A Head For Heights…
Launching ourselves into what would be our penultimate day on the GR11, we found that the trail once again took us to higher elevations. The shaded forests and wild meadows we had enjoyed on the previous few days quickly gave way to windswept rocks, steep ravines and giant boulder fields.
Sunshine, wind and temperature can all reach their extremes up high, so it is all the more important to guard your body against the inhospitable mountain environment. But with the increased effort of hiking at higher altitudes comes great rewards…
Making our way up the Valle de Ballibierna, we were presented with a unique and unforgettable viewpoint of one of the most beautiful and captivating places we have ever hiked. Affording expansive views to the north, the jagged, snow-covered peaks within the Posets-Maladeta Parque Natural continued to dominate the skyline, whilst right at our feet were the glistening, turquoise mountain waters of the Ibones de Ballibierna. It was a beautiful reminder of how wild and remote this section of the GR11 is and how lucky we were to be experiencing such a natural wonder. We couldn’t have asked for a better day as our adventure was sadly nearing the end…
Preparing to tackle the final section of boulder field whilst making our way up to the Collada de Ballibierna.
Tuesday 22nd August 2017 – Day 12 – Camping Aneto, Puente de San Jaime to River Wild Camp next to Estany de Botornas (Lake) just past Refugio de Llauset – ‘On A Mission!’
Start time: 08:54. End time: 16:33. Distance: 12.8km. Ascent: 1,246m / Descent: 723m.
We were both awake unusually early, the thought playing on our minds that we somehow needed to get hold of some cash to pay for our forthcoming stay at a hotel in Forcat the next evening – tomorrow being be our final trail day! As there wasn’t an ATM in the vicinity and with no other option of acquiring some, we decided to walk to the nearest town – Benasque, which was around 3km down the road. (Not with packs – we’re not that crazy – we already had an 18km trek ahead of us with an elevation gain of around 1,700 metres, plus a large part of the day would be crossing boulder field. So, leaving everything stowed away in our tent, our plan was to hot-foot it to town and back before the majority of campers even ventured out of their tents for breakfast!
It was a good plan! We set off from the campsite at 7:45am in pursuit of the nearest bank (which happened to be Santander along the main street in Benasque). We estimated that we could walk there and back in just over an hour and it was a good call as we had returned to the campsite by 9am, having picked up some fresh ‘pan au chocolate’ from a local panaderia on the way back.
As we had then already partaken in a brisk 6km warm up for the day, we made the decision to shorten the next 18km by way of taking the shuttle bus from Senarta up the mountain as far as the emergency refuge – Refugio de Corones. This would save us 7km of walking uphill and 2 hours of effort in the hot sun. The only problem was that the bus departure time was 11:15am and we had a 3km uphill walk to Senarta first if we wanted to catch it. (Failing that, the next bus was 3:15pm, which would be far too late for us to start our hiking day.) So now not only had we already power walked to town and back, we were having to furiously pack our rucksacks in readiness to hit the trail, where a quickened uphill pace would be needed if we were to have any chance of making it to the bus stop in time!
Leaving Camping Aneto and heading for Senarta, where our revised plan was to take the shuttle bus partway up the mountain to save us 7km and 2 hours of walking under an intense sun.
We were afforded fabulous mountain views as we began the ascent from Puente de San Jaime starting at 1,314 metres.
Water was available along the route, however we had already topped up with supplies at the campground prior to leaving.
Reaching Senarta. Nestled between the peaks is this gem of a campsite!) We plan to return in the future whilst doing a tour of the Pyrenees between France and Spain!
Mission 2 of the day accomplished! With Wayne leading the way at record speed, we arrived at Senarta before 11am, so we even had time to spare. There were several other day hikers congregated at the bus stop all waiting for a ride up to Refugio Corones, and all went according to plan!
The bus that took us up the mountain. Search www.avanzabus.com for timetables and latest prices.
Now having a good cash reserve hidden away in our packs, at a cost of €10.20 per person for a single one-way ticket, we thought the bus journey was worth it. The entire hour climbing up the track at a slow chug however was quite hair-raising at times with the bus making its way around the sharp bends, all the while there being a sheer drop off to the right hand side. Put it this way, we were immensely glad to have sat on the left!
Arriving at the emergency refuge, (Refugio Puen del Corones – a large bothy) we took some time to put on sun cream and eat some chocolate to give us a sugar boost for the impending ‘up’ that was yet to come. Even with the bus journey helping us with part of the ascent, we still had around 700 metres to go to reach the top of today’s pass – Collada de Ballibierna at 2,732 metres.
Today’s segment is considered one of the toughest passes on the GR11 – yet nothing we had hiked before, nor after on the central section of the trail that we covered, could match the 1,000 metre unpleasantly steep descent from Collata Anisclo on Day 8.
After such a busy morning, we found it was both a wonderfully scenic and pleasant uphill walk to the first lake, the Ibon Inferior de Ballibierna sanswiched between the walls of the rugged mountains at 2,440 metres. We were following the Ballibierna River and there were several little waterfalls and plunge pools along the way, with tremendous views looking back down the valley from which we had just walked. We could even see the striking mountain range in the distance that we had passed yesterday within the Posets-Maladeta Parque Natural.
A stony trail leads the way up the Ballibierna valley from the Refugio Corones.
The lush green valley and evergreen trees soon gave way to alpine dry scrubland.
I don’t think anyone could possibly miss this cairn and head in the wrong direction!
Heading up towards the mountains…
The GR11 follows alongside the Ballibierna River towards the pass.
Jagged peaks dominated the skyline in every direction.
We knew that the water would feel icy cold, but it looked so inviting and as it would be our last chance on the trail, I stripped down to my underwear and tentatively got into one of the pools! It certainly cooled me off! (It was so brutally numbing that I couldn’t stay in there for any longer than a few photographs as evidence that I’d done it! Not posted on here!)
After I’d dried off and warmed up in the sun, we continued on to the first Ballibierna Lake where all the other day hikers were now enjoying their picnic lunches, as well as the incredible view.
Enjoying the view whilst debating whether or not to strip off and take a dip in one of the icy cool pools! It was to be our last chance before finishing the following day.
Looking back down the valley we had an excellent view of the high peaks over in the Posets-Maladeta Parque Natural where we had hiked from yesterday.
The tundra was becoming more desolate the higher we went.
Reaching the outlet of the lower lake of the Ibones de Ballibierna.
It’s amazing how flora and fauna can still survive at higher elevations in such harsh conditions.
With pure, glacial-like waters, the lake was absolutely crystal clear.
Simply beautiful!
Panorama looking back onto the first of the Ballibierna lakes.
From here the GR11 trail goes around the left side of the lower lake, but it becomes a little tougher with some traversing over boulders and crags. We relaxed our pace a little and took a water break on a rocky outcrop overlooking the north shore, affording us views of the day hikers sat directly on the opposite side. We agreed there was no point rushing through this section when it was so hot and the views were so beautiful.
Taking the GR11 trail that traverses the left side of the lake. In the background, day hikers stopped by the shore to enjoy a picnic lunch before returning to Refugio Corones in readiness for the last bus back to Senarta.
We were so lucky to have such great weather, which made the experience even more splendid!
We stopped to soak up the tremendous scenery on a rocky outcrop towards the middle of the lake.
Continuing up the trail and now looking onto the Ibon Superior de Ballibierna, which was just as serene and beautiful.
Posing in front of the Ibones de Ballibierna. Next to Wayne’s foot is a painted waymark indicating the GR11 route.
Way off in the distance the peaks of the Posets-Maladeta Parque Natural can still be seen.
The final 400 metres or so to the collada continues up a giant boulder field that requires an extreme amount of concentration – but it kind of takes your mind off how far you’ve still got to ascend, and after traversing a few large boulders you feel like you’re covering a lot of ground quickly. (In reality, the final 2km or so took us a couple of hours!) But the route is well-marked with rocks daubed in red and white paint flashes, directing you across and up the boulder field in the most accessible way.
Finally at the top of the pass there are fabulous views in both directions. Both higher and lower Ballibierna lakes can be seen, as well as the Ibon Cap de Llauset over on the other side. We took another breather and refuelled with water and snacks before the shortish descent to where we had planned on wild camping.
Looking up to the collada. We had a huge rocky boulder field to cross before we got there!
Making our way over the giant rocks. Paint flashes indicated the most accessible route up.
Nearing the top of the pass, the Collada de Ballibierna at 2,732 metres.
From the top of the pass we looked down onto Ibon Cap de Llauset. The descent was not as taxing as it looks!
Much like on the ascent, the way down was also across boulder field, but this time we found the descent was slightly easier, with the route soon turning into a well trodden trail that was more straightforward to navigate and much kinder on the knees and ankles. We filled up with water from a spring gushing out of a cluster of rocks, happy that there was no sign of cattle in this valley. Straight off the mountain, we thought the water would be fine to drink without filtering. In fact, we hardly used our filter the entire trip – choosing instead to either fill up from potable water taps at campsites, from fuentes that we located on our map, or by fast flowing streams or waterfalls at higher elevations where we knew the water had come straight off the mountains.
It was much cooler at the top of the pass with the wind funnelling through, so we put on wind jackets to combat the cold until we got moving again.
Signage at the top of the pass indicating how far to the next refugio in either direction. Looking back towards the Ibones de Ballibierna.
Psyching ourselves up for the final push of the day. Descending into the Llauset valley where we initially planned on wild camping somewhere past the refugio.
Carefully making our way downhill through the boulder field. Again the paint flashes helped us navigate our way through.
Instead of heading uphill to the Refugio de Cap de Llauset (a new refuge that first opened in 2016, which was having another section added in August 2017), we continued on a variant of the GR11 towards the Embalse de Llauset. Wayne had earmarked a wild camp spot close to the outlet of the lake for us to utilise on our final night on the trail. However, before we reached the lake we spied a great spot close to a stream leading to Estany de Botornas (another small lake). It was perfect for accommodating a larger size tent such as ours. Unfortunately the sun soon went behind the mountains that towered above us putting us in shade, but it was a great spot all the same.
From one valley to another… The mountains seemed never-ending!
Looking across to the Refugio de Cap de Llauset, a fairly new refuge that was undergoing major extension works to the building in the summer of 2017.
Along the trail there is excellent signage for the various landmarks in the area. (Not just the GR11 trail.)
Heading on a GR11 variant route towards the Embalse de Llauset. However we wild camped by the first small tarn, the Estany de Botornas.
We found a wonderful pre-used wild camp spot just across the inlet stream that offered shelter from the wind.
Surrounded by striking peaks, it was a lovely wild camp spot to complete our adventure in the Pyrenees.
What a fabulous evening in the mountains!
Looking back up towards the pass which we had hiked down earlier.
For our final wild camp supper we enjoyed fried eggs, salami and cheese sandwiches followed by hot chocolates and cinnamon pastries that we’d purchased at the last supermercado. Then it was an early night for us in preparation for hiking down off the trail the following morning and on to the little settlement of Forcat, where we had booked a hotel for the night prior to our 6am bus journey back to Barcelona on Thursday.
Our camp spot next to some giant boulders that offered us wind protection. (We just hoped there wasn’t a rockfall during the night!)
Our final trail dinner was a wonderful feast by any hiker standards!
We literally couldn’t believe how fast a fortnight had gone and that tomorrow our adventure on the GR11 would come to a close…
1 Comment
Another sensational day, with a perfect wild camp for your final night.