Outdoor Adventures with Ancient Brit
Pyrenees GR11 2003 - Day 31: September 9th
Tuesday 9th September
I caught the 7.40am train from Banyuls to Perpignan where I changed for
Villefranche. Villefranche is the terminus for Le Train Jaune, a narrow gauge mountain
railway, which takes 3 hours to climb up the spectacular gorge of La Têt to Mont Louis,
then across the high plateau to Latour de Carol. The train was a mixture of open and
closed carriages. Normally there was a rush to get in the open carriages, but this time,
everyone tried to squash into the closed carriages out of the weather. I spent much of the
journey chatting with a German family. The wife taught English in a German school. They
usually went for their holidays on the Atlantic coast of France, but had decided on the
Mediterranean this year because of the oil-spills from the tanker, which went down off
Galicia during the winter.
I arrived at Latour de Carol at 1.15 and walked down a minor road and pista to the
Spanish town of Puigcerda, where I was to rejoin the GR11. From Puigcerda there was a
long climb up roads and pista to the Collado de Mercè at 1980m. It was a pleasant climb
up a semi-wooded ridge and I camped at a grassy col at 1700m. There had been a strong
breeze with frequent showers and occasional glimpses of the sun.
I caught the 7.40am train from Banyuls to Perpignan where I changed for
Villefranche. Villefranche is the terminus for Le Train Jaune, a narrow gauge mountain
railway, which takes 3 hours to climb up the spectacular gorge of La Têt to Mont Louis,
then across the high plateau to Latour de Carol. The train was a mixture of open and
closed carriages. Normally there was a rush to get in the open carriages, but this time,
everyone tried to squash into the closed carriages out of the weather. I spent much of the
journey chatting with a German family. The wife taught English in a German school. They
usually went for their holidays on the Atlantic coast of France, but had decided on the
Mediterranean this year because of the oil-spills from the tanker, which went down off
Galicia during the winter.
I arrived at Latour de Carol at 1.15 and walked down a minor road and pista to the
Spanish town of Puigcerda, where I was to rejoin the GR11. From Puigcerda there was a
long climb up roads and pista to the Collado de Mercè at 1980m. It was a pleasant climb
up a semi-wooded ridge and I camped at a grassy col at 1700m. There had been a strong
breeze with frequent showers and occasional glimpses of the sun.
Looking back
over Puigcerda
over Puigcerda
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