68.3km, 4875m of climbing on the French-Spanish border – gps info – the details

Dawn in the valley d’Oô, near the Lac Saussat, above the refuge d’Espingo

On our last day, at dawn, the sun had turned the cliffs red. “Ciel rouge le matin, pluie en chemin – red sky in the morning shepherd’s warning,” said Anne-Marie. By lunchtime, soaked and shivering in a deserted car park at Superbagnères, we were desperate to change into the dry clothes in the car. Thankfully there was nobody around.

5-day near-circular walk on the French-Spanish border in the high Pyrenees

View south from the Col de Benasque (2444m)

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Details of a near-circular trek in the High Pyrenees (22-26 August 2011)

Notes

More info (photos and a description of the walk).  All the refuges provide blankets but not sheets: bring your own sheet sleeping bag. At Estós and Portillon there is a charge for hot showers. Head torches are essential, as electricity is scarce and main lights are turned off early. Ear plugs are a good idea. Dormitories are mixed. Breakfast is usually early (no later than 8h00) so that the afternoon heat and storms can be avoided. The evening meal is at 19h00 or 19h30.
We left the car at the ski resort of Superbagnères de Luchon and took the ski lift down into town, then a taxi to the Hospice de France, our first overnight stop.

Hospice de France (near Bagnères de Luchon) (1388m) – Port de Bénasque (2444m) – la Besurta (1900m) – Refugio de la Renclusa (2140m)

Google Earth view of trail from the Hospice de France to la Renclusa

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GPS with on-board map, showing waypoints

Many hikers have told me that they have a GPS but never use it. At first I couldn’t understand why, because mine has become an essential tool. Gradually, I realised that they had a limited vision of what it was for.

Some used their GPS like a first-aid kit. It stayed in the rucksack until they had a problem.

Others used it like Ariadne’s thread. They carried it around, switched on, but only consulted it if the fog descended and they needed it to find their way back home.

After a few months, the GPS no longer even made it into the rucksack.

Yes, a GPS can be used like a first-aid kit or like Ariadne’s thread. But that’s missing the point. A GPS is not merely a navigation tool. It can be used to improve walking. It can be used like a guidebook. Here’s how.

Detail of the GPS screen. From top to bottom: 1824m = height above sea level ; 0394759 x 4724803 = coordinates; 534m = distance to arrow; 052 1 etc = waypoints along path; 300m = scale (can be enlarged to 20m).

Off the beaten path with a GPS

When I go hiking I often avoid the standard paths with their ubiquitous waymarks and frequent crowds. There are many more paths marked on maps: the only problem is finding them. Because they are little used, they are often hidden.

This is where a GPS comes in. But not on its own. The salesmen won’t tell you, but a GPS on its own is next to useless. You also need GPS compatible maps on your computer (which you can transfer to your GPS). The maps cost as much as the GPS again! And you need Google Earth, but at least that can be downloaded for free.

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Near Goulier in the Ariège

You might not have noticed, but 2011 is the Year of the Pyrenees. Coming up is a series of free organised walks between 25 June and 9 July, for individuals and groups, taking in many of the classic sights. It’s a pity I’m in Andalusia…

Sheep on the Montagne d’Alaric for the first time in 30 years

It all started back in February when Magali drove me up the mountain above the village to see her flock. She has 60 sheep and a handful of goats. This is her first year in her new job as a shepherdess.

When we arrived at the enclosure gate something flashed by in front of us, jumping over the fence and bounding away.

“Did you see it?” she asked me. “The isard?”

“Not really. But what’s it doing here anyway? It should be in the Pyrenees,” I objected.

“I don’t know why it’s here, but don’t tell anyone,” she whispered, although there was no one else to hear. “I don’t want the hunters to kill him.”

Two days later a hunter friend rang me up: “Have you seen the isard?” he asked.

“No,” I lied.

“On the mountain. Some officials have been to see it because isards are a protected species.”

I saw Magali again a fortnight later. Two of her ewes were dead and one was dying. They all had bloody wounds on their flanks.

“Dogs?” I asked.

“No. The isard.”

“Do they attack sheep?”

Isards in the Eyne valley in the Pyrenees

“I think he tried to mount the ewes and when they refused he stuck his horns into them.”

I have heard of bears, wolves and dogs attacking sheep, but never isards, so I asked Gila Chevillon who has kept sheep since the 1970s. Isards can’t mate with sheep, she told me. They are two different species: isards have hair, sheep have fleece. Not the same! She had never heard of them attacking sheep either.

The other question is what the isard was doing here in the first place? They normally live in the Pyrenees over 100km away, and 1000m higher up. Could it have been brought up in captivity somewhere nearby and escaped? This might explain its lack of sexual discrimination, but the rumour that there had been a ‘tame’ isard in a nearby village proved to be unfounded.

One day, it simply disappeared.

But just today Magali has told me that her goats’ udders are swelling. She doesn’t have a billy goat. “It must be the isard,” she insists. Can it be true? We’ll have to wait until the end of June to find out.

***

In the meantime, Veronica and I have started eating one of Magali’s lambs. Here is Veronica’s recipe.

Roast leg of lamb (the 26-minute method)

1 leg of lamb (about 2 kg)

for the marinade (optional)
olive oil
orange zest
lemon zest
aromatics of your choice: garlic, orange zest, rosemary, anchovies …
salt and pepper

Marinade the leg if you like, but in any case make sure it is at room temperature before cooking. Spike it with a knife and insert garlic, lemon zest and anything else you fancy. Put it on a tray in an oven which has been pre-heated to 260 degrees C – as hot as possible – for 20 minutes, turn it over and cook for a further 6 minutes. Take it out and wrap it thoroughly in aluminium foil followed by blankets. Put it in a cool box (to keep it hot) for 1 hour 30 minutes.

Not only is the result delicious, with all the juices retained, but this method frees the oven up for other things. More on larecettedujour.org

Three layers: garrigue, vines and solar panels

“In one year, the rent from the land brings in the same as if there were a vineyard there, but without the costs and the work involved,” says Mr Mazars. He is talking about the new solar farm in Talairan, in the Corbières wine-growing district.

Vineyards are being pulled up all over the Corbières. A few are replanted with so-called ‘improving’ grape varieties, but many are simply reverting to nature. So the construction of 3000 solar panels on the edge of this small village has not gone unnoticed. Together they will produce 1.3 MW, enough of the needs of a town of 1000 people.

We go to look, meeting a couple of retired people from a nearby village, also there for a Sunday afternoon out.

“We had a vineyard,” they tell us, “but our grandson didn’t want to take it on, so it has been pulled up. He’s found himself a better job.”

We inspect the installation, a black wave cascading over the low hills. Nobody ventures an opinion on the aesthetics, but there is still a sadness in the air. So, it has come to this. The Romans drank wine from these hills, and for centuries the hills have been dotted with vineyards. Now they are disappearing.

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