The GR11 Trail. Brian Johnson
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Название: The GR11 Trail
Автор: Brian Johnson
Издательство: Ingram
Жанр: Книги о Путешествиях
isbn: 9781783626205
isbn:
Jonathan Williams
AUTHOR’S PREFACE
Limestone outcrops, Sierra de Abodi (Stage 6)
The first Cicerone guide to the GR11 was published in 1996. At that time the route was ill-defined with little waymarking; navigation was a serious problem and there was much walking on tarmac and dirt roads. Constant changes and improvements in the route kept Paul Lucia busy producing updates and his fourth edition was published in 2008. Since 2008 there have been major route changes to the GR11, especially in the Basque Country and Navarre. Road walking has been reduced to a minimum, the route has been well signed and waymarked and the GR11 has now developed into a magnificent route through largely unspoilt and wild mountains. The author walked the main route again in 2017 for this updated guide but has not walked all the alternative routes since 2013. This update includes the new route between La Mina and Candanchu, the only major change since 2013.
It is now possible to walk the GR11 without camping or using bothies and this new guide is organised into 47 stages for the benefit of those who are using accommodation along the route. Walkers who, like the author, prefer wild camping in the mountains will find much greater flexibility in their planning.
Brian Johnson
Lac Redon and Lac Long (Stage 25)
INTRODUCTION
Punta Chistau (Stage 20)
The Pyrenees is the mountain chain which forms the border between France and Spain, stretching over 400km from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea. The GR11, which stays on the Spanish side of the border, provides a very varied scenic route through magnificent, often remote, high or deserted mountains.
As the GR11 leaves the border town of Irún on the Atlantic Coast, it follows ridges on the gentle grassy and wooded hills of the Basque Country and Navarre. There is then a rapid transition into steep limestone mountains, passing through the world-renowned Ordesa Canyon before the fantastic granite peaks of the High Pyrenees are reached. The High Pyrenees rise to over 3000m, with snowfields surviving well into the summer and the remnants of the glaciers which carved out the deep valleys. The GR11 generally heads up these alpine valleys before crossing a high pass and descending into the next valley. These rough, tough mountains continue into Andorra. The mountains become gentler once Andorra is passed but, surprisingly, the highest point on the GR11 is reached after the High Pyrenees are left behind. As the Mediterranean is approached, the GR11 follows a line of steep, rugged, wooded hills to reach the sea at the spectacular peninsula of Cap de Creus.
National and natural parks
The GR11 passes through two national parks and six natural parks:
Parque Natural de Valles Occidentales
Parque Nacional de Ordesa y Monte Perdido
Parque Natural de Posets-Maladeta
Parc Nacional d’Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici
Parc Natural Alt Pirineu
Parc Natural Valls de Comapedrosa
Parc Natural Val del Madriu
Parc Natural Cap de Creus
The Valles Occidentales (western valleys) of Aragón is predominantly composed of limestone and is a relatively gentle introduction to the tough alpine terrain ahead of you.
Ordesa and Monte Perdido, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is the largest limestone massif in Western Europe. The highest peak is Monte Perdido (3355m) but it is the deep valleys, with thundering cascades and waterfalls edged by towering limestone, which attract the tourist.
Posets-Maladeta is a granite massif containing half the 3000m summits in the Pyrenees including Aneto (3404m), the highest mountain in the Pyrenees. Highly glaciated granite mountains provide some of the most spectacular mountain scenery in the world with thousands of little sparkling lakes nestling in a landscape dominated by bare rock.
As you pass into Catalonia, you pass through Aigüestortes and Sant Maurici National Park, another magical granite massif, and then the Parc Natural Alt Pirineu, the largest natural park in Catalonia. Alt Pirineu continues into Andorra as the Parc Natural Valls de Comapedrosa. The Val del Madriu as you leave Andorra is the final alpine section, with more fine granite scenery.
The GR11 ends with the Parc Natural Cap de Creus, which is a complete contrast: a rocky dry region, with almost no trees, on a peninsula sticking out into the Mediterranean Sea.
From the Atlantic to the Mediterranean
Col d’Angliós from Ibón d’Angliós (Stage 22)
There are three long-distance paths along the Pyrenees from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean:
GR10
High-level route (Haute Randonnée Pyrénénne, HRP)
GR11 (La Senda Pirenaica)
The oldest and most popular of these routes is the GR10, which is entirely in France. This well-waymarked path is not so wild and rough as the GR11 but it passes through equally spectacular terrain. Frequent visits to towns and villages means accommodation and supplies are not usually a problem. Staying to the north of the watershed, the GR10 has a much cooler and cloudier climate than on the GR11.
The HRP, which passes through France, Spain and Andorra, is not so much a walk as a mountaineering expedition. The route is not waymarked, except where it coincides with other routes, and you must expect to get lost! There is a lot of very rough terrain, including some very steep, possibly dangerous descents, and a lot of snow can be expected until late summer. Visits to towns and villages are infrequent so resupply is difficult and you will have to camp most of the time. You will spend a lot of time on high mountain ridges with a serious risk of thunderstorms and even fresh snow. The HRP is a daunting route for the inexperienced but is a magnificent expedition for those with the right experience.
The GR11 is a well-waymarked path which passes through Spain and Andorra. Like the HRP, it crosses many high mountain passes where there are boulderfields, scree and some easy scrambling at about the maximum difficulty the inexperienced would want when carrying a heavy rucksack. The weather tends to be considerably sunnier and drier than on the GR10 and thunderstorms are less of a problem than on the HRP as you don’t spend long periods on high ridges. Frequent visits to towns and villages mean that resupply isn’t much of a problem. Those who prefer not to camp or bivouac will find that a few of the days are rather long and that some of the alternative routes featured in this guide will need to be taken. There could be problems with snow in early season, but not later in the summer. Although the GR11 stays СКАЧАТЬ