Return to the GR1 Sendero Histórico - to Berantevilla

I didn't do the Fontecha Berantevilla stretch of GR1 earlier in the year because I couldn't find anywhere to stay on the route. Instead I got a lift from Fontecha to Medina de Ebro and then a taxi to Berantevilla next day. I wanted to see what this stretch of walking was like and if it was worth doing. Instead of Medina de Ebro, which wasn't a particularly nice place, I wanted to try Vitoria-Gasteiz.

I'd stayed the night before in Bilboa and had been there just long enough to work out where everything was and conclude that it's definitely worth a return visit with Christine. It would be an excellent place to tack onto the beginning or end of some GR1 walking.

From Bilboa I went to by bus to Vitoria-Gasteiz which, with a lovely medieval core is much nicer than Medina de Ebro. It's where Wellington beat the French in the final battle of the Peninsula War, a victory which lost some its sparkle when the British troops, instead of pursuing their enemy, went on a drinking binge.

Early next morning I caught the bus to Fontecha.  It was a little mini-bus with only one passenger on it for the 40 kilometre journey - me.

One of two castles at Fontecha

Back on the GR1 Sendero Histórico - Cantabria and beyond

Yesterday I crossed a Spanish regional border, from Castile Leon to Cantabria and things GR1 fell apart. It was a frustrating day but provided essential information for my forthcoming GR1 guide.

In Spain regional government and regions are incredibly important. They affect everything even long distance walking routes like the GR1.  The GR1 ends at the "border" between Castile Leon and Asturias rather than going all way to Finisterre as originally intended presumably because Asturias and Galicia (particularly the walking/climbing associations) are not interested.  If the regions don't cooperate it's a problem.

Jesus Garcia Delgado - my host in Branosera

Back to the GR1 Sendero Histórico - to Branosera

This was a walk I had done before with Juan but last time, because it was covered with the snow, the trail was hard to follow and I wanted to make sure I had got it right for the guide.  We also missed a bit of the route to go and look at an old oak tree, something I definitely didn't need to do twice.

It was a gorgeous morning and unlike yesterday I didn't have to leave without a coffee.

The walk starts with a trip through a brand new park just to the north of town - new pavements, benches and street lights.  Away from the shops and where anyone lives it's hard to imagine it ever getting used.  You see developments like this all over Spain, a product of the optimism fueled by the building boom. There is a large new footbridge which Juan and I crossed last time which drops you, heading on the wrong route, in the middle of an empty industrial estate.

Evergreen oak forest near Requejada Reservoir

Return to the GR1 Sendero Histórico - to Cervera de Pisuerga

The hostal at Camporredonda de Alba is fine, good food, nice bar, traditional rural Spanish accommodation and great value but don't expect a smile from the host. He is efficient though and when he realised that I wanted to get away early in the morning he found someone in the bar who could speak English and took my order for breakfast.  It's a typical practical Spanish arrangement, pay the night before you leave, grab your packed breakfast before you go to bed, leave your key in the door and bugger off.

The sunny side of the valley

Back on the GR1 Sendero Histórico - to Camporredonda de Alba

Good job Christine wasn't with me today.  She would have been somewhat annoyed.  I knew it was going to be a long day but no where near as long as it turned out to be.  I got both the length of the walk wrong and the amount of climb. The 4 passes I had to cross must have amounted to at least 2,000 metres of ascent.  As usual I got to where I wanted but it took 12 hours!

The first pass was immediately to the east of Salamon where I stayed last night. The sun was just coming up as I reached the top and to get a better view I climbed up the cliff next to the trail.  The views were amazing.  In the east I could see Peña Espigüette - the second highest mountain in the Cantabrian range (2451 metres) and, because of its near perfect shape, the most iconic.  One side of the pass the valley was full of mist while the other was clear and in bright sunshine.

Back on the GR1 Sendero Histórico - to Salamon

Over the last 3 years I've walked nearly 4000 kilometres in Spain.  My Spanish hasn't improved but I am starting to find my way around. The more familiar I get with the country the more I like it.

I'm a particular fan of the long distance route, the GR1. It goes all the way from the Asturias, in the north west of Spain, to the Mediterranean a journey of nearly a 1000 kilometres. I walked most of it in March and April of this year and despite the unusually poor weather I thought it was brilliant.  It's a well known walk in Spain but without an English language guide doesn't have an international reputation so I've been able to persuade a publisher that if I write one they'll produce it.

So of instead of walking the Ecrins circular, the trip I had planned to do in September, I'm back in Spain walking the GR1. I'm here for 2 weeks and I'm trying to do 2 things. Firstly I'm walking stretches which either I missed earlier in the year or which didn't go too well. Secondly I want to look at the options for getting to and from the trail.  On this trip I'm revisiting the western half of the route and all being well will back next April to do the rest.

The Indian Himalayan Grand Traverse - a Review

We haven't quite decided whether the Indian Himalayan Grand Traverse was our favourite ever trek but it's definitely up there with the very best.  It managed to combine novelty, adventure, great scenery and excellent company with good organisation

We've got Valerie Parkinson to thank for the idea of going on the trip.  Valerie is the Asia Base Manager for Exodus whom we met for the first time on the Annapurna Circuit last year. Valerie is a trekking legend.  She was the first British woman to summit Manaslu, has been working for almost 30 years in Nepal and Kashmir, and leads for Exodus on the development of new treks in the area.  After listening to the amazing account of her attempt on Everest we asked our usual question "what's your favourite trek" and without hesitation she came back with the "Indian Himalayan Grand Traverse".

So where is the trip and what makes it's so good?

The Indian Himalayan Grand Traverse crosses Ladakh, one of three provinces in the Indian state of Kashmir and Jammu.  Geographically it's in an interesting place.  Kashmir and Jammu is the bit of India that inserts itself into central Asia and, from geological point of view, Ladakh is really part of the Tibetian High Plateau.  It's very high and very dry with long cold winters and short hot summers.  It's also interesting from a geopolitical point of view. With the Indian Army facing up to the Pakistan and Chinese armies over contested borders, it's one of most militarised parts of the world.