DAY 11/12 October 17^th/18^th Almandoz to Bielsa.

As the ONLY patrons sleeping in Beola we had coordinated with the owner Benat to have the elevator power turned on at 0900 so that we could take our luggage to the parking lot; the owner’s father volunteered to come and turn on the power. The Monday morning chilly air greeted the gang who saw wisps of mist draped upon the nearby hills it looked similar to floating cotton candy draped over the hills. Cow bells clanking the farmhouse dog way up yonder barked incessantly into the early morning haze. Ah the Baztan valley is almost awake at 0900 this Monday. Both couples loaded up, gave their room keys to the elderly chap wearing his black Basque txapela (beret); we thanked him for the hospitality and great food. He said that his family had originally started up further up the pass with a small store specializing in cured cold meats.

We popped in to Elizondo for croissants, coffee and WiFi! Met up with Pepa, Asun’s sister. Haven’t seen her in years! We bade a fond farewell to the Baztan and headed out.

We thought we would eventually meet up again with Dave and Joyce at Bielsa but as luck would have it, we met them as they drove into the underground parking in Jaca. Talk about dumb luck! We wandered around Jaca hoping to at least visit the old cathedral but it was closed! It was lunchtime and we were looking for a menu of the day. Not much luck there. One gentleman pointed out a good place but it too was closed! We settled for the first mediocre meal so for this trip!

The drive to Bielsa was amazing. We are now entering the Pirineos proper, soaring magnificent mountains, some rocky and forbidding with a sprinkling of snow, others less intimidating covered with trees. Autumn has barely started with only a few red and golden trees amongst the green. It will be gorgeous when it finally happens! Of course there were many “Kodak” moments. The weather is cooperating and it not as cold as we had anticipated. The Parador is at the end of the road, so to speak. A tortuous drive up a narrow road, with stone walls on one side and steep drops to the river on the other! We finally made it to the Parador and decided to stay there for the evening because, quite frankly, that drive, at night……..??????

The bar snacks were sufficient for us with oodles of wine! The bartender was less than friendly, a little cold, shall I say, but we softened him up a bit as the evening wore on.

Tuesday October 20, 2016

Another beautiful day is promised. The mountains outside the bedroom window are stunning with wisps of mist wreathing them and the sun trying it’s best to burn it off. We are very close to the border with France and we decided to head in that direction and take any promising turn off to see what we can see. None of us are really in an condition to hike or climb mountains but David has a 4x4 Volvo and we piled in and let ‘er rip! We found this tiny village of 7 houses, built of that wonderful stone so prevalent here. We parked in anticipation of a cup of coffee and a potty stop. I think David nearly walked into someones house. There was an Seniors playground, with stationary bicycles and big wheels which you were exhorted to use, but carefully,  and to use each arm to increase flexibility! I kid you not people! Nothing there, so we carried on up the mountain until we ran out of blacktop, but we couldn’t turn around because some other guy was parked on the only flat place. We went to ask him nicely if he would pull over to give us room and guess what? It was the bartender from the Parador! He was out there counting his goats, if he could find them, with the help of his binoculars. He told us that only one house in the village below was occupied, I think it was the one David entered. Anyway, he was very nice, told us where to get coffee, next to the gas station,  and helped us turn around to head in the right direction.

We found the gasolinero and the cafeteria. Joyce was not thrilled at the steep drops at the side of the road on the way down and averted her eyes in a very ladylike manner! Our policy, when trying to find somewhere for lunch, is to ask a cop! As luck would have it there were 4 Guardia Civil in the café so we struck up a conversation with them and got a recommendation for a restaurant in Plan, about 25 kilometers away. His name was  Antonio and he had spent 6 months in Leeds and 4 years in DC! Nice guy! Off we headed to Plan, found the restaurant and after a wander around the village and an attempt to inspect the old church, which was closed, we sat down to eat. It took us 2 hours to eat lunch and it was awesome! The waiter’s name is Angel and he is a friend of Antonio the Guardia Civil officer and they play some sport (?football) together!  The restaurant is La Capilleta in Plan and we highly recommend it!

We stopped several times on the way back to the hotel to take pictures,  we had intended to go to Ainsa, a medieval town but it was getting late, so we decided to leave it until the next day. We met up again at 8PM for dinner and to plan out the next day. Unfortunately Dave and Joyce have decided to cut their trip short and go back to the UK to deal with some family issues. Paul and I had a light meal and just listened . We are disappointed for them. We were splitting up the next day anyway but still it kind of put a damper on things. David has been able to cancel upcoming bookings and even managed a ferry booking the next day, so they will head straight back to Santander the next day and get home as quickly as they can.