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loving kindness,Bon chemin @futurefjp
I have just returned from following the GR 36 and one of the Catalan chemins de compostelle from Le Sidobre near Castres up to Bourg-Madame at the French-Spanish border . I didn't carry a tent, just a sleeping sheet. Most gîte d'étape were closed or booked out. I walked disconnected making enquiries from day to day, face to face. People welcomed me into their homes whilst others provided a floor here and there. It was an awesome experience but physically challenging, more than a strenuous walk...
Which route from Perpignon will you be attempting?
Cheers
Lovingkindness
Trails walked (Aug 2021):
GR 36 from Pont de Bézergues to Eus:
Pont de Bézergues to Cambounès
Cambounès to Ribaute
Ribaute to Sournia
Tour du Canigou
Arboussouls to Eus
Vernet-les-Bains to Estoher
Prades to Bourg-Madame: I improvised with the trail, sometimes following le chemin de St Jacques other times following sections of the Tour du Canigou.
[From Thues-entre-Valles to Mont Louis I took the bus. I spoke with several folk who had just completed the section to Fontpedrouse and was told the trail is vertigionous involving narrow paths beside vertical drops, terrain which in the past has caused my body to freeze and eyes to unfocus. The road from Thues-entre-Valles is too dangerous to walk and there isn't a low-level rambling trail as alternative.
Here's a video of part of the missed section. 'Les Gorges de la Caranca' . Hats off to you if you walk this!]
Hi @mspath. No, I am not in Bourg-Madame any more. Such a pity. I do hope to return some day and continue on via Puigcerda to Lleida....loving kindness,
Wow! That is quite a journey that you did; glad that you improvised where needed. Are you still in Bourg-Madame ?
Wherever you may be stay safe and Carpe diem.
Hello again,Hi @mspath. No, I am not in Bourg-Madame any more. Such a pity. I do hope to return some day and continue on via Puigcerda to Lleida....
To celebrate my arrival at the French-Spanish border I took tea at an elegant salon de thé by the bridge in Bourg-Madame. The next day I took the bus to Porté-Puymorens then hitch-hiked via Foix to Toulouse. With personal affaires to organise, I decided to return by foot to where I am staying in Le Lot et Garonne: I followed le Voie d'Arle from Toulouse to Auch then the Tour au Coeur du Gascogne to Condom after which I hitch-hiked to Agen station etc etc...
View attachment 108605
Bourg-Madame: salon de thé
On y va, @mspath!Hello again,
Your picture of tea time in Bourg-Madame looks delicious. Since it is truly tea time now at 16:30 I'll take an afternoon walk to our favorite patisserie for some tartlettes.
I think up the Tet?Bon chemin @futurefjp
I have just returned from following the GR 36 and one of the Catalan chemins de compostelle from Le Sidobre near Castres up to Bourg-Madame at the French-Spanish border . I didn't carry a tent, just a sleeping sheet. Most gîte d'étape were closed or booked out. I walked without mobile phone or internet connection making enquiries from day to day, face to face. People welcomed me into their homes whilst others provided a floor here and there. It was an awesome experience but physically challenging, more than a strenuous walk...
Which route from Perpignon will you be attempting?
Cheers
Lovingkindness
Trails walked (Aug 2021):
GR 36 from Pont de Bézergues to Eus:
Pont de Bézergues to Cambounès
Cambounès to Ribaute
Ribaute to Sournia then down to Arboussouls
Tour du Canigou
Arboussouls to Eus
Vernet-les-Bains to Estoher to Vinça
Prades to Bourg-Madame: I improvised with the trail, sometimes following le chemin de St Jacques other times following sections of the Tour du Canigou.
[From Thues-entre-Valles to Mont Louis I took the bus. I spoke with several folk who had just completed the section to Fontpedrouse and was told the trail is vertigionous involving narrow paths beside vertical drops, terrain which in the past has caused my body to freeze and eyes to lose focus. The road from Thues-entre-Valles is too dangerous to walk and there isn't a low-level rambling trail as alternative.
Here's a video of part of the missed section. 'Les Gorges de la Caranca' . Hats off to you if you walk this!]
I saw that there are two options from Perpignan, or three if I went down the coastal route (but I came up that way last year). I seriously want to head in the general direction of Santiago as it's been a while since I was in Navarra, etc, and I think I'd like to go over the Pyrenees which I haven't done really since walking from Pamplona to SJPdP years ago.Bon chemin @futurefjp
I have just returned from following the GR 36 and one of the Catalan chemins de compostelle from Le Sidobre near Castres up to Bourg-Madame at the French-Spanish border . I didn't carry a tent, just a sleeping sheet. Most gîte d'étape were closed or booked out. I walked without mobile phone or internet connection making enquiries from day to day, face to face. People welcomed me into their homes whilst others provided a floor here and there. It was an awesome experience but physically challenging, more than a strenuous walk...
Which route from Perpignon will you be attempting?
Cheers
Lovingkindness
Trails walked (Aug 2021):
GR 36 from Pont de Bézergues to Eus:
Pont de Bézergues to Cambounès
Cambounès to Ribaute
Ribaute to Sournia then down to Arboussouls
Tour du Canigou
Arboussouls to Eus
Vernet-les-Bains to Estoher to Vinça
Prades to Bourg-Madame: I improvised with the trail, sometimes following le chemin de St Jacques other times following sections of the Tour du Canigou.
[From Thues-entre-Valles to Mont Louis I took the bus. I spoke with several folk who had just completed the section to Fontpedrouse and was told the trail is vertigionous involving narrow paths beside vertical drops, terrain which in the past has caused my body to freeze and eyes to lose focus. The road from Thues-entre-Valles is too dangerous to walk and there isn't a low-level rambling trail as alternative.
Here's a video of part of the missed section. 'Les Gorges de la Caranca' . Hats off to you if you walk this!]
The road from Thues-entre-Valles is too dangerous to walk and there isn't a low-level rambling trail as alternative.
Why is the road too difficult and which way did you go?Exit, pursued by a bear.TÉMOIGNAGE - Une vacancière rencontre un ours dans les gorges de Carança - France Bleu
Belle frayeur pour une randonneuse du département du Nord de la France qui s'est retrouvée mercredi 1er septembre à quelques mètres à peine d'un ours. La rencontre s'est passée dans les gorges de la Carança, dans les Pyrénées-Orientales.www.francebleu.fr
As if the heights weren't enough.
@lovingkindness ?Why is the road too difficult and which way did you go?
The N116 from Thuès-entre-Valls to Fontpedrouse is a national highway with many curves and lots of holiday traffic. There isn't a verge on either side of the road. Someone at la mairie said it wasn't possible to walk along the road to Fontpedrouse, that I should take the bus.Why is the road too difficult and which way did you go?
@futurefjp, by the look of your photo, you are a strong, strapping lad able to carry 11.5 kg. I am none of these...@lovingkindness your words are encouraging ... but also slightly negative. I've never worried about climbs and trepidation previously but I am carrying around 11.5kg because I packed my camping gear. Really I probably shouldn't have brought it? But during Covid nothing is certain...
PS Here is the French word of the day: Mince!It's been so long since I was in France my comprehension is Merde!
Oh crap!PS Here is the French word of the day: Mince!
"Mince means slim, slender or thin in the physical sense (for people and objects) but it also has an alternative euphemistic usage.
Mince! is shouted out by French speakers who want to stop themselves from using the gros mot (swear word) merde. In the same way as English speakers bite their lip and say “ssssugar!” or “ssshoot!” rather than yelling “shit!”, or Germans say the just as harsh-sounding “Scheibenkleister” rather than screaming “Scheisse!”.
Bon courage!
I lived in Glasgow years ago, where the word 'mince' had an altogether different meaning. It was applied (typically shouted) to professional footballers who were performing somewhat below the expected standard.PS Here is the French word of the day: Mince!
"Mince means slim, slender or thin in the physical sense (for people and objects) but it also has an alternative euphemistic usage.
I lived in Glasgow years ago, where the word 'mince' had an altogether different meaning. It was applied (typically shouted) to professional footballers who were performing somewhat below the expected standard.
as in: "yer heid's aw mince:I lived in Glasgow years ago, where the word 'mince' had an altogether different meaning. It was applied (typically shouted) to professional footballers who were performing somewhat below the expected standard.
So it's no go in Port la Nouvelle. The Hotel is full - a shrimp fisherman convention I suppose. It's time to catch the train forward to Perpignan to the stay at the Gite Jacquaire on Rue Maréchal Foch.
Didn't go that way, and now you're making me regret that I didn't ...View attachment 108686 A tree blocking a monotony...
The advice I'd give would be about a lot further along.a little advice about Wednesday? Whether I go to Spain via Le Perthus or up the Tet?
My scars from my encounter with them near Lleida on my day 78 and 2021 day 1 in early June are only now starting to fade.Not sexy, but the Mosquitoes have found English blood! Oh and they itch like hell...
Absolutely true about 'luxury'! I forgot how they feed you... So full I could squeak! I really couldn't manage another thing - a bowl of fruit went begging.So you made it to Vinça! The Carmelite Sisters are so cheerful, some of the happiest I've met. Enjoy the luxury.
I do not know the GR 83. Is this the route which @alansykes attempted last October? He hiked up to the Refuge des Cortalets , but it snowed heavily and he had to turn back. He wrote about it here....How do refuges in the Pyrenees square with being a pilgrim? Are they happy to accept? And do I have to carry my own food?...
The GR83 goes from Prades to Mataro on the Coast in Catalunya. It's a Spanish/Catalan route GR. The only thing which makes me continue as normal is whether my boots are adequate for going over the top of a peak? I've not got crampons!I do not know the GR 83. Is this the route which @alansykes attempted last October? He hiked up to the Refuge des Cortalets , but it snowed heavily and he had to turn back. He wrote about it here.
My original intention had been to follow the GR 36 up to Baillestavy then on to Refuge des Cortalets. From there I was going to follow the GR 10, (direction right) and walk to the sea ie Banyuls. BUT... the tourist officer in Vinça said that many of the mountain refuges were closed this year. As I wasn't carrying a tent and could only carry a limited amount of food, I changed direction. I took the train (1 euro) back to Villefranche and attempted to follow le Chemin de Saint Jacques up to Bourg Madame.
My advice is, find out which mountain refuges are open before you set off. The Tourist office in Vinça will have the details. Study the trails before you set off. You will need detailed maps. Study the weather, too. Ask about food supplies. Everyone I've talked to who has hiked the GR 10 carried a tent and food supplies. Perhaps one needs these on the GR 83 also. I don't know.
Cheers
LK
...In Prades I exhausted myself searching for a bed. It was a terribly hot day. After enquring at the Tourist Office, the museum reception at the church, the gendarmerie and also at the fire station, I took myself off to the local camping site. What a friendly welcome! My nightly budget was 20 euros, enough for a dormitory bed in a municipal gîte d'étape. I was offered a large tent with wooden floor + kitchen. (It was a Saturday afternoon and la mairie was closed. I don't think there was a gîte d'étape).Staying with Carmelites has always been a great experience. And this occasion is no different The one minor flaw is that the Abbeye de at Michel de Cuxa isn't currently accepting pilgrims.
Really I am glad I didn't know this information until now as all the time I was walking, from Perpignan, the doubts would've been crawling in. The house sister suggests I as for assistance at La Mairie in Prades - which I will do. Since Covid, and the couple of times I've walked along the Camino in France, the doubts have settled heavily on my mind like a couple of vultures...
Does it mean I don't go that way - passed the Abbey - at all but go direct to Villefranche de Conflent...
... First petit dejourner: coffee in a bowl! Oh how French!
If it's not too late, generic info FWIW. The FFCAM-run refuges are great places. I only know the ones on the west/central Pyrenees side, but they are universally fab. In August you'd need to book a bed in advance, but the start of September is usually quiet as they start to shut up shop and close, usually end of second week of September. All of the ones I know allow you to just turn up, put up a tent nearby in the evening, but still access the facilities and buy meals (and buy a packed lunch for the next day). All the ones I know don't have proper showers and most folk dip in the mountain lakes to clean off. But I see that Cortalets one mentioned by LK says it has showers. Generally you are asked to take all your rubbish with you - and possibly some of the Refuge's too, if you are heading 'down' towards civilisation..How do refuges in the Pyrenees square with being a pilgrim? Are they happy to accept? And do I have to carry my own food?
I hope you're ok, @futurefjp! It sounds like one of those intense character-building days.was a proper fall. I suppose I might've broken a bone or too. As I lay there I laughed, caught my breath and carried on. I was like a beetle fallen on my back.
You're completely right.Really everywhere is the same. Paradise is literally inside me and not along these ways.
I do get sense pleasure when I see a view that takes my breath away and when I'm in the full flow of the walking experience, but I get absolutely zero from the cities, towns and villages I pass through as they're all identical.You're completely right.
Sense pleasure and durable joy are very different things. And the latter has nothing to do with what's happening outside. If you mistake other people's addiction to camino pleasure for durable joy, and then think you're missing something...please consider questioning that doubt.
Accidents do take their toll too. I've not fallen at all on the Camino.
Perhaps true. Nature is a better WayI think I have fallen on every camino - sometimes more than once - and usually it happens on a straight stretch, sometimes after finishing a rough patch (so perhaps body fatigue). Fingers crossed you stay strong and healthy.
Perhaps you just need to commune with nature this time out?
These sorts of thoughts are endemic to and from the Caminos less travelled and lonelier.... but I've had no joy passing through Millas, Vinça or Prades, but what exactly am I searching for in these forgotten places?
Where did you stay in Mont Louis, if you did?The N116 from Thuès-entre-Valls to Fontpedrouse is a national highway with many curves and lots of holiday traffic. There isn't a verge on either side of the road. Someone at la mairie said it wasn't possible to walk along the road to Fontpedrouse, that I should take the bus.
Which way did I go? If you wait a day or two I will give you the detailed version. The quick answer is, from Prades to Bourg-Madame I attempted to follow le Chemin de Saint Jacques using information published by Association Roussillonnaise Les Amis du Chemin de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle:
Pdf guide part 1 PERPIGNAN%20-%20ESCARO.pdf (website-editor.net)
Pdf guide part 2 Escaro-bourg%20madame.pdf (website-editor.net)
I didn't carry a gps. I used freebie local tourist maps which lacked detail, not something I would recommend others do. There are excellent IGN maps of the region, at a price.
The pilgrim trail itself was not often signed. It switched between local trails with only an occassional camino sign. I needed the pdf commentary to understand exactly where to walk. Throughout the day I chatted with local folk and others on the trail asking advice on what lay up ahead. Alternative trails were sometimes suggested.
*Prades via Saint-Michel de Cuxa to Villefranche de Conflent : nothing difficult
*Villefranche de Conflent : No accommodation available within my means so, I hitch-hiked up to Vernet-les-Bains.
*Vernet-les-Bains to Saint-Martin de Canigou : From Casteil there are two ways up to the Abbey -a concrete road or a steep nature trail by the river.
*Vernet-les Bains via Estoher to Vinça : Following the Tour du Canigou -steep in parts, nose almost to the ground; eroded in places, slithering + toboganning down trails. Exhilarating.
*train from Vinça to Villefranche de Conflent (€1)
*Villefranche de Conflent to Fuilla : Steep zigzag on a stone path up a mountain. Fallen trees obstructing the trail. A splendid view to the Vauban fortress, Libéria. Down the other side on a piste. The pdf notes were not exact enough at this point. Fortunately I met a holidaying couple who were familiar with the trail.
*Fuilla to Nyer : Local folk showed me two alternatives to Le chemin de St Jacques, both easy to moderate walking.
Trail 1
There is a splendid, shady PR route to Col de Fins (before Escaro) which passes through forests on the other side of the piste above Fuilla (yellow + white signs, Aytua 5 kms).
Start: A few minutes after arriving on the piste above Fuilla there is a dirt lane turning right. It is directly opposite a very large flattish rock (stone piles on top). The lane leads to a ruined building and continues past. The trail signs are after the building.
Note: le chemin de Saint Jacques follows the piste above Fuilla all the way to Col de Fins. It is in the blistering sunshine.
Trail 2
From Escaro to Nyer I followed the GRP Tour des Reserves Naturelles (yellow + red signed trail) up to a mountain prairie with outstanding views. A little later one discovers a strategically placed bath tub filled with ice cold mountain water. Yipee!
Note: le Chemin de Saint Jacque departs Escaro at the entrance of the camping ground. It joins the GRP later. One misses the splendid panorama, the mountain prairie and a chance to skinny dip in a mountain bath tub.
Map 1: Fuilla to Col de Fins (PR trail, yellow + white signs)
View attachment 108636
Map 2: Escaro GRP trail, Tour des Reserves Naturelles (yellow and red signs)
View attachment 108635
*Nyer via En to Thues-Entre-Valles : trail eroded in places, in need of maintenance, time spent hanging onto tree trunks and bushes; steep descending zigzag to Thues-les-Bains; after Thues-les-Bains there are 4 small avalanches to scramble.
*Thues-Entre-Valles [bus to Mont Louis €1]
*Mont Louis to Bourg-Madame : 8 hours. An easy, pleasant walk.
I'll write more about this another day
PS i would not attempt any of this with a heavy pack. I had less than 6 kilos most of the time and that was onerous and worrisome enough.
I like it up here. It's much like being in England - The Dales.I hope that knee and those ribs feel normal soon, @futurefjp. It's good you took care of yourself.
Glad that you are able to move about but please take of your sore spots. Since you have left Mont Louis where are you heading next?I like it up here. It's much like being in England - The Dales.
I guess Llivia? Is there a Youth Hostel there? I need to wash some clothes...Glad that you are able to move about but please take of your sore spots. Since you have left Mont Louis where are you heading next?
I saw the presbytére too! Opposite the eglise ... Oh well I walked to Llivia instead of not walking!Buenas noches peregrino! As you are now in Spain you're probably not interested in my reply to your question... here it is, anyway: In Mont Louis I stayed at the presbytère. You missed out on a long hot soak in a big white bath tub, a comfortable bed with duvet and crisp linen, and lots of good food left over from a previous guest. To say nothing of the improving literature.
After all the heavy rain we've been having, it's no wonder you hitched a ride passed the tricky places. In my estimation the sharp ascents and descents on stony trails would be hazardous in wet weather -I'm thinking of the zigzag after Villefranche de Conflent; and the descent into Thues-les-Bains; and the small avalanches on the way to Thues-entre-Valls.
Enjoy whatever comes next!
-Lovingkindness
...as you are now walking the Llivia route, I'm guessing that your conversation at the tourist office in Mont-Louis was with Madame, who is passionate about Llivia and the trails which pass closer to the dry mountain range bordering the right side of the plateau. I purchased a map and booklet of for 5 euros but just as I was leaving, her male colleague returned and insisted I follow an alternative - from La Cabanasse one follows the GR 10 all the way to Eyne, then the GR 36 (GRP Tour de Cerdagne) from Eyne via Llo (Romanesque church) and Err on to Bourg-Madame. It is an easy walk (8 hours). One has splendid views to the dry mountain range behind Llivia. Camino signs begin a kilometer or two after La Cabanasse, where the GR 10 crosses the D 33, (IGN map 2250ET: Bourg-Madame, Mont-Louis)
Looking forward to your next posts!
Cheers.
ps I'll add the details to the notes above #15
Ok... oh dear, I've done it again....too much information. How are you route-finding? Do you have a map?LK the TO was closed in Mont Louis. So I didn't get anyone's conflicting interests.
Today I followed the Camí Cerdanya until Arséguel - around 25kms of relentless ups and downs - just to find it's a continuation of yesterday's Catalan independence day and both hotel and restaurant are closed.Ok... oh dear, I've done it again....too much information. How are you route-finding? Do you have a map?
I slept outdoors frequently between Béziers and Igualada (and not infrequently afterwards) -- but given your tumble and hurt, plus apparently a good degree of rain, and the difficulty of the terrain up there, so that your reluctance to do the same is likely a good idea.Today I followed the Camí Cerdanya until Arséguel - around 25kms of relentless ups and downs - just to find it's a continuation of yesterday's Catalan independence day and both hotel and restaurant are closed.
Again I'm am carried forward direct to La Seu d'Urgell by Christian - who helped to build motorways in Portugal.
Now I have a plate of Padrón Pimento and a Volt-Damm.
I believe enjoying sleeping outside might be cultural or an inherited trait. As I was never in the Scouts, Army or did the DoE I'm not a fan of being in a tent. I've literally zero skills with fire building and I don't wish to set fire to the entire world outside my tent. I've no fear of wildlife.I slept outdoors frequently between Béziers and Igualada (and not infrequently afterwards) -- but given your tumble and hurt, plus apparently a good degree of rain, and the difficulty of the terrain up there, so that your reluctance to do the same is likely a good idea.
futurefjp,When will I ever learn? One or two beers fine, but three, four or five a dreadful concept. Fair enough, I had two large raciones of Padron Pimento and the beer was spread out while I read the last few sections of Journey to the End of the Night (which I've left in the Seminary School) and I wasn't late to bed, but the combinations of an intense etapa, exhaustion and beer gave me one flaming headache. Then later on in the night some mechanical noise outside meant I had to close the window and then the room was humid. But here I am pondering it all and drinking coffee in Cigne & Delicious.
How many days between here and Lleida? I've decided that I need to catch a flight back around Sunday, probably from Girona, and I've got to do a PCR test 72 hours before returning to the UK.
Today is Monday, it's already hard to keep track of what day it is! So I guess I can say Stop on Friday or when I reach Lleida, which ever comes first?
Where do I go for a PCR test in Spain?futurefjp,
Céline's, Voyage au bout de la nuit, on top of your evening meal would indeed be heavy going.
Glad that you made it through the night and have planned your next week.
Google tells me there are several options in Girona, if that's where you are indeed flying from.Where do I go for a PCR test in Spain?
There or Reus.Google tells me there are several options in Girona, if that's where you are indeed flying from.
If you're vaccinated, a lateral flow test may suffice.Where do I go for a PCR test in Spain?
I'll be back. But I've got to return to Figueira da Foz or Metz to continue from there...If you're vaccinated, a lateral flow test may suffice.
The PM is announcing some changes tomorrow, and the lifting of several covid restrictions.
...until the next time... and I think 'That's all Folks'?
Absolutely!...until the next time...
My condolences over the fall. I hope things mend quickly...... Also the fall on the Friday has effected my confidence whenever I'm sent, by the route, up a ravine/gorge/steep section...
They will.My condolences over the fall. I hope things mend quickly...
The Youth Hostel.I'm guessing that I should find a place to stay in Lleida? Is there a Alberg?
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