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8-day trek along the French Pyrenees GR10 (Stage 1)

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Join UIMLA-certified leader Emma on stage 1 of the great GR10 Pyrenees trek. Ascend through picturesque green pastures, lovely seascapes and antique Basque villages.

Not specified

Pyrenees

8 Days

Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep

Fit

Intermediate


Description

Set among the stunning peaks of the Pyrenees, join me on stage 1 of the GR10. Roll with the hills past green pastures, seascapes and beautiful Basque villages. Reach the peak of Cresta d’Iparla at 1,049m, and ascend superb red sandstone ridges.

The GR10, short for Grande Randonnée (Big Walk), is a classic long-distance route along the Pyrenees, past stunning scenery and picturesque villages.

Stretching from the Basque shores off the Atlantic to the southern French beaches of the Mediterranean, the GR10 covers 538 miles (866km). The entire trek would take 2 months! That’s why we broke the whole route into 8 1-week sections.

Stage 1 covers around 7-13 miles (11-22km) each day, lasting around 4 to 8 hours. We begin in the French Basque country commune of Hendaye, and follow the footpaths among beautiful sea views and rolling hills. Walking past picturesque villages the terrain becomes more mountainous as we reach Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port.

This 8-day trip contains 7 nights in hotels and 6 days of trekking. And with luggage access throughout the trip, we only need to carry day packs.

Due to the length of walks each day, and the ascents ranging from 300m to 1,260m, a good fitness level is required.

Reserve your place for an unforgettable opening trek on the GR10 in the French Pyrenees.

Price includes

- Accommodation included

- Luggage transfer

- Breakfast

- Dinner

Price details

This is the price to join one of our Group Tours.

Accommodation is on a twin-share or dormitory basis.

Breakfasts and evening meals are included (except on arrival day).


Itinerary

Day 1: Arrival in Hendaye

I will brief you about the coming days and answer any questions you may have at the hotel in Hendaye. 

Day 2: Hendaye to Ascain

We begin in style by dipping into the sea at Hendaye Plage, the start of the GR10. We then pass through the village of Biriatou, rising rapidly above the Atlantic. We cross several cols before descending towards the village of Ascain. Depending on availability of accommodation we may need to take a transfer to our hotel.

Day 3: Ascain to Ainhoa

Today we will pass through the villages of Sare and Ainhoa, noted as “plus beaux villages de France”, and we’ll see a lot of traditional Basque houses dating back to the 17th century.

Day 4: Ainhoa to the Col des Veaux

A shorter day but is almost entirely uphill! We have a fantastic climb as we wind our way around Mount Errebí (583m), and then further past the Col des Trois Croix to Soporro (617m). We finally join the spectacular Gorospil ridge, and if the weather is good we can divert from the GR10 and take the ridge walk to the summit. In bad weather we’ll stay on the GR10 to reach the Col des Veaux.

Day 5: Col des Veaux to Bidarray

We pass underneath the Pic Iguzki to reach the Col de Mehatse (716m). We have a series of cols before we begin our steep descent to Bidarray. We’ll pass the Harpeko Saindua cave on the way down, whose limestone walls are said to have healing properties.

Day 6: Bidarray to Saint Etienne de Baïgorry

As we ascend to the superb red sandstone ridge, we reach the peak of the Cresta d’Iparla, at 1,049m. The view is exceptional, stretching from the Atlantic over 62 miles (100km) to your west, to the Pic d’Anie in the southeast.

Day 7: Saint Etienne de Baïgorry to Saint-Jean-Pied-dePort

Today’s climb takes us up to the Col d’Urdanzia (872m), followed by the Munhoa peak (1023m), with a panoramic view of Basse-Navarre down below. We descend through green pastures to the town of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, which is also the starting point for the Camino Francès, the most popular version of the Camino de Santiago.

Day 8: Departure day

Our trip finishes after breakfast.

 

Details

Accommodation

7 nights in hotels

Meeting point

Our hotel in Hendaye

About the guide

I'm a qualified International Mountain Leader (IML) and I have been leading expeditions for the last 15 years. I have led the Tour du Mont Blanc over 40 times, the Everest Base Camp trek 27 times, Kilimanjaro 10 times, and I have also led trips in Nepal, Peru, Cuba, India, Bhutan, Cambodia, Thailand, the Alps, the Pyrenees, Russia, Uzbekistan and Madagascar, amongst others.

I'm a passionate skier, in 2009 I made the first ski descent of Manaslu, the 8th highest mountain in the world (8156m).

Fluent in French, Russian and Spanish, I also work as an interpreter and love to chat.

Languages

Russian | French | English

Certificates

UIMLA


What people are saying about -Emma Jack

jeanne isaksen

4.00

July, 2023

We were Very pleased With Emma guiding us through the hikes. We really enjoyed the entire trip:) As we were just our family we would have loved a little more flexibility hiking in our own pace - felt we were rushed a bit too much. We should have informed Emma about this but we were too compliant:) The explore-share platform was a bit rigid/ formel - it was not clear that exploreshare hired another firm to do the job. Also quite a High fee to explore share We were first told to have an (expensive) extended travel insurance (with mountain rescue) up to departure / after we had plaid. We should have been told this before signing up. Another mistake were that explore share had told us last payment were due closer to departure - so in a rush we had to pay up 60 days before as this is cloud9advenures policy. This made us uncertain if it was fraud. But it wasn’t:) overall pleased with our trip

Fausto JIMÉNEZ

4.00

January, 2023

Bruno our guide was very helpful and profesional

Jill Seabrook

5.00

July, 2022

AMAZING! This was a last minute decision and my first multi day trekking tour and it far exceeded my expectations. The communication and preparation was comprehensive and accurate. Our guide (Lindsay) was phenomenal. The route was the perfect mix of challenge and comfort. I will definitely be booking my next hiking trek thru Emma.

Frank Van Nieulande

5.00

January, 2022

Emma is a very humble guide in a good way. Always in a good mood full of laughter who puts safety first and in for a good story about her previous adventures. We enjoyed her company a lot! Thanks Emma we had a wonderful time. Greetings Frank

Piyush Yawalkar

4.00

September, 2019

The traveller did not leave a comment.

Paul Connolly

5.00

March, 2019

Emma was very easy to communicate with (once we we able e in the same time zone, of course!). Our guide Phil was fabulous. Thanks to all.

Jule Mansfield

5.00

January, 2019

We booked 3 full days of private showshoeing in Chamonix. Emma Jack was very responsive to our inquiry during booking and our emails leading up to our trip. We were paired with a local guide, Sebastian, who was very knowledgeable about the Chamonix area and picked the perfect spots for us to snowshoe each day based on the weather and snowfall accumulation. I highly recommend booking your trip with Emma Jack and would use her again if we return.

Heather

5.00

September, 2018

Your service was wonderful - it was easy to use and put me in touch with my hiking guide Suze through Cloud 9 Adventure! I couldn't have asked for a better guide or day of hiking in Chamonix.

Vijay and Rosheen

4.00

March, 2018

Excellent start for us in snow shoeing with Phil our guide who kept things nice and easy - an enjoyable activity to redo.

Siti Aminah Othman

5.00

December, 2017

We had fun on that day!! The sun was shining all the way the there’s a lot of snow ? my kids enjoy the trip. All of the arrangement up to the guide is very professional handled & we enjoy the company..and will definitely booked with explore share again..keep up the good work guys!! ?

Virginie Poulin

5.00

August, 2015

Emma is a very nice and attentive guide. She is super healthy and energetic, always smiling. She has a great enthusiasm in general. Very knowledgeable about nature, she shares and teaches with care. Also, she always pays attention to each and any person, and especially adapts pace so that the hike remains a pleasant adventure and memory for all. Plus, she is very cautious of weather and mountain conditions, and has a lot of resources and ideas to adapt to the situation and hikers. In short, very nice and professional! You feel in good hands.

Mariann

5.00

June, 2015

Emma was a very sweet and knowledgeable guide. She was adaptive to the different personalities and skill level of our group. Easygoing, talkative, friendly and pleasant to be around! Couldn't be happier with our guide!


 

 

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