HRP – traverse of Pyrenees

Year 2015 was a time intensive work for me. Back from Iran, I was compiling the results of the expedition through the Zagros mountains. Between dozens of meetings and hundreds of hours spent on writing a book, I’ve felt a great lack of being on the trail. Eventually I decided to do rather short, 5-week trip to Pyrenees. My goal was High Route of Pyrenees (HRP), 800-km trail between Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. It runs close to the main ridge of the Pyrenees, often crossing the border and is considered the hardest trails of that range and one of the most technically difficult among mountains of Europe. It takes the hiker to high altitudes in fantastic, alpine scenery.

I tru-hiked HRP in 34 days without haste and the pressure for success. Weather in the Pyrenees, ussually unpredictable, turned out to be very gracious that year. Mountains around Gavarnie, Lake Portillon, in Maladeta massif and around the Mulleres Pass were difficult, but also one of the most beautiful I’ve ever encountered.