Thanks so much again Paul for bringing back memories. That ascent from the refugio really is an absolute slog isn't it.. one step forward only to slide back again! I honestly had to tell myself to be patient and take it easy up that scree/boulder ascent as it's proper heart attack territory isn't it. Once at the col and looking back though, the expression on the faces of those behind me said it all - not pleasant! I think it's what's referred to as 'Retrospective pleasure' 😄 I had to cut my thruhike short at Encamp, so I'm not sure whether to watch the rest of your GR11 vlogs! I'm inspired to return though and looking forward to returning to Encamp, the friendly bar there that signalled the end of my hike before but will be the launchpad for the continuation and completion of the GR11. Thanks again mate! 👍
Cheers Dom. You're right, that ascent was a beast. I remember the wind was pretty strong and it was also biting cold, my hands were freezing all the way from the refuge. I was lucky that there was a group of 4 guys going up the same time as me, and it settled my nerves a bit. Towards the top when every step forward just slid you back though.....I think at one point I just started laughing out loud because I couldn't believe that was the actual trail. Encamp was a great town though, what a fantastic place to start the last part of your hike. Hope you get out there soon mate, and enjoy it!
Took your advice and bought some TOPO Trail shoes they feel great off to Gran Canarie Tenerife to walk GR 131 in them today Great video again top effort
@@PaulandaPack TOPO Trail shoes were super on GR 131 I completed around 110 miles when I completed GR11 my INOV Trail shoes were brilliant but only lasted 300 miles before Hole in left front shoe due to wear TOPO ones will hopefully last longer
Well done Paul! The forested area around Andorra looked a bit different and a bit more interesting to me! Are there distinct "character areas" along the GR11? And where do they begin and end? This would be really useful information imo (i.e. The Basque part looks really distinct, the Catalan side I know is very different, etc.) I suspect that not many people do the GR11 or GR10 in full as they are such a massive undertaking, like you need 6 weeks, plus require really high fitness levels - much more so than say the camino de santiago which is mainly flat and boring, town to town. I am fit 50-something, I hope to do something like the GR11 in retirement, if its not too late by then lol
Thanks again Paul. Glad you're enjoying the videos. Somebody said to me on the trail that Andorra was beautiful when you entered it, and again when you left it, but the middle was lacking in comparison. I found that to be quite true - the middle section was mostly forested and though the walking was nice, there weren't a huge amount of impressive views. I don't mind forest walking at all, but I love huge open vistas and mountain scenery. I also really like barren looking areas - think of the National Parks in the USA like Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Zion, Arches etc. The Basque country certainly had it's own look and feel - open fields, forests and rolling hills. I'd say that lasted until around Ochagavia/Isaba. After Isaba I started to feel like I was really heading into the Mountains. The climbs got longer and harder, and the scenery became more grandiose. From there to Tavascan, roughly, the scenery had more of an alpine feel to it, with some sections leaving you feeling as though you were on another planet. Tavascan to Puigcerda (not there yet with the videos) felt to me like the last of the really large scale impressive mountainous scenery. The weather also started to get much warmer from this point on. Puigcerda to the end of the trail was the least impressive scenery section for me, and there were some longer sections of road walking here too, where I really found it difficult in the heat. There were also long sections under forest canopies here too. Of course, I'm generalising quite a bit with the sections above. If I was to go back and hike a section again, I'd definitely pick somewhere between Isaba and Tavascan. I think my hike was at the end of the season, one reason why I didn't encounter many other hikers. I also think that for some reason, (which I really don't understand), the GR11 is much less popular than the GR10. I did my section of the GR10 at roughly the same time of year, and there were masses more section and thru hikers on that trail. I was extremely lucky to be able to take 6 weeks holiday from work at once, it took some swapping with workmates and careful planning, but you're right that getting that amount of time free to take on a thru hike like that is something that a lot of people aren't able to do. I'm sure you'd love it out there, and I hope you get to do some, if not all of it, in the future!
Hi, I downloaded the GPX files for all the stages from the official GR11 website and imported them into the Komoot app on my phone. Once they were stored there in offline mode, I could use them with my phone on airplane mode to save battery.
@lilbritstar travesiapirenaica.com/en/gr11/gr11.php I can't find the ones I used, but this site has a description of the stages and downloadable GPX files for each one.
Absolutely gorgeous solo adventure my friend!
Thank you kindly! Appreciate it!
Thanks so much again Paul for bringing back memories. That ascent from the refugio really is an absolute slog isn't it.. one step forward only to slide back again! I honestly had to tell myself to be patient and take it easy up that scree/boulder ascent as it's proper heart attack territory isn't it. Once at the col and looking back though, the expression on the faces of those behind me said it all - not pleasant! I think it's what's referred to as 'Retrospective pleasure' 😄
I had to cut my thruhike short at Encamp, so I'm not sure whether to watch the rest of your GR11 vlogs! I'm inspired to return though and looking forward to returning to Encamp, the friendly bar there that signalled the end of my hike before but will be the launchpad for the continuation and completion of the GR11. Thanks again mate! 👍
Cheers Dom. You're right, that ascent was a beast. I remember the wind was pretty strong and it was also biting cold, my hands were freezing all the way from the refuge. I was lucky that there was a group of 4 guys going up the same time as me, and it settled my nerves a bit. Towards the top when every step forward just slid you back though.....I think at one point I just started laughing out loud because I couldn't believe that was the actual trail.
Encamp was a great town though, what a fantastic place to start the last part of your hike. Hope you get out there soon mate, and enjoy it!
Awesome section of the GR! keep it up!
Thanks, yeah, it's hard to pick a favourite part of the trail but looking back now, the scenery here was top notch!
@@PaulandaPack indeed, however, the crown, for me, is the aragonese section, huge and impressive mountains there!
@@PauOutdoors definitely a stunning area!
Took your advice and bought some TOPO Trail shoes they feel great off to Gran Canarie Tenerife to walk GR 131 in them today
Great video again top effort
Awesome! Cheers Steve, I hope they work out for you, and that you have a good time on the 131!
@@PaulandaPack TOPO Trail shoes were super on GR 131 I completed around 110 miles when I completed GR11 my INOV Trail shoes were brilliant but only lasted 300 miles before Hole in left front shoe due to wear TOPO ones will hopefully last longer
@@steveburney5559 That's great to hear! Glad they're working out for you - hopefully you'll get many more miles out of them!
Well done Paul!
The forested area around Andorra looked a bit different and a bit more interesting to me! Are there distinct "character areas" along the GR11? And where do they begin and end? This would be really useful information imo (i.e. The Basque part looks really distinct, the Catalan side I know is very different, etc.)
I suspect that not many people do the GR11 or GR10 in full as they are such a massive undertaking, like you need 6 weeks, plus require really high fitness levels - much more so than say the camino de santiago which is mainly flat and boring, town to town.
I am fit 50-something, I hope to do something like the GR11 in retirement, if its not too late by then lol
Thanks again Paul. Glad you're enjoying the videos.
Somebody said to me on the trail that Andorra was beautiful when you entered it, and again when you left it, but the middle was lacking in comparison. I found that to be quite true - the middle section was mostly forested and though the walking was nice, there weren't a huge amount of impressive views. I don't mind forest walking at all, but I love huge open vistas and mountain scenery. I also really like barren looking areas - think of the National Parks in the USA like Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Zion, Arches etc.
The Basque country certainly had it's own look and feel - open fields, forests and rolling hills. I'd say that lasted until around Ochagavia/Isaba. After Isaba I started to feel like I was really heading into the Mountains. The climbs got longer and harder, and the scenery became more grandiose.
From there to Tavascan, roughly, the scenery had more of an alpine feel to it, with some sections leaving you feeling as though you were on another planet.
Tavascan to Puigcerda (not there yet with the videos) felt to me like the last of the really large scale impressive mountainous scenery. The weather also started to get much warmer from this point on.
Puigcerda to the end of the trail was the least impressive scenery section for me, and there were some longer sections of road walking here too, where I really found it difficult in the heat. There were also long sections under forest canopies here too.
Of course, I'm generalising quite a bit with the sections above. If I was to go back and hike a section again, I'd definitely pick somewhere between Isaba and Tavascan.
I think my hike was at the end of the season, one reason why I didn't encounter many other hikers. I also think that for some reason, (which I really don't understand), the GR11 is much less popular than the GR10. I did my section of the GR10 at roughly the same time of year, and there were masses more section and thru hikers on that trail. I was extremely lucky to be able to take 6 weeks holiday from work at once, it took some swapping with workmates and careful planning, but you're right that getting that amount of time free to take on a thru hike like that is something that a lot of people aren't able to do.
I'm sure you'd love it out there, and I hope you get to do some, if not all of it, in the future!
thanks for detailed response@@PaulandaPack , that's really great information
Hey Paul what GPS maps did you use on your phone?
Hi, I downloaded the GPX files for all the stages from the official GR11 website and imported them into the Komoot app on my phone. Once they were stored there in offline mode, I could use them with my phone on airplane mode to save battery.
@@PaulandaPack legend! Thanks mate, any chance you could link that website? Struggling to locate it. Cheers
@lilbritstar travesiapirenaica.com/en/gr11/gr11.php
I can't find the ones I used, but this site has a description of the stages and downloadable GPX files for each one.