Tour des Pérics, Catalan Pyrénées – France (July 24)
As soon as Fabrice told me he was heading over from Vietnam in order to spend some time in Brussels & Europe, that was my cue to book a Eurotunnel crossing and arrange to meet up to do something, somewhere. No idea what or where!
Well we ended up on a hiking tour of the Catalan Pyrénées and a section one of its famous mountain circuits.
What a fantastic region, and a part of France I haven’t really explored – that is until now.
Seriously lush valleys, snow covered peaks, hundreds of beautiful waterfalls feeding dozens of lakes with crystal clear waters in which to bathe or simply marvel, and wildlife – we even spotted a huge stag on the opposite side of the valley on our second day.
We also lucked out with the weather, giving us a stunning backdrop for the entire week.
Fabrice managed to convince his younger son Django to join us, I had no such luck with Natty as he’d just been to Cornwall with some mates and couldn’t get the time off work.
Our plan was simple, to hike for four or five days staying over in different mountain refuge huts along the way.
We stayed on the French side of the border all week, but very close to Andorra.
The Trip
Affer the short 35 minute ride on the Eurotunnel, I collected Fabrice and Django from the town hall in central Calais and then headed south on a 12 hour journey to the Pyrenees. They had travelled by train from Brussels to meet me.
It wasn’t the cheapest way to do the trip what with tolls, diesel ‘n all (a train would have cost less), but was by far the most convenient.
Heading south, and before the sun set over the horizon, we decided to stop. We were midway through France so we headed for a tiny farm just north of the village of Uzerche. The farm had a small camping field where we could pitch our tents. Quite by luck we found the most perfect bar in the most exquisite location along the River Vézére just oozing French charm.
We headed back to the campsite for our first night under the stars.
We felt that we’d accidentally struck gold by finding this place, it looks like a fantastic region to head back and explore some time in the future. But for now we had to head further south…
When we arrived at the Pyrénées, I parked my car on a nondescript gravel road, half way up a mountain on what is a ski run in the winter; it was not far from the village of Formiguères.
We then headed off for what would be the start of a challlenging four day trek where we would clock up a good amount of steps each day (about 100,000 steps in total). We hiked to the snow line most days and witnessed some spectacular scenery.
Now I know that I wax lyrical about most places I visit as the planet on which we live has so many magical corners to explore, but the Pyrénées made us marvel at its natural beauty, especially the lower valleys, which were packed with late spring/early summer flowers of all colours, and surrounded by many varieties of grasses and trees.
The refuges we stayed at were perfect and provided a warm hearty meal to compensate for the calories we’d burned during the day. Most were quite basic, providing dormitory accommodation, clean washrooms and toilets. But that’s all you need when in the mountains.
The great thing about these refuges is that they also serve wine, beer and have plenty of games to keep visitors entertained in the evening. They are ideal places to swap stories and relax with other hikers; it’s all very communal and friendly
The prices in the refuges were reasonable, I think on average we paid between €40 – €60 per person for an evening meal, bed, breakfast and a packed lunch, which we collected each morning, meaning we didn’t have to carry provisions for the entire trip.
It’s worth noting that this region is also bereft of phone signal, which is both a blessing and a curse, depending on your view (a blessing for me).
… and when it got too hot, the crystal clear lakes were an ideal place to cool off. I went for a dip twice, the cool water helping to heel the swelling in my ancient knees and soothe my tired muscles!
With there being no light pollution, one thing we all commented on was the clarity of the night skies, so I tried to snap a few images that might convey just how remarkable the stars appeared.
Our final day in the Pyrénées
When you have no firm plans nothing can really go wrong, so when it turned out that Django’s feet were looking like they’d been attacked by a cheese grater after four days of continuous hiking, we thought we’d head off for a shorter, three hour hike to the nearest town where we’d catch a train and two buses back to Formiguères, rather than a ten hour hike back over the mountain.
The weather was also threatening to turn (rain) so we thought now was a good time to spilt! So I polished my boots for the last time, a little sad to be leaving such a beautiful region – but all good things come to an end (well perhaps not quite yet, as I was about to find out).
On the plus side, this plan meant we’d get to see the France national side in their Quarter Final of Euros 24 and I’d not need to endure the pair of them screeching in my ear whilst watching the game in the car!
So we booked a night’s accommodation in Ax-Les-Thermes, and started on our journey northward.
After taking a train from, L’Hospitalet-près-l’Andorre to Latour-de-Carol we took the bus 560 to the most beautiful walled town of Mont-Louis, the highest fortified town in France, which was build by Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban in 1681.
A small mini bus then took us to Formiguères where Fabrice and I deposited Django at a cafe before we headed off on what turned out to be a gruelling 2.5 hour hike uphill to collect the car, the hike was longer than we had anticipated….
We then did a short one hour drive over a huge mountain range with dozens and dozens of hairpin bends before settling down to a meal and a few beers to watch the game. It was a nail biting finish, with France narrowly winning.
An impromptu and welcome diversion!
The next day we encountered some very heavy traffic between Avignon and Lyon (the result of an accident) which meant we were not going to be able to make it to Brussels in one hit, so some quick rethinking was required. Fabrice called up some friends he knows who live near Dijon, so that’s where we headed for an impromptu stopover, it turned out to be a fabulous evening.
When we arrived, Isabelle and Kamel welcomed us into their beautiful home located next to a canal lock in Vandenesse-en-Auxois. They live in the most idyllic corner of the country with views along the canal towards the picturesque Chateau de Châteauneuf.
This place could not be more French! Absolutely heavenly. These guys are so lucky to live in such a gorgeous region.
We settled down to a wonderful outdoor meal in their spacious garden, with everyone lending a hand to prepare and cook the food, and with the wine flowing we had a fantastic evening.
I was also happy as England had just won their quarterfinal on penalties too. Fabrice and Django did the sensible thing by heading off to bed early, whilst I sat up with our hosts and their two other guests, Severine and Pierre long into the early hours. It turned out we all have similar music tastes and outlook on life, so we somehow broke through the language barrier to have a great night. The next day we exchanged details – I’ve gained some new friends and great memories.
Last stop – Brussels, Belgium.
After depositing Django with his mum and after some teary goodbye hugs, Fabrice and I headed off to the suburbs of Brussels, where we stayed with Guillaume in his apartment for a couple of days. Fabrice spent many years working with Guillaume in education before heading to Vietnam after his marriage went sideways. We managed to do the tourist thing by visiting the city centre, main square, grabbed a few meals and consumed far too much Belgium beer, oh and we spent far too much time in another Refuge… the local pub!
So all in all a great trip with fantastic memories and meeting new friends.
The Belgians also appear to have an obsession with pissing! Not quite sure why. Hey ho!
Return to the UK.
I got back from Folkestone early enough to meet Emma, Meera, Lisa and Hannah in a swanky new bar near to East Croydon station. A great way to end the week. I missed the French game on account of this – they lost to Spain, so fingers crossed for England.
Now for some rest! However, I now have to work on the honeydo list that Emma has been working up in my absence. Next time she’s coming with me… less time to think about what needs to be done back home!
Absolutely wanting to go on a hike like this. Looks absolutely incredible!
Amazing scenery and experiences . But too arduous for me. 100,000 steps!!!