What a day. We would tackle a circuit-hike today that would start and end at our hotel (Cal Sastre) in the village of Santa Pau. The hike was reported by the Inntravel guide to be about 12km long and have elevation gain and loss of 675m. Those numbers would turn out to be off if the GPS track is correct. The distance was 12.77km and we had a gain and loss of just under 500m (call it 490). That is a larger difference than we have been seeing but I am here to say it was more than enough for us.
Like the last several days the morning temperature was probably about 60F when we set off under clear blue skies. A handful of hot air balloons drifted above us as we left the village. They look so peaceful. A mist was clinging to some areas we could see but it would clear away in short order. We strolled along concrete and dirt roads that wound past small farms and homes and took us over dry streams or streams with so little water you couldn’t tell.
Soon our gentle ascent on roads and later mountain paths would steepen and get more rugged. In fact, the terrain became quite a bit more challenging after the first couple kilometers. We were climbing narrow and steep, sometimes rocky, trails that wound upwards through dense and dark thick forest. It was definitely tough going for all of us. I think we were all quite happy not to have sun beating down upon us even though you could be forgiven for thinking you were entering into a realm of some dark fantasy story as the forest blotted out the light.
It is hard to judge from the altitude profile but I reckon the bulk of the 440 or so meters we gained to reach the sanctuary probably happened in less than 3km. I am glad we were ascending that rough trail. It would be far worse descending. Why people would set up charcooal burning ovens here is beyond me. Just moving the wood and then charcoal would be a wretched chore. For that matter why anyone would build the Finestra sanctuary just below the top of the mountain we were climbing is something of a myterdy too. It is certainly a tough place to reach and so I guess a good place for contemplation but building it must have been very difficult. Today it seems all but abandonded. We thought we were alone when we reached it about 3 hours into the hike. It turned out a Catalonian couple (and dog) were there. They had a key so maybe they’re caretakers or perhaps the place is now rented out for couples or other people like them to use. They left us and hiked down a small trail to where a road must be as we heard a car pull away.
The descent followed a trail that wasn’t nearly as rugged but , for me, wasn’t all that easily dealt with. This hike was proving to be a tough one indeed. Down and down we went through forest that seemed only a bit less impenetrable than before. We crossed more dry streams and took great pleasure in sitting on the edge of a long grassy field a third of the way down. We still had considerable trail to descend before reaching concrete roads that gradually took us back towards Snta Pau.
Even when we got to that point the tough bits weren’t done. We passed through another church (church or maybe now school: Santa Maria dels Arcs) with several yowling cats in attendance and for the next couple hundred meters climbined up a forest path once again more than merely gradually before picking up a narrow path that wound through farm fields down and towards the village. A cruel joke as we were still not back to the hotel and had walked more than 12km. The final hill climb along the road that had taken us out of town hours earlier was just a pain even if it was only a couple hundred meters long. Just under 7 hours after setting out and we were back sitting down for well deserved drinks.
This walk is certainly a tough one even if you have normal vision. The views, when you have them, are quite good. You will be out for many hours and you will certainly have a sense of accomplishment especially as you finish the ascent. But be warned though not as long as some walks it is tough.
Postscript: We did the walk in 5:18 with 2:52 in vreaks. It felt harder than it was because some sections were steep. However, realistically speaking I bet walk 1 was tougher where descending was concerned.
Photos
1. I know it is hard to tell but mist is rising. My guess is that it is coming from the area of a rather tiny stream in a hollow where the temperature is definitely cooler than the surrounding land. We would be quite happy that the majority of the climbing we would do, up and down, would be in forest as even by mid-morning under cover the temperature was over 70F.
2. Hot air balloon rides are popular here. Every morning here in Santa Pau we saw balloons rising over the countryside.
3. The views from the Finestra Sancuary don’t photograph well at just past noon but you certainly have them. Had we pushed on the fairly short way to the summit we would have had 360 degree views showing the mountains and the sea. But, we had climbed enough already.
4. Just a grassy field. A nice place to sit and have an afternoon snack.
No comments:
Post a Comment