Walk 1.4km from Canillo on the Andorra la Vella road to the Mobil petrol station, where you take a path to the right signed ‘Coll d’Ordino’. This soon begins to climb steeply westwards up the flank of a valley. After about 30 minutes, follow two sides of a rectangular boundary wall around a meadow, then pass well to the left of the ruined Borda de N’Andrieta, cross the head of the valley and re-enter the pine forest. At the Planell de les Basses – a fine, open meadow on the other side of the forest – aim for a broad, double-trunked pine in front of you as you leave the forest. Some 50m beyond, a wide track with yellow and red markers crosses the path at right angles. Turn right along it to reach the Coll d’Ordino (1979m) after a total walking time of 1¼ to 1½ hours.
     At this point, pick up the red-and-white trail markers of the GR11. A well defined track drops westwards towards the tight valley of the Riu de Segudet. After a little over 15 minutes, turn sharp right beside a metal fence to pass a merendero (picnic spot) and the Font de la Navina spring. Thirty minutes or so later, turn right at a T-junction to describe a hairpin around another merendero with a small pool. The path follows a stream which leads from the pool and frequently hops from bank to bank, passing beside the Casa Redort farm.
     Thirty minutes from the T-junction, turn right at a second T-junction and follow the twists and turns of the track as it climbs the west flank of the Vall de Casamanya. At a signpost, take the left-hand option indicating Sornás. Soon after, it’s easy to miss a sharp turn left beside a wooden fence. From here on, the path crosses several small barrancos (gullies or ravines) – steep, narrow but mercifully brief.
     Back again at valley level, La Cortinada, with its 1630 church and restored water-powered flour mill and sawmill, merits a stop. To reach Arans (1385m), take the cart track on the true left (east) bank of the river to avoid the sealed road. Both are attractive villages, now almost entirely given over to rural tourism.
     Should you wish to postpone the ascent to the Coll de les Cases until the next day, both villages have limited accommodation. In La Cortinada, Hostal la Cortinada (Tel: 85 01 51) has singles/doubles for 2500/4200 ptas, while in Arans there are two choices: Hotel Arans (Tel: 85 01 11), with rooms for 4900 ptas, and Hotel Cal Daina (Tel: 85 09 88), where rooms cost 3500/6000 ptas.
     In Arans, the route crosses the sealed road beside the Restaurante la Font d’Arans, meandering its way through the village to a sign pointing to ‘Camí del Coll de les Cases’. At the first bend in the track, go directly ahead up a narrow footpath which heads straight and steadily up to the Coll de les Cases (1964m), a good camp site. The descent to Arinsal (1465m) is more winding, varied and altogether more pleasant, though the stark buildings of this nouveau riche ski resort represent a somewhat brutal return to civilisation.
     In Arinsal, the no-frills Hostal Pobladó (Tel: 83 51 22) costs 2600 ptas per person, while rooms at Hotel Comapedrosa (Tel: 83 51 23) are 3000/5500 ptas. One of the more popular top-end places is Hotel Solana (Tel: 83 51 27, Fax: 83 73 95), where large rooms with bathroom are 5500/8000 ptas.
     The nearest camping ground is Camping Xixerella (Tel: 83 66 13), about 4km south of Arinsal near Erts. If you’re camping wild, consider stopping early and pitching your tent on the grass at the Coll de les Cases, saving the descent to Arinsal until the next morning.

Day 2: Arinsal to Refugi de Vall Ferrera (see map)
6 to 6½ hours, 15km

     At Arinsal’s northern extremity, take a path which climbs between AparthoTel: Crest and an ageing chairlift. After barely five minutes, bear right onto a track. This descends to cross and mount the true left bank of a stream which has its origin on the upper slopes of Pic de la Coma Pedrosa (2964m), Andorra’s highest mountain.
     At Aigües Juntes, about 30 minutes out, recross the stream and its tributary to ascend the flank of a valley coming in from the west. After a further 30 to 45 minutes of steady ascent, a broader valley opens up beyond a false col.
     Just up to the left of the col is the Refugi de Coma Pedrosa (Tel: 32 79 55), the only staffed refugio in Andorra and a favourite day-trip destination from Arinsal. Food and drinks are served from June to late September (1000 ptas for a bunk and 1700 ptas for dinner). It’s advisable to reserve a bunk. If you decide on a side trip to the Pic de la Coma Pedrosa, the refugio makes a good staging post – take the time to enjoy the Estany de les Truites, a little beyond it.
     Continue up the main valley until you reach the cirque of the Coma Pedrosa (Rocky Bowl), from where the path zigzags steeply north-east. Some 45 minutes from the refugio you reach a small tarn. The much larger Estany Negre (aptly if unimaginatively named Black Pool) is no more than 10 minutes further on.
     From here to the pass at Port de Baiau (2756m), thick but manageable snow can linger well into July. About 30 minutes beyond the pool it’s worth pausing at a stone windbreak to savour the view back to the Estany Negre and north-east to the cairned summit of the Pic de la Coma Pedrosa.
     At the col the trail leaves Andorra to drop down into the Spanish province of Lleida. The descent to the Estany de Baiau is decidedly steep, requiring all your attention, particularly if you’re carrying a full backpack. Scree and loose stones are followed by what seems an interminable clamber over boulders. Be guided by the mini-cairns which are more plentiful and visible than the GR11 trail markers.
     After negotiating a final tumble of rocks at the north-east shore of the tarn, you reach Refugi Josep Montfort (2517m), the first of several refugios you’ll come across in Catalunya run by the excellent Federació d’Entitats Excursionistes de Catalunya (FEEC). It only has 12 bunks, but if you decide to overnight here you’ll probably be all alone.
     Continue down into the valley of the Torrent de Baiau, roughly north-east of the refugio. After about 1¼ hours from the tarn, you reach the Torrent de Baiau. Once beyond the Estanys d’Escorbes there are plenty of potential camp sites in the succession of meadows to the north of the track.
     Soon, you see a lone cabin in the meadows of the Pla de Boet, near the banks of the torrent (now called the Riu Noguera de Vall Ferrera). Once a popular summer grazing area for livestock, it now makes an idyllic camp site (300 ptas per person and 300 ptas per tent, payable at the Refugi de Vall Ferrara). Otherwise, continue to meet a broad 4WD track and, after 10 minutes, a wooden bridge leading to the Refugi de Vall Ferrera (Tel: 973 62 43 78 for reservations). Run by the FEEC, with capacity for 30, it’s 1400 ptas for a bunk and 1800 ptas for lunch or dinner.

The Catalan Pyrenees
     The Catalan Pyrenees are bounded by France to the north and the Aragonese Pyrenees to the west, sloping away to the Mediterranean in the east. They are not quite as high as the Aragonese Pyrenees, but are greener, damper and notched by deep valleys which are some of the most underpopulated and least spoilt of the whole range. Small farming communities living in relative isolation – one that was often total during the severe winter months – developed their own localised dialects and customs.
     One such area was the Vall d’Aran, which still retains its own language, known as Aranese. It’s not isolated any more, however, as it now enjoys year-round tourism – the ski resort of Baqueira-Beret is the largest in the Spanish Pyrenees. With its small villages, fine Romanesque churches and enough space for everyone, it’s a beautiful and convenient location for a week or more of easy to medium-standard walking.
     To the east, more than 50 lakes and tarns reflect the jagged peaks of the Parc Nacional d’Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici. The national park also offers enough challenge and variety for a week or more’s hiking along its numerous trails.
     • Only the first two days of this walk appear in the magazine.