It was cold during the night. The thermometer read 5°C when I woke, which was just under the 'recommended comfort zone' of my sleeping bag - I agreed! We watched as the sun tracked across the cliff towards us.
I reached over and got the stove purring for a morning brew while we waited.
The sun was soon on us and the temperature soared instantly.
It was tempting to stay put and relax where we were, but there was still a long way to go. A final check of the route (up the skyline from right to left - over the white limestone band) and we were off.
To save weight and energy, we stashed our bivi kit under a big boulder as we planned to return the same way later. This meant that we could make quick progress in the cool of the morning getting up to the first col on the GR11 long distance footpath.
It felt super remote with no one else around.
As we'd found on our previous excursions in the Pyrenees - the glaciers are almost gone.
From the Collado de Tebarray, we left the GR11 trek and started up the north ridge of the Picos del Infierno.
After a short scramble we got to the top of the first in a series of summits.
Looking down, we could see our bivi camp down by the lakes.
The views were brilliant. The weather was set perfectly for us!
Down on the other side of the mountain were the colourful lakes of the Lago Alto de Pecico.
Getting up to the NW summit, looked improbable and we almost decided to turn back. It looked very steep and we had no rope with us. Little by little we ventured further and found that it was much easier than it looked face on. Phew! From the top, I scrambled along the knife edge ridge that links the main summits.
The summit of the central peak is 3083m and the views were fantastic. I'd expected to find a cross or a madonna statue, but instead there was a cairn and some Buddhist prayer flags marking the high point.
There must be a geology lesson up here too as you literally cross the boarders between many rock types.
Next thing to do was carefully retrace our steps back along the ridge.
Down by the bivi camp, we took shelter in the shade under a huge overhanging boulder and packed our extra kit that we'd left there earlier.
And had a quick snooze after looking up at where we'd been.
It felt like a long way back to the Refugio, but we made the detour again for a much needed cold drink. We ate the last of our food there before continuing down.
Even though we were now tired and 'running on empty', we still found the energy to cool off at a picturesque plunge pool.
Total bliss and so refreshing...
The last half hour felt much easier after that!
Thanks to Clare's efficient pre-planning, and in anticipation of feeling totally exhausted, we had a hotel room booked a short drive away. We indulged in pizza and cold beers out on the street after a well needed shower. Sleep came easily...
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