Preparing to hike the Pyrenees

I could have easily spent a few days relaxing in Girona, but the mountains were calling my name, and I had to hurry if I wanted to make it before the first snowfall. Crossing the Pyrenees east to west are 2 or 3 separate paths, with variants, connections and overlaps. The GR-10 follows the French side, and the GR-11 is on the Spanish side. The whole trek from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic takes 6-8 weeks and is rather challenging, since the valleys mostly run North-South and so trails inevitably go up or down most of the time. I hope to manage one or two weeks along a trail my guidebook (Walking in Spain) describes, which crosses some of the most spectacular scenery roughly in the middle section of the range, from the Agües Torres National park west through Ordesa National Park.

Although I knew I would have an opportunity to buy food in Lleida or at the park entrance in Espot, I ended up buying most of what I needed in a cheap supermarket in Girona. My provisions mainly consist of nuts, mixed dried fruit, hard smoked sausage, cheese, honey and lembas bread (er...dried high-fiber bread that is actually very light and filling). I will also eat fresh fruit and vegetables along the route wherever I can get them.

I also found some detailed topo maps covering the first 8-9 days of my hike, which follows the GR-11 with a few exceptions. Finally, I scoured the town for my last wireless connection for a while, in order to upload my latest photos and update my journal. I ended up finding a hotel on the outskirts of town. To my dismay, the wireless connection, though free, popped up with a username and password screen. Luckily, however, I was able to convince the friendly receptionist girl to provide me with the needed information (and I don´t mean her phone number).

The next morning at 7am I went to take the bus to Lleida with my backpack, which has started to become quite heavy with a week´s supply of food. I discarded every inessential item I had, even ripping out unneeded pages out of my hiking guidebook. Still, my fully loaded pack with 2.5 liters of water will probably approach 40 lbs.

I made the bus with 30 seconds to spare, and enjoyed the fantastic scenery along the 3.5 hour ride, which once again took me by the area of Montserrat. I am writing these lines from an internet cafe in Lleida as I wait for my connection to Espot (actually to the crossroads leading to Espot, from where I´ll need to walk several kilometers to the nearest campground or hiker hostel). This will probably be my last post for several days until I get to Benasque, a 5-day journey from Espot. Wish me luck in the mountains!