• Get your Camino Frances Guidebook here.
  • For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here.
    (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation)
  • ⚠️ Emergency contact in Spain - Dial 112 and AlertCops app. More on this here.

Search 69,459 Camino Questions

Water in the Pyrenees?

Jerome74

Active Member
I'm just wondering: Is it possible to fill up your water during the crossing of the Pyrenees or do you have to take as much water as you probably will need (and can carry!) from the start?

Thanks everyone and sorry for the maybe silly questions ;)

Jerome
 
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
Take as much water as you probably will need (and can carry!) from the start. Best, xm 8)
 
Technical backpack for day trips with backpack cover and internal compartment for the hydration bladder. Ideal daypack for excursions where we need a medium capacity backpack. The back with Air Flow System creates large air channels that will keep our back as cool as possible.

€83,-
U can buy plastic water bottles at Orisson, they charge u a mint. There's a fountain at the Collado de Bentartea, almost towards the end of this walk. Best, xm 8)
 
Thanks again, xm

xm said:
U can buy plastic water bottles at Orisson, they charge u a mint.

Ok. That's cool.

Because it's quite a difference to carry one or two liters from the start, especially in the mountains ;)
 
The first edition came out in 2003 and has become the go-to-guide for many pilgrims over the years. It is shipping with a Pilgrim Passport (Credential) from the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.
Hmm...got a point there. But what happens if for some reason, Orisson is closed? best, xm 8)
 
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
xm said:
Hmm...got a point there. But what happens if for some reason, Orisson is closed? best, xm 8)

True. But I guess that would be known before ... and I think it's quite improbable that they'll be closed. So many people have reservations with them. They have to be open no matter what I guess ...

I think I'll risk it with 1 liter. Unless I hear other reports.
 
Not necessarily. They may have an emergency, say, five minutes before u get there, have to close, pilgrims are gone, nobody left, and then u'd be stuck. Unfortunately u have to think seriously of worst case scenarios in potentially dangerous crossings such as this one. Don't assume that all businesses on the Caminos are up and running all the time. Whatever u choose to do, take water with u. I had a rough time because I ran out of water twice on the SJPDP-Roncesvalles road, would not want that to happen to u, Jerome, or anyone else. Buen Camino, peregrino. xm 8)
 
Very light, comfortable and compressible poncho. Specially designed for protection against water for any activity.

Our Atmospheric H30 poncho offers lightness and waterproofness. Easily compressible and made with our Waterproof fabric, its heat-sealed interior seams guarantee its waterproofness. Includes carrying bag.

€60,-
Jerome, for ur sake, I hope so. Think about what ur H20 drinking need may be. If u think 1L will be enough, go with it. For me, two, 1L bottles, did the trick, the next time around. Heavy? Yes, no matter, I drank them all, almost! Better to have some left than none. I don't know if u read an earlier post in which I shared that I ran out of water in this particular road, had to walk a distance to a farm to get some, got back on the road, ran out again, approached a couple of pilgrims that told me they didn't have enough water for me, and then, when I was (almost) fainting, two pilgrims (angels?) came to my rescue, shared their water, and gave me the moral support I badly needed then to walk with me all the way to Roncesvalles. Best, xm 8)
 
xm, yes I remember you telling this. And therefore I'll heed your advice.

But my original question was only about whether or not there were possibilities to fill up the water. Apparently there aren't (except for Orisson). So I will plan accordingly.

Thanks again.
 
k guy, remember, there's a fountain at the Collado de Bentartea, but that's almost towards the end of this walk. Best, xm 8)
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
You can fill up at the fountain on the France/Spain border.... but a lot of climbing has already been done. When I was there water was simply not running very fast.

You can also fill up at the place where there is a cement table to "read" the landscape (table d'orientation).

At the albergue at Orisson the owner and one person are NOT there full time. After the pilgrims have left, they clean up and tend to their affairs in their houses, nobody home.... They will return before lunch around 12. The owner will stay unless it is the vendanges (grapes harvest).

Best advice, carry as much as you can; this is true all along the camino.
 
The first chance to fill up your water bottle is just right across the Table d' Orientation (Panorama), 8 km from SJPP and a couple of kilometers before the Refuge d'Orisson. The other is at the Fontaine de Bentarte, about 20 km into your walk.

Mark
 
Well, the times I've walked by Orisson, the restaurant was starting to open, it was towards mid-morn. I remember once getting some water and taking it outside to the tables. Nice, short, rest. Best, xm 8)
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
...fill up your water bottle...across the Table d' Orientation (Panorama quote]

Hmm...must be new since last summer, didn't notice it then. Best, xm 8)
 
...the Fontaine de Bentarte...

Are you refering to the fountain at the "Collado de Bentartea?" If u r, and according to my recollection, that's after the arduous part of this section. Best, xm 8)
 
It is, but at least you can top up, you're a couple of hours from the end and anything will help.

I'd say take 1.5l and top up when you can.
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
I remember the spring at the border. Lay there resting with a Finnish girl I met - saw my first Eagle really close - but, yes, a long way along indeed.
And don't forget that wind dehydrates.

Mind you, from what I've been hearing, at the moment you just tilt your head up and open your mouth!
 
xm,

The table d'orientation has been there for years, a favorite stopping place for groups and those who need to catch their breath after the first assaults. The fountain is a few meters before that, to your right.

The fountain at Bentarte is the one right after the hard part, yes, somewhere at the border and I remember beech(?) trees already in this stretch. The fountain of Roland.

For photos check out http://www.santiago-compostela.net/cf01en.html

Mark
 
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
Hello Mark, thanks for ur mail/pic link. No doubt I believe u, it's just that my sense of recollection re: the fountain in question doesn't bring up anything. I clearly remember the table d'orientation, no prob there. I checked my notes, nothing. The"El Pais/Aguilar" guidebook I used, zero, and the pic in the link re: The "table d'orientation" telling you the names of everything you can see and showing the route of the original camino to the east , doesn't show the fountain. I'm interested in this, will keep on searching. Let me know if u find any other info. Best, xm 8)
 
Nobody mentioned the water coming off the mountain on the way to Roncevalles. There were at least 5 fast running miniature waterfalls right by the road. They are real mountain water, and I cannot attest to their sterile nature. But, they sure tasted good, were very cold, and I didnt get sick.

Larry
 
Darn, more H20 I missed :lol: ! Will just have to do a (summertime) repeat on this road :D. Best, xm 8)
 
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
Both the Raju and Brierley guides show a water fountain about midway between Huntto and Orisson.

Excellent documentation, Jeff, thanks. Can u write what they say in a post or is it on a map? Thanks, xm 8)
 
xm:
Raju, page 46 "About 50 m after passing Honto the road veers R but the GR65 bears L up a grassy track, the old road, leaving the modern road for a while (to rejoin it later) making a short cut via the old, steep route that zigzags between the walls/banks at first and then on open ground . . . you can spot the place where you will meet the road again by a tap on the RH side of the road . . ."

Brierley, page 53, leaving Huntto "After 0.3km turn left onto grass track for 1.2 km before returning onto road (fountain on right and viewpoint on left.) Continue along alphalt road for 1.3 km to Auberge Orisson."
 
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
Rolands' fountain, sure (though nothing to do with Roland of course), after the pass through - and I remember the orientation table - but I don't remember seeing water there ... didn't stop long though.
 
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!

Most read last week in this forum

When I hiked the Frances Route this happened. I was hiking in the afternoon just east of Arzua. I was reserved a bed at an albergue in Arzua, so I had already hiked all the way from San Xulien...
I am finalizing my packing list for Frances, and do not want to over pack. (I am 71) I will be starting at SJPdP on April 25th to Roncesvalles and forward. I was hoping on some advise as to...
First marker starting from Albergue Monasterio de la Magdalena in Sarria (113.460 km) Start: 2023.9.29 07:22 Arrival: 2023.9.30 13:18 walking time : 26 hours 47 minutes rest time : 3 hours 8...
A local Navarra website has posted a set of photos showing today's snowfall in the area around Roncesvalles. About 15cm of snow fell this morning surprising pilgrims on the way...
Hi! I’m a first time pilgrim. Is it possible to take a taxi from Astorga to Foncebadon? Thanks, Felicia
I have been planning to return and rejoin the path from Leon next week. ( Main route) I am wondering whether it might be better to wait until later in April to rejoin the path, my hope is to...

❓How to ask a question

How to post a new question on the Camino Forum.

Forum Rules

Forum Rules

Camino Updates on YouTube

Camino Conversations

Most downloaded Resources

This site is run by Ivar at

in Santiago de Compostela.
This site participates in the Amazon Affiliate program, designed to provide a means for Ivar to earn fees by linking to Amazon
Official Camino Passport (Credential) | 2024 Camino Guides
Back
Top