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Gavarnie La Courade Hpte Pierre Meyer
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MEYER PIERRE

Walks to the Gavarnie cirque

Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Pyrenees – Mont Perdu since 1997, the Gavarnie cirque is one of those places you just can’t get enough of. At the heart of its wall is the 423-metre-high Grande Cascade. From the village, a wide track leads up to the cirque. Other paths climb higher, skirting the slopes and offering a more aerial approach before descending to this monumental setting.
A family walk, a balcony route, a more impressive passage or an open view of the whole site: there’s a way for everyone to enter one of the great landscapes of the Pyrenees.

out of the ordinary

An impossible mountain

Outstanding geology

Mineral amphitheatre

The first sight of the circus is surprisingly huge. This is not how a mountain should stand. In front of you, an immense limestone wall rises up to 1,700 metres, in an almost unreal rush.
Folds, faults, thrusts, rocks rising above an older base: the whole geology of the site feeds this impression of monumentality. In this mineral amphitheatre you can hear the cries of marmots, the rush of water and the flight of birds of prey.

classic

A great classic

several ways in

From the village of Gavarnie, there are several routes into the cirque. The main path offers the most direct access. The balcony variants, via Les Espugues or the Bellevue plateau, take you higher up and offer wider views of the site before descending to the bottom of the cirque.

The Gavarnie cirque via the main route

From the village, a wide track leads gently up the Gave to the Hôtellerie du Cirque. This is the simplest and easiest route to the Great Wall. After a lookout point, the path leads to the Courade plateau. The path on the right climbs to the Bellevue plateau; if you want to stay on the main route, simply continue straight ahead. The walk, which is steady and not particularly difficult, gradually leads to the hostel. For many, arriving at the hôtellerie marks a real encounter with the cirque, facing the waterfall.

Beyond that, the atmosphere changes. You can either continue to the foot of the Grande Cascade along a steeper, stonier path, or take your time walking in the depths of the cirque, between streams, rocks and lawns. In season, you can also hire a donkey to take you along this path.

Landmarks

Distance to hotel: 4 km
Add 1 km for the foot of the waterfall
Difference in altitude: +200 m
Add +150 m for the waterfall
Map: IGN Top 25 1748OT Gavarnie
Estimated walking time: 2 h 30
Return: by the same route

The Gavarnie cirque from the balconies

The two sides of the valley offer a different approach to the cirque. These balcony itineraries take in more height, offer more distance and provide particularly fine views over the whole site.
To the east, the corniche des Espugues is surprisingly spectacular. Opposite, the Bellevue plateau offers a more pastoral loop, opening out onto the mountain pastures and the mineral amphitheatre.

The route via the Chemin des Espugues

The word espugue refers to a cavity, a cave. The path is aptly named: it joins the cirque via a passage as close as possible to the rock, where the mountain seems to open up into the wall. More aerial than the main path, the route requires more ease, but offers a striking approach to the mineral amphitheatre.
From the village, first follow the main track towards the cirque for around ten minutes, then fork left towards the Espuguettes refuge. The climb takes you through a light forest, punctuated by increasingly open views.

At a crossroads between the forest and the mountain pastures, the path leaves this route to join the cirque. It passes the small green refuge of the Chalet de Pailla, then enters the cornice before descending to the Hôtellerie du Cirque.
If you wish, you can then continue to the foot of the waterfall. The end then becomes steeper and rockier.

Landmarks

Distance to hotel: 5 km
Add 1 km for the foot of the waterfall
Difference in altitude: +350 m / -150 m
Add +150 m for the waterfall
Map: IGN Top 25 1748OT Gavarnie
Estimated walking time: 2 h
Return: via the main track or the Bellevue plateau

Before you leave

The Gavarnie cirque lies in the heart of the Pyrenees National Park, a protected natural area subject to specific regulations.
Dogs are only allowed on the main path, on a lead, from the village to the Hôtellerie du Cirque. Dogs are not allowed beyond this point, towards the Grande Cascade, or on the balcony routes.

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