May 26, 2026 – Mirepoix to Pamiers – 29 kms – La Parenthèse apartment
May 27, 2026 – Pamiers to near La Bastide de Sérou – 28 kms – Chateau du Val Larbont
May 28, 2026 – near La Bastide de Sérou to Saint-Gérons – 29 kms – Jardin Bleu
May 29, 2026 – Saint-Gerons to Saint-Lary – 28 kms – Auberge de L’Isard
May 30, 2026 – Saint-Lary to near Saint-Pe d’Ardet – 28 kms – Pyrénées Emotions
Ruth: Gord texted me yesterday enroute to tell me about a transhumance festival being held in Saint Lary, our destination for the day. My first guesses about what a transhumance festival could possibly be were way way off. For anyone who doesn’t know, it’s the movement of herds of sheep and horses up to higher pastures. This could all easily be done now with trucks and trailers, but where is the fun in that? The festival is a proud celebration of rural herding culture in the Pyrenees.
At least 200 tourists wearing backpacks and carrying the mandatory walking stick lined the road out of Saint-Lary at 7:30 this morning. They were all here to make the journey with the animals. It was great to see.
We have climbed into the Pyrenees mountains and the world has changed. Houses now have slate roofs and are constructed of exposed stone. Gone is the voie verte and its gentle rail bed grades (sob), to be replaced with climbs up and over mountain passes.
My ride today included two passes. The first was a steep climb up to 1069 meters. Gordon’s path took him up to 1189, the highest point on this camino. I added two kilometers to the total distance with my zigzagging on the 9% grade road. It’s Saturday so my zigs and zags had to avoid the club cyclists as they zinged down the hill at treacherous speeds. On my descent the grades turned ugly. 17 percent, which almost gives me vertigo. The disc brakes on my new bike kept me at a safe speed on the descent. Thank goodness I didn’t approach this pass from the West!! Near the bottom of this treacherous section there was a large memorial to a cyclist killed here during the 1995 Tour de France. As I read the information on the memorial another cyclist whipped down at breakneck speed, barely making the same corner.
Beyond the mountains, the Camino history is rich here. We always stop to look at the village churches and have been delighted to discover beautiful Romanesque carvings and frescos of many subjects, including Saint James!
I’d fallen behind so just binged through your last four posts. Such beautiful villages and bridges in the earlier ones and the timber construction before the Pyrenees reminded me of an Ottoman village we visited in Turkey. Some tough climbs and descents now. Stay cool!
A few days ago I read about the transhumance festivals and how hikers walk along with animals. So it was very cool to see your photos of the event. Weren’t you lucky to come across that event!