GR11 Etapa 2: Erlaitz - Lakaingaia

[English below ]

Data: 02 Juliol 2019
Distància/desnivell: 27.4 km / (+1035),(-1057)

Temps en moviment: 7h 29'

La nit ha passat amb calma. S'escolta la pluja des de dins de la tenda. Hui caldrà tornar a desmuntar en banyat. Ens posem a caminar tard, cap a les 10 del matí. Avancem alguns kilòmetres en solitari per pistes forestals dins del parc natural Aiako Harria (Peñas de Aia). En passar l'embassament de San Antón (Endara) ens trobem un foraster que vol fer el GR11 complet en 25 dies, porta bon ritme i no tarda a perdre'ns de vista.

Mentre anàvem sols per les pistes he estat practicant amb Tuca algunes ordres d'obediència bàsica i la veritat, no ha anat gens malament. He aconseguit que vaja darrere de mi quan li ho demane. Va acostumant-se a ovelles, cavalls i vaques; però sempre guardant les distàncies. Si les ovelles se'ns acosten massa, els lladra. Als gossos que ens trobem al camí i són del lloc, no els diu res; són gossos molt segurs que no van en favades i ella ho capta ben prompte. El problema és, com de costum, quan ens trobem gossos en ruta, sobretot si van lligats. He d'estar molt pendent d'ella mentre va solta si no vull que genere una espiral de caos al seu voltant.

Arribem a Bera i ens trobem un Belga que, seguint una parella  de californians que fan l'Alta Ruta del Pirineu (HRP), s'ha desviat del seu GR10 francés. Em prenc una cervesa amb ell mentre intente ajudar-lo buscant una ruta sobre el mapa per que puga tornar al GR10. Viatja també amb el seu gos Django (en honor al gran músic de gypsy-swing Belga-Francés que a mí tant m'agrada escoltar), és un gos pastor d'una raça que no conec. Al mapa hem vist que des de Zia ix una senda que pot connectar amb la banda francesa. Li desitge sort, ens diguem adéu i al cap de poc estem ja eixint de Bera.

El camí és empinat fins a arribar al cim de Santa Bárbara, on trobem un dels molts búnquers que veurem al llarg del nostre recorregut per la frontera amb França. L'any 1939, Franco va manar fortificar i militaritzar la frontera pirenaica; encara es poden vore restes d'aquesta línia de defensa. A l'altura de la venta de Lizaieta hem creuat momentàniament a França i quasi sense adonar-nos entrem ja a la comunitat foral de Navarra mentre deixem enrere el País Basc. A escassos metres de la senda es poden vore unes estructures camuflades que estan presents gairebé des que hem començat la ruta. Són amagatalls muntats dalt d'unes bastides per a caçar amb escopeta. Està ple!

Són més de les set de la vesprada, caldrà buscar ja lloc per a dormir. Passem pel costat del "Palomeras Usotegui", un restaurant tancat que sembla haver sigut la seu social dels caçadors de la zona. Uns 10 km després de Bera trobem un turó on pasten ovelles i cavalls. El lloc està al costat mateix de la senda, potser massa exposat per al meu gust, però ens servirà.

Em dutxe darrere d'un biombo improvisat amb la tovalla i els bastons de caminar per no ser vist si algú passa caminant per la senda. Tuca està asseguda i pendent de les ovelles. Quan pastant pastant s'acosten massa al nostre territori, ella els lladra i les pobres ixen corrent espantades. L'escena es repeteix un parell de vegades més i tornen a sentir-se els esquellots allunyar-se darrere del turó. Aguanta una estoneta fent guàrdia però acaba rendida i adormint-se de peu. Li dedique uns minuts a fer les cures necessàries per als dos, faig el sopar i a dormir.

Relive 'GR11 Etapa 2: Erlaitz - Lakaingaia'

Relleu:

Descarrega el track en format GPX

English:

GR11 STAGE 2: ERLAITZ – LAKAINGAIA

Date: 02 July 2019

Distance/elevation: 27.4 km / (+1035),(-1057)
Time in motion: 7h 29'

The night has passed calmly. The rain can be heard from inside the tent; it will be necessary to pack everything wet again. We have started hiking late, around 10 in the morning. We hike a few kilometres alone through forest tracks in the Aiako Harria natural park (Peñas de Aia). Close to the San Antón water reservoir (Endara) we meet a stranger who wants to walk the GR11 in only 25 days, he walks at a good pace and he soon disappears from our sight.

Whilst hiking alone on the tracks, I have been practicing with Tuca some basic obedience orders and the truth is that she is doing quite well.  I have managed to get her to stay behind me when I ask. She is getting used to sheep, horses and cows; but always keeping her distance. If the sheep are getting too close to us, she barks at them. The problem is, as usual, when we encounter dogs on the road, especially if they are on a leash. I have to be really focused on her when she is loose if I do not want her generating a whirlwind of chaos when a dog appears. Surprisingly, she does not bark at the sheep dogs or guard dogs that we encounter, those dogs are quite brave and do not take any shit, she gets that immediately.

We have now arrived at Bera where we meet a Belgian guy who, following a Californian couple that are hiking the Pyrenees high route (HRP), has diverted from his route, the French GR10. Whilst drinking a beer with him in a bar, I am trying to help him looking for a route on the map so that he can return to his GR10. He is also hiking with his dog Django (in honour of the great Belgian-French gypsy-swing musician that I love to listen too), a type of sheep dog breed not familiar to me. After some research on the map, we have seen that near Zia there is a path that seems to connect to the French side. I wish him luck, we say goodbye to each other and after a while we are already leaving Bera.

The path is steep until reaching the summit of Santa Barbara, where we find one of the many bunkers that we will see on our route along the border with France. In 1939, Franco ordered the fortification and militarization of the Pyrenean border; remains of this defence line can still be seen. Close to the “venta de Lizaieta” we have crossed momentarily to France and almost without realizing we are already entering the community of Navarra while leaving behind the Basque Country. Camouflaged structures can be seen just a few meters from the path. Those structures have been present almost since we started the route. They are hides erected on top of scaffolding for hunters with shotguns. The place is full with them.

It is past seven o'clock in the evening; we should already be looking for a place to sleep. We pass next to "Palomeras Usotegui", a closed restaurant that seems to have been the headquarters of the hunters in the area. About 10 km after Bera, we find a hill with sheep and horses grazing. The place is nearby the path, perhaps too exposed for my tastes, but it will serve us.

I have a shower behind an improvised screen built with a towel and a pair trekking poles just in case someone walks along the path. Tuca is seated staring at the sheep. They are grazing and getting too close to our territory, she then barks at them and they run away scared. The same scene is repeated a couple of times more and the cowbells can be heard moving away behind the hill. She stands on guard a little bit more, but at the end she gives up and falls asleep. I take a few minutes to heal both of us; then dinner and sleep.