Stage 5: Burguete - Hiriberri/Villanueva de Aezcoa

The old route of the GR 11 ran through Roncesvalles and climbed the Ibañeta pass. This route has now been transferred to the GR12, with the GR11 running further south.

📌 (0h0min; 0kms) Burguete (890m). Next to the church of San Juan Bautista, the town hall and the pelota court, the red and white waymarks of the Senda Pirenaica start to the east. We follow a track that crosses the Aetzubi stream as soon as we leave it, which is crossed by a speed bump and a footbridge. Just after this we leave the track and turn left onto a path that climbs gently through the beech forest (Oiarburu path). About 2.5 kilometres from the start, on the edge of a meadow area, the path crosses a wire fence and turns sharply to the left. Pay attention at this point.

📌 (1h15min; 4.8kms) Nabala (1.013m). The path joins the track coming from Roncesvalles. We follow it to the right, going along the southern slope of Ortzanzurieta (1,566m), until we reach the...

📌 (1h40min; 7.2kms) Collado de Usateguieta (1020m). The track forks. On the left, it descends to the old Orbaizeta arms factory; on the right, it continues towards Aria. We leave it to continue straight on along a path that enters the pine forest. The path becomes steeper and thus reaches the highest point of the stage, near the top of...

📌 (2h20min; 9.3kms) Latxaga (1,210m). The path descends, joins a track and then crosses a small road at Aizartea, a wide hill occupied by fields of crops. Once again in the forest, you pass a pylon that you leave below on the left. The track has turned into a path that descends rapidly towards...

📌 (3h45min; 13.8kms) Orbara (750m)in the Aezkoa Valley. The marks cross Orbara and continue descending in search of the river Irati, which we cross over a beautiful medieval bridge. From here the path will be all uphill until the town of...

📌 (4h45min; 17.2kms) Hiriberri/Villanueva de Aezkoa (920m).