Outdoor Adventures with Ancient Brit
Pyrenees GR11 2003 - Day 35 : September 13th
Saturday 13th September
I was woken at first light by locals armed with a variety of rifles and shotguns prior
to going hunting. Again I’m not sure what they were hunting. The terrain was very
varied with a mixture of steep wooded hills and pasture, and the GR11 followed a mixture
of overgrown paths, good paths, pista and roads. I then followed a wooded gorge down to
Beget, another small village, which had been mainly taken over by holiday homes. I
followed a new road, replacing the old pista, past the old Mill and took a break at a small
stream, the Riera de Beget. I gave all of my clothing a badly needed wash and had a bath
in the chilly stream. I was bothered by a stray dog, and was pleased when a young couple
came along. The dog started following them. They had thought the dog was mine, but
when they realised it was lost they found that the collar had the owners telephone
number and they took the dog with them to the village.
There was now a 200m climb over the Col de Feixanes, followed by a drop back down
to the Riera de Beget. It’s a pity they couldn’t have put a path up the floor of the
limestone gorge. There was a group of Catalans at a swimming hole in the stream. I
joined them and had a swim and a much needed break. It had been cloudy earlier, but
cleared by 10am and was now a glorious day. I left the pool when the sun dipped behind
the high cliffs of the gorge.
There was now a 400m climb up steep woods to the Collado de Talaixa. I was surprised
to find the house at the col occupied, despite the lack of any road access. I was aiming for
Sant Aniol d’Aguja for the night. On the map it looked easy with a 300m contouring
descent, but in practise the trail climbed up over limestone crags and dropped down
steeply on a craggy path with some scrambling. The time given in the guidebook was
totally unrealistic, as it always is in very rough terrain, and it was getting dark by the
time I arrived at Sant Aniol d’Aguja. This old Monastery was no longer in use, but it had
a working fountain, and there were several groups camping in the grounds or
bivouacking in the church. The site was popular because it was at the confluence of
several dramatic canyons.
I was woken at first light by locals armed with a variety of rifles and shotguns prior
to going hunting. Again I’m not sure what they were hunting. The terrain was very
varied with a mixture of steep wooded hills and pasture, and the GR11 followed a mixture
of overgrown paths, good paths, pista and roads. I then followed a wooded gorge down to
Beget, another small village, which had been mainly taken over by holiday homes. I
followed a new road, replacing the old pista, past the old Mill and took a break at a small
stream, the Riera de Beget. I gave all of my clothing a badly needed wash and had a bath
in the chilly stream. I was bothered by a stray dog, and was pleased when a young couple
came along. The dog started following them. They had thought the dog was mine, but
when they realised it was lost they found that the collar had the owners telephone
number and they took the dog with them to the village.
There was now a 200m climb over the Col de Feixanes, followed by a drop back down
to the Riera de Beget. It’s a pity they couldn’t have put a path up the floor of the
limestone gorge. There was a group of Catalans at a swimming hole in the stream. I
joined them and had a swim and a much needed break. It had been cloudy earlier, but
cleared by 10am and was now a glorious day. I left the pool when the sun dipped behind
the high cliffs of the gorge.
There was now a 400m climb up steep woods to the Collado de Talaixa. I was surprised
to find the house at the col occupied, despite the lack of any road access. I was aiming for
Sant Aniol d’Aguja for the night. On the map it looked easy with a 300m contouring
descent, but in practise the trail climbed up over limestone crags and dropped down
steeply on a craggy path with some scrambling. The time given in the guidebook was
totally unrealistic, as it always is in very rough terrain, and it was getting dark by the
time I arrived at Sant Aniol d’Aguja. This old Monastery was no longer in use, but it had
a working fountain, and there were several groups camping in the grounds or
bivouacking in the church. The site was popular because it was at the confluence of
several dramatic canyons.
Beget Mill
Crags below Coma Negra
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