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Visiting French Pyrenees in April Nature highlights?

Posted by (Salida CO) on

We are visiting the French Pyrenees in mid to late April. Traveling by car from San Sebastian to Carcassonne. We plan to miss Biarritz, Bayonne, Tarbe and Toulouse and Albi. Will visit small villages.

We are interested in nature, short hikes, scenery. We just miss the Cable Car up Pic du Midi by 2 days! Disappointed. Anyone visited Lac du Gaube near Cauterets? Cirque de Gavarnie? Lombrives Cave, Foix? Or the underground river trip also near Foix?

Ideas on the weather at that time? Still lots of snow? I believe ski resorts will be closed...

We will pass on cave paintings in Niaux as we will see them in Chauvet, near Vallon du Pont d'Arc at the Ardeche Gorge.

Suggestions welcome.

Thanks. Diane

Posted by
479 posts

We traveled through the French Pyrenees in mid April 2021. It was wonderful, the weather was mostly sunny but cool. The mountains had a lot of snow up high, trees down lower were just starting to show their leaves. Cirque de Gavarnie is spectacular. We visited lots of small villages, driving is easy on good country roads. take a look at Seix. St Lizier, Arreau, Luz Saint-Sauveur, Tarrascon, Foix is nice, not a village. Mirepoix is cute, near Carcassonne if you're headed that way.

This may stimulate your appetite: https://www.ariege.com/index.php
Bon Voyage Brad

Posted by
42 posts

Thanks very much, Brad! Good to know about the weather and roads. Did you visit any of the caves? We are starting in west, going east. Nights in Pau and Gavarnie and Ausson and Carcassonne. See small towns of Ainhoa, St Jean de Luz, St Jean Pied-de-Port, Cauterets.

Posted by
479 posts

Pays Basque is beautiful, definitely have gateau Basque amazing pastis. Pau and Ausson are both larger than the villages we stayed in. Unfortunately Niaux was closed for maintainence. Chauvet is a replica, try to visit a real cave, there are lots in Spain. Brad

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