Thursday 18th Bassegoda to Albanyà 10 kms

Easy day today. Just a downhill cruise to the village of Albanyà so we sleep in until 8 o'clock. The sun is only just coming up and for the first time, in the distance through a gap in the hills, we can see flat stuff, the Mediterranean sea. We knock off the 10Kms in just over 2 hours dropping 600 metres. At 230 metres above sea level, this is the lowest we have been virtually since the beginning of the walk and it shows in the temperature. From here to the end it will be shorts and t-shirts, the snow gear gets put at the bottom of the pack. We have a lazy afternoon, lunch at the only bar in the village, we rent a little cabin in the camping ground and drink a few beers. After yesterdays exertion we figure we deserve a break.

the climb up to Bassegoda

12th century romanic church of St. Christopher in Beget

Wednesday 17th Beget to Bassegoda 22 kms

The forecast was for bad weather and we had a dilemma. We had a 2 day walk from here to the village of Albanyà with no confirmed place to stay on the route. We have found it really difficult to get information about the GR11, even from the villages that are right on the route so it makes it hard to make decisions. Some people have compared our trip to the Camino de Santiago but as CJ put it very aptly today: the Camino de Santiago is a walk, the GR11 is an adventure, and part of that adventure is not knowing where you will be sleeping that night. The actual day's walk as planned by the published GR11 map is around 14 kms and stops at Sant Aniol d'Aguja. However, there is nowhere to sleep at Sant Aniol so our only choice was to continue further on to Bassegoda where there was a refuge though we didnt know what condition it would be in or even if we could get into it. The days walk would take us over 22 kms with 3 climbs totalling 1400 mtrs so we knew that we would be arriving near nightfall. If we couldn't stay at the refuge the nearest town, Albanyà, was another 3 hours away and would be a walk in the dark. We set off from Beget the day being a little cloudy but no rain. Nice. We climbed up to an old abandoned farm, Las Feixanes, and stopped to look at the impressive view down the valley. The area we were in, La Garrotxa, was forested with beech and oak making for really pleasant walking. We walked past some rivers with clear water and trout. Waterfalls pouring down narrow gaps carved out of the rock. The valleys were steep sided with sheer limestone cliffs showing through the forest cover. At the top of the 2nd climb we stopped for lunch near the old romanic church of St. Martì de Talaixà and the small Refugi d'En Rodri de Talaixà. It was a quick lunch cut even shorter when it started to rain. We headed off towards Sant Aniol walking along mule tracks made centuries ago. We walked through the abandoned village of Talaixà taking note of the terraced hills supported by drystone walls which would have taken generations to build. Originally built for farming, the forest has now taken them over. Like many of the remote villages in the Pyrenees without roads, only as little as 2 generations ago the younger people moved off the land to the cities and little by little the villages died after being inhabited for hundreds of years. We arrive at Sant Aniol. It was a monastery built in this remote valley in 859. Virtually nothing remains except the church built a 1000 years ago. For me Sant Aniol has a special significance; it was here 15 years ago that I found out about the GR11 walk. Now we had the tough climb up to the Coll de Bassegoda. CB as usual taking the lead with me as tail end charlie. The walk is magnificent, stunning views. By the time I get to the top the sun is setting and I still have 2 kilometres to go down through the forest. Meanwhile CB has arrived at the refuge to find it locked. Fortunately there is notice written in several languages including english advising that a key is available at a nearby farmhouse. By the time I get down there night has just fallen and CJ has the dinner cooking. The refuge is at 820 mtrs altitude and tonight will be our last night in the wilds. With only 6 walking days to go we will be staying in small towns from here to the finish. After dinner we go outside to look at the stars and in the sky above the hills on the horizon in the distance, the reflection of the glow of lights of a city can be seen. Something we havent seen since we set out on this trip.

A dedication to Austin Holden and Laurie Bell Tuesday 16th

We had a 20 km day today and the weather looked good. After an excellent breakfast at L'Esquella we filled up our water bottles from the spring in the main square in Setcases and set off. In the first 3kms we had to climb 600 metres to a high meadow. We were able to look back at the mountains that we had crossed yesterday before the downhill walk to the village of Molló. We stopped for lunch there before starting the 10km trek to my favourite Catalan village, Beget. I have been to Beget a few times before but this was the first time on foot and it was interesting to follow the old original track that was the only way to get to the village up to 40 years ago. Beget has an important historical building, the church that was built in the 12th century and is the church of Saint Christopher the patron saint of travellers. So, apart from being a 4th Chris, he was the guy to ask for good things to happen to us on the rest of the trip. Also I thought it appropriate to light a candle for a couple of old friends who are no longer with us; my good friend Laurie Bell who died in an accident nearly 20 years ago and our mutual friend Austin Holden who passed away only a week ago. They say only the good die young, particularly true with Laurie and Austin. The world is a better place for them having lived in it.

Refugi d'Ull de Ter

Lunch outside the refuge which is set amidst the ski fields of Setcases. Ull de Ter in Catalan literally means "Eye of the Earth" but it refers to a mountain spring. The water we got from the spring just below the refuge was superb.

Blue skies, big mountains

Our last day of snow and altitudes of 2800 mtrs. From now to the end we would still be climbing through steep hilly country but apart from crossing Bassegoda (1124 mtrs) it would all be under 1000 mtrs altitude.

Monday 15th Nuria to Setcases 20kms

After a cup of coffee from the vending machine in the railway station, Javier pointed the way to the GR11. Today was to be our last day in the real high mountains of the Pyrenees. We had a perfect day for it, cold in fact there was ice on the ground, but a clear blue sky. As we climbed up towards the high ridge of Noufonts, we saw mouflon, a mountain goat brought in from France to replace the Cabra Hispanica which was decimated some years ago by a virus. Near the pass we arrived at the snowline and crunched through the icy crust to reach the Coll de Noufonts (2645mtrs). We had a clear view from there to Puigmal. Over the next hour and a half we followed the ridge through the snow with amazing views. We climbed to the top of 7 peaks before midday before finally reaching the Coll de la Marrana and the descent through the snow down to the Refugi d'Ull de Ter where stopped for lunch, then following the pista to Setcases. An excellent last day in the tops. Once in the village of Setcases we looked for a room. Finding cheaper accommodation in Spain these days is not easy. A bed in a "cheap" hotel has typically cost us 20 euros each even when the 3 of us share a room. Add dinner and breakfast and the bill for the 3 of us runs to between 120 and 150 euros a night. So a bit of searching around is always required to find the best price. So after asking around we found L'Esquella, a restaurant that rents rooms, the best value in Setcases. A good 3 course meal with a couple of bottles of vino rosado and bedtime.

Santuari de Nuria

Hemos hecho cumbre!

There were also about 20 others there including some that came up carrying their mountain bikes!

Puigmal summit

Sunday 14th Puigmal to Nuria

The weather for the last few days had been perfect and Albert suggested a better plan for getting to the Santuari de Nuria instead of a 2 day walk south around Puigmal (2910 mtrs) through Planoles and Queralbs, he suggested climbing to the summit of Puigmal and then down the other side directly to Nuria, a much more interesting route and , with the good weather, more scenic. So sunday morning we set off in Alberts 4 wheel drive (Luxury!! After spending the last few weeks having to climb the entire distance up a mountain on foot, to get driven halfway up the mountain is amazing!). After we parked the car, Albert accompanied us on the 2 and a half hour climb up to the summit, the last part of which was snow covered. Amazingly when we reached the summit, there was a party going on. It was a holiday weekend and there were more than 20 people on the top. The view was fantastic. Puigmal is right on the border with France (we had climbed up on the french side) so we were looking over France as well as Spain. We could see as far south as Montserrat and even Tibidabo, the high point just above Barcelona. After a quick lunch on the top we said goodbye to Albert (Moltes gracies!) and headed down the Coma de l'Embut valley to Nuria. The Santuari de Nuria is owned by the catholic church and I guess was originally a place for religious devotion by monks. Today it is a holiday place for visitors in the summer and ski resort in winter run by the Generalitat, the Catalan government. Apart from walking, the only way into this high alpine valley (1900mtrs) is by the "cremallera", a train that uses a cog drive system to get up the steep incline. Unfortunately for us, the resort was undergoing major renovations and so everything was closed leaving us nowhere to sleep (we had left our tents with Albert to reduce weight for the last section thinking that we would no longer need them). At this altitude the temperature would drop below freezing during the night so we needed cover. We sat at picnic tables by a water fountain and cooked soup and pasta on our little camp stove for dinner as the evening closed in. We were wearing every bit of clothing we had. A security guard walked up to find out what we were doing there and I explained our problem and told him we were doing the GR11. He immediately sympathised and said that he too had done the GR11. It was like being part of a brotherhood. He took us to a large storeroom below a ski station with blankets and mattresses and said we could sleep there. Fantastic! (muchas gracias Javier).

Sierra de Cadi

Thursday 11th to Saturday 13th Puigcerda Vacaciones

Thursday we stayed in Puigcerda in a hotel opposite the train station. It war of course a wonderfully sunny day. We got on with doing stuff (boot repairs, internet email catch up, laundry, haircut, etc) and most of all resting feet. On friday morning Albert and Olga picked us up and took us to their house in the village of Vilallobent. During the weekend, apart from eating too much good food (and putting back the kilos I had lost before) we visited the church of Sant Andreu in Vilallobent, an 11th century building now fully restored thanks to 4 of the local residents. We took a trip to Estana in the Sierra de Cadi (in a car - nearly no walking needed!!). And we visited the best place in Vilallobent for eating and drinking - the "era"(see foto). After eating prawns, escalivada, navajas and other shellfish, tortilla, chorizo, and drinking glass after wonderful glass of Montilla-Morales from the vineyard of Alvear, it was time to go home for lunch, which also wonderful, and then a siesta. Thanks Olga. Wonderful hospitality.

La peña de la era de Vilallobent

Moltes gracies per el menjar i vi bonissim.

Albert and Olga

Dos dias de relax en Vilallobent.

Albert, Maria y Claudia in Vilallobent

Adios Vicente

Gracias por tu compañia y ayuda Vicente, senderista de GR11 de Burgos.

Wednesday 10th Refugi de L'illa to Puigcerda

Woke before sunrise. So cold it is snowing. We are short on cooking fuel so its muesli soaked in cold water for breakfast. We have a short climb up to the lake and then we cross from Andorra back into Spain. We wander downhill into a valley with large Breton horses and pyrenean cattle grazing, the bells around their necks a constant sound throughout the length of the Pyrenees. We reach the bottom of the valley at Cabana de Esparvers. A sign indicates a change in direction and we start winding up towards a mountain pass in the distance. An hour and a half later we reach the pass. There is a stone pillar which indicates a border with France. We realise that we have walked to the wrong pass. As we think about where we went wrong, another walker arrives. He had seen the same sign as us below and had made the same mistake. The weather had turned bad, very cold with either snow or rain coming. It was too late to turn back so we crossed through the pass and into France and headed down into the valley without a clue as to what there was below. In one day we had walked through 3 countries. 3 hours later we reached the bottom of the valley and walked into the french village of Porta. It was raining hard and we entered the only bar open. I ordered 3 beers and asked where we were. About 18 kms north of Puigcerda. Together with Vicente from Burgos, the other lost walker, we caught a taxi to Spain. It means that we have arrived a day earlier than expected and I had arranged with friends Olga and Albert to stay with them over the weekend in their house in Vilallobent near Puigcerda. No problem, we would stay tonight and thursday night at a hotel and friday and saturday night with Albert and Olga. A really good rest for body and feet.

Adios Andorra