The Rough Guide to the Pyrenees - 5th Edition Book

Introduction to the Pyrenees Anyone could find their perfect retreat in the Pyrenees, a range encompassing a diversity of landscapes rarely equalled in Europe. Between balmy Mediterranean beaches and the more turbulent Atlantic coast lie lush meadowland, snow-clad peaks, canyons of sinuously sculpted rock, dense broadleaf forest, weirdly eroded limestone pinnacles and sheer, overgrown valleys that get perhaps two hours of sun daily. These mountains challenge and invite rather than intimidate. Generally rounded and crumbling, their peaks ? including 3404-metre Aneto, the highest Pyrenean summit, plus the next-ranking peaks of Posets, Monte Perdido and Vignemale ? are attainable by any determined and properly equipped walker, even with little experience of such terrain. Other natural wonders beckon to the averagely fit: the Valle de Ordesa, most spectacular of many canyons, can be traversed on gentle footpaths, as can the great glaciated amphitheatre of the Cirque de Gavarnie just north. The stalactite-draped cavern of Lombrives is the largest cave in Western Europe open to the public, while the Sala de la Verna in one of the world?s deepest cave systems ? the Gouffre Pierre-Saint-Martin ? requires no great physical effort. You can raft down various foaming rivers on both sides of the range, including the Noguera Pallaresa in Catalunya and the Gállego in Aragón, as well as several tamer ones on the French side. Canyoners of all ability levels are well catered to in the "pre-Pyrenean" Sierra de Guara, also in Spanish Aragón. Walking the Pyrenees from end to end has become a classic endeavour. Thousands have followed the Haute Randonnée Pyrénéenne (HRP) to either side of the watershed; the more circuitous but less demanding Grande Randonnée 10 (GR10) entirely within France; or the equally spectacular Spanish Gran Recorrido 11 (GR11). Detailed maps for the entire range show numerous other, briefer itineraries, suitable for hikers at all levels. Pyrenean wildlife is exceptionally rich, despite the devastating impact of human activity on many species. Deer and wild boar hide in the forests, and in certain dense woodlands a dwindling number of brown bear still manage to survive. In contrast, the ubiquitous isard (Pyrenean chamois) abounds, as do shy wildcats; marmots are plentiful (and audible); while majestic birds of prey patrol the skies. The capercaillie, a bird now extinct in the French Alps, still (just) survives in the Pyrenees, while the tiny desman, an aquatic mole, is unknown elsewhere in Western Europe, except the Picos de Europa. Traces of human habitation in the Pyrenees predate recorded history by millennia, with artefacts found (and displayed) at various caves in the Ariège, the Couserans and the Comminges regions. Among the prehistoric caves around Tarascon-sur-Ariège, the paintings in the Grotte de Niaux rank as the best open to public view worldwide. Hundreds of extraordinary Romanesque churches and monasteries constitute the Pyrenees? architectural highlights, including such renowned examples as Saint-Martin-de-Canigou, Serrabone, Santa Maria de Ripoll, Sant Climent de Taüll and a host of others in the Vall de Boí, Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges, San Juan de la Peña, and Saint-Engrâce in the Haute-Soule. So-called "Roman" bridges still linking isolated villages are even older, though not always pre-Christian. In the west of the range, numerous monuments attest to the thousands during the Middle Ages who followed the pilgrimage trail to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia via the fabled Puerto de Ibañeta near Roncesvalles, or the nearby Col du Somport. From the Mediterranean to the Ariège, the strength of the Cathar heresy is reflected in many immensely evocative ruined castles, notably the crag-top citadel of Montségur, site of this faith?s effective extinction.Read More