Hotel Somriu Galanthus Canillo

... having a beer and watching a man try to dig his van out of the snow. To my knowledge his van is to this moment where it was when I left the bar.

I just wanted to take this opportunity to post some pictures of Canillo when it's snowy and the sun comes out. Don't have too many, but figured it was worth a post.

... waiting for him too. Probably not, but he was still a hero in my book.


We finally arrived at my destination at about 8:30am, and I proceeded to try to get my bearings in a new place. I was surprised at how quiet everything was, and also by the fact that most of the shops were still closed at close to 9 on Saturday. A few hours later I realized this little town doesn't really get started until about 9:30 or 10. Never ceases to amaze me as the ...

... village et quand on est arrivé, il avait le marché du matin. On a acheter du vin à environ 1 euro le litre (vin de pays) et du bon fromage bleu pour le déjeuner.

On avait pas le droit de prendre des photos dans la grotte pour pas faire de la pollution lumineuse (il y avait déja des ptites pousses de plante pres des lanternes...ils veulent pas en rajouté non plus). Aussi il faut pas déranger les chauve souris...pauve cocottes...

... What it does mean, we're not quite sure of yet. Still dealing with the shock and going over a few different options. All while kicking myself for not realizing this sooner. Only one thing is for certain - I'm not going to let this spoil our trip, and we're going to have to get cycling! (o.k., two things).

... there will be no more of those stories, but here are a few of ours from our time here.

Lots of stories. Browse a little. Read the titles to see what tickles your fancy. Hope you enjoy a few.

Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire

One of the things that has amazed me most is the abundance of food that can be grown here. Nut trees have been a curious scene on the horizon for me. Acorns pelting us while we camp and conchs ...

... the weekend and they’re ready for pickup and processing. Brian had always been interested in butchering meat, so here was an opportunity to learn a bit.

The drive back from the abattoir was more difficult than I’d expected. Sitting beside 4, ½ pig carcasses was less than comfortable. +6 degree weather outside we still drove with the windows down and the A/C on trying to get the temperature down to 2 or 3 ...

... person above is literally in your hands.

All in all it was a fabulous day! Did 4 climbs in total ranging through the 5a, 5b, and 5c levels of difficulty. I wanted to try a 5, but the day went by too quickly. There was one climb that Brain was sweating out for quite awhile, but in the end his determination conquered it. Rock climbing is the perfect blend of challenge and rest in beautiful mountain settings. I may be hooked…

A side trip with the truck enabled us to get to areas we couldn’t normally access. Not that we would even attempt it on bicycles - vehicles are bad enough. Windy roads where motion sickness is a given, ‘oh ****’ handles are coming loose from repetitive strain, and a straight section of road lasts about 20m.

Our goal was a little damned in lake almost on the ...

... are revealed.

This area of the Salon Noir is an amazing room with a ceiling that corkscrews upwards creating some interesting acoustics. A single clap lasts for over 5 seconds. Voices are lifted upwards and bounce around changing as they go. I can only imagine what it would be like to hear a celebration of instruments and song in a place like this. Perhaps this is part of the significance and why people returned year after year.

Niaux, Midi-Pyrénées, France 2totango

... if you dry the mushroom at a certain temperature for the right amount of time it gets rid of all the ‘bad’ poisons. But I don’t think I’ll try it anytime soon as I am not a strong Viking Warrior, nor a powerful Medicine Man and I may not be able to live through the consequences.

But I will persevere at searching for edible ‘shrooms‘. I love the taste, and can’t wait to try some different ones!