Day 7

We continue the 23 day east-to-west traverse of the Pyrenees, covering days 3-6: Vall Ferrera and Vall de Cardós.

Over two cols from Vall Ferrera to Vall de Cardós via a pair of high tributary valleys, the Sotllo and Sellente. Continues to the Vall d’Aneu and Espot, gateway to the Parc Nacional d’Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici.

Vall Ferrera and Vall de Cardós are two relatively isolated and unspoilt river valleys sandwiched between the more popular tourist areas of Andorra and the Parc Nacional d'Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici. Flowing from north to south, they form part of the least populated region of Catalunya and are difficult to reach by public transport. They merit the effort, however; you'll probably be the only foreigner or even the only non-Catalan around.

Graded medium-hard, the route is only really difficult at the beginning of the walking season when a few stages may be uncairned and overgrown.

This section includes a couple of superlative side trips: the popular ascent to the Pica d'Estats (3143m), the highest point in Catalunya, and a walk to Catalunya's deepest lake, the Llac de Certascan

Places to stay & eat on this walk

Getting to & from this walk

The Walk (see map 9)
Day 7: Espot to Refugi de Colomers
6½ to 7 hours, 18.5km

     Exactly 2km along the road from Espot, turn right at a sign for the lake and the Refugi Ernest Mallafré. Cross and follow the true left bank of the Riu Escrita through a mixture of broad-leaf woodland, pine trees and meadow.
      About halfway to the Estany de Sant Maurici the path begins to fill up with day-trippers from the car park at Prat de Pierró, the limit for private vehicles. From here to the lake the track is a conduit for some 95% of visitors who walk in.
      Roughly 45 minutes beyond Prat de Pierró you can take water on board at the gushing Font de l'Ermita beside a small chapel, or a little later from the Font de Sant Maurici at the lake's north-east shore.
      From the spring at the dam's north-east shore follow the lakeside track. Turn right (north) at a sign, ‘Cascada’ (where ‘cascada’ in Spanish means waterfall), to refresh yourself in the Cascada de Ratera's rainbow spray after about 30 minutes. Take the left fork at a T-junction beyond the waterfall onto a 4WD track with GR11 trail markers. The views south to the Pic dels Feixans de Monestero and the Gran and Petit Encantats – so frequently photographed that they're almost symbols of the park – are unsurpassed.
      At a fork soon after the splendid tarn, Estany de Ratera (2150m), an hour from the Estany de Sant Maurici, don't follow the virtually impassable stream-side route indicated on the Editorial Alpina map. Instead, take the right fork towards Refugi d'Amitges. After scarcely 100m strike left (north-west), aiming for a red-striped GR11 pole. Keep looking out for the poles which from here until shortly before the Port de Ratera d'Espot are the principal trail markers. Some 15 minutes after passing the Estany d'Obagues de Ratera (also known as Estany de la Munyidera) to your left, the path reaches the beginning of two boulder fields. Stick close to the stream to avoid the worst of the first boulders. The path threads its way through the second field, reducing the amount of scrambling involved.
      The grade stiffens briefly as you approach the Estanyet del Port de Ratera at the top of the valley. Having curled around a bulge on the north-eastern side of the lake, you reach the Port de Ratera d'Espot (2534m), a mere 50m above the tarn, 2¼ to 2½ hours from the Estany de Sant Maurici.
      Stroll west along the flat, grassy saddle to begin the stepped descent into the spectacular Circ de Colomers. From here on, there's an infinity of tempting camp sites beside the lakes which stipple the valley. The trail skirts to the south-west of each of these lakes, linked together like beads on a necklace by a stream.
      After just a glimpse of Estanh Cloto and the low ranges behind the Vall d'Aran, a wooden sign directs you left (west) over a small hill and down to the Estanh Major de Colomers. Cross the dam to reach the Refugi de Colomers, some two hours after leaving the Port de Ratera d'Espot, at the end of one of the most spectacular days of walking that the Pyrenees can offer.