Pyrenees, France, Sept 2023
TRAVERSE : OSSAU - CAUTERETS
Once again we come face to face with the beautiful range of Pyrenees Mountain. They never disappoint and this time I am lucky enough to be accompanied by my wife. We are a small but perfectly formed group with our lovely guide Mandy, whom I had met on my previous trips, and our lovely host Sian from Les Templiers.
Day 1
After a flight from Edinburgh to Toulouse, our train took us to Lourdes where a few hours later we were met by our host Sian and driven down to Luz-Saint-Sauveur. The sun was shining, skies were blue and the mountains were calling for our next adventure.
Day 2
We started our hike from Lac de Bious Artigue (1422m) from where we walk up past Pic du Midi d’Ossau (2884m) towards out first Refuge Camp D’Ayous (1970m) - Located in the Atlantic Pyrenees mountain range of the Béarn region in the heart of the Ossau Valley.
After a few hours of walking up, taking pictures, and enjoying the breathtaking scenery, we finally arrived at our refuge.
After setting up for the night , we decided to rest our weary bodies and tired feet with a “cool off” in the ice cold water of the lake. We enjoyed split pee soup, couscous with slow cooked beef stew at 7pm and then I decided to climb up behind the refuge and prepare my camera gear, my wide angle lens 16-35mm f4 with polariser filter and as a back up lens 70-200mm f2.8 for sunset shots. On our first day we walked 12 592 steps.
Day 3/4
Our whole group stayed comfortably together in the one room, enjoying dinner together and sleeping well. The next day we woke refreshed and ready to walk to Pombie Refuge (2032m).
Today we walked for a few very pleasant hours and managed a healthy 17013 steps. On the last stretch to the refuge we noticed a heavy storm approaching. We made it in time to Pombie Refuge and enjoyed a great meal and a good sleep.
After a lovely breakfast and checking the forecast for the day, we have decided to stay another night at the Refuge. Overnight storms with heavy rain and lightning continued throughout the day. It was a good decision to stay put but the following day the weather improved and we were able to continue our adventure.
Day 5
We packed early, had breakfast and headed down. During our descent the sun came up and lit up all the surrounding areas. Conditions for taking pictures were amazing and I was so excited running crazily around trying to find the perfect location, and composition to maximise all the conditions Mother Nature had put on offer for us that morning.
On the way down we met a local Cheese farmer, who invited us for a friendly chat, coffee and tasting cheese. How lucky were we and what an incredible experience to taste freshly made sheep+cow cheese.
Due to our day in the refuge we had a larger distance to cover today so had to bid farewell to our host and begin our descent without any further delay thanking our host for his hospitality and cheese. Usually we would have stopped by Arremoulit Refuge, however the refuge was under construction, so we continued to the next one walking directly to Embalsa Respumoso. We passed some magical locations on the way, particularly around the small lakes. From Arremoulit (2257m), we crossed over to Spain via the Palas Pass (2517m) and headed down towards our stop at Embalsa Respumoso. Dinner was not what we expected. On this occasion on Spanish side we had scotch broth soup which was amazing and french fries with chicken leg, selection of juices and yogurt.
During our hike we had to traverse the side of the mountain using a cable -chain crossing. Let me tell you this is definitely not for the light hearted, having a large backpack and clinging to the cable while not looking down requires all your concentration. Once you had reached the over side you felt exhilarated and that you had achieved the impossible.
Day 6
Once again, we packed up our gear and started walking. Leaving Respumoso we climbed over the steep mountain sides to the Col de la Fache (2664m). The trek was pleasant with some scrambling but a “gentle“ descent which was much easier on our knees . We walked down to the Marcadau forests and the Wallon Refuge (1865m). Finally after 8 hours of walking we returned to the same spot where we had started our adventure. Of course we couldn’t resist a last dunk in the freezing water of the mountain stream and totally submerged ourselves.
It really is an incredible feeling to be so far away from civilization and the busyness of life and feeling “free” simply surrounded by nature.
Day 7
Our last location was Gavarnie. It is known for the Cirque de Gavarnie, and the Gavarnie Falls in it, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Pyrénées – Mont Perdu.
I spent 6 days hiking from hut to hut, photographing, walking, hiking, swimming and chatting with my fellow companions.
We did 111.053 steps across 52.5 km between 1346 to 2666 meters height above sea level, with average 18.508 steps per day.
Here are a few tips I learned during the film shoot:
Use circular polariser
Shoot early morning or late evening for sunrise and sunset vibes;
Use natural framing - trees, rocks, and all surroundings;
Use leading lines - paths, streams, rock formations etc.;
Water reflections if you can and shoot from different levels;
Try different angles for the same location;