas - a huge indoor pool with various jets, a series of outdoor pools (fabulous in the warm September sun), a whirlpool, a bubbling jacuzzi pool, a huge hammam, and so much more besides. I felt thoroughly pampered after my two hours there!

We finally decided to add some thermals to our kit as we had spent a few too many nights in a frozen tent and even with all our clothes on, it was getting much too cold. We also knew that it was not likely to get any cooler as we'd have to spend a few more nights above 2000m before we were done so buying thermals was the only sensible thing to do. Luckily there was a really good sale on at a hiking shop that was right by our campsite, Telemark Pyrenees, and, after trying on half the shop, I decided on a set of thermals by Woolpower - green leggings and a grey jumper. They are seriously toasty, particularly when layered up with other clothes. Although this brand is rather pricey, I would definitely recommend them as they are soft, comfy and really easy to wash (despite being 60% merino wool, you can wash them up to 60 degrees celsius if you need to). Nothing beats being cosy in a tent!

Day 49: La vallée du Montiguillou to Ax-les-thermes (via Merens-les-vals)

Waking up cold to another frosty morning, feeling extra tired and sore from yesterday's bouldering episode, walking down what was effectively a waterfall before the valley finally turned nice (not that we'll forget its darker side any time soon), people gathering bilberries in the sunshine, the lake looking all pretty and reflective, stopping to cook spicy instant noodles and a herd of horses taking a keen interest - this was our 3rd ambush since we started hiking and the most invasive yet: bags were licked, clothes were nibbled and spatulas were whole-heartedly chewed before being discarded. At least 60% of our possessions have now been violated by horses! Marching towards Merens-les-vals, a town the guide had us believe was a thriving metropolis, discussing all the food we would buy there (supplies were down to just 3 cuppa soups and some plain couscous. No chocolate left whatsoever. Dire) only to discover that the only shop in this one street village closed for "winter" 11 days ago, despair, tears, and then putting our brilliant minds together to form a new plan: simply hop on a bus to the nearest actual town and camp there for two nights, resupplying and resting before coming back to the GR10 the day after tomorrow. So that's we are doing. The campsite here is perfect (a little peaceful hill for hikers so Colin feels right at home), we bought all the food in the supermarket, found an excellent pizzeria and a owl is hooting whilst the moon glows. Oh and it just so happens to be another thermal spa town so no complaints from me ;)

***

After the disappointment of Merens-les-Vals, Ax-les-Thermes did not disappoint. There are supermarkets, cafés and restaurants galore. We ventured to a campsite slightly out of the main town which was rather lovely indeed - Camping Le Malezou.

We found an absolutely amazing restaurant for dinner - la Trattoria, where we feasted like happy happy hikers

P.S. Unfortunately I don't seem to have recorded the vital statistics for this day
:(

Day 42: Resting in Aulus-les-bains

Sleeping, eating and thermal spa-ing. Ahhh spa towns how I love you so 

***

The thermal spa in Aulus-les-bains is a great way to relax and recover from long days spent hiking. You can pay to have access to the jacuzzi and hammam - just check the website carefully as there are different opening hours on different days of the week.

Day 41: St-Lizier to Aulus-les-bains

Waking up to the horrendous sounds of a jay screeching bloody murder right outside our tent (these birds do NOT know how to sing), going back to sleep when it flew off and thus oversleeping, eating huge amounts of cake for brekkie then setting off into the wind - the weirdest wind we've ever known - it whipped around, changing direction, singling out single trees at a time then died right down, luckily we were sheltered in a typical goblin path straight up the valley for much of the morning, then there was a col covered in cows, then more wind so strong that we diverted off the GR10 to the more sheltered ski slopes on the other side of the mountain, descending down a long rocky path along one side of a valley, over a ridiculous broken bridge, then right back all the way along the other side of the valley, getting blown over by a ridiculous gust of wind, then reaching shelter again in the woods where three mad frogs hopped into Gavin's legs. We ignored the GR10's suggestion to spend three more hours pointlessly walking along another valley and back and headed straight for the lovely thermal spa town of Aulus-les-bains. Guess what my plans are for tomorrow?!

***

The campsite, Le Coulédous in Aulus les bains was excellent and still rather busy in mid-September – perhaps because of the thermal spa in the town. We had a nice quiet pitch – albeit covered in conkers! The sanitaires are very clean and the campsite is conveniently located 5 minutes walk from the town where there are a couple of shops (excellent for buying food supplies), restaurants and the spa.

Despite the fact that there are a few restaurants in Aulus-les-bains, only one of them was open mid-September: La Grange de l’Agouadis. Luckily, one was enough – we ate there both nights that we stayedin Aulus-les-bain, sampling their pizza and their goats cheese salad. Both nights the food was excellent – the pizza was such a generous size that we couldn’t manage to finish even with our hiking appetites, but the owner happily packaged it up for us. Very friendly service and great veggie options!

The vital statistics:
Total hiking time: 6h
Peak: 1725m
Total ascent: 1382m
Total descent: 1376m

Day 35: Melles to l'Etang d'Araing

 

Waking up to rain, the sun coming out as we walked along a long and winding road, a screeching woodpecker, a creepy doll perched on the garden wall of the only house we'd seen for miles, tough steep forest paths, buttery noooodles for lunch by a waterfall, the biggest frog we've seen in a while, emerging from the forest to rewarding views due west back where we've been, the landscape changing to high mountain plateaus of golden grass and boggy marshes, vultures overhead, 4 isards/deer leaping about down below, a kestrel hovering about, finally cresting a col and heading down to a lakeside refuge for a 3 course feast with friendly fellow ramblers before pitching our tent.

***

Beautiful views on the path up to the Etang d'Araing

After realising that we couldn’t restock or find anywhere to stay in Fos the previous day we were a bit worried about supplies running out and where we would camp. I called up the refuge http://www.refuge-araing.fr/ at the Etang d’Araing because I had heard that some refuges in the Arriege area will sell hikers supplies. The gardien said that as it was nearing the end of the season, he couldn’t sell us supplies but that we were welcome to eat there. So we booked ourselves in for dinner and breakfast and also ordered a sandwich for the next day. Up to this point we had only eaten in refuges for lunch when you can usually just turn up and buy omelettes and sandwiches. Evening meals are a bit different – you have to reserve and you don’t get a choice of what you eat as one meal is prepared for everybody that is staying. It is even more imperative to call ahead if you are veggie as this will involve them preparing a separate dish. The meal at the refuge Araing was really tasty – 3 courses including veggie soup, an omelette and ratatouille and homemade mint chocolate cake. It was an interesting experience to eat dinner at the refuge as it meant we met other hikers that were staying there and to got to hear about their adventures. It was very convivial with everybody sitting around one table and serving each other the food. We got top tips from hikers coming in the other direction about potential resupply sources and must-see places. And then afterwards we got to wander back out under the stars to our tent for a peaceful nights sleep by a beautiful blue lake.

Altogether dinner, breakfast and lunch and showers for two people came to just over 60 euros (pitching the tent outside the refuge was free) so it wasn’t cheap but it was a bit of a change from our usual cooking routine and the gardien gave us some useful advice about where we were going next… 

The vital statistics:
Total time hiking: 6h32
Peak: 2185m
Total ascent: 1477m
Total descent: 257m

Day 32: Resting in Bagnères-de-Luchon

 

Shoe shopping for new boots, pizza eating, and an afternoon in the local thermal baths/underground hammam caves getting pampered until I felt as relaxed as the marmot in the advert! A tough day ;)

***

Bagnères-de-Luchon was an important moment in our hike, for it was in this town that I discovered the joy of visiting thermals spas - and there are plenty of them to be found along the GR10.! I hadn't ventured into the one on Cauterets, but from this moment on, I made sure that I saught them out wherever and whenever possible. The spa in Luchon was pretty special - it's a natural hammam cave that has been dug out in the rock underground - you wander along sweaty tunnels that are heated bn natural heat sources in the rock, alternating this with dips in the jacuzzi baths where you can get pounded by all manner of water jets and bubbles. It's amazing how relaxing it is, and how much it helped my tired hiking muscles.

Day 20: Resting in Cauterets

Sleeeeeeeping, resting and napping whilst firecracker lightening boomed though the valley and rainbows appeared, lazing about after a long week of many mountains climbed and then enjoying a very very tasty pre-niversary meal and some fancy drinks.



 

***

The Camping Vignemale was a lovely peaceful campsite in the last week of August. Excellent pitches, only about 10 minutes walk into town and clean sanitaires where the radio was always playing a happy song.

We went to the Pizzeria Gril Giovanni both nights that we stayed in Cauterets. It was delicious – we tried an amazing buffalo mozzarella salad for starters and the pizza and the pasta were incredibly fresh and tasty. A special mention must also be made of their Kir à la myrtille which I very much enjoyed as an aperitif. Sadly, we didn’t manage to eat a dessert as we were so full – but they looked delicious. Lots of veggie options and super friendly staff.