Day 23: Moulin des Baronnies to Lortet

September 28, 2019 – Departed 9:20 – Arrived 19:00

The day started late as I was waiting for the rain to stop. It did, and this enabled me to enjoy the first segment of today’s hike, which followed the Arros river upstream. The path then went through some gentle hills and valleys, under overcast but otherwise dry skies.

Near a village, as I was walking along a pasture, I noticed a baby lamb that must have been born only a few minutes earlier. It was flopping helplessly in the grass, trying to stand up but not having any success at all. Meanwhile, the mother was licking it very conscientiously to clean it. I stayed there watching the scene for a good 15 minutes, until the lamb was strong enough to stand up and get its first taste of its mother’s milk. It was magical.

Later in the day, I took a lunch break in Esparros. There is a famous gouffre (cave) there, so I decided to go and visit. It was a guided tour – I was the only one at the 14:00 visit. The cave was discovered by famed French speleologist Norbert Casteret in 1938, and has been carefully developed to keep it pristine before opening to the general public. It is magnificent, not only because of its size but also because of the variety of shapes taken by accretions: some look like exquisite white flowers, others like corrals, etc. Quite beautiful.

After that I continued to Lortet. Unfortunately, I have been unable to find accommodation for tonight: everything either was fully booked, or had had its phone disconnected (never a good sign). So I pitched my tent in the mountain above Lortet, at the edge of a meadow. I can hear deers baying in the distance and owls hooting nearby, I just hope they won’t prevent me from sleeping!