Thursday 1 August 2013 - Pyrenees GR10 - Day 48 - Stage 34 to 37 variant (4) - Below Port d'Incles to camp near Refuge du Rulhe

Distance: 10 km (Cum: 708 km)     

Ascent: 750 metres (Cum: 41,370 metres)
                     
Time taken: 5.0 hrs including 1.0 hrs stops                                     

Weather: a 'blue sky' day

A short day to end my four day excursion on the HRP. Classic HRP country - very slow going over big boulders for quite a bit of the time, superlative mountain views, and the sun beating down. 

My camp site looked nice enough, and I got a great night's sleep with the door open (midge net shut).  It was a starry night, very calm, shocking for the deer that nearly stumbled over my tent, and dark for the little procession of folk who seemed to be tackling Port d'Incles as a night hike. 

The only problem was the plague of mosquitos. 

The little blighters followed me all the way up the HRP path to 2300 metres. Even when I got a strong phone signal it was pretty much impossible to stop for long enough to do very much without getting bitten. There's no signal here at the Refuge, so this will be posted in the morning. 

I regained the path marked on my map a little below Refuge de Juclar, perched at about 2300 metres above Estany de Juclar (a small lake), from where an adventurous path led around the side of the lake to the excellent camping spot recommended by Simon. Sadly if I had pressed on last night I'd have arrived too late to enjoy the spot.

There were a few people around in this lovely area that is well served by refuges. I made my way over Collada de Juclar and back into France, lunching on my last Salade Parisienne - the one with tuna and mushrooms and mayo, before ambling on to Refuge du Rulhe, arriving before 2pm.

So I've had a half day today, but not as lazy as Pierre and Yolaine's day - they arrived yesterday and are resting here today. It's quite acceptable to camp nearby and eat at the Refuge, as long as you don't camp on the helicopter pad.

It's great to see P&Y again. Their rest was well earned as on Tuesday they had a very hard day from Rialb cabin to Refuge du Juclar. 

Today's photos: the top one is the Estany de Juclar, from near the refuge, and my excellent camping spot is below. 

Tomorrow: another easy day on GR10. 

Later: spent a pleasant few minutes with an English family staying at the Refuge. The first English people I've seen since Luchon. They are on a six day circuit from Ax-les-Thermes, backpacking and hutting. I hope it inspires them to do more. 

The refuge staff were very friendly, the meal was good, and the company (P&Y) exceptional. 

The refuge is in a great spot. The sun finally dropped out of a still cloudless sky at nearly nine o'clock. 

Sent from our GR10 trip - see here for our itinerary