HRP 2×3000: tips for the Haute Route Pyrenees

Quick Guide GR 11

with everything you need to know before undertaking the Pyrenean Path

The aim of this great adventure was to connect the two most distant main three-thousanders. The westernmost 3.000m (Balaitús), with the easternmost 3.000m (Pica d'Estats). To do so via the High Pyrenean Route (HRP) on most of the route and with as much autonomy as possible.

• It covers a total of 314km and 19,000m of elevation gain and loss.
• From summit to summit it took about 16 days, but counting the approaches it was a total of 19 days of pure adventure.

The starting point would be in Sallent de Gállego, where the bus would leave us in the afternoon.

And we finish the adventure in Andorra, specifically in Arinsal.

My philosophy

My philosophy, and the one I take with me on this adventure, is the one I like the most and with which I have carried out other adventures.

A very pure way of experiencing the mountain, both the good and the bad. Personally I feel much more connected to the mountain in the following way:

As much autonomy as possible, not using any shelters except in an emergency. Spending some nights in free shelters and many others in bivouacs or tents. Recharging all the food for the next few days when necessary in the villages we pass through on our journey.

In this case I went with a partner, not alone as I am used to.

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Physical preparation and experience

It should be noted that both my partner and I have a certain amount of preparation. Nothing too demanding, but we each have our own physical and mental training to be ready to successfully face this type of trekking and activities in the mountains. 

In this case we didn't want to break any records and we didn't want to do it as fast as possible.

And we can't forget the experience. It's not the first time we've done something like this in the mountains. However, that doesn't mean we can't make mistakes, we made them. The idea is to learn for the next one and keep improving.

Planning and guidance

A few weeks beforehand we planned everything. 

The idea was to follow the HRP for most of the route. 

We used the Cicerone guide, my partner had his guide on his mobile phone, so that we could consult it during the crossing.

On the other hand, we planned in the Mapy.cz application exactly where we would pass through and more or less where we would sleep, next to a lake or river, in a free shelter... 

In the same application we plan the track and we download all the maps where we would go through so we can also check the paths.

In addition, I carried a couple of sheets of paper in a plastic bag with the stages, with the times, some alternatives, all kinds of refuges just in case... this also helped me to have it all clearer and to manage the food better.

I used to carry about 4 kg of food. 

The first day we left with food for about 6 days, we recharged when we arrived at Gavarnie, where we recharged for another 2 days, then we arrived at Parzan, where we recharged for another 6 days until we arrived at Vielha, where it would be the last place to recharge supplies until the end of the trip in Andorra. 

In Parzan, I made the mistake of not managing my food well and I went hungry the days before arriving in Vielha. For the same reason, when reloading in Vielha I made the opposite mistake, I bought too much food, I don't even want to imagine the weight of the backpack at that moment, I was carrying twice as much food as I had been carrying up to that moment.

Epoch

We left home on Friday 9 September, and arrived on Tuesday 27 September.

Doing it in September was not a very deliberate choice, mostly because it was when my partner was on holiday.

Despite doing it in September, we had better weather than we had imagined. However, we had some very aggressive rain with a lot of wind and a bit of snow and cold on the last days to go up to Pica.

Hard times

Not everything was easy and pleasant, there were also hard moments. But that is the real adventure, to have problems and adversities, to know how to overcome them successfully and to achieve your goal.

Apart from some of the usual gems of the trade, such as the typical chafing of the backpack, the occasional sunburn, the unpleasant pain in your feet when you put on your boots and socks when they were completely wet in the morning, and the pain caused by the cold...

It is worth mentioning the weight of the days on your back. So many days sleeping sometimes on a not so comfortable floor, and the next day having to continue walking with a backpack weighing 18 kg is not for everyone.

To mention some of the hardest moments; on one of the first days after we had already reached the summit of Balaitús, while we were having dinner it was already clear that the weather was getting more complicated, while we were already in the tent the lightning started, I remember how the whole tent lit up with each one of them, there was also a generous rain accompanied by a strong wind. 

At the beginning everything was fine, with no more problems beyond the bad weather. Until I noticed that the floor of the tent was sweating a lot of humidity, without giving it any more importance, when suddenly the tent started to flood (an inch of water inside the tent), leaving everything inside completely soaked and some things floating. At that moment I found myself with most of my equipment completely soaked, bag, feathers, clothes, boots, backpack... thanks to a watertight bag I was able to save all the electronics.

So in the middle of the night, with the storm raging, we had to pack up, backtrack a bit, and go to a sheltered refuge that was fortunately relatively close by. 

There I was able to dry all my equipment to have it dry the next day.

That night I ended up sleeping on the floor at the end of a corridor without even a mat (which was also soaked).

With this bad, or rather non-existent, rest, the next day seemed to have better weather, but as soon as we started walking, things started to go wrong.

It was so windy that the drops of water hurt when they hit your face, it was very difficult to keep your balance and in fact, in some gusts of wind, the typical stone markers that mark the path fell down.

In addition to this, there were some steep stretches, loose stones, paths that were real rivers...

Some overflowing waterfalls and torrents of water had to be crossed, with the water sometimes stained brown by rocks and mud.

If I have to describe one of the moments where I was scared it would be that one, the water was dragging rocks, and at times you had to put your leg above the knee into the waterfall.

Another hard time was when I went hungry because of poor food management.

And finally, some disagreements with our companion. We were both very used to going alone, and in this adventure there were several moments of anger for not acting in the same way, wanting to do different things in some situations and having different ways of understanding companionship.

Conclusion

In conclusion, if anyone wants to do this kind of trip, I highly recommend it. 

It is true that there are very good and happy moments, such as when you find a free and beautiful refuge at the end of the day, when you achieve the goals you set along your route, or simply when you meet people you would never have met otherwise. But there are also hard moments and not very pleasant situations.

However, it's all learning and you never come back from the mountain disappointed, after all, it's all experience.

I would recommend a minimum of preparation, some experience, some knowledge, and good equipment.

Finally, I would like to stress the importance of carrying as light a backpack as possible, as this will determine how agile and fast we can be in certain sections and situations.