L' Izard Tarbes

After breakfast, we drove through a marmot filled ski resort to start our 2 hour hike. We walked through the free range cattle to the top of a 7,000 foot hill with sweeping view of the Cirque du Gavarnie. The sun was out and we had a lovely time. It was cool to see the Breche du Roland from the French side, knowing that just on the other side wa...

Tom drove Eva to the train station in Lordes and after lunch we all went for a hike to the base of the Cirque de Gavarnie. Impressive!! The walls are 1,000 meters up, 50% taller than El Capitan. They don't have the same impact only because getting to the base is a longer walk. But they are big!! Apparently it is a popular ice climbing destinatio...

The next morning we set off early-ish for our 6 hour walk back along the top ridge of the canyon. Beautiful! It was interesting to look at the Breche de Roland (a famous gap break in the ridge) knowing that just on the other side was the French valley were staying. 10 KM in a straight line, 150 KM by car. Back at our car around 2, we set off on ...

We got used to our new home in Saint Sauveur, the spa town 5 minutes from the main town of Luz Saint Sauveur and took the afternoon to explore the exceptionally cute main town. Clearly, rock climbing is very popular in this area. In the photos, play "spot the climber."

                 

On Sunday, we checked into new home, Hotel Chili, which is all self-contained apartments. The accommodation was simple but was made up for by the giant lawn with Mini-Golf course, free range chickens, and playground within walking distance. And FREE LAUNDRY!!! Needless to say, Sue was in heaven. We played Mini-golf that night and Sue kicked Tom'...

The next day, we took the kids for a lunch time hike along the GR10 to Lac du Gaube with a view of Vignemale the highest mountain in the French Pyrennees, over 10,000 ft. A lazy afternoon followed by another delightful meal and a good night's sleep. Ahh, the mountains.

               

We spent a lazy day in and around our hotel, casually visiting Luz Saint Sauveur, about 10 minutes from our hotel. We also drove up to Gavarnie, the famous Cirque in the region. There weren't much in the ways of views as the mountains were in the clouds.
 
 

This was our earliest start of our day, as Ev, Julie, and Dami needed to get to Madrid by noon, which is a 5 hour drive in the best conditions. So 6am we said our goodbyes from the parking lot across the street from our campground. Why? Because the gates don't open until 8am. They drove off while Sue, Tom, Evie and Tyler "slept" in the back of o...

We've spent the past few days in the Pyranees mountain range; first on the Spanish side, then, as we crossed over to France, on the French side (go figure). We left for our two-day hike near the town of Boi (Spain) and were whisked into the mountains by a rugged 4x4 jeep taxi, taking us where public vehicles are not allowed to venture. The drive...

Go to the Summary Page ___________________________ (See the English version) La première question est-elle de partir d'ici ou d'aller ailleurs? C'est un grand privilège de pouvoir se poser ces deux questions. Je peux choisir de partir, décider où aller, tout en sachant que je pourrai revenir. C'est offert à bien peu de gens sur Terre. Alors je p...