ENCOUNTERS IN THE CLOUDS
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| ghost horses |
This morning the weather is uninviting. We are in Ainhoa, a village that has many features of the perfect basque village with its pretty half-timbered white and red houses lined-up on the main street. Some of these houses were first built in the 18th century. The village also has its pelota square, its Michelin starred restaurant and a pretty church next to the cemetery.
Low clouds are hanging in the sky, sometimes letting out rain. 90% humidity, not much difference between air and water. If the Basque country is very green, there is a reason, said André Desbordes, our host in Olhette. Rain and fog are the usual suspects to make grass greener. Indeed the area is located between the Pyrénées and the Atlantic ocean. "Les entrées maritimes", clouds coming from the sea are entering the land and get stuck against the foothills of the Pyrénées and generate rain.
Meadows are usually as polished as a golf's green, except that the mowing is done by the sheep, cows or horses left free to graze over the hills. Curiously, the mares are wearing a bell like those of cows, which is quite destabilizing when you hear bells and expect to see cows or sheep but can see none of them. At this season, many of the mares are pregnant. Foals are following their mother and learning how to navigate in this world.
8.30 AM, it is time to depart for our next goal, the Esteben farm at the col des veaux (the pass of the calves). As we steeply ascend on a tarred road with white crosses erected at regular intervals, it is a Way of the Cross, we become quickly in touch with the clouds. If you have never visited a cloud, it is like fog, but windy and composed of droplets of water, sometimes very thin. Visibility is limited to just a few meters but sound travels very well. The horizon is transformed into a white screen.
We hear a bell in the distance and the neigh of a poney that is running after a mare with idea to mount her. She doesn't seem convinced by his offer yet so she escapes him by kicking backwards and folding her hears backwards to show that she is not about to give way. As we stop to watch them, they consider us and soon start grazing, as if suddenly caught by a need for privacy. We leave them to their life and a few minutes later, we hear some neighing again.
We progress upwards and come to a white chapel and soon distinguish the last station of the crucifixion. We leave the road for a mud path which remains our sole contact with the Earth, except when we come close to trees, houses, animals that look like ghosts that we leave behind to reach our goal. I am impressed by the composure of the animals in the fog. They are used to go about their life as usual, despite humidity, low visibility, cold winds.
Two days later, we have another session in the clouds to link Bidarray to Saint Etienne de Baigorry, the area of production of Irouleguy wine. There is a path called the path of the crests (le chemin des crêtes) that runs along the crest of the hills separating the two villages. If the weather is clear one can see the ocean on one side and the Pic du Midi in the other direction. As we progress with limited visibility, I curse myself for having us embarked on this foggy journey. I also repeat to myself sarcastically that, if one has nothing else better to do on a foggy day, then one should definitely consider doing this particular trek! At some point we opt to bypass the hardest part that involves some climbing from rocks to rocks because the fog makes the ground and the rocks very slippery. Fortunately we have a GPS which allows us to more or less stay on track through a large expanse of meadow at the top of a hill. No markings, we would surely have gotten lost without the GPS. After several depressing hours in the clouds we finally reach a wooded hill. Steep ascend but at least something to rest our eyes upon! As we start descending we come below the level of the clouds and discover a landscape of deep valleys that we had been able to imagine in the fog.
To be able to see everything on the GR10, one surely needs to do it several times to accommodate capricious weather conditions. The good thing is that we are now out of the fog, that Saint Etienne de Baigorry is near and therefore the prospect of a fine dinner with some Irouleguy wine is closer than ever!
Low clouds are hanging in the sky, sometimes letting out rain. 90% humidity, not much difference between air and water. If the Basque country is very green, there is a reason, said André Desbordes, our host in Olhette. Rain and fog are the usual suspects to make grass greener. Indeed the area is located between the Pyrénées and the Atlantic ocean. "Les entrées maritimes", clouds coming from the sea are entering the land and get stuck against the foothills of the Pyrénées and generate rain.
Meadows are usually as polished as a golf's green, except that the mowing is done by the sheep, cows or horses left free to graze over the hills. Curiously, the mares are wearing a bell like those of cows, which is quite destabilizing when you hear bells and expect to see cows or sheep but can see none of them. At this season, many of the mares are pregnant. Foals are following their mother and learning how to navigate in this world.
8.30 AM, it is time to depart for our next goal, the Esteben farm at the col des veaux (the pass of the calves). As we steeply ascend on a tarred road with white crosses erected at regular intervals, it is a Way of the Cross, we become quickly in touch with the clouds. If you have never visited a cloud, it is like fog, but windy and composed of droplets of water, sometimes very thin. Visibility is limited to just a few meters but sound travels very well. The horizon is transformed into a white screen.
We hear a bell in the distance and the neigh of a poney that is running after a mare with idea to mount her. She doesn't seem convinced by his offer yet so she escapes him by kicking backwards and folding her hears backwards to show that she is not about to give way. As we stop to watch them, they consider us and soon start grazing, as if suddenly caught by a need for privacy. We leave them to their life and a few minutes later, we hear some neighing again.
We progress upwards and come to a white chapel and soon distinguish the last station of the crucifixion. We leave the road for a mud path which remains our sole contact with the Earth, except when we come close to trees, houses, animals that look like ghosts that we leave behind to reach our goal. I am impressed by the composure of the animals in the fog. They are used to go about their life as usual, despite humidity, low visibility, cold winds.
Two days later, we have another session in the clouds to link Bidarray to Saint Etienne de Baigorry, the area of production of Irouleguy wine. There is a path called the path of the crests (le chemin des crêtes) that runs along the crest of the hills separating the two villages. If the weather is clear one can see the ocean on one side and the Pic du Midi in the other direction. As we progress with limited visibility, I curse myself for having us embarked on this foggy journey. I also repeat to myself sarcastically that, if one has nothing else better to do on a foggy day, then one should definitely consider doing this particular trek! At some point we opt to bypass the hardest part that involves some climbing from rocks to rocks because the fog makes the ground and the rocks very slippery. Fortunately we have a GPS which allows us to more or less stay on track through a large expanse of meadow at the top of a hill. No markings, we would surely have gotten lost without the GPS. After several depressing hours in the clouds we finally reach a wooded hill. Steep ascend but at least something to rest our eyes upon! As we start descending we come below the level of the clouds and discover a landscape of deep valleys that we had been able to imagine in the fog.
To be able to see everything on the GR10, one surely needs to do it several times to accommodate capricious weather conditions. The good thing is that we are now out of the fog, that Saint Etienne de Baigorry is near and therefore the prospect of a fine dinner with some Irouleguy wine is closer than ever!
Images:
1/ ghost horses
2/ a curious cow
3/ placid sheep
4/ Ainhoa's crucifixion
5/ the hills around Saint Etienne de Baigorry
2/ a curious cow
3/ placid sheep
4/ Ainhoa's crucifixion
5/ the hills around Saint Etienne de Baigorry
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| a curious cow |
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| placid sheep |
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| Ainhoa's Crucifixion |
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| the hills around Saint Etienne de Baigorry |
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