It’s beginning to look like we’re not going to finish the trail in 50 days like the book says. Last night’s storm scare cost us an extra day getting into Seix. Some might say “Well, just get up early and make up the extra 3 miles today.” To them I say “Is this the first time you’ve read our blog? We are not morning people. I could be, but my wife gets mean if she gets woke up before she’s ready and I’m not willing to risk bodily injury when we still have so much hiking to do.”
It didn’t storm, it didn’t rain, it didn’t even have clouds in the sky after we went to bed. Does that mean we got a good night of sleep? One word–Mickey. That’s right, his disgruntled cousins were taking it out on us that they didn’t get a piece of the Disney pie. Every time I’d just about get to sleep, plastic would start rattling again. I had already hung our food from the rafters in anticipation of mice. I eventually hung everything from the rafters to keep it safe from the mice. (Pam was not happy with hanging from her hair and socks, but I knew the cabin wasn’t strong enough to withstand her reaction if a mouse ran across her in the night.)
Just as we were getting ready to leave, Pam decided she needed to find a wal-mart. I’m more of a Macy’s man, so I can wait. I checked the guidebook and all indications are we will cross paths with porcelain.
Our gains in starting times from the last two days were shot today–we started hiking at 10. Neither one of us was a ball of hiking fire today. We retraced our steps to the GR10 and passed the Cap des Lauses once again. This time, we weren’t under storm defcon 4, so we got a picture to acknowledge the 3400′ climb we did yesterday. I hate to admit that we are getting in better shape, but that was our second big climb yesterday. If I could ever get Pam to stay focused on hiking, we might be able to start getting some miles under our belts–but that’s for next year.
After a couple of hours and another pass, we arrived at Estaing d’Ayes. This was the lake we wanted to camp at last night. As the guidebook said, it was a very popular spot. There must have been over 100 people spread out around the lake. We made the right decision not coming here last evening in the fog because there were a few narrow squeezes to navigate. We satisfied ourselves with having lunch while we soaked our feet in the lake. This lake is where we learned an important life lesson–the true value of M&Ms. These are a precious back country treat and Pam is very diligent in making sure I don’t get even 1 more than she does (even though I have to carry them). While doling/counting them out, I dropped 3 of my stash in the lake. Pam laughed and said I can’t replace them out of the bag–she didn’t drop hers, why should she be penalized. As I saw fish approaching, I made the right decision. I reached in, grabbed my run-aways, and popped them in my mouth. I will not be deprived.
The guidebook was just outright wrong from the lake to the next pass, but for once, we were OK with that. The trail must have been rerouted in the last few years to avoid an extra 1000′ drop and climb. By now, we were both nearly falling asleep on the trail. We just wanted to get someplace and rest.
Our best bet was the Cabane de Tariolle just below the Pas de la Core, but when we got there, it was already occupied. As we passed the group, we all said awkward “Bon jours”but we could tell they were not French. As we passed, one guy ran out of the cabin laughing about there were books inside and they could learn French–it was definitely an English accent. I stopped and started a conversation with them. They were a group from South Hampton University out for a short trip in the Pyrenees. One of the guys is heading to the states after this to get married just outside of San Francisco. We had a nice talk with them but we had to move on. I wanted to warn them about mice, but forgot. I’m sure they’ll figure it out tonight.
Even though we plan to take a day off in Seix, we were so tired and nearly out of food that we decided to spring for another gite. Esbints was only another mile or two so we thought we’d check it out. When we got there, it was deserted. We went in, chose a bed, and started to shower when the owner finally showed up. She told us dinner at 8 in her house.
While we were sitting out on the deck having a beer, the rest of the people staying in the gite showed up. It was the English family we met in Fos–Martin, Judith, John, and Mary. They’ve been a day ahead of us and they decided to take a rest day today which allowed us to catch them again. We will catch up on happenings over dinner this evening.
What a surprise that Fred stayed here last night. The young couple that own this gite are very creative and hard working. She grows vegetables and fruits and he grows livestock. They built the main house just 5 years ago by themselves. She makes ice cream that she sells to local shops. They run the gite from the beginning of June to the end of September. It seems like they are constantly working. Judith, Martin, and the kids are heading to Cabane d’Aula so they will once again be a day ahead of us. We might see them one more time in St-Lizier in a few days. It was a very pleasant dinner that we didn’t finish until after 10.
