Fog blanketed Lisbon as we left the city early in mid’ January, heading northeast on A1 towards Spain and eventually to our destination, the Pyrenees mountain range. The fog continued, becoming even thicker at times, all the way to the Spanish border before finally burning off.
We continued north over what must be the most boring part of all of Spain. The highway is mostly straight, passing through fields of brown and green and little else. Every now and then you’ll see a church steeple in the distance, alerting you to the next town you’ll be passing by. I’m sure some of the cities, such as Valladolid, Palencia and Salamanca are interesting in their own way, just not enough to make us want to stop, except when we got to Burgos.
We spent our first night on the outskirts of Burgos at the rather ostentatious Landa Hotel. It was a little over-the-top with its wide, curved staircase in the foyer, the massive inside heated swimming pool, and numerous sitting rooms decorated from another era. Not sure what the story is of the hotel but I’m sure it is an interesting one.
The restaurant didn’t open until 8:30 and we were hungry so we decided to go into Burgos and see what we could find that was already open. Difficult in Spain where people commonly have dinner at around 9PM. It was cold, dark, and all we came upon were very unappetizing looking tapas bars. So we went back to the hotel. By this time we were no longer as hungry so much so we just had a couple of tapas and drinks at the bar and called it a night.
It was so cold that night that we didn’t get to walk around much in Burgos. But we did drive around, and even in the night, it looked like an interesting city to explore. Next time we’ll arrive early, and in the spring or fall, so can explore Burgos.
It really doesn’t get interesting until after Burgos when you get close the coast. This is where two mountain ranges, The Pyrenees and Los Picos, meet up. The freeway meanders through steep valleys, cutting through or passing over numerous tunnels and bridges. The landscape is much more interesting, leaving the browns and grays behind, to green hillside pastures and forest.
This is our second trip to the Pyrenees to ski, having done so two years ago. For this trip we decided to try the ski hill at Cauterets in France, sort of halfway between Lourdes and the Spanish border. The drive up to Cauterets is through a very narrow pass, barely wide enough at times for the Gave de Cauterets, a large mountain stream that flows through the pass, and a narrow road that either cuts into or is built out from the steep mountainside. Upon reaching Cauterets it finally opens up, providing a basin on which the village of Cauterets is built.
Cauterets must have been really something at the turn of the last century. It’s not a large village in any sense with probably just a few thousand inhabitants. Its central core consists mostly of older “belle époque” style buildings, definitely from another era with high vaulted slate roofs and plenty of ornamental stone on the exterior.
It’s situated at the far end of a valley with a stream running through the middles of it, surrounded by steep mountains, so steep that the sun doesn’t shine on the town during the winter. This is where the road ends as the valley comes up against a massive mountain that’s just too steep to go over. On the other side, minutes away as the crow flies, lies Spain. But to get there means leaving the valley and following a route that takes 2.5 hours by car to finally arrive in Spain.
On the outskirts, built into the hillsides are large homes that architecturally really stand out and make you curious as to what may lie inside. In its hey-day it was famous for its thermal mineral baths and people travelled from all over France to soak in its hot waters, mostly for health reasons. Today it survives because of skiing and summer activities such as hiking. There are still a few thermal bath operations, but there are just as many vacant ones, now empty shells, ghosts of a better time.
Cauterets is not “bling-bing” in any sense of the phrase. No over-the-top restaurants or brand-label boutiques here. Rather there’s an abundance of cheese and charcuterie shops everywhere – amazing how many for a town of this size. And some very good restaurants. a few favorites were Le Brasero, À la Bonne Franquette, and the La Ferme Basque up high on the hillside overlooking Cauterets. And the rest seem to be ski shops, and lots of them. All the people who live and work here are mountain folk, very down-to-earth, no where near being pretentious, and very happy to help out. It’s been a very pleasant experience.
Friday was our first day of skiing. We got up early, parked next to the gondola in the center of town and were one of the first on the hill. Snow conditions were excellent with no line-ups at the lifts. We got in about 2 1/2 hours of skiing before we lost the sun behind the clouds, the temperature dropped and the wind came up. We went in for cappuccinos and then back out for another hour before calling it a day. Flo had a fall and hurt her shoulder a bit, so a good reason to take a break and be ready for the following day.
Saturday was tough as it had started snowing, affecting visibility, so difficult when you aren’t familiar with the slopes – you don’t know what’s in front of you. Plus, being a weekend it started getting busier with line-ups forming at the lifts and runs covered in people, mostly beginners – dangerous. Flo’s shoulder, as well, was hurting and I was getting light-headed from trying to judge what’s in front of us – a cliff or a run, so we called it an early day.
On Sunday we took a day off from skiing. It’s the busiest day of the week and we didn’t want to deal with the crowds. Instead we did a hike at Pont D’Esplanade, located about 15 minutes from Cauterets. It’s above the snow line so we had to use snow chains – first time we’ve had to do that. The trail follows the “Gaves de Cauterets.” Many people were using snow shoes but the snow on the trail was well packed so we didn’t have a problem. It was clouded in so we didn’t get to experience too much of what was around us, but just being in the forest, trees draped with snow, was pleasant enough for us. The trail goes on for a number of kilometers, and must be quite something during the summer months to hike.
On Monday we returned to the ski hill and were one of the first to do so. The sun shone through a thin cloud lining and we managed to get in a number of runs before it started thickening and drowning out the sunlight. By noon it had become dark and started to snow, conditions we don’t enjoy as it just gets dangerous. But, we got in three hours and that was enough. We returned home for lunch and nap.
We enjoy French mountain food, at least for the first few days. But then the heaviness of it has us craving salads and more vegetables. The main dishes here are Cassoulet, Braserades, Raclettes and Fondues. Heavy with melted cheese, lots of cream, potatoes, onions and meats such as beef, duck and chicken. And always lots of French fries, often cooked in duck fat. Wonderful stuff, but after a while, a little too much. That said, we much preferred it to what was available on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees. Food simple isn’t as good as it is in France.
On Tuesday it was time to head for Spain and do some skiing on the other side of the Pyrenees. The distance between Cauterets and Formigal (where we’ll be skiing), isn’t much, but there’s no pass through the mountains. There’s a trail, which has been used for centuries, but no road. So we had to return down to Lourdes and take a route to the west through the Vallée du Soussouéou. Before crossing into Spain we stopped for French groceries in Laruns, (cheese, tarteflette, & charcuterie).
At the summit of this pass, which is also the French/Spanish border, there’s a spectacular snow bowl called Portalets, with its hills completely covered deep in snow. Quite spectacular. Further into Spain are the ski resorts of Formigal and Panticosa, and the village of Biescas where our apartment was located.
Barriere Canadienne
Also at the summit was a sign that said, “Barriere Canadienne.” What, we thought, they bar Canadians from entering? After investigating further we discovered that a Barriere Canadienne is what they often put across on backroads in cattle country (such as Canada) so that the cattle can’t pass but car or vehicles can. I was free to go into Spain!
Wednesday we took the day off and went to a thermal bath spa to relax our muscles. It’s called Balneario de Panticosa and is about 15 minutes further up the road from Panticosa. They have a circuit of 15 different experiences, mostly having to do with hot and cold water dunks. The hot outdoor pool was nice as you could go and lay in the snow and then get back in the pool.
Thursday we were back on the slopes, this time at Formigal. It’s situated very close to the Spanish/French border and at the summit for the highway that passes through the Pyrenees. Although Formigal looks huge, it really isn’t. And for some reason they make their runs very narrow. So when you get a few people on a run, it can get crowded quickly. Back in France we found them to be much wider. Another difference is the volume – the Spanish are loud! Loud on the hill, on the lifts, and in the restaurants! But it’s a good loud – they are having a good time. The French are a little more reserved.
On Friday, our last day, we tried out Panticosa. It’s close to Formigal but smaller, and tends, it seems, to be a place for beginners and ski classes. It was very windy and clouded in during the morning, so very hard to gauge the terrain when skiing. But after lunch it opened up to blue skies and we had some great runs. We finished the day by skiing from “Peak-to-Creek”, literally. We started at the very top of the mountain and finished off at the base, crossing a creek to get to the parking area. A great way to finish the day.
Saturday we began our journey back, spending the night in Salamanca and then arriving back in Lisbon on Sunday afternoon.