Hiking the Pyrenees and Basque Country
19 Jun 2018

Hiking the Pyrenees and Basque Country

‘We want to do some hiking in

19 Jun 2018

‘We want to do some hiking in the Pyrenees and the Basque Country’

Hiking said the email. Friends of an old client of ours, Manu Feildel who came to record the TV Show ‘My France with Manu’ in 2015, I couldn’t refuse! 6 friends all the way from Sydney Australia.

Months of organising, hotels, hostels, mountain refuges, transport and guides. The tour was a complete success! Starting in San Sebastian at the Hotel Villa Soro we headed east into the Pyrenees via Pamplona. A night in the Hotel Santa Cristina in Canfranc was followed by a tough days hiking, 24km,  in the Pirineo Occidental National Park.  Tired and very weary the group, which included a professional guide and myself as a driver over-nighted in the Refugio de Lizara. The spas in the great hotels we arranged were a godsend!

Ziga

Day 2 and out of the refuge and a shortish 12km trek keeping to the GR -111 route to the Refugio de Gabardito. Picnic lunches everyday meant that the evening meals were hearty and our evening dinner in the Country House in Ziga was no different. The family-run Zigako Etxezuria was exactly what the doctor ordered. From Ziga we walked for part of the Camino de Santiago through leafy and verdant beech forests for a full-days trek. Finishing in Lanz the beers were cold and well deserved!

San Sebastian

Last day saw us make our way back to San Sebastian. The route out of Osses in France saw us visit Espelette, famous for its peppers and chocolate before having  a light lunch or oysters, sardines and wine in the charming seaside and fishing town of St Jean de Luz. The tour was rounded of with a superb dinner in the Ilunpe Sociedad Gastronomica in San Sebastiáns old town, who counts as a member the chef Martin Berasategui owner of 8 Michelin Stars!

 

  • Hiking Pyrenees
  • Basque Hike
Leave a comment
More Posts
Comments
Comment