May 26: England
15.00 hours After extensive pre-trip
preparation I left Winchester with a briefcase full of notes, hotel and
bus reservations to get me to Andorra by lunchtime the next day.
18.30 hours: After sitting in the departure lounge in Terminal 5 for an hour I am called, along with dozens of others, to gate 9. There we are told that the flight is cancelled, and that we have to exit the UK down the corridor, and re-enter the UK through immigration at the far end of the corridor to collect our luggage from the carousel. For once my bag was there before I was! That was the easy bit, for after navigating through the terminal to the check-in area in order to re-book my flight I realised that I wasn't alone. The dozens passing through gate 9 seem to have multiplied into hundreds, for there was a queue snaking almost completely around the check-in hall. Like a snake deprived of sunshine it moved very slowly.
19.30 hours: When my calculations
arrived at the answer '2 hours' as
the likely wait, I tried plan 'B' - and rang the 0800 number displayed
on the check-in desks. Engaged. So tried plan 'C': phoning my daughter
to get her to try re-booking via ba.com (as advised by the staff on
gate 9). As the web-site did not appear to be allowing her to re-book I
moved on to plan 'D' (by now I had moved 5 metres forwards and had been
given a bottle of water by BA) and repeated plan 'B' - success
-the number was ringing & I got that friendly recorded voice
telling me how my call was important and how I could re-book on-line.
The voice also said something about a high volume of calls. You
bet! 25 minutes, and another 5 metres, later my call was answered
and a really helpful guy in the Manchester office dealt speedily with
my booking - which would have been good if there were any spaces on the
next flights..... As it was, the possible flight was in 2 days time -
bang goes my preparation and familiarisation time in Andorra (not to
mention the hotel & bus bookings...). I left the queue a further 1
metre on and 'satisfied'. I took one look at the slightly shorter, but
still long, queue for hotel vouchers and decided to go home.
22.15 hours:
Arrived
home, and straight out to the 'Fulflood' for a
much needed pint!
May 27:
Back home in
Winchester, and a chance for a run in the New Forest - some
compensation for not getting to Andorra.
May 28:
Back on the train and
bus to Heathrow Terminal 5. I always arrive too early, then
find that check-in only takes 10 minutes (mostly hunting for a bag
drop with no queue). So two hours to while away in that emporium of
shopping for expensive, and mostly useless, objects. Luckily food came
to mind, and I decided to have a meal. I say luckily, for BA's
in-flight
meal has been shrunk to a minute bag of crisps, or a biscuit. At least
I got to fly, and arrived in Toulouse just after 22.00, and after some
directions from the Information staff, trailed my bag around some dark
back-streets alongside the airport to the largely plastic Formule 1
hotel.
Shopping in Terminal 5 |
Reflections of ripples on the brickwork under the 17th century bridge over the Garonne in Toulouse |
May 29: Toulouse
The group did not fly in until 17.15, so a whole day free, once I got rid of my luggage. Of course, for security reasons (!?), the airport has no left luggage facility, so I had to drag my bag to the bus into town (literally as the wheels on the case were jamming up) & then to the station where my bag was x-rayed before being put in a locker. It was a hot Sunday in Toulouse, so the parks and the riverside where I wandered were full of families enjoying themselves. In the centre a Festival of languages was in full swing, with booths from various remote (and some less remote) areas of the world whose language and, presumably, citizens, were represented in Toulouse society. There was even a small camp in support of the demonstrating Spanish young people in Madrid. Just off the square there was a display of cartoons about various aspects of the EU - some brilliantly funny - but strangely none from UK cartoonists
 Cartoon in EU Expo |
May 30: Encamp, Andorra
The beginning of the D+/Flower holiday i.e. moderately hard walking with eyes glued to the ground! We took the public bus up the valley from the edge of Encamp where our hotel was located, and started the walk at Soldeu.
The first half of the walk was a Itinerari de Natura, waymarked with red paint, faded and peeling, in the shape of a chicken - probably supposed to be a capercaillie. It took a long time to complete the first 300 metres due to the density of interesting flowers and the volume of megapixels being ingested by the cameras. It didn't take long to rank the botanical expertise and interest of everyone and, as leader, I was proud to let Helen, Alan and Richard have the higher rungs on the ladder! It was great fun, not too hot or cold, no hurry to complete the walk, and a constant feed of new species to spot as we descended the valley. I chose a good spot for a morning drinks break, with a ski lift overhead, no interesting flowers in sight and a good supply of wood-ants.
The lunch break was chosen for us - black clouds were moving northwards out of Spain and the thunder was getting louder - the last chance to eat in the dry was in woodland near Canillo on a narrow path, with yet more wood-ants.
Luckily it only rained a little on and off, so we completed the walk
only slightly damp, some of us having visited the 1970's church at
Meritxell, built in dark rough slates in a combined style of a ruined
abbey and a Moorish mosque: very calm and fitting in the narrow valley.
Burnt Orchid, er.. probably
|
May 31: Encamp
The group heading slowly, plant by plant, through the rocky outcrop covered in broomAs we had plenty of time I declared an hour-long 'free to roam' period, so people disappeared in various directions (mostly up) to look for more interesting plants than were to be found in the grassland by the path. After a lunch huddled in a hollow out of the wind we followed the descending path through pine trees festooned with lichens (giving them a most ghostly appearance) towards the road into the main valley of Andorra. Just before we re-entered civilisation (i.e. reached the ugly blocks of apartments that festoon the hillsides throughout the main valley) there were some magnificent hay (presumably) fields with Pheasant's Eye Narcissus and Orchids aplenty. Like all good walks, this one ended in a bar before we caught the bus back down to Encamp. |
....when all at once I saw a cloud of .....Narcissus poeticus |
June 1: Encamp
When I checked the weather forecast, and it gave the maximum
temperature as 7ºC in the valley, and a freezing level just above
2000m, I didn't believe it. Until, that is , we got out of the mini-bus
at the top of the pass that links over to France at Port d'Envalira
(2408m).The last temperature we had seen on an electronic sign was
-2º just below the pass, and with the strong wind it felt, well,
chilly. That set the tone for the day; it could only get worse as we
went higher, and it did! Despite the icy wind, numbed hands, and
reluctant cameras there was an impressive amount of prostrate and
kneeling forms capturing the tiny Alpines that were positively
shuddering in the gale. The views as we bent our way over the Pic de
Maia (2615m), and then headed along a magnificent (in good weather)
ridge walk, were spectacular - even if the surrounding peaks were cut
off just above us by the cloud layer.It was with great relief (especially for Jean, who had to be held firmly to prevent her being blown back to France) that eventually we made our way steeply down to the lake (Estany del Siscaro) and to wind at merely half the speed it was on the tops. The wind was, however, laced with little snow pellets or mini-hail just to add to the fun. Luckily there is a refuge half an hour below the lakes, and we took full advantage of its shelter for a late picnic. Even better, as Gill had some matches with her, we had a small warming fire (we it warmed me as I was sitting next to it!) and the added light of two candles.
View up the Siscaro lake outlet |
Pink Rock Jasmine in a dusting of snowThe steep descent by the stream into the Vall d'Ingles, and then the walk down this valley on the road, was marked by the occasional interesting botanical find and the increasing amount of light snow blowing horizontally up the valley. Once again there was a well-placed bar within metres of the bus stop, and this time it was hot drinks (almost) all round. |
June 3: Encamp
A free day - so everyone went their own way - down to Andorra la Vella, up to Estany d'Engolasters (and its weed-filled botanical trail), to the Motor Museum, and the chapel and tower at Les Bons. Iran, so no photos! The surrounding mountains, however, had a fresh dusting of snow from the previous night.June 4: Encamp
Not knowing where, and how much, snow still laid on the mountains I stuck to my original plan of climbing up the Rialb valley and crossing over a pass and French border to reach the Estany Blau lake. It was (again) rather cold and showery when we set out up the valley, but we were rewarded by a few straggly wild tulips, and the seed heads of the dog's-tooth violet, to name but a few. As we approached the Rialb refuge, however, the size of the slightly melting and very slippery snow patches began to increase. It didn't seem wise to continue - even exploring the valley bottom higher up proved problematical as the path had washed away. So we returned back the way we had come, and were rewarded by a short period of warm weak sunshine for a lunch break.
Alan botanising up the flower-filled Sorteny valley |
Now why didn't all the flowers in the mountains have labels? |
We were met by Vicente and the mini-bus at the end of the path above the village of el Serrat and ferried to the nearest bar for a well-earned beer - what a gentleman!
June 5: Encamp
The final day of walking for the first tour, and the mist, rain and rocks made sure that it was a memorable walk. Starting at the dismal ski centre of Grau Roig we walked up ski runs to the first Pesson lake - beautiful when the mist cleared enough to see the far shore. It was only when we started to walk round the lake and up towards the higher lakes that we realised how tricky the walking was; boulders to clamber over, streams to cross, and the odd steep rocky slope to climb. No wonder Sue, Richard and Jean felt moved (or rather unmoved) to stay back whilst the rest of the group clambered on up into the mist. Every now & then a jagged skyline would appear, giving a hint of what the surrounding mountains must look like. The continuing group was, however, rewarded by the sight of a hillside covered in daffodils and sprinkled with trumpet gentians.
Trumpet Gentians and Daffodils on the hillside |
Estany Rodo (the 3rd Pesson lake) in the mistAfter returning to the first lake the trail contoured back towards the road on good tracks and paths. Initially. When the waymarked path started heading down into the valley the red & white paint splashes wound all over the hillside through the pines, avoiding an obvious track nearby. Even worse, the waymarks completely avoided a perfectly good bridge and led us to a slippery stream crossing where I failed completely to prevent Sue & Jean getting boots full of water and, in Jean's case, a nasty bruise.Eventually, after a slippery, muddy and root entangled descent we reached the road, the bus, safety and, in the end, the hotel! |